Why is evangelising so offensive?

[Eddi]

Why is evangelising so offensive to some people?

Please explain!

Recently I made a post on RF about evangelising - me and some friends were going to set up a stall in a public place in my town

All we were going to do was to set up a table and be there if anyone's interested - no street preaching, no bothering people: nothing like that

Apparently some people find this offensive!

Just a passive Christian presence in a public place

I do not seek to belittle your beliefs or to force my religion onto you

I merely wish to advertise its existence to those who don't know

People can then chose to either be interested or to ignore us

If the Holy Spirit moves people to be interested then that's great

But if not then no problem!

Also, we are not motivated by money, nor congregation growth: we are concerned for your spiritual wellbeing

We want to share the good news

And if people want to come to the Lord as a result of our activities then that's a fantastic bonus...

We have every right to do this

Just as you have every right to avoid and ignore us

So can we not just be sensible and respect each other's rights?

If I advertise that I exist and that I believe in certain things I do not see how that amounts to being forceful, I just don't see it that way

 

[Rival]

In Britain, as a rule we do tend to find this kind of thing a bit rude and inconsiderate because we expect religion to be private. I have no issue with it if it's waiting for folks to approach you not the other way, but others will still think it unseemly having religion in the public square.

 

[Harel13]

Some people simply don't like Christianity and don't want to see anything related to it, anywhere, anytime.

Others might take issue with your assumption that there's something wrong with their spiritual wellbeing (given that they aren't Christians).

 

[PoetPhilosopher]

While I don't find it immoral, promoting religion gets old at a place like the US, where it's constantly pushed, and also, evangelizing may not really, in my opinion, be the most effective way of promoting beliefs - with it not being as great as living a great life, being honest about your beliefs when asked, and leading by example. Evangelizing, to me, just looks like a person has something to prove - and it makes me wonder if they too are trying to prove things to themselves as much as they are other people.

 

[Eddi]

Others might take issue with your assumption that there's something wrong with their spiritual wellbeing (given that they aren't Christians).

I don't think that is an assumption that I hold

I believe that I can offer spiritual wellbeing, most certainly

But that doesn't mean that I think that people cannot have it through other means

 

[Secret Chief]

Why is evangelising so offensive to some people?

Please explain!

Recently I made a post on RF about evangelising - me and some friends were going to set up a stall in a public place in my town

All we were going to do was to set up a table and be there if anyone's interested - no street preaching, no bothering people: nothing like that

Apparently some people find this offensive!

Just a passive Christian presence in a public place

I do not seek to belittle your beliefs or to force my religion onto you

I merely wish to advertise its existence to those who don't know

People can then chose to either be interested or to ignore us

If the Holy Spirit moves people to be interested then that's great

But if not then no problem!

Also, we are not motivated by money, nor congregation growth: we are concerned for your spiritual wellbeing

We want to share the good news

And if people want to come to the Lord as a result of our activities then that's a fantastic bonus...

We have every right to do this

Just as you have every right to avoid and ignore us

So can we not just be sensible and respect each other's rights?

If I advertise that I exist and that I believe in certain things I do not see how that amounts to being forceful, I just don't see it that way

I think evangelising and "passive" are different. Having a stall, to me, is the latter and not the former. I've been on a stall.
Personally, if, say a JW knocks on my door, it's not offensive to me. Maybe a bit presumptious. Certainly a waste of time*. I'm happy to have a brief chat, but why waste their time and mine? Likewise when I've been stopped by an LDS in the street.

*I've knocked on doors!

 

[Rival]

As an interesting aside, a few weeks ago I was handed a religious flyer in the street by a woman. I didn't mind and she was nice, but the flyer was promoting Christianity and what annoyed me was it asked you to pray the Jesus prayer, then find a "Bible based Church" - for those not in the know, this is a dig at Catholicism and Orthodoxy. It left a bad taste and I'm not even a Christian.

 

[Harel13]

I don't think that is an assumption that I hold

I believe that I can offer spiritual wellbeing, most certainly

But that doesn't mean that I think that people cannot have it through other means

But they don't know that you think that. In fact, Christianity, from what I gather, isn't typically known for being particularly open-minded towards other religions. It's not a very pluralistic religion. Someone sees an evangelizing stand, they may very likely think it's run by a bunch of people who think they know better than that person.

 

[Eddi]

As an interesting aside, a few weeks ago I was handed a religious flyer in the street by a woman. I didn't mind and she was nice, but the flyer was promoting Christianity and what annoyed me was it asked you to pray the Jesus prayer, then find a "Bible based Church" - for those not in the know, this is a dig at Catholicism and Orthodoxy. It left a bad taste and I'm not even a Christian.

I have an Evangelical friend (upper-case "E")

He has used this phrase a lot

It is also a dig at more liberal churches

And those who are more secular

 

[Rival]

I have an Evangelical friend (upper-case "E")

He has used this phrase a lot

It is also a dig at more liberal churches

And those who are more secular

It's overall just not a welcoming or useful phrase. It turns a lot of folks off.

 

[Eddi]

Christianity, from what I gather, isn't typically known for being particularly open-minded towards other religions.

Well, I'm open-minded about other faiths

I'm interested in Hinduism and Judaism

Someone sees an evangelizing stand, they may very likely think it's run by a bunch of people who think they know better than that person.

Maybe we could perhaps explain how we are not out to bother them into our faith in our literature?

 

[Eddi]

It's overall just not a welcoming or useful phrase. It turns a lot of folks off.

I agree

 

[John53]

I don't think what you described is evangelism and I would not have a problem with it. I do have a problem with the ones who get in peoples faces and threaten them with eternal torture if you don't believe the same as them.

 

[Secret Chief]

It's overall just not a welcoming or useful phrase. It turns a lot of folks off.

Rather weird too. Rather like promoting sound-based music

 

[Rival]

I think the biggest oddity I see about this is that, realistically, who in Britain hasn't heard of Christianity? If people are interested in it, there are plenty of Churches to attend, books to read, the internet to surf etc. Many don't even need that and understand the basics of Christianity marginally well, given they're raised in a culture saturated with it.

 

[Rival]

Rather weird too. Rather like promoting sound-based music

To be picky, I would answer that, in Catholicism and Orthodoxy, the Bible is seen as a product of the Church, not the other way around - so a 'Bible based Church' is actually an oddity. It switches the authority from the Church to the Bible, which is a Protestant ethic, not a Catholic/Orthodox one.

 

[Estro Felino]

I think your enthusiasm is motivated by a great faith. And it's so admirable.
I have seen people, within the last 2 years refind the lost faith. Or to find another one.
It is something very positive that people need answers right now.
So bless you guys.

 

[Eddi]

I think the biggest oddity I see about this is that, realistically, who in Britain hasn't heard of Christianity? If people are interested in it, there are plenty of Churches to attend, books to read, the internet to surf etc. Many don't even need that and understand the basics of Christianity marginally well, given they're raised in a culture saturated with it.

The thing is though, with our stall we would be advertising a local service to local people

And I think that many people who claim to understand Christianity don't have a grasp on the basics

I didn't until I read Christianity For Dummies

I thought I understood it but it turned out that I didn't

 

[exchemist]

Why is evangelising so offensive to some people?

Please explain!

Recently I made a post on RF about evangelising - me and some friends were going to set up a stall in a public place in my town

All we were going to do was to set up a table and be there if anyone's interested - no street preaching, no bothering people: nothing like that

Apparently some people find this offensive!

Just a passive Christian presence in a public place

I do not seek to belittle your beliefs or to force my religion onto you

I merely wish to advertise its existence to those who don't know

People can then chose to either be interested or to ignore us

If the Holy Spirit moves people to be interested then that's great

But if not then no problem!

Also, we are not motivated by money, nor congregation growth: we are concerned for your spiritual wellbeing

We want to share the good news

And if people want to come to the Lord as a result of our activities then that's a fantastic bonus...

We have every right to do this

Just as you have every right to avoid and ignore us

So can we not just be sensible and respect each other's rights?

If I advertise that I exist and that I believe in certain things I do not see how that amounts to being forceful, I just don't see it that way

As others have said, I don't think setting up a stall to promote Christianity is offensive to most people (except perhaps the Saudi authorities or the Taliban ). What is annoying is to get people accosting you as you go about your business and asking damnfool questions like: "Are you Saved?" That sort of thing is astonishingly stupid, since you would have to be already Christian in the first place to understand what the hell the guy is on about!

My own view about evangelising is it is far better done by example than by assertion. This is also true in business. People don't want to be told your company is the best: they want to see that it is true, for themselves.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Why is evangelising so offensive to some people?

Please explain!

Recently I made a post on RF about evangelising - me and some friends were going to set up a stall in a public place in my town

All we were going to do was to set up a table and be there if anyone's interested - no street preaching, no bothering people: nothing like that

Apparently some people find this offensive!

Just a passive Christian presence in a public place

I do not seek to belittle your beliefs or to force my religion onto you

I merely wish to advertise its existence to those who don't know

People can then chose to either be interested or to ignore us

If the Holy Spirit moves people to be interested then that's great

But if not then no problem!

Also, we are not motivated by money, nor congregation growth: we are concerned for your spiritual wellbeing

We want to share the good news

And if people want to come to the Lord as a result of our activities then that's a fantastic bonus...

Let's look at this through a few different lenses:

First, tactics. Yes, the method of proselytizing you described doesn't come with the problems of some other methods. Your approach to proselytizing is fairly benign as far as proselytizing goes.

That being said, you're trying to recruit people into a proselytizing organization. If you're successful, the people you bring in will proselytize in turn themselves. I don't think all of them can be expected to be as benign as what you say you're doing; by bringing them into your church, you would bear a share of responsibility for their actions as part of your church.

Second, the intended goal. No matter what your tactics, you're trying to recruit people into your religion. Foundational to this is disrespect for the beliefs of others: no matter what someone else believes or why, you think it would be better for them to abandon their beliefs and adopt yours instead. This is extremely chauvinistic, even if done with a "soft sell" approach.

Third, overall context. You see your church/denomination/etc. as a positive thing, but it has its own history. I guarantee that there are people in your community who have had negative experiences with Methodists; simply setting up a booth and advertising your presence is going to cause an unpleasant reaction for these people.

Finally, there's the question of what else you could do with that time and effort. You obviously want to do something good for the world; I just think it's kind of tragic that the thing that you've decided is best is to encourage "brand switching" for people to change religions. There are any number of ways you could put a similar level of effort into things that could make a real positive difference in the world, but you've decided to waste that effort.

It's your life to do with as you please, of course, but for me, this plan of yours encapsulates a lot of the tragedy inherent to most religion.

We have every right to do this

Just as you have every right to avoid and ignore us

So can we not just be sensible and respect each other's rights?

If I advertise that I exist and that I believe in certain things I do not see how that amounts to being forceful, I just don't see it that way

I can respect your rights while disagreeing with you.

I can think what you're planning is foolish and somewhat harmful while also recognizing you have a right to do it.