Saturday night the missionaries showed up, unannounced. They showed the "Because of Him" video and then tried to get me to agree to go to church yesterday. I was resolutely noncommittal, but I didn't feel like getting into the whole thing, so I just let them give their spiel and then sent them on their way. I felt a little cowardly for having done that, so I sent off the following email this morning. I feel a little better:

Dear elders,

I'm sorry for not being more forthcoming with you Saturday night. You kind of put me on the spot, and I really wasn't interested in explaining myself. I would attend church if I believed in it, but I don't. That is the bottom line for me. I could go into my reasons why, I but past history tells me that wouldn't be productive for me or for you. I have no desire to defend my beliefs or question yours. You're always welcome in our home, and I enjoy having you over, but I don't want you to waste your time trying to convert me. I am at peace with my choices and my beliefs, and that's what matters to me.

Have a great P-day and a wonderful week.

When I was a missionary, that would be considered a challenge.

Please come by and see me, I enjoy your company, but don't try to talk religion or to convert me. Yeah right!

But then I enjoyed a challenge, and an opportunity to prove I was right yet again.

It doesn't matter if they take it as a challenge. If they come over and want to keep trying, I'll just stop them and tell them they can stay and have a pleasant, non-church discussion, or they can go home.

Ok, you win. I'll shut up about the church.

But I'll go back to my crappy little missionary apartment, and write in my stupid vapid journal about how an inactive member is too scared to hear the truth, and that they don't really believe the church isn't true, but they want to sin, so they avoid the possibility that my awesome discussions would bring them back to the fold.

Then a few years would pass and I'd be like, WTF was I thinking?

That Runtu fellow was smarter than I gave him credit for. What an idiot I was.

hahaha! Nailed it!

If you were certain that both of them were up for the challenge, you wouldn't offer them the chance review with you the road you took out of the church?

If you're married to a TBM I can understand this stand. But other than that, I don’t get it.

Oops... I hit 'post message' twice.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/2015 02:06PM by elderolddog.

I am married to a TBM, and we've been pretty good about putting our religious differences on the back burner. I don't see any reason to pick at that scab, especially with a couple of young strangers.

runtu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am married to a TBM, and we've been pretty good
> about putting our religious differences on the
> back burner. I don't see any reason to pick at
> that scab, especially with a couple of young
> strangers.

Yes, challenging the missionaries to a discussion on the church problems is internally translated as a direct attack on your spouse.

Not worth the added tension and marital drama.