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one of my oldest and dearest friends is a fundamentalist protestant preacher. we have argued about religion since we were both in high school---he believes and i do not--the conversations are often strange, but they can happen because both of us understand that regardless of what is said, we function on the basis of a deep love and respect for each other, so even conversations than end up with something on the order of "you think that? that is stupid..." can happen.
and that kind of conclusion can run in both directions.
i am not sure if this is generalizable, but i think that the problem with casual conversations with folk you dont really know about religion can be problematic because it is not obvious that there is a basis of respect or affection behind it, or a relationship that lets both partners in a conversation situate it. if that is the case, people can think that by questioning their convictions you are questioning them as people.
of course, all bets are off when i encounter an evangelical who wants to convert me. depending on the aggressiveness of the evangelical, of course. when i was younger, i would take some pleasure in the debates: now i assume they are a waste of time, but will do it if the evangelical will not stop when i ask him or her to stop. i think it follows from the above, but from my side: that i assume there is a lack of respect behind the attempts to press me when i ask that the evangelical not press me, that he or she find someone who might possibly be sympathetic to them instead of wasting their effort on me.
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a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle
spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear
it make you sick.
-kamau brathwaite
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