I really think ham, issac, anthony, and so on are voicing their opinions TOO strongly and going to the quickest and nastiest stereotypes. Let me give my own wording of my own take on Christianity to help speak for some of the rude and ignorant members on the SR that I'm sure they'd still agree with.
My take on Christianity: it's a cult with it's 'join or die" attitude (not having faith in Christ, something that can't be proven, lands you an eternity in hell) and personally, I really don't think a power that divine that "knows me before I was even born" who placed me on this Earth with an analytical and skeptical mind would judge me that way. It'd be nice to say that these loose scriptures compiled by plain old dudes of different locations and time periods (who were allegedly inspired by God) who wrote of their human-emotion filled god which then fell into the hands of translators, which then fell into the hands of the literate people in power (who couldn't be challenged for a thousand years) truly holds merit, but I can't definitively say that they do. That being said, I entertain the possibility as I entertain all possibilities for something that can't be proven. Maybe Christianity is completely real, maybe it's mostly real but it was perverted and skewed by those who got their hands on it, or maybe it was completely made up by officials to help hold power and not by prophets at all, I can not say. I do not CHOOSE to not believe in the Christian God, I simply just do not and can not hold a blind belief of a judgmental god. This is something I began trying to prevent starting when I was 8 years old because I was afraid of being trapped in the infinite dysphoria of Hell before finally giving it up. For this reason I believe Christianity is prominent because children are RAISED that way, people are afraid to turn their back on it, and being able to reach out to a much higher power that has more control than yourself can be a VERY comforting and consoling crutch as HOPE is what drives humanity.
All of this being said, the TRUE followers of religion (not the nitpickers) who truly try to be Christ-like (the definition of Christianity) who love their neighbor and their enemy, turn the other cheek, forgive those who sin against them as sin is sin (all equal in the eyes of God and is inherit to all who are born), and remember to stay selfless and give to those in need...Kudos. I myself personally believe revenge is usually justifiable, but those who are truly doing good in the name of their religion and aren't just being "church-goers" or "god-believers" and aren't using their religion for a selective clause as an excuse to hate people (homosexuals, which is hugely hypocritical if you follow the above) I tip my hat to you. I understand that "spreading the word" is also part of being Christ like and so long as it is not forced down anyone's throat, other than an annoyance to some, I see nothing wrong with it.
Christianity is only so bad because A LOT of its followers are hypocritical and it's the people, not the religion, that have a skewed sense on what the religion is supposed to be, making it it so bad (minus the archaic scriptures of the old testament that no one really follows, except the gay hate.) The western world is not nearly as DEVOTED to their religion as other cultures, but are more of a culture holding on to a loose set of beliefs "to be saved". I believe the religion currently does more good than bad and I especially believe that about it's TRUE followers.
All of this being said, while I am another member on the SR that agrees that the missionary trip is pretty pointless for my own reasoning (and what others have said about giving others an option to believe in Christianity opening a portal of judgement) I certainly respect your decision and commitment, Riley and hope you stay true in what you believe in. Not only is hope what drives humanity, but PASSION is the REASON FOR EXISTENCE. If you have nothing to be passionate about and instead only live to live the next day getting caught in a routine and forgetting to indulge in what makes you truly happy, you have forgotten what it is to live and should find something that brings joy into your life. Christianity obviously brings joy to you and it's hurting no one else. Again, I see nothing wrong with that. Best of luck in all your ventures.
P.S. Props to you, Observer, for defending your point so well without causing too much of a pissing contest. You fought fire with fire a little bit with the assumptions and assertions you threw back at those who came at you, but everything else you said was worded very carefully and eloquently and you present yourself as a true christian poster-child to argue with. My respect goes out to you for each post you have made defending yourself.
