Is Trying to Spread Christianity... UNCHRISTIAN???

In My Humble Opinion
1

I do not expect any non-Christian to rejoice when Christian proselytizers attempt to recruit them. Many non-Christians are already passionately devoted to their religions, others consider ALL religion a waste of time, while others simply regard Christian proselytizers as nuisances, rather like Amway reps or telemarketers.

So, if you’re a non-Christian and you resent attempts to convert you, that’s understandable. And it makes perfect sense to me that Jews would be outraged when Baptists launch massive conversion efforts. Lest you think I can’t understand what it’s like to be beset by people who insist my religion isn’t as good as theirs, I should point out that I’m a Roman Catholic. To many fundamentalists, that makes me a NON-Christian, and I HAVE had fundamentalists (and Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons and Moonies) try to convert me.

So, to those who aren’t interested in Christian propaganda, I can only say "Feel free to tear up Christian literature that arrives in the mail. If a church tries to phone you, feel free to hang up. If a proselytizer comes to your door, feel free to slam the door in his face- and if he won’t leave after that, you have my blessing to call the cops or sic the dog on him.

All this is buildup to my real question. In THIS case, I’, really only interested in the opinion of Christians, of whatever denomination. You see, I understand fully when non-Christians condemn Christian proselytizing. but… increasingly, I see self-professed CHRISTIANS condemning efforts at winning converts! Even more amazingly, I regularly see Christians claiming that preaching to non-Christians is UNCHRISTIAN! Why? Well, by preaching to a Jew or Moslem, a Christian is implying that his religion is better than theirs, and that hurts their feelings, and therefore, kind, loving Jesus wouldn’t WANT us spreading His word to them.

Does this make ANY sense? Was it not Jesus Himself who said “Go and make believers of all nations”? Did Jesus then pause and say, “Wait a sec… you know, the Romans are really happy with Jupiter, the Vikings really feel comfortable with Odin, the Jews are just fine with Mosaic law… tell you what, skip that stuff about making believers of all nations. Just honor me in the privacy of your own homes, and never mention me to anybody else, because that might make them uncomfortable. And after all, where do I come off suggesting my ways are better than theirs? What am I, the Son of God?”

I have to ask: ARE there Christians out there who feel it’s immoral or even (hard to believe I’m asking this!) UNCHRISTIAN to try spreading the word of Christ?

And (once again, this question is ONLY for Christians) IF yout think other religions are just as good as Christianity, why did Jesus see any need to come to Earth at all? Why did he have to be born, and to suffer as he did, if Judaism was plenty good enough as it was?

2

As I see it, no person is responsible for actually CONVERTING anyone else. The Great Commission says to go to all the world and preach the gospel. The results are in God’s hands.

But I see no reason for anyone, of any religion, to speak the truth as he/she understands it, with tolerance and understanding toward those who disagree or who are not receptive to the message. The problem comes when fervent adherents don’t know when to back off and keep insisting that the person they’re speaking with convert immediately. That, as I understand it, is not part of the package. But you can’t expect someone to make any kind of intelligent decision over something they either have never heard of or don’t fully understand.

3

Change that to read “to not speak the truth.”

Changes the whole meaning, eh?

4

I too am Roman Catholic, and practising as the Church teaches. I’ve always been uncomfortable with the idea of proselytizing, probably because of being teased as a child. Now, that doesn’t mean I would ever deny or distill expression of my faith in order to fit in better and not feel uncomfortable, but neither do I go out of my way to “preach”.

In some sense, your life is a witness to your faith, and people who know me and know I’m Catholic can judge how my life measures up. And they’ll know it is a reflection of my love for God. Another way I witness is that when a question comes up, I answer in a way that shows I know that what I believe is The Truth. Rather than, “I believe such and so” or “I don’t do such and so because it’s against my religion”, I aver my beliefs as truth, and certain actions as immoral. Period. I know this sounds obnoxious, but it’s back to that old idea that you wouldn’t follow it unless you believed it was the truth for everyone. I hope that this demonstrates to people the strength of a faith in the Truth without my preaching it to them.

In short, sometimes I think I am not living up to the Great Commission, but neither do I think it is un-Christian to spread the good news. Jesus challenged those around Him, not leaving them feeling comfortable in what they were doing.

5

Personally I could never be a member of a religion that doesn’t proselytize, that is one of the main reasons I have remained Christian. I just would not and could not believe in a God that chooses certain people to be special, and leaves the rest in a sort of underclass. It just seems extremely elitist to say ‘Let them have their god, even though I believe them to be wrong’.
Sorry, but letting someone go to Hell just so they don’t have to deal with the momentary discomfort of being told their religion is wrong, is an extremely selfish and wussy thing to do.
Things like the inquisition and the Crusades are clearly examples of what happens when the ‘trying to save someone through whatever means possible’ effort is taken way to far. I feel any Christian who is against proselytizing is missing the main point of Christianity, that it is a message of love to be spread to the world, and are in danger of falling into the we are better than them, and there is no need for them to know about God’ version of religion.
For the record, I don’t witness, basically because I’m an a scary, non-charasmatic, and outwardly non-christian acting person who would scare anybody away from it forever. :slight_smile:

6

Not immoral or unchristian. Just annoying and arrogant. Going up to someone and telling them his/her belief system is wrong is extremely presumptuous.
Actually, the issue was a large part of the reason I stopped being a Christian…

7

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It’s funny, but one of the things I like about Judaism is the fact that we don’t actively seek converts.

**

Well, fortunately, Jews don’t have that dilema to deal with.

I’m a bit confused. Above, you stated that not witnessing was a “selfish and wussy” thing to do. Now, however, you are stating that you don’t witness…? :confused:

Zev Steinhardt

8

I am of the opinion that the best Christian evangelists are those that witness by example. They choose to live their lives as best they can according to their belief system, stand up against injustice when they see it, and generally try to help make their corner of the world a little better than they found it. They don’t make a big public display of their faith, but they don’t hide the fact that they are Christian. Should someone ask them about their spiritual life, they will gladly share their experiences; however, they DON’T stand on street corners outside of synagogues, mosques, and (yes, according to some Christians) Catholic churches and pass out leaflets to the so-called “heathen”. IMHO, I think Jack Chick and his ilk have lost more souls than they have saved, but that’s a topic for another time.

I am a Catholic convert, a Christian, in large part because I observed people who I respected “witness by example” for many years. I looked into things, and eventually became satisfied that this was the way I wanted to go. It’s not for everybody, and I respect that fact.

The best Christian evangelists aren’t the “salespeople”. They are the ones who subscribed to the product and actually use it to make this mean world a somewhat better place to be.

9

I’m anti-religion, and have had some interesting talks with people about their religion’s faults (How come the Roman Catholic Church is biased against women? You’re not? You treat women equally? Then why don’t you allow female priests?).

Word up: If someone tells you to stop doing anything to them and you don’t, you have broken the law.