Coexist

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Comment by Randeesa on January 18, 2009 at 6:51pm

thx Hellana, but things are fine..i can just see how hard it is for her to hold back her beliefs and religion on me..
and yes, i will have to agree with you about the Christian thing..after all, i use to be one..and i thought, at the time, that everything that wasnt Christian, was evil..im glad my eyes opened up..

Comment by Hellana on January 18, 2009 at 3:47pm

It's sad that people out there have these preconceived notions that anything outside of the church is Satan based. It is possible to strongly believe in your own religion and respect others religions too. The church has scewed so many perceptions of anything outside of their own system that the ability to learn has been blocked by fear. It is a sad sad shame.
I say, and this is just my opinion, talk to her. Find out why her behavior changed and if it is because of your beliefs than sad to say she wasn't a friend in the first place. I know that's harsh and I'm sorry. But if you need a shoulder don't be afriad to message. I'm told I'm pretty good with the listening thing.

Comment by Randeesa on January 18, 2009 at 2:21am

so..a good friend of mine is Christian, and when she found out about my religion..she started acting weird..it got to the point that she wouldnt even sit by me at lunch..i felt bad because i know i made her feel uncomfortable and such..but still..i know it must be hard for Christians or anyone to accept a religion outside of their own..
but...i dont know...i just wish ppl would ignore the whole thing and get to know the person instead of what their religion is i suppose..but then again..religion is a big part of who you are..
its so confusing! grrness...

Comment by Hellana on January 10, 2009 at 7:55pm

Good one here. How was your's?

Comment by Diligo on January 10, 2009 at 7:06pm

Hope everyone had a good New Years!

Comment by Alexander Mar on December 28, 2008 at 11:56am

I guess that's a pretty good ground rule - I tend to think religion, like politics, can be separated from a relationship. My mom is a liberal Christian and my dad's a conservative atheist, and they've made it work for 30 years. Though after my own experiences with someone of wildly different beliefs, I have no idea how they've pulled it off!

Comment by Alexander Mar on December 27, 2008 at 10:50pm

I'd like to think that the best way to gain another's respect is to show that your faith is not so different from his, that being free to follow your own path isn't leading you away from him or his God but toward your own spiritual realization. I've gotten halfway there with my boyfriend: The ritual bath and the qualities of the elements reminded him of baptism and Catholicism's own conceptualization of the elements, and the shared celebrations at Yule and Ostara give us twice a year when the distance between our religions doesn't feel so great. I also started making him come to rituals in exchange for my joining him at mass, and pretty soon he stopped pushing me to come to mass with him - a win-win as far as I'm concerned. ;) But he still believes I'm going to hell, and that conversion would be in my best interest. In the end, no one should have to feel suffocated or oppressed by another person's beliefs. All the best to you and yours, Olivia: It would not seem the path before you is an easy one, but you'll get nothing but support from both your faith and this community. :)

Comment by mel on December 27, 2008 at 8:43pm

oh i am not saying that you shouldnt respect other religions not at all. thats far from wat i am saying. i just think that he should respect you as well and all that makes YOU happy including the path you follow

Comment by Olivia on December 27, 2008 at 11:10am

We have one child now. A beautiful son and he is 14 months old. I know some people who can make it work in a marriage, but both are still christian. I do not want to be. I want to be free. I do respect all other religions. I may not like them, but I do try to understand and respect them for it. It is hard when your boyfriend/husband does not want to even listen. I would try to separate our religions and go back to what I want, but I live in a town with less than 5,000 people and most of them are older folks. We do not have any covens less than 100miles away from me. I am afraid that to be who I am and want to be I would have to get divorced. He said that he would give me a divorce for Christmas if that is what I wished. Who does that? Why do people have to be so close-minded/narrow-minded and scared of what they do not understand?

Comment by Alexander Mar on December 24, 2008 at 12:04pm

I feel for you, Olivia. My long term boyfriend is Catholic, and I've deflected several proposals because he will not live in anything but a Catholic household and does not respect my own brand of faith. We've managed to date so long by keeping our religious lives separate - he goes to church, I celebrate the seasons with friends who are Wiccan - but there is no way that can work in a marriage that plans to someday get kids involved. In order for there to be coexistence, there has to be mutual respect and freedom to flourish.

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