To be perfectly honest I'm not sure what the point of the topic even is. When you post in a topic about religion, be prepared to get your beliefs dissuaded, disproven and discussed - because that's what the point of such topics is. If we all just agreed with each other, this would be a damn boring place to be in. Furthermore, if you bring up topic of your religion (i. e. I am a Christian but I'm fine with homosexuals) in a discussion about rights of homosexual in completely non-religious context, be prepared to discuss the thread you have just opened up by saying that as opposed to saying 'I am fine with homosexuals'.

When you're in a discussion, people tend to not give a damn about who you are and what your background is - they will only judge you on the basis of the posts you make in that particular discussion. If you bring religion into a previously unrelated discussion, you might just sidetrack it and bring up anoher topic - the easy fix here is to just not do that. I've never seen anyone to just go out of the blue 'You're christian so you're not to be tolerated!'

Yes, that applies to you as well, jamyskis - If you want to make a completely unrelated point and don't want to discuss it, well don't fucking make that point :-P
(Obviously, jamyskis is not the only one doing that - he's just the only recent example I have noticed.)

That looks like Christian Bale ( or am I stating the obvious and it is actually him?)

Yes it's him. I was making a REALLY stupid joke.

Don't they mean the same thing?

All this talk about coercion and pushing beliefs on others... Does it actually happen to you personally or is it just something you imagine can happen because grrr, all those religious folks you don't know personally and their stupid ways.

Being accosted by evangelicals in the streets who put pamphlets in your hands should not count as coercion, you're tougher than that.

One of the most pathetic things I've ever seen was a "public debate" where a Humanist had invited a priest from the Swedish church to discuss freedom of religion and related topics. It was just so bizarre because the humanist spent most of the debate complaining about how he felt the church has Sweden by the throat and that he never felt safe growing up as an atheist. Wtf. He lives in Sweden, and he feels pressured to be christian? He feels pressured by the Swedish church that is so neutered they have no say in who gets to be a priest, who gets to marry in or otherwise use the churches for gatherings and ceremonies in Sweden? Maybe it shouldn't surprise me much that the topic of the debate was dishonest and that the humanist bumrushed the priest with inane questions trying to provoke a response that can be disseminated as religious intolerance and ignorance. Coward. The priest on the other hand did alright, never once calling out the humanist's bullshit or lose his temper.

I think your joke is a bit lost on me, I don't tend to get jokes all that often.
Was it because his name is Christian?? and he looks hard-core in that pick??

EDIT: Did not mean to say that I meant pic.

Well there are countries which are heavily influenced by religion, like the debate of teaching creationism in schools in US - I that that's the harmful sort of pushing beliefs people don't approve of.

I do like the amount of posts basically asking TinyE if the joke really was as stupid as we think :D

Speaking for myself, yes it has happened to me personally. I grew up in a Christian family, went to a Christian church and a Christian school. There was tons of coercion both big and small. I went through a very rough patch when I left that behind. Realising you don't believe and yet hating yourself for it is not a nice place to be.

Yes, that is exactly what I meant. :D

:D Yay I sorta got it ( Had to think a bit before I did tho)

Are you indicating tinyE used to have some shame?

For all I know it might have fallen down the back of his parent's sofa when he were a young'un.

In practice, religions have a wide array of devices to prevent the fallacy of de-responsabilisation. When they "thank god to have sent you", they thank you. When they claim that "help yourself and the heavens will help you" they push you to act. When a car runs at them, they step aside instead of praying. They don't "tempt the devil" or "test their god". All of these make behavioural rules (neither more nor less followed than by their secular counterparts) that put back the responsabilities of good and evil upon individuals, even when they are framed as "agents of god/devil".

And the ritualized wishes of prayer are an expression of care which, without replacing acts even in religious minds, should matter at a symbolic level. Atheists also express wishes to each others (and "hold their fingers" or whatever little good luck trick is demanded from them), every one is subjected to magical thinking one way or the other (whispering to the dice, or guilt-tripping oneself for angry thoughts before the unrelated accident of their anger's target). For a reason. It helps dealing with randomness.

And don't even get me started on symbolic efficiency.

Secular maggots coopt history and munch on "hero" corpses just the same, making them symbolic figures of this and that, sacralizing them their own way, and planting their flags on them.

We are not "in America" and neither is America. Do not see countries as homogeneous blocks because of global statistics. Whether the OP is telling of the feeling he gets from this forum, from "the internet", or from the region he lives in, or the social circles he inhabits, it is still relevant - and interesting if you expected the oposite : the fact we have a christian bringing this up, rather than an atheist, means that for some reasons an atheist doesn't feel like having to bring it up here. This questions the current evolution of the balance, in which contexts. Other social phenomenons hint at the succesfull secularisation of societies, and the steady loss of ground of religious beliefs (notably in gender politics).

Plus, it is a two-ways query. Demanding "tolerance" on both sides.

It is the only thing that matter. Or else you are judging a person for something irrelevant to him/her. This works exactly as nationality.

o dear god and there it begins, again...