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Extraordinary Claims => Religion General Discussion => Christianity => Topic started by: Valigarmander on September 18, 2013, 01:53:23 AM

Title: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Valigarmander on September 18, 2013, 01:53:23 AM
I've been running into a lot of people lately who claim that they're not religious, or that they hate religion even, and that rather than being religious they just have a personal relationship with Jesus. That you don't have to be a Christian to be saved, you just have to have faith in Jesus.

I honestly don't get it. How do you respond to people like this?
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Jason Harvestdancer on September 18, 2013, 02:07:11 AM
"That's the definition of being a religious Christian."

They just want to eat their cake and have it to, be religious without using the word.

Or if you want to be cruel about it, compare it to Peter denying Jesus 3 times.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: GSOgymrat on September 18, 2013, 02:19:42 AM
Quote from: "Valigarmander"I've been running into a lot of people lately who claim that they're not religious, or that they hate religion even, and that rather than being religious they just have a personal relationship with Jesus. That you don't have to be a Christian to be saved, you just have to have faith in Jesus.

I honestly don't get it. How do you respond to people like this?

How I interpret this is that this person believes in a personal relationship with God and doesn't want all the dogma associated with religious affiliation. It doesn't bother me.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Plu on September 18, 2013, 02:28:53 AM
As long as they don't go to church and don't ascribe to dogma, they are just harmless people with a silly belief. Those are a dime a dozen, and no problem at all.

If they do go to church, ask them to explain what it means to be religious. It'll probably be an interesting answer at least.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Atheon on September 18, 2013, 03:38:36 AM
It's people trying to deny that Christianity is a religion, so they can special plead. They don't realize that ALL religions are some form of perceived "relationship" with an imaginary god-thingy.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Jason78 on September 18, 2013, 04:14:42 AM
Quote from: "Jason_Harvestdancer""That's the definition of being a religious Christian."

They just want to eat their cake and have it to, be religious without using the word.

Yeah, it's pretty much just this.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: GSOgymrat on September 18, 2013, 05:15:53 AM
Quote from: "Jason78"
Quote from: "Jason_Harvestdancer""That's the definition of being a religious Christian."

They just want to eat their cake and have it to, be religious without using the word.

Yeah, it's pretty much just this.

Kind of like people who don't believe in God but don't want to call themselves atheists.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: AllPurposeAtheist on September 18, 2013, 06:51:59 AM
They've completely thrown themselves into denial that as children they lost their personal relationship with the hottie who crept up to their bedsides, slipped a kind yet sexy hand under their pillows, snatched (pun time!) their little tooth and replaced it with loose change.
These are dark days indeed when people claim a belief in zombies over the one true dental deity.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: SGOS on September 18, 2013, 07:35:22 AM
Quote from: "Plu"If they do go to church, ask them to explain what it means to be religious. It'll probably be an interesting answer at least.

That was my first thought.  Its most likely a semantic misunderstanding.  But when I hear someone say they have a personal relationship with Jesus, it makes me think this person has gone beyond usual religion and become even more delusional about the whole thing.  Having a personal relationship with anyone, requires a more intense investment of your own social and psychological resources.  It implies the other party is also investing some of their resources in return.  When you get to that point with an imaginary friend, you've pretty much gone off the deep end.

Faith in Jesus also requires a lot of your psychological resources and certainly a lot of thought about where this faith comes from.

But it could be just semantics.  Bill Maher used to say he didn't believe in God, but when the interviewer would allude to atheism, he would get downright defensive.  "I don't believe in God, but I'm not one of THOSE people," was his usual response.  I'm not sure what he meant by "THOSE" people, but the tone of his voice suggested something sinister, even though he was as outspoken in his criticism of religious superstition as members of this forum.

He must have gotten a ton of letters from the atheist community explaining the definition to him, because he now identifies himself as an atheist without the denial.  I can understand.  I used to deny that I was an atheist because I misunderstood the definition, and equated it to something evil.

It's often just semantics.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: SGOS on September 18, 2013, 07:43:13 AM
Other red flags suggesting deeper delusional states might be:

"Do you walk with Jesus?  I walk with Jesus!"  
Or just plain,
"Jesus is my friend."  

When you hear phrases like this, you likely dealing with a very religious person.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Mermaid on September 18, 2013, 07:44:18 AM
Quote from: "GSOgymrat"
Quote from: "Valigarmander"I've been running into a lot of people lately who claim that they're not religious, or that they hate religion even, and that rather than being religious they just have a personal relationship with Jesus. That you don't have to be a Christian to be saved, you just have to have faith in Jesus.

I honestly don't get it. How do you respond to people like this?

How I interpret this is that this person believes in a personal relationship with God and doesn't want all the dogma associated with religious affiliation. It doesn't bother me.
Same. I wouldn't respond because I wouldn't really care.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: mykcob4 on September 18, 2013, 09:52:58 AM
Quote from: "Valigarmander"I've been running into a lot of people lately who claim that they're not religious, or that they hate religion even, and that rather than being religious they just have a personal relationship with Jesus. That you don't have to be a Christian to be saved, you just have to have faith in Jesus.

I honestly don't get it. How do you respond to people like this?
Those people that claim that they are not religious and just have a personal relationship with jesus are.....DANGEROUS. In otherwords they are beyond mentally disturbed.
They say that they are not religious because they fear what people think of churches and religious organizations, but they don't want to be outcast in society, so they opt for a noncommittal position.
"Hi, I'm not with the stupid people but I rode on the same bus" kind of thing!
These are the same people that voted for Sarah Palin, watch Desperate Housewives of Beverly Hills, and secretly hate Gays, Minorities, Atheist, and anything that doesn't conform to the religious zealotry that they claim that they are not a part of.
It's like 1939 Germany. Most Germans became avid NAZIs, but after the war they claimed that they were never NAZIs and were held captive by Hitler.
It's the biggets lie in history and the "I'm not religious but I have a relationship with jesus", is the same exact lie.
These people that say that, are nutcase evangelical lying screwballs, that would turn on you in an instant. They have NO integrity, NO honor, and NO moral compass. They cannot be trusted and you can't talk to them and expect any kind of an honest answer.
My advice, get the RAID can out and spray them if they come near. They are best avoided!
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Solitary on September 18, 2013, 10:39:14 AM
I'm religious, I just don't have faith in Jesus!  :shock:  Scary people that just have faith in Jesus but aren't religious.  :twisted:  Solitary
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Hijiri Byakuren on September 18, 2013, 10:51:56 AM
"I'm not an atheist, I just don't believe in any gods."
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: LikelyToBreak on September 18, 2013, 02:52:45 PM
My first thought was, "I'm not religious, I just like Christmas."
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: SGOS on September 18, 2013, 03:28:54 PM
Quote from: "LikelyToBreak"My first thought was, "I'm not religious, I just like Christmas."
Good one!   :-D
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: ApostateLois on September 18, 2013, 07:44:49 PM
These are the people who will tell you that Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, but then say that Christianity is not a religion, it's a relationship with God.  :roll:
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: MrsSassyPants on September 18, 2013, 10:04:35 PM
I agree. They definetly need to be sprayed w a can of raid and avoided at all costs.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: MrsSassyPants on September 20, 2013, 01:14:02 AM
My neighbors are the "we have relationship" type.  And we are the lucky pawns that get nominated to help the whole stupid church handle moving shit from A to B.  We have a truck and trailor, that is used for OUR WORK.  And we are NOT in the business of MOVING people or their shit.  I am going to let one more "move" go before I tell em that our truck is not for hire, or volunteer work.  Just have to find a polite way to say it. Any suggestions???
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: The Whit on September 20, 2013, 01:42:27 AM
Quote from: "fingerscrossed2013"My neighbors are the "we have relationship" type.  And we are the lucky pawns that get nominated to help the whole stupid church handle moving shit from A to B.  We have a truck and trailor, that is used for OUR WORK.  And we are NOT in the business of MOVING people or their shit.  I am going to let one more "move" go before I tell em that our truck is not for hire, or volunteer work.  Just have to find a polite way to say it. Any suggestions???
"Ask Jesus for a trailer."
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: MrsSassyPants on September 24, 2013, 11:27:30 PM
I should use that one honestly.  God damnit they piss me off.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Eric1958 on September 25, 2013, 02:24:52 AM
What came into my mind was the thought that of all the 1001 variations of Christianity there are out there, you'd think even the pickiest person could find one that felt right. But no, they have to come up with option 1002.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: ApostateLois on September 25, 2013, 12:29:55 PM
Exactly my thought! There are thousands and thousands of denominations, but you always hear of some wacko preacher breaking off from one of them and forming yet another denomination with only a slight variation of doctrine, and you know that there are probably at least 50 or 60 other already-existing denominations with the same doctrines, that they could simply join up with. It's not so much a matter of doctrine or biblical interpretation, as it is a matter of popularity and recognition. If a minister decides to separate from his church and form his own congregation, a bunch of people will follow him because they like the guy, not because his teachings are so different than any other minister's. These people don't want to associate with other churches, they want their OWN church with their OWN name, so that everyone will recognize them as different.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Tabula Rasa on September 28, 2013, 08:10:41 PM
This is their way of trying to preserve what was foiled long ago. No matter how you try to reinterpret things, the Emperor has NO clothes.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Jorjor on October 03, 2013, 04:35:18 PM
Yeah, these people get on my nerves. Harmless yes, annoying, also a yes.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: MrsSassyPants on October 03, 2013, 07:06:08 PM
I think they and theyre religion are quite harmful.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Savior2006 on October 03, 2013, 08:12:06 PM
Quote from: "ApostateLois"These are the people who will tell you that Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, but then say that Christianity is not a religion, it's a relationship with God.  :roll:

Which is idiotic. Do they honestly think that in religions like Islam, the Muslim doesn't think he has a personal relationship with Allah.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Agramon on October 04, 2013, 01:43:21 AM
"Religion" is viewed by a lot of Evangelicals as "being wrapped up in dogma and rituals, rather than your faith." I have heard many sermons where pastors will separate the terms (religion from relationship) and refer to religion as "Pharisaical" and that one should focus more on their "relationship with Jesus."

These are the same Evangelicals that regularly participate in rituals (baptism, communion) and fight to the death over certain pieces of dogma (Calvinism/Arminianism, pre-trib/post-trib or simply eschatology in general).
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: viocjit on October 04, 2013, 03:49:17 PM
Quote from: "Hijiri Byakuren""I'm not an atheist, I just don't believe in any gods."

I like it. This oxymoron made me laugh.

Quote from: "ApostateLois"These are the people who will tell you that Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, but then say that Christianity is not a religion, it's a relationship with God.  :roll:

 :rollin:
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Bigot Burner on October 04, 2013, 07:54:00 PM
Quote from: "mykcob4"Those people that claim that they are not religious and just have a personal relationship with jesus are.....DANGEROUS. In otherwords they are beyond mentally disturbed.
They say that they are not religious because they fear what people think of churches and religious organizations, but they don't want to be outcast in society, so they opt for a noncommittal position.
"Hi, I'm not with the stupid people but I rode on the same bus" kind of thing!
These are the same people that voted for Sarah Palin, watch Desperate Housewives of Beverly Hills, and secretly hate Gays, Minorities, Atheist, and anything that doesn't conform to the religious zealotry that they claim that they are not a part of.
It's like 1939 Germany. Most Germans became avid NAZIs, but after the war they claimed that they were never NAZIs and were held captive by Hitler.
It's the biggets lie in history and the "I'm not religious but I have a relationship with jesus", is the same exact lie.
These people that say that, are nutcase evangelical lying screwballs, that would turn on you in an instant. They have NO integrity, NO honor, and NO moral compass. They cannot be trusted and you can't talk to them and expect any kind of an honest answer.
My advice, get the RAID can out and spray them if they come near. They are best avoided!
Overreacting, much?

A decent amount of the people who say this kind of stuff simply want nothing to do with religions' bullshit boring ritualism (which is understandable), yet like saying that they believe in Jesus or whatever "just in case" (which is less understandable). There isn't much to it, really. Oh, and what the others said about weirdos making a difference between "religion" and "intimate relationship with the zombie hippie communist". That's also quite valid.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: FrankDK on October 04, 2013, 07:57:48 PM
> How do you respond to people like this?

I say, "Goodbye."

Frank
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: RaymanZ on October 07, 2013, 05:06:01 AM
Well Jesus can be a good rolemodel in my opinion for what is good. But when it comes to what is true, then that is a different thing.
//http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JA5wEAYi9Q
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: YurmaGetto on October 10, 2013, 08:47:50 AM
A role model for the sheep ^^
I like nice people, even if it is not true ^^
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Savior2006 on October 10, 2013, 10:12:49 PM
Quote from: "FrankDK"> How do you respond to people like this?

I say, "Goodbye."

Frank

Good idea. Patience is key.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Sulaco on October 24, 2013, 06:34:21 PM
This is often said by those who don't identify themselves with what they consider to be religious customs, despite that they engage in it themselves. It's a popular saying with evangelicals, using the catholic church as a basis for comparison.

Though to devulge a little into a paper I'm writing, most christians don't even know what the f-word really means, or understand the repercussions, as the meaning of it is distorted by the bible .. and in particular, Jesus himself.

QuoteMatthew 17:20
He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. "

QuoteMatthew 15:28
Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

Above are two of many bible verses where Jesus states that faith is something that is measurable with the outcome dependent upon the amount of faith one has. This contradicts the nature and definition of faith in two ways;

1] Faith is an absolute. Either you have faith in something, or you don't. There is no half-way house, or means to measure it.

2] Faith has no bearing on an anticpated outcome that is out of the person's control.

Jesus' teachings on faith creates a loop-hole to bypass situations where a prayer remains unanswered. It's no longer god accepting responsibility for the outcome of what's prayed for, but the amount of faith someone has in what they're expecting to happen.

There are psychological repercussions for this form of twisted logic, including guilt, failure and misplaced determination, which eventually leads to depression and madness.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: PghPanther on October 29, 2013, 10:52:28 PM
How can you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ if you don't have a revelation first?

and where does that come from?

Either someone telling you (that they read from the bible) or you reading it from the bible yourself..........

(BTW Any direct voices from Jesus is bullshit........)

Well that's a problem in the dogma department.........

If you start reading the supposed quotes of Jesus you will see he was very much an upholder of the law of the OT............oops that's dogma..............bingo you got religion.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: St Giordano Bruno on October 29, 2013, 11:14:03 PM
Why have faith in someone with such a vague biography?  Makes no sense to me at all.
Title: Re: "I'm not religious, I just have faith in Jesus."
Post by: Sal1981 on October 30, 2013, 05:18:33 AM
Quote from: "Valigarmander"How do you respond to people like this?
I don't.

People who claim they're not religious but say they still believe in Jesus have their head so far up their ass that they only see shit.