I just found out that I have to work a shift (a quiet room, about 3 feet apart) from a girl who just came back from bible school somewhere down south.
She asked what religion I was, I told her I was taoist, and that I thought evangelising your own religion was lame.
Now she looks at me with a strange glare (probably the, you are a sinner glare) and she highlights everything she reads in different colors, it makes an annoying sound in a quiet room, and she does the whole goddamn shift.
what should I do? does anyone have any funny practical jokes I can play on a born again, (ones that don’t get them to freak out thinking I am the devil or anything)
jesus, this is going to be a long semester.
Help, Help, help.
oh yeah, today she told me, “I don’t drink, I’m not like that,” kind of out of the blue after I asked her what she does for fun. She said she does nothing for fun. This is so weird.
@ people that come from an upscale white (or civilised if youd prefer) culture… sad all these unecessary lil social proplem they give themselfes.
and lol at both you and the girl.
seems your not the person who speeks your mind, so thats out the window, since you probly wont know how to do it charmingly so it doesnt bother her is you point out how something she does anoys you.
ask what she does to enjoy herself not what she does for fun, if she says nothing shes lying. oh and if you can find one in a shop you could always buy her markers that dont squeek
aww man thats funny, what you people put yourselfs through, if you cant become her friend then put her in her place - how you do it is up to you.
Eastern religions allow western people to feel cool, and beyond their culture, that is until when and if, they discover that billions are bored with the ideas.
mike you should be happy, the born again devil worshipers are a much bigger pain in the ass.
i always find how people worship intresting, maybe try asking about it, but take it as a study rather than an attempt to change your mind, cuz you wouldn’t want that
One usually has to work with people one wouldn’t normally spend time with, so I’d suggest getting used to it.
Seems like a very silly claim to me. Everyone evangelises their own ‘religion’. Some people call this ‘freedom of speech’.
You mean roughly the same glare, words somewhat altered, with which you look at her?
So tell her.
The fact that you’re so stupid as to categorise her as ‘a born again’ means that you wouldn’t get any of the jokes that I could suggest. I’d work harder on your own patience and acceptance of people whose ideas, no matter how stupid they may seem to you, are not a justification for your childish prejudice.
You are making it such. If you taught yourself to just not give a damn about what other people believe, or even better, to respect people even if you think that they and their beliefs are stupid (the Kantian response) then you’d be less stressed by such things. You set yourself up to react like them, then blame others.
No, no, no.
Well, most young people drink. It’s a somewhat odd statement to make, but you can see why she made it.
Perhaps she doesn’t distinguish between doing things for fun and doing them for other purposes. That isn’t weird at all - it’s the mark of someone who doesn’t need to split up their life into ‘work’ and ‘play’, which is a much more mature attitude than you are demonstrating.
Grow up - there are all sorts of people in the world and the vast majority are stupid. Until you do something spectacular, you are just like the rest. Looking down on someone (and naming them in a derogatory fashion) because of their religious beliefs and/or because they use a squeaky pen is bloody immature, and will only make you more angry and frustrated.
Maybe for fun, you could fool her into thinking you’re interesed in becoming reborn, but that you have too many sins to think it might work. You could scare her into gradually believing you are really a disturbed and unclean person by every day starting he same conversation with her, but with a different sin you very carefully and indirectly confess. (also be very difficult about very small sins like not petting a cat who came to you for attention)
Also ask her about all the things you’ve heard about Jesus being sexually very active and being decended from Pharao’s, and having survived the crucifixion. (Don’t forget to read the newly discovered gospel of Judas; nationalgeographic.com/lostg … ument.html and quote from it every day. Bless Judas every day for his service to you and her. Do not appear sadistic, but compassionate) You could ask her if she thinks that Jesus would forgive you if you think he was a pimp, who married aprostitute (Magdalena) and who kept the head of his tantric-sex master (John the Baptist) as a magical cauldron.
Unlike the responders here I can imagine how tedious a born again is, mainly because I’ve sat next to them in busses. But they are often really interesting when you provoke them, you can get in a lot of funny and even educational debates.
Also look up the idea that Taoism is a predecessor of Christianity. But the main point to get her unbalanced is a twofold approach; 1) convince her you want to convert, 2) make sure she understands your conception of Christianity is unacceptable to her.
Have fun, but the key thing to remember is to be morosely serious at all times. Keep your laugh inward as long as you’re in the room with her.
the thing is, even if you do nothing spectacular, you can always enter the room with an exaggerated arm flourish and a hearty “TA DA!!” just for effect…
if she has no sense of humoUr, she’ll look at you as if you are still the ultimate sinner but with a touch of insanity, but if she laughs, laugh along with her… you may find a friend
Unlike some of the people on this thread, I can imagine how tedious it is to find all sorts of people mocking Christians (and others, but usually Christians) because they think it makes them look cool, but their arguments are invariably ignorant, unsound and just embarassing.
Well that’s the thing - you’ve got a choice between trying to get on with people and resenting them just because you happen to disagree with them. A good sense of humo[size=67]u[/size]r, as your suggestion illustrates wonderfully, can go a long way towards breaking down such barriers.
You have probably already scared her into a protective shell. get her markers that don’t squeek or get earplugs.
Leave innocent little kid games or toys lying around, the ones you can get for less then a buck at a toy store or at the front of a supermarket checkout counter. or get a bag of kid puzzles things. Ones like getting the balls in all the holes or a ball inside a maze or finger puzzles unlocking things or disconnecting things. you know puzzles. Do not get a Chinese finger cuff or lock whatever they are called , bad idea. no, no.
These kids toys are irresistable, they demand to be played with even by the most stuffed shirt person around. It might help to break the ice barrier that exists. Oh and apologize for offending her. You might be surprised at how well that works. Be the bigger person.
Prove all of her misconceptions about non-Christians wrong. Be yourself. Many of my friends are born-agains who try to convert me into the fold. I tell them (I am repeating myself here) I am Christan-lite, Taoist-lite, and Jewish-lite. Do you celebrate Christmas, Sir? Well, that makes you Christian-lite. I married a Jewish man. I am Jewish by injection. ([size=75]Jewish-lite)[/size]
I like the Tao philosophy. I like espresso too, but that doesn’t make me Juan Valdez.
You don’t have to agree religiously to be friends or to work together. Broaden yourself. Have kind tolerance for all.
I’d just say ignore her and keep the relationship professional.
I have a co-worker who is a very ardent Catholic. Now, she grew up in small town America where Catholicism is, you know, a kind of ‘out there’ religion. So, when she brought that topic up and my girlfriend explained that she was raised Buddhist (but isn’t too serious about it) she looked at my girlfriend like she was from Space. I mean literally. Since she is in the sciences, she was at least used to the idea of my humanism, though this is Indiana, so the idea of a humanist is still pretty crazy.
That doesn’t make her a bad person, she is merely limited by her experiences. So, we keep a distant work relationship and that is that. No need to get antagonistic. Tolerance cuts both ways, and I feel it is usually best to lead by example.
Living in the same general area and knowing a bit of your background, I understand your reaction, BUT it might be a bit of over-reaction. It is one thing to be non-religious (social definition) and quite another to be anti-religious. Let it go. Be courteous, be pleasant, and let the religious issues go.
First of all I DO respect all religious people, including Christian sects. This is mundane babble, and I just wanted to vent that I have many many hours ahead of me with someone who looks at the world, differently and the same with her. I was just looking for a cheer up because at the time, work was mundane . . . hence mundane babble.
It is not true that everyone evangelizes their own religion.
Again, I am not mocking Christians, I am saying it will be awkward at times to work with a Born Again one who went to Bible School all summer. Someone who is REALLY into it, that is all. That is not mocking all Christians at all. You are overreacting, and do not need to tell me to “grow up,†. . . this is mundane babble, not a serious section.
Loki and Kriswest,
Thanks for the ideas. Ha ha. That is all I wanted, some fun.
Impenitent,
I did get her to laugh a little, but I can’t remember what it was. That was the greatest part of my day.
Bessy,
Yeah that is true. I do celebrate Christmas, and that is a nice way to look at it. I am not jewish by injection though. But I did have a hanakah party for my dog a while ago, and my jewish friend did the ceremony. That was pretty fun, so I guess I am a little jewish-litte too.
@ people that come from an upscale white (or civilised if youd prefer) culture… sad all these unecessary lil social proplem they give themselfes.
It is one thing to be non-religious (social definition) and quite another to be anti-religious. Let it go. Be courteous, be pleasant, and let the religious issues go.