Influencing

THERE ARE FEW IF ANY FORMS OF HUMAN BEHVIOR more reprehensible to me than proselytizing. Violence, for instance, thouhg worthy of condemnation under nearly all circumstances, nonetheless can, upon rare occasion, be justified. I can think of no circumstanes, no situation in which trying to influence another person to change religious beliefs is beneficial to the person being influenced, or to society, or to the advancement of human civilization. When people knock on my door who seem to be and indeed are standing there for that purpose, I usually don't answer the door. Why waste their time or mine? Sometimes i answer the door,and within minutes after the missionary announces his intention of "leading me to Christ", or whatever, I suggest that he might benefit more from being influneced by me than I by him. They deserve the opportunity to learn as much as I. They never seem to be interested. Sometimes I inform the seemingly well intentioned prostelyzer that my relationshp with God, with Jesus, with Buddha, and with everyone generally is quite satisfactory for me, and if they need to find out whether it is sacisfactory with the other party, they'll simply have to ask the other party. I've told evangelicals this before; that no matter whose religion you are trying to change, no matter who you are trying to lead to Christ, or to whomever, the person you are trying to lead is probably as intelligent and as well educated as you, and, in fact, may be more qualified to influence you than you are to influence them. To anyone who finds this insulting, reconsider. Reconsider your auttides about yourself, and others. It seems likely that you would do well to become more humble,less arrogant, less presumtuous, less convinced of your own intellectual, educational, spiritual, or religious superiority. The percentage of people who are confused or undecided about their own religiosity is, perhaps surpriingly, quite small. Most people have by the time they reach adulthood become firmly ensconced in and satisfied with their religious beliefs. Influencers should probably spend more time questioning their own religious beliefs than trying to change those of other people. Shame on anyone who is unwilling to listen to the opinions and beliefs of other people, unwilling to be educated by other people. But people must decide for themselves when and where, and under what circumstances they will receive their education, and who their influencers will be. Of particular concern for me are people who seek to indoctrinate their own children in the religion they themselves embrace. Children, as they age, grow, and learn, will seek out their own influencers, and will, sooner or later, determine what religios beliefs best suit them. All parents need to do is to provide their children with an opportunity to experience this vital process. Such opportunities are ubiquitous. In nearly all countries and all places, intelligent people are availalbe to provide guidance. Teachers and schools are available, as are books and libraries and various forms of media. The same is true of churches. In our modern world there are thousands of organized religions, plenty to choose from, and most of them are acessable to nearly everyone. Even in locales in which some or most of these benefits are not available, chances are than some still are, enough to provide children with the religious instruction and guidance they might need or seek. The crucial fact is that they must be allwoed to choose their own sources of influence, and their own religion. Strict, rigid religious indoctrination of children by anyone, including parents, is child abuse of the most serious and worst sort. Everyone has the fundamental, unalienable right to choose his or her own religious, spiritual path. The ultimate reality is, as Goethe said: "When I realized that everyone invents his own religion, I decided to invent mine." most serious and worst sort.