Dear Organized Religion

Just a short note to ask you very very nicely to please, please stop wasting your time cruising the neighborhood knocking on doors. Please save the paper used to print your pamphlets that you drop on our doorsteps. Your visit or your glossy note card are not going to convince anyone who doesn’t already attend church to actually start going. This isn’t the 10th century. At this point in time, thanks to the beauty of – well, EVERYTHING – people in my part of the world already KNOW what’s out there. Also? The vast majority of us who are not involved in a church are not staying away because we are ignorant. Oh, we KNOW. We have, in fact, chosen to NOT GO ON PURPOSE. A huge reason? Well, that which you are doing right there by knocking on my door. We resent being “recruited” or “converted” or your attempts to “save” us. We are pretty much quite happy already. Not searching. No wondering what’s going to happen to our souls when we die. Nope, absolutely fine and dandy thank ya very much. We lead our lives with a healthy blend of reason and faith that does not require us to sit in a pew and pray on Sunday. Now, we know you mean well…but at the same time it is pretty damn creepy that you need to knock on doors like a salesman or a politician trolling for donations. ANY religion that thinks it is necessary to convert people – implying that theirs is the Only True One is going to earn much more of my derision than the ones that leave me alone.

On the other hand, I used to not really care one way or another about the glossy sales cards. They arrive in my mailbox or get tucked onto my door and end up right in the trash. Whatever. But then, I read this post over at Diatribes and Ovations on just that topic and he made an EXCELLENT point which has changed how I view those fliers. They DO almost always say “Everyone is welcome!” I figured they were dropping these cards around to alert people who might be new to the area or perhaps the church is new to the area etc etc. But, they drop these EVERYWHERE so that means they don’t discriminate, right? RIGHT?! Uh huh. Something tells me that about 50% of the ones I receive would not be so quick to accept the lovely same sex couple and their two adorable children who live across the street from me. An attorney in the DA’s office and an interior designer. They host block parties and walk their oldest to the local elementary school every morning along with many other neighbors. They have lived here as long as I have and as far as I can see are accepted up and down the block. And yet – they would not be welcome at the church around the corner would they? Not all of them, that’s for sure. That realization has now made your unsolicited mailers even more unwanted.

Please, just stop. Stop it all. I’ve always let you be happy in your chosen paths and faiths,  leave me alone to be happy in mine. You know the drill right? Freedom OF and freedom FROM religion please.

Respectfully (I’m trying anyway), Me