How to politely tell a family member I'm not worried about the second coming of Christ?
How to politely tell a family member I'm not worried about the second coming of Christ?
My aunt is a wonderful lady, but she's very gullible. Thanks to a video she saw on Facebook, she now believes the conflict in Israel is a sign of the end times and is deeply concerned for my immortal soul. How do I politely let her know that while I appreciate her concern I have no real reason to believe that the Israeli government commiting war crimes against Palestine is going to bring about the second coming of Christ?
Handle it the same as you would any monomania.
"Hey, I get this is important to you, and I've listened. It's getting boring enough that no matter how much I love you, it makes you hard to be around."
I know, that seems harsh, but half the trouble people have with other people comes down to not being direct and clear.
Just tell her that according to the rules. All you have to do is repent moments before you die, and your soul is forgiven and you’ll go to heaven. Easy peasy.
- Palestinian Civil War (1947)
- First Arab Israeli War (1948)
- Suez War (1956)
- Six Day War (1967)
- Yom Kippur War (1973)
- Lebanon War (1982)
- First Intifada (1987-1993)
- Second Intifada (2000-2004)
- another Lebanon War (2006)
- Battle of Gaza (2007)
(Note this is not a comprehensive list)
And this doesnt even include ANY of the Jewish Revolts during the Roman Empire or any other Middle East turmoil. Or any of the other times people have claimed the world was ending. 2012. Y2K. Etc.
How many god damn tries does God need? If God wanted to kick off the whole Apocalypse thing then he would either do it or they are so bad at doing it that itll never happen.
Maybe Aziraphale and Crowley keep screwing it up for them?
Any god that will punish you based on your non-belief is not a god that deserves worship. Even if that god does exist, I would rather be punished than worship a arrogant, vengeful god.
Strong words but if an actual god decided to punish you do you really think you could take a principled stance? Especially against a vengeful one?
Probably not. But luckily one such god doesn't exist. ;)
Exactly this thought was my first step into agnosticism. God is irrelevant. People who are just behaving in a good way out of fear of being disciplined at the end of times (and not out of their free will) are bad people.
Many years later I arrived at atheism (with the single caveat that I can't scientifically disprove god, but if it exists it is irrelevant for my life).
I choose to be a non asshole by following my own moral compass.
Does she know that you're no longer a Christian?
Zombie Jesus memes?