The Bloggers With The Most To Say
Is God a dirty word?
or Jesus?
I feel like people always say you shouldn't talk about your religion because you're trying to force it on people.
The problem with that is that they're forcing the lack of religion on me, and they usually win for some reason.
Atheism is a belief set. It shouldn't get preferential treatment.
I feel like people always say you shouldn't talk about your religion because you're trying to force it on people.
The problem with that is that they're forcing the lack of religion on me, and they usually win for some reason.
Atheism is a belief set. It shouldn't get preferential treatment.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by melanie on -
but isn't your blog supposed to be about you? about your thoughts? i get if you're writing, say, a fashion blog, or a food blog, but if you're writing about your life and god, your religion, or lack thereof are a part of your life, then there is no reason you shouldn't write about them.
if you're worrying about what people say, just stop. nobody is ever going to be happy with everything, and everybody is never going to love your blog. since you can't please the world, my thought is just write to the best of your ability and if you offend someone, they can always leave. you're not making anybody read it.
athiesm is totally a belief set. i think it is wrong to push any belief on anybody. but talking about your own religion on a blog about you and your life is totally acceptable.
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Permalink Reply by L.L. on -
Maybe it's not the lack of religion - but maybe people are worried about taking the lord's name in vain or something.
I'm an atheist and I say "Oh my god" and "jesus christ" all the time - in the same way I say "I'm going to kill the asshole that drank my last diet coke." To me and a lot of people those are just expressions.
That said - people are also so sensitive about religion that they are likely just worried that saying god in the presence of someone who does not believe in the same god (or any, in my case) will offend somehow. I think the world is just too sensitive.
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Permalink Reply by Mindy on -
I often see the other side of the same argument where I live - never on my blog though.
"Oh my God" and other phrases that "take the Lord's name in vain" are part of how I speak on a regular basis. Yet religious people I know - and some I don't know, I'm sure - are regularly offended by my use of those phrases. Some have even asked that I cease using them, to which I reply with some variation of "no." I find that request as them pushing their beliefs on me, asking me to behave according to their standards, and I don't think that's exactly reasonable.
Generally speaking, we should be tolerant of other people's beliefs or the lack thereof. It's simply rude to expect others to act with your specific values consistently in mind, at least when it comes to circumstances such as and similar to these - things that are rather inconsequential, if you ask me.
More or less, I don't ask those individuals to say "Oh my God" just because I don't hold that one word to the same level as they do, so I don't think they should ask that I don't say it.
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Permalink Reply by melanie on
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i think i'm understanding the original post differently than you two ladies...i read it as saying that they feel the topics of religion or god are taboo, and that there is a lot of pressure (or the writer feels pressure) to leave religion out of things lest people feel like it's being pushed on them.
on the topic of offending people with language...i am religious and say "oh my god" and "jesus christ" all the time. that being said, i do try to be mindful of my surroundings. i don't say things of that nature, say, at my grandma's. if i'm in someone's home and know they would be offended, i'm a little nicer. just like you wouldn't call someone an asshole in front of a 3 year old, even if they did drink your last diet coke (at least i wouldn't, lol), i think there is a time and a place, or there is in my life. in a public place, in your own home, and certainly in your blog, say and do what you want.
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Permalink Reply by Amanda Jacob on -
I don't like that we all have to be so sensitive to others all the time. Why can't we just let people "be"? To me, using the Lord's name in vain is offensive, but I don't ask people that don't have a problem with it to with hold if they are around me. They know how I feel and I know how they feel and there is a mutual understanding. No one should have to "force" or "deny" a belief. I think that if we all accepted each other as we are, a "agree to disagree" mentality, then it would be a lot easier for interaction with all the variations of lifestyles. There has to be some kind of compromise because it isn't realistic to completely isolate yourself with others that believe exactly as you do. So my attitude is to just let people be who they are.
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Permalink Reply by jay. on -
I don't talk about my religion, my faith, or my beliefs unless specifically asked.. as not to offend anyone. It's really hard to be on the "believing" side of God, because when the discussion turns into an argument and they want proof of God, I can't give it to them. There is no tangible proof... you can't feel him, see him, hear him... not like you would think anyway. But, it's not about proof, it's about faith. And faith is a hard thing to explain to someone who already has their mind made up that God doesn't exist. There's no swaying that.
I've said "Oh my God" before.. and I feel crappy every time, haha. I am offended when people say "Jesus Christ." I've never asked anyone to not say it though. However, I think it's disrespectful to say "no" when someone asks you to not take "the Lord's name in vain." Not because I think you should do it to please them, but because I think it's a respectful thing to do. They're not asking you to never say it again, they're just asking that you refrain from saying it in their presence because it does offend them. My Dad is real old fashioned, and when I'm with him I don't say things like, "freaking" or "crap" which may seem ridiculous to you, but he doesn't like those words and so out of respect for him, I watch what I say when I'm around him.
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Permalink Reply by L.L. on
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I understand that you think it's disrespectful if people don't want to tone down the "oh my god" if it offends you, however - people get offended by LOTS of words. It's a lot easier to just let it slide than it is to ask every person who makes what you deem to be an offesive comment to not do it. I use all kinds of words in the wrong context and I'm sure it offends people sometimes - but people say other stuff that offends me just as much. It all evens out.
However - I do understand your Dad situation. I'm 27 years old and my dad hates it when I swear and he DESPISES my tattoos - so I don't swear infront of him and I cover my tats when I'm at his house. My Dad can command that respect from me - people walking down the street who take offense to my liberal use of "jesus christ" cannot.
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Permalink Reply by jay. on
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I get where you're coming from, with the whole respect thing... I guess it just comes down to the "everyone is different" thing. I try to be respectful of everyone, until given a reason not to, because that's what I would like in return.
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Permalink Reply by Whitney on -
Love that you posted this. I've been struggling with it myself. I have a blog that's only open to my closest friends and family that goes pretty in depth into my spiritual life. When I created my most recent public blog, I decided to leave those things out because I didn't want a potential employer to run across it and not hire me for it. Now I'm struggling with the question "Would I really want to work for someone like that anyway?" And the answer is pretty much no. There are still parts of all of it that are just too personal for total public blogging display, but overall I think I'm coming to the realization that if I worry more about offending people, I'm not sure how committed I am to my faith in the first place. If God's the center of my life, like I want Him to be, how can I not talk about Him?
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Permalink Reply by O.F.C.J. on -
P.S.
Whitney, "...but overall I think I'm coming to the realization that if I worry more about offending people, I'm not sure how committed I am to my faith in the first place. If God's the center of my life, like I want Him to be, how can I not talk about Him?" Bingo.
As I said...Remember Who/What/When You Are Living For. ;)
O.F.C.J.
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