I'm sad to say that I didn't even feel a tickle of disbelief in the cannibals comment. It does not surprise me that many U.S. Christians are so ignorant and unafraid of admitting that, and that is sad. I admittedly feel unease in admitting that I practice Druidry because I know most people will immediately associate it will Devil worship and think I'm sacrificing goats in my backyard when, in reality, our seasonal ceremonies are little more than a form of thanksgiving and reflection on the changing seasons.
It would be an interesting experience for many Christians, I suspect, to enter a room full of those of us who occupy the minority and have themselves prejudged by the worst misconceptions about their faith and treated based on those misconceptions. (And, sadly, for many them, the "misconceptions"--such as that they are intolerant ignoramuses--actually are not, as the cannibal comment made to your children proves.) Normally, I do not wish discomfort on others, but I think this country would become a much kinder place if they truly understood what it is to be misunderstood in that way.
My children, as you can well imagine, are now vehemently - and often belligerently - anti-Christian, and all because of their treatment at the hands of so-called "Christian" children.
That does not surprise me. I have a very dear friend who was raised in a fundamentalist Christian family and has been a Christian for over 50 years, although not a fundamentalist. He's also gay, and he recently abandoned Christianity when he realized that so many who supposedly shared his beliefs wanted him treated as a second-class citizen, "corrected," or even killed. He told me that he began to question whether his understanding of what it means to be Christian--to be kind, forgiving, tolerant &c--was the correct interpretation, when so many others seemed to believe exactly the opposite. He's now one of the most vocally anti-Christian people I know. It makes me sad because, in this case, hate has bred hate, and it didn't need to be that way, if respect, tolerance, and kindness had guided the way people treated him and others with whom they share the world.
It would be an interesting experience for many Christians, I suspect, to enter a room full of those of us who occupy the minority and have themselves prejudged by the worst misconceptions about their faith and treated based on those misconceptions. (And, sadly, for many them, the "misconceptions"--such as that they are intolerant ignoramuses--actually are not, as the cannibal comment made to your children proves.) Normally, I do not wish discomfort on others, but I think this country would become a much kinder place if they truly understood what it is to be misunderstood in that way.
My children, as you can well imagine, are now vehemently - and often belligerently - anti-Christian, and all because of their treatment at the hands of so-called "Christian" children.
That does not surprise me. I have a very dear friend who was raised in a fundamentalist Christian family and has been a Christian for over 50 years, although not a fundamentalist. He's also gay, and he recently abandoned Christianity when he realized that so many who supposedly shared his beliefs wanted him treated as a second-class citizen, "corrected," or even killed. He told me that he began to question whether his understanding of what it means to be Christian--to be kind, forgiving, tolerant &c--was the correct interpretation, when so many others seemed to believe exactly the opposite. He's now one of the most vocally anti-Christian people I know. It makes me sad because, in this case, hate has bred hate, and it didn't need to be that way, if respect, tolerance, and kindness had guided the way people treated him and others with whom they share the world.
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