I was a xian once, quite a long time ago already. I know I would have felt deep embarrassment and at least some nausea if I had been confronted with the kind of hurried, quantity-focused, marketing-only materials that seem to be fairly common in at least a part of the evangelical, "end-time harvest" movement. Today, as an atheist and freethinker, I feel like to see stuff like this: http://pub.revival.com/Publications/Pow ... Packet.pdf

Why does this feel so wrong, both from my current viewpoint and from my old xian one? I have a very strong gut feeling, but not too many or too coherent words to describe it with...

Crazed Jebuz Sales Brochure wrote:Evangelize weddings and funerals---say a prayer for everyone, share the Gospel, give an altar
call.

Gawd help the asshole who ever tries to pull this shit in any wedding or funeral I attend, unless it's their wedding or funeral. No matter how enthusiastic I was for any cause, I would not make a hobby of getting in people's faces about it. It's why I'm not an activist, or in sales, I guess. My secret hope when I see stuff like this is that it actually gets more, not less, obnoxious, to the extent of causing an official backlash, similar to the Do Not Call registry in the U.S. I don't know whether this stuff happens in my area or not. I have no kids, so I don't know if these nut jobs are trying these recruiting tactics on school sports teams or at events. I don't have relatives in nursing homes, either. If I get wind of it happening, however, I would be quite happy to attend school board meetings, or go directly to nursing home admins and their regulating agencies. Aggressive door-to-door marketing of any kind should not allowed inside care facilities or schools, nor should any religious organization be allowed to encroach on taxpayer-funded school events. I would be mad as hell to find out that my kid's coach allowed some freak to pass out god forms.

Ronja wrote:Why does this feel so wrong, both from my current viewpoint and from my old xian one? I have a very strong gut feeling, but not too many or too coherent words to describe it with...

It's not just evangelising (just advertising, in essence), but targeting them for salvation, and treating people as a means to an end. Ironically, trying to bag souls dehumanises the recipient. They're not interested in you, as a person, just your soul. From a Christian perspective, well, depends what type of Christian you are. The liberal sort obviously won't dig it. Not sure about Calvinists. Blasphemy against predestination? The rest, well, milage may vary, tho' if you believe the unsaved roast for eternity, it's immoral not to devote every second of your life to proselytizing.

Or the short version: it's blinking intrusive.

They can try at my wedding, but it'll be their funeral.

My favourite bit is the $25 gift card for attending church.

• In advance, we identify busy places to go to that are ideal for soul-winning.
• We identify the most ideal times for those locations. Timing can make a big difference.
Following is a list of hot spots ideas:
1. Apartments where people are home during the day.

Er... Do they go and knock on peoples doors?
Good thing I never answer the door.

3. Grocery stores - find out what other large stores are in your area. Wal-Mart is a good
example.

I don't like anyone coming up to me unless they have something that's actually important to say. Everyone else is ignored.

5. Schools - We have had success on college campuses asking the students to fill out the
Individual Survey & Polls. Also, map out the fraternity and sorority housing. Find out when they
meet and ask them if you can say a prayer for everyone.

And I'd say "Fuck no."

Ask coaches if you can say a prayer of blessing for their teams--just say the gospel script within the prayer and give them an opportunity to accept Jesus at the end. Also we’ve had success at high schools praying for teams.

That's just creepy.

Ask the bus drivers if you can say a prayer of blessing for everyone on the bus, pray the script within the prayer, be loud, and then give them an opportunity for salvation. We’ve seen thousands of people get saved in buses across the United States.

As a avid bus-rider myself, this would just piss me off and I'd yell at the bastard to stop wasting our time.
I also seriously doubt that "thousands" have actually been "saved." It wouldn't surprise me if many were just pretending (either in mockery) or did it just so the loser would get off the bus.

7. Homeless shelters - What times are the people there for meals? How many people do they feed? Are there any other locations affiliated with each one?

This one just pisses me off. Targeting those who are at possibly their weakest, going after them like prey.

• If your team is not getting a huge harvest where you’re at, go to a different spot.

What are we, wheat?

• Draw a one-mile radius around your church and then knock on every door. When we did it for
our church, we knocked on most doors at night or on a Saturday.

Some asshole knocking on our door at night is annoying. And even my folks ignore the door when someone knocks on it at night.
As for Saturday, that's when a lot of people are trying to relax after a week of work. Leave them the hell alone!

Saturdays are great days for soul-winning door to door because more people will be home.

And I doubt many are actually happy to see a loony at their front door.

1. Make a list of friends, family, associates, and your realm of influence of people that are not serving
the Lord and share the Gospel with them.

If someone tried that with me, I'd say "I already am serving the Lord! Just not yours."

5. Conduct outreaches: free food, concerts, carnivals, health fairs, children events such as; Easter egg hunts, petting zoo, etc.

Note to all current parents and those that will be in the future: Make sure to do a background check on ALL events your child may be attending. Make sure it's not being ran by a Christian group.

7. Call everyone in the phone directory. Use the Phone Gospel Soul Winning Script.

Did I mention I never answer the house phone, and only answer my cell? And if it's some moron trying to spread the "Fak- er Good news!" I'd hang up.

10. Reach your local schools by asking if you can conduct a prayer during general assembly. Pray for
the students’ safety and go straight into the Gospel Soul Winning Script. Also, to reach your local
schools on career day, you can share what you do for a living and then go into the Gospel Soul
Winning Script.

Hope that's not done at any public schools. If so, protesting looks like a fun idea.

11. Identify what time the school bell rings to dismiss high schools---have teams at nearby locations to
share the Gospel.

And then everyone but the already brainwashed kids will either just walk past or make fun of them. (Or so I hope.)

30. Evangelize weddings and funerals---say a prayer for everyone, share the Gospel, give an altar
call.

They had better be invited first, otherwise, I'll have to ask security to escort the loonies out.

ZIP CODE SOUL -WINNING LETTER

Dear Friend,
I wanted to be a blessing to you so I sent this letter to you because I care about your eternal
destiny. Please know that God loves you and He has a great plan for your life! I have a
very important question to ask you. If today were your last day here, do you know for sure,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you would go to Heaven? Many times when I ask others
this question, their response is that there is no way to know for sure, or that I’ve missed the mark
too many times. But the good news is that there is a way to know for sure and it is not through
our good deeds. The Bible reads, “for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” And
“for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
The Bible reads, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And you’re
a whosoever, right? Of course you are.
I’m going to say a quick prayer for you right now. Lord, I pronounce blessings over those
reading this letter. Jesus, do a quick work in their heart and make Yourself real to them. Jesus,
comfort them and their loved ones. Fill them with Your peace that passes all understanding. If
they have never personally called upon the name of the Lord Jesus or if in past times they did,
but have turned from You, I pray that they will call upon Your name and surrender all to You
right now. If you would like to receive the gift that God has for you by asking Jesus Christ to
come into your heart, say this with your heart and lips out loud right now.
Dear Lord Jesus, come into my heart. Take out the stony heart and give me a heart of flesh.
Forgive me of my sin. Wash me and cleanse me. Set me free and change me. Make me the
person that You called me to be. Jesus, thank You that You died for me and shed Your blood
for me. I believe that God raised You from the dead and I thank You that You’re coming back
again for me. Fill me with the Holy Spirit and the joy of the Lord. Give me a passion to reach the
lost, a hunger for the things of God, and a holy boldness to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I’m saved. I’m born-again. I’m forgiven and I’m on my way to Heaven because I have Jesus in
my heart. Thank You Jesus.
When you asked Jesus to come into your heart and to forgive you, He heard you and did so.
All of your sins are now forgiven. Always remember to run to God and NOT from Him because
He loves you and has a great plan for your life. That’s VERY good news.
With blessings,
Pastor _____________________ (include church details and church invite)

Right, here's what I'd send right back!

Dear Friend,
I wanted to be a blessing to you so I sent this letter to you because I care about your eternal
destiny. Please know that the Goddess loves you and She has a great plan for your life! I have a
very important question to ask you. If today were your last day here, do you know for sure,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you would go to Heaven? Many times when I ask others
this question, their response is that there is no way to know for sure, or that I’ve missed the mark
too many times. But the good news is that there is a way to know for sure and it is not through
our good deeds. Reality says, “for all have sinned and come short of the glory of the Goddess.” And
“for the wages of sin is death but the gift of the Goddess is eternal life through Jasmine.”
Reality says, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lady shall be saved. And you’re
a whosoever, right? Of course you are.
I’m going to say a quick prayer for you right now. Lady, I pronounce blessings over those
reading this letter. Jessica, do a quick work in their heart and make Yourself real to them. Jasmine,
comfort them and their loved ones. Fill them with Your peace that passes all understanding. If
they have never personally called upon the name of the Lady Jasmine or if in past times they did,
but have turned from You, I pray that they will call upon Your name and surrender all to You
right now. If you would like to receive the gift that the Goddess has for you by asking Jasmine to
come into your heart, say this with your heart and lips out loud right now.
Dear Lady Jasmine, come into my heart. Take out the stony heart and give me a heart of flesh.
Forgive me of my sin. Wash me and cleanse me. Set me free and change me. Make me the
person that You called me to be. Jasmine, thank You that You died for me and shed Your blood
for me. I believe that the Goddess raised You from the dead and I thank You that You’re coming back
again for me. Fill me with the Holy Spirit and the joy of the Lady. Give me a passion to reach the
lost, a hunger for the things of the Goddess, and a holy boldness to preach the Gospel of Jasmine.
I’m saved. I’m born-again. I’m forgiven and I’m on my way to Heaven because I have Jasmine in
my heart. Thank You Jasmine.
When you asked Jasmine to come into your heart and to forgive you, She heard you and did so.
All of your sins are now forgiven. Always remember to run to the Goddess and NOT from Her because
She loves you and has a great plan for your life. That’s VERY good news.
With blessings,
Holy Priestess Youraloonie.

Hello, may I speak with NAME (If not home, continue with person that you are speaking with).
Hi, NAME, this is (your name) with The River at Tampa Bay (your church). How are you doing
today? The reason for my call is to see if you or your family have any prayer requests that we
could pray for…maybe for a job, or pay raise, health, kids, relatives?

"No"
-Hangs up.-

Accessing Local Nursing Homes in the United States

This pisses me off as much as them going after the homeless.

Ronja wrote:

Why does this feel so wrong, both from my current viewpoint and from my old xian one? I have a very strong gut feeling, but not too many or too coherent words to describe it with...

It feels wrong because it is the same sort of technique used to sell Timeshares!

It is not a faith discussion or a rational discussion or a religious discussion.

This explains the thing with the lions.

Robert_S wrote:This explains the thing with the lions.