Have any Liberal Christians here ever been tempted to join the Fundamentalists?

[More Than A Feeling]

If so, how did you resist that temptation? Or if you were a Fundamentalist at one point, how did you leave that mindset behind?

How do you deal with them when they proselytize?

[Maat]

1. I haven't, but I hope that you don't mind if I bookmark this thread.

I'd be interested in the answers. I know that many liberal, or progressively-minded, Christians have migrated from hardright/conservative churches (e.g. they attended them growing up).

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. ditto...

I was never religious or tempted... but I'd like to hear the other answers...

[Parisle]

3. Hardly,..... but with a somewhat unique perspective

--- In my marketing agency days, I had a couple of their icons as clients,... Falwell and Robertson (I'm in Virginia, too, eh?) I helped plan and design many of the print pieces which accompanied the advent of Falwell's so-called Moral Majority, we handled his direct-mail fundraising... I had some close encounters,.. and though I was sickened, I was also amazed. As a newspaper writer ten years earlier, I had interviewed Falwell,.. a sleepy, Southern Baptist minister with his own school and a hundred buses,... just sixty miles from my house. The Moral Majority crap was a big step for the Rev. Jerry.

--- Less with Robertson,.. but he was very good friends with my boss,... and even filmed one of his freaking shows from our offices.. But I heard a lot of stories. Neither of these guys are what they want you to think they are. Power and piety cannot coexist in the same person.

[Staph]

4. I grew up in the Methodist church.

In a college town in the seventies, they were pretty darn progressive. When I was ten or eleven, we attended a fundy church one Sunday on a family vacation. The Sunday school teacher (and most of the students) were very concerned that I had not yet been born again. I had no idea what they were talking about.

As I grew up, I stayed with the (now) United Methodists. I was always taught both in and out of church to think for myself. The fundies I have met want someone else to think for them. Why did God bother giving them brains if they don't use them!

[More Than A Feeling]

5. You weren't going to trade away your conception of God on someone else's say-so.

I guess that's an underappreciated virtue of strong faith: if you've got it in the idea of a god who doesn't want you to surrender yourself to totalitarianism and destroy those who refuse to do likewise, it won't be budged by the temptation of an idea of a god that does want that.

[Maat]

6. I'm a believer (non-Christian).

I, too, have always been taught to think for myself. My grammie took me the Laguna Presbyterian church, but I never heard anything too conservative from the pastor. She took me fairly regularly until I was fifteen, and ever-so-politely declined to attend anymore.

30 years went by. When I turned 45 (3 years ago), I began attending Church of Religious Science (not Scientology, not Christian Science). It basically is a very inclusive church that sees "God" as a Universal Consciousness, and humans as equally divine. We honor all paths. I also attend the local Unitarian-Universalist church. I love exploring various belief systems. I'm definitely at the progressively-minded end of the religious spectrum.

[More Than A Feeling]

8. Have you explored naturalism/humanism?

TechBear_Seattle posted an excerpt from the Humanist Manifesto II earlier today. If you haven't read it, I'd give it a look.

[Maat]

15. I'll give it a read.

Thanks.

I believe in a Divine Energy-Consciousness, however, and that's why I enjoy exploring the mystical.

[madrchsod]

7. no

temptation? lol
i explain that my jesus is different than their jesus so... they shut up, which gives me great satisfaction knowing they have nothing else to say

[More Than A Feeling]

9. Have they ever called you a Secular Humanist?

I was reading Chris Hedges' latest effort, and he mentioned that Fundamentalists consider Christians who doesn't buy their authoritarianism a Secular Humanist.

[Maat]

16. Yes, people like Rev./"Dr." Al Mohler, of the Southern Baptists,

consider anyone who doesn't share their rigid belief system not only a "secular humanist," but "satanic," or under the influence/power of Satan. That always cracks me up each and every time. I began researching the Religious Right right after my relatives moved back to the Midwest, and all became intense Southern Baptists.

[JerseygirlCT]

26. I remember Falwell throwing that term around a lot with

a sneer on his face.

I never understood why that was supposed to be some sort of pejorative. It completely puzzled me. I remember thinking "and this is a *bad* thing?"

[TreasonousBastard]

10. Nope. Even as a kid growing up in...

a very conservative Lutheran church and school, I just didn't buy into the dogma.

I remain nominally a Christian because, well, what would be the point of a radical change to another religion when the essence of Christianity serves rather well, and liberal Quakerism is a perfect junction for the universalism I was always drawn to.

[bananas]

11. Yes - "cherchez la femme"

"Voulez-vous crusade avec moi c'est soir?" she said,
as heaven and hell merged into some ontological ineffable cloud of unknowing ...

[Lydia Leftcoast]

12. Never--their style (show bizzy, glitzy) turned me off

I like dignified worship services with good music, both of which are in short supply in the typical fundie church.

[WoodrowFan]

13. nope

nope, not even slightly tempted.

I just smile, tell them I am a Christian, and walk away.

[Tigress DEM]

14. "Join" is an interesting word.

I have attended other churches and such and I like to learn about other people's beliefs in general. Not to convince them to my way of thinking, but just to expand my own understanding.

I actually did a full water baptism at Melody Land in California even though I am and was already baptized Catholic. My parish didn't punish me, they just said it was an extra blessing. That's how I view it.

I was slain in the spirit by Billy Graham, but it didn't make me decide that the Bible was an "exactly written" document that wasn't up to interpretation and needed to be understood in context.

During ecumenical services I've gone up and renewed my commitment to Christ, but I don't think of that as "joining them" I think of it as renewing my own personal faith. A way of not "denying" that I believe in Jesus by making my belief public.

Some one I met recently called herself a "cafeteria Catholic" a "take what you like & leave the rest" approach.

My sampling takes me outside the church as well, though. The words and deeds of Christ are my rock solid compass points, but I sail out among anyone & everyone, just seeing the beauty in all people who truly live according to ways of peace and justice and respect.

What keeps me from being "brought in" by their words is the resistance I have to being required to judge another when Jesus so distinctly told us that is God's job.

I don't believe that any true faith can require it's followers to hate in Christ's name. It simply goes against every ounce of belief I have ever developed inside myself and see in others who truly get how Jesus was teaching us to BE the eyes and hands of God to deliver AGAPE and be "God with skin on" for those who don't know Him yet.

To me God isn't about judging as much as letting people pick their own lessons and consequences. If they choose not to make loving choices, people will live more and more outside of Love and that is their own self punishment.

People who live by rules of Love will still hurt and suffer, but their pain can be shared and the strength they gain inspires others to keep moving forward.

[MistressOverdone]

17. Yes, at about age 23 or 4

I was what they called then a "Jesus Freak."

And it was lovely for a while..very up and all that. Then I began to realize that there were stinkers in the bunch, just like in every other group of human beings and it just didn't seem that important to me anymore, so I went back to my regular church.

And their music was awful. Kumbaya stuff. No Mozart! What's a church without Bach and Ave Verum? Geez!

[Bragi]

18. At one level I've always envied fundies...

I have always envied the brainless certainty that Christian fundies (and other fundies) enjoy, wherein everything one needs to know is contained within the covers of one book.

For me, I need entire effin' libraries just to hold the books I have to read to try to fathom what I see about me.

I guess I was just born unlucky.

- B

[trotsky]

19. Back when I was a liberal Christian, I was.

Mainly because I was a horny teenager and the fundamentalist was a very cute girl. :evilgrin:

Actually when I went to their service, they did the speaking in tongues thing and it was all I could do not to run out of there. Later she was telling me how she always prayed to see angels but never did, but once she saw a demon and it was scary! I nodded and decided to announce that I was late for work, and high-tailed it outta there. No danger of me turning into salt either, as you could not have paid me to look back.

[kwassa]

20. I still am.

I find similarities between Pentacostalism and various mystical practices, with the idea of the spirit descending upon one. In my next life I might be a Pentacostalist.

I like gospel music, I like the physicality of the spiritual practice in many of these churches, having been brought up Protestant and trained to sit on hard wooden pews and never move. I still have a problem with that. I like music that makes me get up and dance and sing, complete with drums and tamborine. I like a practice that engages my emotions as much as my mind.

At the same time, I really like the classic church music and old hymns. I am destined to remain eclectic forever, I guess. The traditional Protestant practice can be a real snooze, however, without a gifted preacher, and there aren't many of them around.

I can't stand the vapid pop of contemporary Christian churches. I am an unlikely megachurch candidate.

It is easy for me to take what I like and leave the rest in almost any religious practice.

[gbate]

21. I was one at one time, a few years ago.

It's not difficult to leave behind the mindset when you never really "bought it" in the first place. They do employ some very convincing arguments, though, and it's hard to dispute some of the teachings, especially if you have been a spiritually "searching" person your whole life.

[DemGa]

22. How do you deal with them when they proselytize?

I usually just take whatever flyer they're passing out and say "thanks." Or I might tell them I'm spiritual, not religious. That seemed to work pretty well with a couple of fellows who showed up on on bicycles recently.

[rasputin1952]

23. No...Fundemantalists have so many things wrong and

misguided, I find it difficult to to even discuss some things w/them.

Some, but not all Fundementalsits believe thaty are reading a correct impression of the Bible, but they refuse to discuss w/rabbi's and others what many of the lessons of the Bible speak of, especially when it comes to forgiveness and understanding.

One of my favorite talking points is Genesis and creation: Adam & Eve have Caine and Abel, Caine kills Abel, end of human line, we don't exist. To add to the confusion, God tells Caine to go out and find a wife and build cities....what wife, and what do you need a city for if you are the only one around, would not a cave suit you just fine until you die?

I would say that only part of the story is there, and I'm not so sure Adam was made from dirt, all thought mankind can certainly lower it self to dirt.

But I digress.....The "joy" that fundementalist find in thinking that they are going to heaven, and everyone else is condemned to hell is frightening to say the least; they've lost the message of understanding and relish the thought that others will burn eternally...kind of a sad thought.

[hunter]

24. No.

I dive right in when they proselytize, and they'll generally run away from the subject, like "uh-oh...", like they'd expected a cute little bunny they could lure into their net and got a cave bear instead.

Nice cave bear, yesiree, unusual weather we've been having, isn't it?

One of my great passions is evolutionary biology, so I usually start there. It also makes me angry that gay couples can't marry. And oh, yeah, I am for the most part a Social Justice Catholic, and I to Mass on Sunday.

I'll happily argue with God Himself, not to mention Bishops, so someone proselytizing isn't going to get anywhere with me, and it only seems fair to let them know that right away.

Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't have a bunch of Darwin's The Origin of Species to hand out to anyone who gives me a Bible.

I also know where a lot of good stuff is in the Bible, the kinds of things Fundamentalists don't like to talk about, or deliberately misrepresent.

God doesn't buy you an Escalate and a Big Screen television because He Loves You. It has never worked that way.

[JerseygirlCT]

25. Never.

My upbringing in the Catholic church was a pretty liberal one. Social justice and all that.

Frankly, growing up in the NYC metro area, we had lots of experience with Jews, and of course, other Catholics, but Protestants, particularly of the fundamentalist stripe, were a complete rarity. Just not on my radar.

But there *were* far more conservative Catholic parishes about, and I knew I never, ever, wanted a part of that!

I've always been one to ask questions, and sometimes to get in trouble for not conforming. Non-conformance probably doesn't sit well with fundamentalists, who seem to enjoy the "thems the rules" approach to life. Tell me that, and I'll find six different ways to prove that's not the case, lol!

[Exiled in America]

27. Hell I don't even know if I qualify as a liberal christian, but I'll answer....

I was raised fundamentalist and my entire family escaped it. It started with me, and I helped persuade my mother and father (a Christian minister) to rethink things.

Now they define their Christian experience by working for social justice (mainly working against poverty - their little niche) in their community and voting democratic. :)

[camero]

28. I went to one evangelical church

and I got so sick to my stomach with the charlatan's sermon I never went back to any church. And I never will again.

[skepticscott]

29. I've been tempted

to join WITH a fundamentalist...with long blonde hair and heavenly green eyes. Sad to say, Biblical knowledge was not forthcoming.