Okay, please take this in the best possible way...but I have to ask a favor of the Christians who follow me on my social networks and other blogs, and this seemed the best place to do it:
Please stop with the religious-sounding uber-Christianese comments on my Facebook and my other blogs.
You see, I was raised in church. I can out-Christianese all y'all. There's very little you could say from a Christian perspective, or using common churchy-spiritual verbiage, that I would not understand.
But here's the problem. I've burst the Christian bubble, and I'm purposely mingling with a lot of people now who do not talk that way--nor do they get the Christian lingo, or the way we Christians can so easily spiritualize everything we say. What's more, when they hear (read) it, those remarks can be very off-putting, for two reasons:
1) It sounds exclusive and superior; and
2) It doesn't sound like reality to them.
If you have followed this blog at all, you know I've been on a journey--and that journey hasn't just been about deconstructing from institutional Christianity, but about finding a more accessible approach. Part of that process involves getting away from the words and phrases that only those in the churchy bubble would understand. It isn't about downgrading the spirituality, but about just being real, being normal.
One of the biggest problems with the Christian bubble is that the longer we are in it, the more we lose touch with the rest of the world. We forget that most people don't talk that way, and it sounds like jibberish to them. Or if they do understand, it brings up all the extra baggage they've associated with Christians and church. Whatever so-called witness we think we have with these people gets lost the moment we open our mouths.
On the other two blogs I've launched in the past year, I've made a point of staying on topic and not getting preachy--not because I'm ashamed of my faith, but because I want to say things on those blogs that benefit people in all ways, not just in matters of faith. I never want to discourage interaction on the blogs or Facebook; but when I start seeing some of my new-found Facebook friends UN-friend me shortly after these types of comments show up--it's time to speak up.
You're not helping matters with that lingo. In fact, you're messing things up. So please stop.
It's interesting that just today, a study came out that says that one of the main reasons people un-friend others on Facebook is when they post polarizing political or religious remarks. I can't control if you do that on your own Facebook updates, but please don't hijack my Facebook posts by leaving that kind of commentary. Trust me, it is not helpful. I'm not so worried about churchy remarks on this particular blog, because it's specifically about spiritual matters--that's kind of what it's for. But please respect the purposes for which my other blogs exist, and Facebook account as well.
Thank you for understanding.
Please stop with the religious-sounding uber-Christianese comments on my Facebook and my other blogs.
You see, I was raised in church. I can out-Christianese all y'all. There's very little you could say from a Christian perspective, or using common churchy-spiritual verbiage, that I would not understand.
But here's the problem. I've burst the Christian bubble, and I'm purposely mingling with a lot of people now who do not talk that way--nor do they get the Christian lingo, or the way we Christians can so easily spiritualize everything we say. What's more, when they hear (read) it, those remarks can be very off-putting, for two reasons:
1) It sounds exclusive and superior; and
2) It doesn't sound like reality to them.
If you have followed this blog at all, you know I've been on a journey--and that journey hasn't just been about deconstructing from institutional Christianity, but about finding a more accessible approach. Part of that process involves getting away from the words and phrases that only those in the churchy bubble would understand. It isn't about downgrading the spirituality, but about just being real, being normal.
One of the biggest problems with the Christian bubble is that the longer we are in it, the more we lose touch with the rest of the world. We forget that most people don't talk that way, and it sounds like jibberish to them. Or if they do understand, it brings up all the extra baggage they've associated with Christians and church. Whatever so-called witness we think we have with these people gets lost the moment we open our mouths.
On the other two blogs I've launched in the past year, I've made a point of staying on topic and not getting preachy--not because I'm ashamed of my faith, but because I want to say things on those blogs that benefit people in all ways, not just in matters of faith. I never want to discourage interaction on the blogs or Facebook; but when I start seeing some of my new-found Facebook friends UN-friend me shortly after these types of comments show up--it's time to speak up.
You're not helping matters with that lingo. In fact, you're messing things up. So please stop.
It's interesting that just today, a study came out that says that one of the main reasons people un-friend others on Facebook is when they post polarizing political or religious remarks. I can't control if you do that on your own Facebook updates, but please don't hijack my Facebook posts by leaving that kind of commentary. Trust me, it is not helpful. I'm not so worried about churchy remarks on this particular blog, because it's specifically about spiritual matters--that's kind of what it's for. But please respect the purposes for which my other blogs exist, and Facebook account as well.
Thank you for understanding.
