At least she’ll have somebody to talk to who doesn’t disapprove of her. 
Florida’s nice, too. No income tax, and we’re a pretty diverse bunch. Plus if you are a resident you get discounts to the theme parks.
And, you get to wear shorts in November.
I love this answer.
I think you should definitely go with this one.
I used to live in Henderson. East Texas is just knid of like that. No real reason that comes to mind. 'Cause when I moved back to Houston, things seemed a lot more normal.
Now I’m in the OKC. Sometimes, it’s just like what Racinchili is getting. One thing different, though, I’m a Christian who actually knows the Bible. So when the conversations get stupid, I can usually correct them with their own Good Book.
No real help to the OP, just… Well, you seem like a nice person. Realise, too, that whatever you do, you’re already the Outsider™ there. In small town Texas, that seems to matter quite a bit. Here’s hoping things get at least little bit better…
Sorry 'bout the name change, racinchikki.
It’s OU Texas weekend, and I have chili on my mind. (details in an MPSIMS thread)
Hook 'em, Sooners!
If you would only take a minute to peruse the scriptures, and see manifested God’s perfect love for the world, and Jesus’ for you, all would be well.
I will pray for you tonight.
I second the Austin suggestion, though a weekend’s more realistic than a move. You can check out tons of antique shops and vintage clothing stores, see the historical sites, watch the sunset on Mt. Bonnell, or go out dancing and odds are no one will ever ask you about your religion.
Except maybe some street preachers downtown, but feel free to ignore them.
I get the feeling that a lot of people who have never lived in the Bible Belt really don’t understand the all-pervasive nature of religion. Church is frequently the only acceptable social outlet, and there is NO COMPREHENSION WHATSOEVER that a person’s religious ideas would differ from the mainstream. To be honest, they don’t even like other sects of Christians. When I lived in East Texas (really close to Henderson, actually…) it was not uncommon to be told that Catholics really weren’t Christians. The only good Christians were Baptists, of course. Baptist Christianity went beyond being just a religion, it became THE defining characteristic. Even people who have never seen the inside of a church and wouldn’t know the bible from a lottery ticket will consider any non-Christian the epitome of evil. Non-christians are frequently lumped together as ‘satanists.’ It’s llike pouring acid in the swimming pool: it’s always there eating away at you. Hypocrisy, violence, bigotry, misogyny, petty, and not-so-petty harassment seems to be considered the duty of all Christians against all non-conformists.
Apropos of nothing, I can say (with no bias at all, honest!) that Austin is the best city in Texas and possibly the best city in the South.
What LCP2972 said. (Good thing you don’t post too often. That’s one tough username.)
I’m with him- except that I grew up in Houston, and things seemed pretty normal, and then I moved to Dallas, and things got weird. (sidenote: I actually had a girl stop a date about 20 minutes in because I wasn’t the right kind of Christian!)
I can only imagine that Tyler/Longview is even more benighted and provincial.
Do like these other people have said- spend time in Austin or maybe Houston. They’re not so bad religiously.
Sydney, Australia!
If you want to find a Jesus-lover, you actually have to get a map and do a search. Praise Jesus in public, and people will probably assume that you’ve been touched by the sun, and will offer to get you a drink of water.
racinchikki, whatever you do, do NOT tell your coworkers that you are an atheist. They will turn ALL their attention to you. I tell you this from experience. Young Tiger, in the seventh grade, told his Georgia classmates that he was an atheist. They didn’t give him a minute’s peace for the rest of the year.
Satasha has the best answer. It gets you out of the discussion without opening yourself up to being their new target.
See, my experience (from living in various urban and rural parts of the US all my life) is that there are two kinds of people in this world, (1) people who have their own worldview, the prevailing accepted one for their community, and don’t even realize that any other way of thinking is possible, and (2) those who understand there are differing worldviews but are helpless to persuade the #1 types of this.
Sometimes it’s fun adopting the protective coloration of the type #1s and participating in their small little universe, but most of the time it’s best to just slide quietly aside and avoid it altogether. You’re in a part of Texas where open minds aren’t even known to exist, to when they run up against one they probably don’t even recognize it for what it is. Just keep doing what you’re doing, and save your $$ to go elsewhere.
For the record, New Orleans is a great place – all these Catholics know how to get the best mileage out of their sinning! 
I’ve been wanting to go to Austin for a while, anyway, just for the music scene. Next time Charlie Robison’s at Greune Hall I’ll try to get in a trip.
Luckily, I’m a “lazy” atheist - not militant at all, couldn’t care less about anybody else’s religion if they’ll agree not to care too loudly about mine, and I still celebrate the Christian holidays because they’re convenient and traditional for me (I was raised Methodist). I can only imagine what it must be like if there are any Wiccans around here and they wanted to celebrate, say, Samhain this month. Although, amazingly, I helped a high school teacher make Halloween handouts for her class teaching the history of the celebration, and she mentioned Samhain in a true context without devil-worshipping etc - so, obviously, not everybody’s as bad as those coworkers. Heck, even one of my coworkers isn’t as bad as my coworker, and he’s a member of the same sect as two of the others.
I guess the problems arise when you hand religion to stupid people - or cram it down their throats as the only available philosophy. They end up using it as an outlet for everything, especially their hate.
By the way, punha’s right - I moved down here for Gunslinger. I’d visited before, and even spent a year living in Mississippi, but apparently I’d been sheltered from the types of social interaction that lead to this sort of talk. I like the generally-friendly nature of people (on average, folks here are warmer than folks back home, with the usual exceptions for both sides), the weather, and the idea of Texas. And to tell you the truth, I hadn’t thought people like I’ve described really existed. I’d heard stories about them, but always assumed they were exaggerated or highly unusual cases because otherwise rational, friendly people just couldn’t be that ignorant and vicious. I am sad to have been proven wrong.
Heh… racinchili. It’s the annual Fire Ant Festival in Marshall this weekend, in which one of the events is a chili cook-off using ACTUAL REAL FIRE ANTS as one of the ingredients… you can believe I’m racin’ away from THAT chili.
Just in case anyone thought I was serious, my post was a joke. Check those bible verse, they may come in handy for throwing at our cow-orkers.
Racinchikki
Exactly. It isn’t the religion; it’s the stupidity.
If you visit Stormfront, you’ll find that even the mention of religion is expressly prohibited. No preaching the Gospel there. But you ain’t seen hate till you go lurking around those White Supremacists.
It is entirely possible (and maybe even likely) that the teachings of Jesus are closer to your own worldview than it is to your co-workers. If ever you get to the point that you want to stop running from them and hit them head-on, then spend a little time at Atheists for Jesus and arm yourself with sufficient ammunition to mow them all down.
Best of luck, dear.
I’d go with a modified version of what was suggested earlier:
“I was raised to not discuss religion in the work place” (or “In public”). adding in the ‘it’s tacky’ IMHO pretty much tells them “and I think you’re tacky”, which, if you wish to be getting along w/your co-workers, won’t help.
If, however, you say you were raised this way, they may start to lay off the direct confrontational aspect of it.
another tactic that I"ve advocated is the “Oh, I’m sorry, I’m concentrating on work right now” (even if it’s just straightening up the stock on the shelves) which has the advantage of being work related, vs. screwing around on company time.
In my experience, this would be a very bad idea. Most people I’ve met who talk about Jesus constantly, as you have described, appear somewhat brainwashed. Nothing you say will sink in, anything you disagree with prove you are evil. You can’t win this fight. Since these are your coworkers, just play a very low profile.
OR
When confronted, claim to be a Frizbitarian. “We believe that we die our soul just goes up on the roof…” A simple religion really. This will distract them long enough to get away. Of course you can never return.
I don’t buy it. I’ve been an atheist for years. I’ll tell anybody that asks, be it starched-shirt Jehovah’s Witnesses or Baptist preacher. I live in Alabama. Born and raised here. Nobody gives me shit about it because I simply won’t stand for it.
Oh, and according to what a good friend of mine calls Dixie Bushido, it is extraordinarily tacky to talk about religion in public…except of course, when it isn’t. You, however, must be extremely conversant with Dixie Bushido to tell exactly when that is.
Well, that explains my new Catholic, New Orleans wife. I thought she was just a fun loving gal. (BTW, we don’t call it sinning… )
She’s from below the Salt Line. She is a born-and-bred denizen of the Kingdom of Monkeys. That should explain her behavior. If you’re still confused, do yourself a favor and read Eugene Walter’s fabulous The Untidy Pilgrim for a glimpse into the minds of those oddball Gulf Coast Southerners, followed quickly by Southern Ladies and Gentlemen, by Florence King, for a more general insight.