# Why do we have to put up with Religious People? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 7, 2020, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474 "2020-08-07T06:20:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/161 "2020-08-07T17:37:08Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Which I think is the point of this thread. The atheist is expected to refrain from their comment, the theist gets to say whatever they want, even if they know the atheist doesn’t believe it. They get to say something that provides comfort for _them_ , but is an affront to what the atheist believes. very close to my mind set. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/162 "2020-08-07T17:39:02Z")
Anyway, until or unless science can not only say what happens when we die, but give a satisfactory and comforting answer, we will have religion to fill in that gap, that need. That is not the only foundation of religion, but it is a very powerful one. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/163 "2020-08-07T17:47:27Z")
Right, so you are free to be an asshole, or you are free to either disregard the suggestion, OR if you really found that the disrespect of them offering you something they find comforting is too much, you can respectfully disagree (That is the point of the thread). The OP feels like he can be as disrespectful as he wants or needs to be to prove them theists inkorrect! ---
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/164 "2020-08-07T17:49:50Z")
Atheist have to prove a negative? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/165 "2020-08-07T17:50:28Z")
So, if someone were mourning a sinner, would it be comforting to tell them that at least their loved one has gone to oblivion rather than to hell? ---
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/166 "2020-08-07T17:51:21Z")
Its disrespectful to say Supernatural beings don’t exist? But saying Supernatural beings exist should be respected? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/167 "2020-08-07T18:00:13Z")
For yourself, no. If you want to convince someone else, then yeah. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/168 "2020-08-07T18:12:46Z")
For me? Yes. For some other person, they would likely think that you were trying to be comforting. So I’d say you were safe. I also think that you are walking a thin line of trying to convince someone that hell doesn’t exist by giving them an alternative though. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/169 "2020-08-07T18:14:58Z")
Further nuance than K9 said, you aren’t respecting the belief, you are respecting the person. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/170 "2020-08-07T18:20:06Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > i.e., allowing them to even exist > > I don’t know where you pulled _that_ little nugget from-it certainly wasn’t the OP. It’s not an unwarranted interpretation. The OP has said he doesn’t feel he should have to put up with religious people. And he’s repeatedly refused to say what he feels should be done. He apparently just wants there to be no religious people around. The most direct interpretation is this is a call for the elimination of religious people. If the OP is proposing something less direct, he really should explain his intent. ---
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/171 "2020-08-07T18:20:14Z")
I can love my Crazy Aunt with the astrology and crystals, she’s a hoot, traveled all over the world. Doesn’t mean i have to “respect” her astrology and crystals ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/172 "2020-08-07T18:20:55Z")
A great deal of opposition to Christianity stems from mis-practiced or distorted Christianity. I’m not saying someone can’t oppose the genuine real thing, I’m just saying that a lot of Christianity has become warped by its own practitioners. Things like prosperity gospel, or false prophets (such as Charlie Shamp who prophesied that Republicans would gain 9 Senate seats in the 2018 midterms and no such thing happened,) or Christians who are hypocrites, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/173 "2020-08-07T18:23:33Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > It’s not an unwarranted interpretation. The OP has said he doesn’t feel he should have to put up with religious people. And he’s repeatedly refused to say what he feels should be done. He apparently just wants there to be no religious people around. The most direct interpretation is this is a call for the elimination of religious people. If the OP is proposing something less direct, he really should explain his intent. or the OP (me) could be tired of “religion” being excluded from other silly superstitions. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/174 "2020-08-07T18:23:56Z")
Correct you do not, do you tell your Aunt that she is a dumbass for believing the way she does, Or do you tell her that she is a kook for believing as she does? OR, you can respect her beliefs and SAY NOTHING, which is what you are being asked to do regarding religion for other people. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/175 "2020-08-07T18:26:47Z")
> [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](#): > > or the OP (me) could be tired of “religion” being excluded from other silly superstitions. It’s not excluded. How many times do you need to hear that? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/176 "2020-08-07T18:28:53Z")
I’m gonna be honest, I’ve had some people who were close to me die, and the “they are in heaven now” thing caused me quite a bit of discomfort. They are taking solace in the fact that they think that they are going to see them again, that they are up there smiling down on us right now. I don’t look forward to seeing them again, I want to treasure the memories I have of them. I don’t want to hear that they are happy now, I want to remember the times they were happy with me. I don’t find such words comforting, I find them insulting and crass. I also don’t think that parents should tell their children that their dog" went to live on a farm upstate". Death is painful, and we all want to avoid confronting it. I do think that the religious method of pretending that it is just a temporary inconvenience causes more harm than accepting that death is the end of our existence. ---
**Author:** ![Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ebca7d/32.png) [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bacon_Cheeseburger)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/177 "2020-08-07T18:30:01Z")
> [@Kearsen1](#): > > you can respect her beliefs I don’t respect her beliefs. I think astrology and crystals are nonsense. I dare say most “religious people” share that view. But the smugness that “religious people” feel over the astrology/crystal crowd is annoying to me. Since globally, they are in the majority. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/178 "2020-08-07T18:34:21Z")
He could just try persuading them to stop being religious. Good luck on that. > [@Bacon\_Cheeseburger](#): > > I can love my Crazy Aunt with the astrology and crystals, she’s a hoot, traveled all over the world. Doesn’t mean i have to “respect” her astrology and crystals What is required of you to “respect” her astrology? If she used her astrology and crystals to demand something of you, then sure, make her back her beliefs. Say you have found your soulmate, but she says, “Oh, no. That person is a Libra, and you just are not compatible with _that_!” then she is the one not respecting _you_. If she says, “My soulmate is a Capricorn, which is why we get along so well.” there is little reason that I can think of to not just nod and be happy for her. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/179 "2020-08-07T18:36:04Z")
What I find has changed quite a bit in the past decade or so is the fact that the religious people I know, are very cognizant of the fact that not everyone is and they are very cautious about expressing things like that. What happened to you, IMO, used to be a very common occurrence. Probably less so these days. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2020, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474/180 "2020-08-07T18:37:12Z")
You are focusing on the belief part of the sentence to your detriment, focus instead on the her part. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-have-to-put-up-with-religious-people/917474.md?page=10)