Can someone be scared into becoming a Christian

Yahweh

Philosopher
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Out of nowhere, a conversation I had with one of my students from years ago popped into my head. It went something like this:

"Religion and Faith Week" rolled by again. And I was talking to the students about the "philosophies of the unknown". One girl raised her hand and she told a nice story.
"Well, umm, I had an atheist friend and he was like really really atheist. We got into the conversation of God and he said he didnt believe in God. I told him that if he didnt believe in God then God will send him to Hell where he'll burn in a lake of fire and brimstone. He didnt believe me but then we talked for like almost an hour and I made him believe in God."
I'm not allowed to get mad at the children when they say unbelievably stupid things. I'm also not supposed to be "accusatory" or challenge other students beliefs (because its a classroom, strict rules against it). I couldnt think of anything to respond because obviously, this event may have happened... so there is no way I could challenge the validity of this students story without directly "attacking her beliefs". The schools are very strict in ensuring that all beliefs are tolerated without question.

It is weird for me. I think that "Hell" and "The Devil" are just proganda to help recruit more people into the Christian faith. I know there are some beliefs that say there is only a Heaven and no Hell (...thats another thing. Alot of my Christian students tend to have a very hard time grasping the belief that Heaven could exist without Hell).

Personally, on the subject of faith, I believe someone is ignorant if somehow scare tactics have a more weighty effect than rationality.
 
"Can someone be scared into becoming a Christian?"

Hell yes! Scared into becoming one, and scared into staying one.

After all, it's not just fear of eternal damnation, but also fear of angering your parents/teachers/minister, of being rejected by your friends and family, of being ostracized by society, of not being able to make it through tough times without God to help you, of not being able to live a moral life without religion to tell you what to do and not to do... and that's just off the top of my head.

The church I play piano for (hey, a gig's a gig) is a pretty basic, low key, fire and brimstone-free Protestant affair, which I used to consider pretty benign as churches go. But lately I'm becoming increasingly irritated at the central theme they seem to keep hammering home week after week: "You're not good enough to make it on your own. You don't have the strength to get through life without God's help, which you don't even deserve because you're a sinner, but he's nice enough to help you anyway, so you'd best be plenty thankful." The more I hear it, the more it's sounding like a ploy keep people scared and guilt-ridden so they'll keep coming back for their weekly fix of forgiveness.

And that's one of the more mellow, non-scary churches. I can only imagine the scare tactics that go down at the holy roller joints.

Quinn
 
You can't challenge them, but maybe you can state your opinion and let him challenge you?
 
The Christian religion has two main tenets, if you are good and believe in Jesus, you will be rewarded by a place in Heaven. If you are bad and don't believe in Jesus, God will punish you severely and burn you in Hell for all eternity.

As an Atheist I don't believe there is a God, but if the Christian God describe above is real, then I would rather burn in Hell than spend an eternity worshipping that Ogre in Heaven.

It's interesting that the Oklahoma City Bomber, Timothy McVeigh was quite calm at his death because he knew God was going to forgive him for killing 160 innocent men, women and children, just because he believed in God and Jesus. I guess the Christians can enjoy spending their time in Heaven with Tim, and the little children whom he deprived of a life on earth are all sitting on his knee.
 
Fear is what Xianity is based on. Without fear there would be no religion called Christianity.
 
Yes, a person can be scared into being a christian.

I was, and if I ever go back to Christianity, it'll be out of fear.

I remember, as a child, being afraid and sleepless often contemplating the prayer my parents taught me. In their defense, I dont' think they could have realized what it meant to a child.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
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Scared the bejeezus out of me, it did. And into me, I guess.

Anyhow, having grown up with the promise of eternal life, it's real hard for me to cope with the idea of my own mortality. If I were to ever go backt o Christianity, it'd likely be as a direct result of my inability to cope with that fear.
 
scribble said:

Anyhow, having grown up with the promise of eternal life, it's real hard for me to cope with the idea of my own mortality. If I were to ever go back to Christianity, it'd likely be as a direct result of my inability to cope with that fear.
Click to expand...

How could you 'go back' knowing it isn't real?
 
triadboy said:
Fear is what Xianity is based on. Without fear there would be no religion called Christianity.
Click to expand...
IMO, fear is what all religions are based on: the fear of the unknown. Even without a "heaven" or "hell", the thought of not existing at all is terrifying to people, and has been since they first started contemplating the nature of death. They combat this fear with a story for which they choose to suspend disblief. The story varies quite a bit, but the motivation is always the same. "I'm not really gonna die."
 
triadboy said:


How could you 'go back' knowing it isn't real?
Click to expand...

I've got it all planned out. It'll likely take the application of some pretty severe drugs... anyone know where I can get a good supply of Royphenol?

:P

Seriously, I try to play things off lightly on the board, but my own mortality's a big enough problem for me that I could probably convince myself to indulge in some insanity. At some point down the road, mind you -- right now I'm still determined to get over it.

-Chris
 
Tricky said:

IMO, fear is what all religions are based on: the fear of the unknown. Even without a "heaven" or "hell", the thought of not existing at all is terrifying to people, and has been since they first started contemplating the nature of death. They combat this fear with a story for which they choose to suspend disblief. The story varies quite a bit, but the motivation is always the same. "I'm not really gonna die."
Click to expand...

Bingo.

Personally, if I do decide to go back to God, I may take a good long look at just becoming a solipsist. Seems like it would offer many advantages here and now.

-Chris
 
Of course they can. Jack Chick makes a living off of scaring people into Christianity and keeping them there.
 
I like to think I've scared a few people out of it. Religion, of course, is mostly down to the warm, fuzzy feeling it gives the lumpen. If you get one of those Xians pinned down and point out to them exactly what this god-business actually implies - what is it about blood for this creature? - they can go a bit green about the gills.

He didnt believe me but then we talked for like almost an hour and I made him believe in God.
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After an hour he'd say anything. Just get out of my face, woman. The man's either a hero or it took him that long to realise a ◊◊◊◊ was right out of the question.

(There is no connection to be made between those two paragraphs, despite the use of the term "pinned-down".)
 
Tricky said:

IMO, fear is what all religions are based on: the fear of the unknown. Even without a "heaven" or "hell", the thought of not existing at all is terrifying to people, and has been since they first started contemplating the nature of death. They combat this fear with a story for which they choose to suspend disblief. The story varies quite a bit, but the motivation is always the same. "I'm not really gonna die."
Click to expand...

I agree with you wholeheartedly.
 
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