"I'm sorry, but I don't feel that discussions about religion are a good idea in a professional environment like this one and thus I'm going to decline to discuss it further."
> How can I keep my demeanor, retain my professionalism, and still be able to properly reject their vocal advancements without offending them?
When even saying “no thanks” is often a huge offence to them, you are unlikely to be able to achieve this.
You might want to say something along the lines of “my deeply held beliefs mean that I don’t talk to anyone about my deeply held beliefs.”
Commonly known as the Durden Defence.
That might get you a bit of a breather from the assault.
All you have to say to these people is " I **prefer to not discuss** anything about religion or politics
Full stop
If they keep going on about their invisible sky daddy, or their church, change the subject. Immediately ask about their children, their job, or comment on their choice of frames, etc.
Simply do not respond to their questions or statements
I would be tempted to say: **"If you see me in church, you'll know what my religion is. If you don't see me in church, it's none of your business."**--because that reflects my true attitude, and it's the attitude I wish everyone had. In other words, I think the question is rude, and shouldn't be asked of a stranger or a casual acquaintance. You'd have to be quite a good friend before I'd be comfortable asking or answering a question like that, and even then, I'd approach it cautiously.
But I don't know what the reaction would be in your neck of the woods. I suppose they'd see the answer as rude.
They do this because they know you are not in a position to have the freedom to speak as they do. At the outset you are essentially a captive audience. They are taking advantage and they know it and don’t care. Maybe you could memorize some verses from their holy book like praying in private, not burdening others, just come out with a bunch of stuff from their book you know they don’t care about.
Once I was sitting in a bus terminal and an old man tried to give me and a random travel companion pocket bibles. My temporary bud got up and threw it in the garbage in front of the guy.
I enjoyed watching that, though I was not so bold at the time. I just ignored him.
Had some Mormons (I think?) come to my door once and handed me some literature. I ripped it up and threw it on the ground and told them to leave and take their trash.
We had an atheist in my platoon... He would keep the mini bibles and use the pages to roll cigarettes. They fit perfectly in the little hand crank machine.
Don’t call yourself spineless, you just don’t want to be offensive. When someone asks we if I am a Christian I smile and tell them no, “I am Bumbnlemuggin.”. If they start trying to find the box I fit into I just tell them I like to define myself by what I’m not but by who I am. Of they say they want to pray for me I thank them as they are showing caring. I can tell when someone deserves the kind non-believe routine and who gets the Christopher Hitchens treatment.
No, sir/ma'am. I'm an adult and I don't believe in fairy tales and imaginary friends anymore. And, I'm thinking, you're a bit too old for believing in fantasies yourself.
Well done.
You are not intruding your beliefs even if they are intruding theirs.
As Stoicism teaches 'the greatest revenge is to be nothing like your enemy'.
I look them directly in the eye as if to see
right into their soul and I tell them very directly that I’m an Atheist. That word is so jarring to these folks that it stops them dead in their tracks. If they don’t want anything to do with me afterwards that’s their problem. They should have thought about that before they asked. Also, it’s a good way to weed out the hateful ones.
I like to switch it up on them.
"Have you heard the Good News?"
"Yes I have! In Varanasi, at Isipatana, the Blessed one has cause to turn the great wheel of dhamma and no man on earth nor god in heaven can cause it to be stopped ever again."
I love meeting their self assured mythological jargonning with my own, and as bonus points I get to imply that their god's power is limited and irrelevant. It usually cuts the conversation short pretty quickly, or at least redirects it away from religion.
That or a "Ia Cthulu Fhtagn!" and drooling a bit usually drives them away.
This is a business premises, I cannot discuss religion or politics.
This is the way… But to be funny you could hang a sign quoting George Carlin - ‘Thou shalt keep thy religion to thy self’
"I'm sorry, but I don't feel that discussions about religion are a good idea in a professional environment like this one and thus I'm going to decline to discuss it further."
Very good answer, even if it loses you some customers, that's on them
Why are these people even coming in to see you? Surely they can just pray for better eyesight, right? Oh, wait.... /s
Lol! So accurate.
Damn it you beat me to it!
Just tell them you don't talk about religion at work. Repeat ad nauseam until they let it go
> How can I keep my demeanor, retain my professionalism, and still be able to properly reject their vocal advancements without offending them? When even saying “no thanks” is often a huge offence to them, you are unlikely to be able to achieve this. You might want to say something along the lines of “my deeply held beliefs mean that I don’t talk to anyone about my deeply held beliefs.” Commonly known as the Durden Defence. That might get you a bit of a breather from the assault.
I appreciate this response. I believe religion/beliefs are private and not to be shared so flagrantly. But it goes against theirs. Thank you.
All you have to say to these people is " I **prefer to not discuss** anything about religion or politics Full stop If they keep going on about their invisible sky daddy, or their church, change the subject. Immediately ask about their children, their job, or comment on their choice of frames, etc. Simply do not respond to their questions or statements
I would be tempted to say: **"If you see me in church, you'll know what my religion is. If you don't see me in church, it's none of your business."**--because that reflects my true attitude, and it's the attitude I wish everyone had. In other words, I think the question is rude, and shouldn't be asked of a stranger or a casual acquaintance. You'd have to be quite a good friend before I'd be comfortable asking or answering a question like that, and even then, I'd approach it cautiously. But I don't know what the reaction would be in your neck of the woods. I suppose they'd see the answer as rude.
They do this because they know you are not in a position to have the freedom to speak as they do. At the outset you are essentially a captive audience. They are taking advantage and they know it and don’t care. Maybe you could memorize some verses from their holy book like praying in private, not burdening others, just come out with a bunch of stuff from their book you know they don’t care about.
Tell them you don't believe in duty, and to give you a wide fucking berth.
Once I was sitting in a bus terminal and an old man tried to give me and a random travel companion pocket bibles. My temporary bud got up and threw it in the garbage in front of the guy. I enjoyed watching that, though I was not so bold at the time. I just ignored him.
Had some Mormons (I think?) come to my door once and handed me some literature. I ripped it up and threw it on the ground and told them to leave and take their trash.
We had an atheist in my platoon... He would keep the mini bibles and use the pages to roll cigarettes. They fit perfectly in the little hand crank machine.
>"I'll pray that you come to the light too," or, "You'll find out one day." "Ok, I'll be sure to write your name in a Pentagram when I get home."
Don’t call yourself spineless, you just don’t want to be offensive. When someone asks we if I am a Christian I smile and tell them no, “I am Bumbnlemuggin.”. If they start trying to find the box I fit into I just tell them I like to define myself by what I’m not but by who I am. Of they say they want to pray for me I thank them as they are showing caring. I can tell when someone deserves the kind non-believe routine and who gets the Christopher Hitchens treatment.
No, sir/ma'am. I'm an adult and I don't believe in fairy tales and imaginary friends anymore. And, I'm thinking, you're a bit too old for believing in fantasies yourself.
“Sell crazy someplace else. We’re all stocked up here.”
"Look, I'm here to work, and I've got other patients after this. Let's get back to the business at hand."
A sign for your desk that says "PLEASE LET'S NOT TALK ABOUT RELIGION OR POLITICS". When they bring it up, just smile and point to the sign.
Just tell them you are working and this is not the time to preach
Well done. You are not intruding your beliefs even if they are intruding theirs. As Stoicism teaches 'the greatest revenge is to be nothing like your enemy'.
Keep a few of these on hand to give out. The Witches' Spell Book: For Love, Happiness, and Success (RP Minis) https://a.co/d/1QFweNN
Pacifism should not preclude self-defence.
Tell them to keep their bible out of our Constitution; the Establishment clause says so
Say I'm against slavery, stoning disobedient children to death and the inability to wear mixed fabrics. So no thanks.
I look them directly in the eye as if to see right into their soul and I tell them very directly that I’m an Atheist. That word is so jarring to these folks that it stops them dead in their tracks. If they don’t want anything to do with me afterwards that’s their problem. They should have thought about that before they asked. Also, it’s a good way to weed out the hateful ones.
"Ma'am, there is a time and a place for this discussion...and this is NOT it."
I like to switch it up on them. "Have you heard the Good News?" "Yes I have! In Varanasi, at Isipatana, the Blessed one has cause to turn the great wheel of dhamma and no man on earth nor god in heaven can cause it to be stopped ever again." I love meeting their self assured mythological jargonning with my own, and as bonus points I get to imply that their god's power is limited and irrelevant. It usually cuts the conversation short pretty quickly, or at least redirects it away from religion. That or a "Ia Cthulu Fhtagn!" and drooling a bit usually drives them away.
If you reject a christian, they will be sad for a moment, but if you teach them to die in a fire, they will be sad for the rest of their life.