Why do religions have to convert people?

Is there a god? What is the meaning of life?
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Thinktank
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

My church taught me the bible was God. I'm not making this up. The preacher
said the bible was God.
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Fancy
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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What's your point? You've been converted?
Truths can be backed up by facts - do you have any?
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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Fancy wrote:What's your point? You've been converted?


More and more I'm seeing that you don't read before responding to posts.

Fancy wrote: I think that question has been answered time and again in every church that teaches something relevant


^ no church has answered anything, anywere. They claim to answer things, but they don't actually answer things.
WHEN WILL WESTERN WAR PIGS WIND THIS UKRAINIAN GENOCIDE DOWN?????????????

"Fisman's Fraud" - most important Canadian book of 2024. covid fear tactics of fraudulent scientist David Fisman - misinformation distributed by U of Toronto researchers.
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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Thinktank wrote:^ no church has answered anything, anywere. They claim to answer things, but they don't actually answer things.

Of course I read - that's why the question. I noticed you don't answer any but that's okay - keep up with the rhetoric.
Maybe change churches. The ones I've attended took a good life lesson from the bible and related it to day to day life.
(deleted the irrelevant part of your post)
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Thinktank
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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Fancy wrote:...churches. The ones I've attended took a good life lesson from the bible and related it to day to day life.
(deleted the irrelevant part of your post)


One of my problems is - there's a billion people out ther with practically no food.
And the owner of the church, who lives in a house worth close to $1 million, and drives
a decent car, and his kid bought himself a sportscar - he tells me he's positive God wants me
to give him a certain amount of money. And then he tells me he thinks that amount is about 10%
of my income, which would mean I work one whole month of the year - for him.

While I ignore the people out there who are hungry.

Image
WHEN WILL WESTERN WAR PIGS WIND THIS UKRAINIAN GENOCIDE DOWN?????????????

"Fisman's Fraud" - most important Canadian book of 2024. covid fear tactics of fraudulent scientist David Fisman - misinformation distributed by U of Toronto researchers.
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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Which has nothing to do with the OP's thread "why do religions have to convert people" (you'll have to go to the first post for clarification). Ministers I've known don't own much of anything and don't try to convert people - they are there for you just because.
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alexoliversen
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

Post by alexoliversen »

Wow, I am glad people are still discussing this topic! :D

My initial concern was that people who wanted to convert others were always quite adamant about other people following every single one of their beliefs. But why do we have to convert people? Isn't passing on the knowledge and the "lessons" good enough?

As I have found in this journey that there is no perfection as everything has a weakness/con as well a strength/pro. Thus I found to be more a matter of weighing the pros and cons, as well as everybody has their own way to implementing such strategies. Most religious conversions IMHO have more to do with politics rather than finding a greater truth. I felt having everybody follow the same religion to be in conflict with my beliefs of the fundamental rights in the constitution of freedom of thought and freedom of religion.

Recently I was watching on Netflix a show called Ken Burns - The National Parks: America's Best Idea which actually had a except which described my sentiments exactly. It stated in regards to the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson:

"God is more easily found in nature than works of man.
What emerges in the middle of the nineteenth centurty, is this idea that going back to wild nature is restorative. It is a way of escaping the corruption of urban civilized life, finding to a more innocent self, returning to who you really are, returning to an kind authenticity. And, If you want to know God at first hand, not to go to a catherdral, not to open a book, but to go to the mountain top, and on the mountain top, there you will see God as God is truly in the world."
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Rosemary1
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

Post by Rosemary1 »

Reason #1
More members= more money = more money= more power and influence to promote the agenda of those that run the religious institutions

Reason #2
Arrogance, narrow minded self-righteousness , desire to control
If we ask the right questions we can change the world with the right answers
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

Post by alexoliversen »

Why does anyone have to convert anyone to their religion? Why not love them for who they are? Beyond religion, race, creed;
to love people in the richness of life and diversity of culture. Isn't that the highest idea?

I think it makes us richer when we have different beliefs, like brothers who are not the same, it makes us realize another point of view and like different animals in the ecosystem each of us contributes to a different part of the cycle of life.

IMHO Finding religion is more of a spiritual journey for yourself, not an outwardly drive to force people into your point of view.
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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alexoliversen wrote:to love people in the richness of life and diversity of culture. Isn't that the highest idea?


Diversity of culture is not the same as religion. I realize that depending on where you were born, you're most likely to be a faith from that area, however there's plenty of diversity within a religion, right or wrong. As far as wanting others to change their faith, I wish all who are satainsts would stop being one, as an example. Sometimes one believes others are seriously hurting themselves and maybe others. That's not just metaphoric, it also is very true. Some people REALLY NEED OR SHOULD CHANGE THEIR BELIEFS. Ps, get a backbone and stand up for what you believe. Everyone is great is a load of po po
I thought you said your dog doesn't bite....That's not my dog.
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Thinktank
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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there's something seriously wrong with one religion who goes door to door,
and when they come to a house with perfectly fine Christians - they think they
can convince those perfectly fine Christians to believe in some extra stuff, because they
believe in it.

That is seriously strange. And they keep going to the same house, using 'surprise attack' techniques,
maybe not for a year then suddenly DING DONG, the doorbell rings, and the same religious
people are there, trying to persuade the perfectly fine Christians to do something different.

they say they're concerned about satanism. but they're really concerned about the perfect Christians.
In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see a little bit of satanism in their own church.
WHEN WILL WESTERN WAR PIGS WIND THIS UKRAINIAN GENOCIDE DOWN?????????????

"Fisman's Fraud" - most important Canadian book of 2024. covid fear tactics of fraudulent scientist David Fisman - misinformation distributed by U of Toronto researchers.
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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I've never had trouble saying "thanks but no thanks".
Truths can be backed up by facts - do you have any?
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cliffy1
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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Thinktank wrote:there's something seriously wrong with one religion who goes door to door,
and when they come to a house with perfectly fine Christians - they think they
can convince those perfectly fine Christians to believe in some extra stuff, because they
believe in it.

That is seriously strange. And they keep going to the same house, using 'surprise attack' techniques,
maybe not for a year then suddenly DING DONG, the doorbell rings, and the same religious
people are there, trying to persuade the perfectly fine Christians to do something different.

they say they're concerned about satanism. but they're really concerned about the perfect Christians.
In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see a little bit of satanism in their own church.

You sound like a religionist - my religion is better than other religions and we are smarter too!
What makes you different than, say, a white supremist?
Trying to get spiritual nourishment from a two thousand year old book is like trying to suck milk from the breast of a woman who has been dead that long.
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

Post by alexoliversen »

Practically I realize churches need new followers to keep their flock healthy. But sometimes I wonder how much is it the will of God, and how much is it marketing and business sense?
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Thinktank
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Re: Why do religions have to convert people?

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cliffy1 wrote:You sound like a religionist - my religion is better than other religions and we are smarter too!
What makes you different than, say, a white supremist?


How can I think my religion is better than some New York outfit that owns $1 billion worth of real estate
and has millions of sheeple going door to door every few months,
when I don't have a religion. Unless you consider being 'Christian' as having a religion, which is weird because
I never considered Jesus as having a religion.
WHEN WILL WESTERN WAR PIGS WIND THIS UKRAINIAN GENOCIDE DOWN?????????????

"Fisman's Fraud" - most important Canadian book of 2024. covid fear tactics of fraudulent scientist David Fisman - misinformation distributed by U of Toronto researchers.
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