A New Pete Viewpoint
It�s no secret that I get pretty rattled on Saturdays when I�m in work. Not because Lisburn City Centre is a hateful hateful place when it�s busy, but the street evangelists come out to play.
Every week it�s the same. In the morning there is one bloke in a tabard with the usual "burn in Hell" bible verses written on it who shouts outside the dispatch shutter of Easons. Then in the afternoon come the posse � complete with giant �burn in Hell� banner and PA system to boot.
But this blog isn�t going to rip the piss out of these people for 500-600 words. For a change. I mean, why should all my blogs be the same anti-religion �responsible for all the world�s problems� propaganda? No, I�m going to try and reason with a mindset I used to harbour myself.
You see, until I was about 17 I was a fascistic Christian hell bent on squashing secular ideologies and institutions. I wouldn�t hear a bad word against anyone doing the Lord�s work. I got baptised and things sort of calmed down with me. When I turned 18 I stopped taking it so seriously (as a direct result of hearing what went on at Summer Madness instead of worship - I'll save that blog for a sunny day) but was still into it 100%. By 19, my dad had quit the ministry and things changed at church towards the opposite direction of my dad�s work. I was getting fed up with long-winded preaching and I was now in conscious control of my thoughts. At 20, I did a bit of soul searching and it turns out I secretly blamed my religious upbringing for all my shortcomings and moving to Northern Ireland in the first place � but was too afraid to speak out. Following that the church decided to join Rick Warren�s mindless sheep by studying the Purpose-Driven Life book (which I�ll save as a blog for a rainy day). At 21 I threw it all out of the window, went a bit mental, wrapped my car round a fencepost and never went to church again.
Now the point I�m trying to make here is that in four years I�ve gone completely to the other end of the spectrum. For example � I�m speaking out against people I once stopped and chatted to for ages about how good the Lord was (in spite of the fact he will send all sinners to Hell). My favourite album of all time is one that Jonny and I destroyed in our psychotic Christian days five years ago in case God saw us listening to it. Lyrics I quote and love today used to make me violently flare up when I heard them.
You see, I sit here and give off about the street evangelists. I think they�re pathetic (read Seanna�s street Nazis blog and you�ll get the gist). I think they�re a pain. I think they are doing more harm than good. A letter was sent into the Ulster Star about a month ago from a mother whose five-year-old son hadn�t stopped crying or freaking out since one of these fascists told him he was going to burn in Hell because of "original sin" (PeteNote: My brain nearly exploded there just saying those two words together�). I think that�s shocking.
But on the flipside, they think they�re doing good. They think I'm hopeless and pathetic for not having salvation (or turning his back on it anyway). They think they�re using their time constructively. They think they�re vindicated in telling kids they�re going to burn. They think I�m a Hell-bound heretic who blasphemes countless times a day. And they think I am an idiot for not believing in God.
And in both our minds � they�re both valid. We both think we know the right answer. And that is why entering a debate with them in the street on a Saturday would not only be a waste of time, but a sure way to make sure I get high blood pressure.
So, in answering the question � no. You can�t reason with street evangelists or enter intellectual debate with them. But then hey � you couldn�t with me either.
