The Book of Mormon worked for me.
What about the whole bit about Chick being a flat out liar in every single one of his tracts?
You think that’s bad? When people hand me pamphlets (usually it’s anti-government, anti-capitalist stuff at Uni - religious tracts are a lot more rare) my automatic response is to take it and say “thank you”. Not because I actually want the damn thing, but because my brain thinks “ooh! Someone just gave me something! Must be a gift! Must say thank you!” Now I just completely avoid eye-contact with them so they have no opportunity to give me anything.
What do we need to be saved FROM exactly? (I know, GD topic)
Yeah, I think this entire thread is veering GD right now. Religious topic, discussion of witnessing, and far too “debate”-like for the Pit. Just my opinion, though. It’s tough to recall, and I want to give the hamsters a break on a calm night like this, but I’ve gotta believe we’ve been down the “best way to witness” road before, and that H4E was probably in on it then. So really, we might be rehashing all this stuff. Not mine to say, however.
I tend to politely refuse pamphlet hand outs, except those from Jews for Jesus because they are absolutely hysterical. One is an anti-cult pamphlet that explains eventually why you should sign up with the Jews for Jesus even though they’re a cult. It is mind bogglingly amusing.
Likewise I think I’d take Chick tracts becaus they are amusing to read. They bear absolutely no connection to reality yet apparently people believe in what they express. It is absolutely amazing.
I personally think that witnessing in general isn’t very useful. Believing in God isn’t a rational proccess. I can’t imagine someone being convinced by logic there is, or isn’t, a God. I think it comes down to experience with an Entity that has features one considers to be God-like. As I’ve never had such an experience I don’t believe in God. I believe people who do experienced something I just don’t think it is God. No matter how much Scripture or threats of hell-fire they throw at me I won’t be swayed to believe because these things aren’t a direct experience of something. They are merely the echoes of the experiences others have had.
The scripture quotes seem especially pointless. It’s like these pamphlets are saying “the Bible is true because the Bible says so.” Plus who wants to read through all that crap anyway?
Plus, they’re quotes by themselves, which were most certainly part of a bigger statement, which takes most of them, if not all, out of context.
BTW, in the spirit of the OP, I went ahead and ordered one of those free catalogues at JTc’s site…bound to be good for a few laughs.
To meet them as people. To have a relationship with them. To talk to them, understand them, care about them individually.
Go back and read - never once did any one repeat themselves, or give the same canned answer to a large group of people, instead they learned about the people they were talking to. They cared about them, individually, their concerns and hopes and worries and point of view.
They knew the people they talked to.
A person handing out tracts doesn’t. It’s a one size fits all impersonal piece of trash.
Me too! I don’t get Chick tracts handed to me, thank God - I usually get ads for a credit cards or a new club in town or something. When someone gives you something, you say “thank you” without thinking about it. It’s such a conditioned response . Someone could hand me a dead rat and I’d still say “thank you” before my brain realized I was holding a decomposing rodent. I’ve noticed a similar phenomenon at restaurants. Waiter: “have a nice meal” Me: “Thanks. You too.” Brain five seconds later: <you too? What the fuck?> It’s conditioning.
The tragedy is that the people who hand out pamphlets probably view those who take them as being “reached” (whether for Jews for Jesus or the Capital One Visa Card, rather than people who are merely operating on automatic when someone hands them a slip of paper. The practice is a ridiculous waste of paper - just look at the litter created around where pamphlets are being handed out.
You’re right in a lot of ways, but I’m not bold enough to go up to people or knock on doors and I believe the Lord gave me a ministry of at leasting leaving gospel literature where someone can find it. It’s better than doing nothing and God can use the tracts. Who knows who might come along whom God has already been speaking to and the tract may just be what might win him or her to the Lord. I consider it to be planting seeds. Seeds grow according to the type of ground they fall on. Remember Jesus’ parable about the sower? Some might not bear fruit but others may.
And it wouldn’t my son feel nice if someone he gave a tract to mad eit to Heaven?
It would be a reward for him.
Yes, but please make sure you’re sowing on fertile ground, not rocks. I can sew the best seeds in the world on my apartment balcony, but since it’s concrete, they’re not going to sprout. Among other things, my apartment’s not that dirty! 
CJ
You don’t have to go door to door or approach total strangers. Simply live the Christian life. Do what Jesus taught.
Guin, the Apostles figured out that approach was way too difficult 2000 years ago. That’s why most mainstream churches prefer to worship Jesus rather than emulate him. It’s easier.
Generally, Chick tracts are the equivalent of using a cheap spraygun to paint your house. It’s faster, cheaper, and less physically demanding, but you get uneven paint spread, gloppy blobs of paint, and a generally ineffective outcome that doesn’t reflect well on your commitment to home maintenance.
Not that most witnessing has ever had any kind of effect on me, but Chick tracts are a lovely example of the kind of thing Jesus chided the Pharisees for: driving people away from salvation rather than bringing them to it. I know that if I were any halfway rational person who’d never heard of this “God” guy and someone handed me one of Chick’s gloating nasty tracts about the faceless ghoul on the celestial throne who dumps people in hell for eternity for playing a game or reading the horoscopes in the newspaper, I’d be running away from the wicked cult member I’d assume him to be as fast as my little feet could carry me.
I’m actually convinced. I’ll be handing these out to all the kids that come to my door this Halloween (with a Kit-Kat). Hey Jack, how about dem apples?
Actually, Gardnerian, Alexandrian, some schools of Dianic, and others have “degrees”. Most have three, (third degree being the top), some have more. What level are you? Cant say, it’s a third degree secret! 
Merry Part…
Lou
Sorry, I haven’t read this whole thread, so if this was addressed, forgive me. But you seem to be willing to discredit Schnoebelen based on the fact that Chick uses his story. I think that’s a pretty lame reason to discredit someone. I have seen a movie by Schnoebelen, and he is a very smart guy. Not only that, but he doesn’t make claims without showing proof. His documents on Freemasonry, as well as RC ordination, and Wicca are pretty convincing. If it’s because it talks about vampires, I also saw a show with Anton Lavay’s daughter and one of her side kicks, but it was done with Bob Larson, so I don’t know how real it was. So what’s my point? I’m not agreeing with Jack Chick, haven’t seen the ad, I don’t use his stuff, and I don’t read it either. But don’t discredit a guy because Jack Chick liked his story. As side note, Schnoebelen was higher in the masons, but that’s another can of worms.
I have no idea who this Schoebelen character is (although any association with Jack Chick is pretty damning, but what does he have to say about RC ordination. I know diddly-squat about Freemasonry and Wicca, but RC ordination, ceremonies, and doctrines, I know.
One issue I have with Chick is his all-or-nothing approach; to him and his followers, either people are Bible-thumping fundies or they are blood-drinking Satan-worshippers. I have yet to see one of his tracts which depicts atheists or any non-Christians as being decent, virtuous people.
Bill [is an [url="http://www.witchvox.com/whs/kerr_schnoebelen2.html"]idiot](http://www.witchvox.com/whs/kerr_schnoebelen1.html" Schnoebelen[/url).
Damnned “]”
Bill Schnoebelen is an idiot.