Originally posted by: crisscross
Originally posted by: RapidSnail
Originally posted by: Locut0s
Originally posted by: cKGunslinger
Originally posted by: Locut0s
Originally posted by: ed21x
1. Soldiers
2. Missionaries
#2 would be on my list of jobs I least respect.
Yeah, those assholes building homes, schools, irrigation systems, etc for the ultra-poor are teh suck!
See my list above. (#1 Doctors working for Médecins Sans Frontières and other such organizations ) Those are exactly the types of people I respect most. Only I respect those who don't have an ulterior motive. Religion has caused enough problems in the world as it is. You don't need to be religious to help out those in need. Trying to convert those who are the most desperate and in the most dire situations is exploitative.
And you know what? Government, law, and politics have caused as many problems and more death than religion has in modern history. Let's discredit the good few in those areas who have worked to better mankind. Better yet, let's ban organized systems of state because they've caused so much strife. You don't need to be religious to help out those in need? That's as irrelevent as "you don't need to be American to help out those in need."
You know what as well? Missionaries are better people than almost all of us here. They realize that human life is the most precious thing we have, and they strive very hard to better conditions for people in countless countries across the globe. God is something that many of the natives of these places find very comforting because it gives them hope to live. So next time you take a mindless pot shot at a thing because of your brainless interpretation of religion, why don't you go spend the next few years of your life in
Nigeria giving all you have in the name of Academia.
Let me tell you what they do in my country (India) they find really poor people, promise to give them a bag of rice, some cash if they convert to Christianity, no conversion no food. One more, this was told to me by friend who grew up in a Missionary they ask you to take off their shirts while playing take pictures and publish it in Newspapers and Magazines saying these poor kids have no clothes and need money and what do they do with that money? pays for the rice to bribe people to change their religion. Very respectful I am sure.
I don't know what you have heard, but I come from the same country you do, and I can attest to the fact that there are missionaries helping out people regardless of whether they "convert to Christianity". I've seen both Indian and White missionaries who are dedicating their lives to helping build hospitals in areas where there are none, teach people how to read in the most obscure tribal areas, and provide food to those in need. At least 8x a year our church is visited by missionaries from India, and not one of them is selfish enough or against the gospel of Jesus Christ enough to withhold help to anyone they could provide help to. I've never even heard of personal accounts of people saying they've been denied food because they wouldn't convert to Christianity. That's most likely a lie propagated by anti-Christian people and groups (and there are plenty). Is it possible that there are a few false Christians acting like selfless missionaries for their own benefit? I'm sure there probably are a few, just like there are a few doctors who travel to other countries for their own benefit. But by and large, missionaries are out there helping all manner of people, whether they are Christians, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, or of any other religion or non-religion. I know several missionaries personally, and can attest to their selfless work throughout various parts of India.
Are missionaries motivated by the gospel? Yes. Do they preach the gospel? Yes. Do they force people to convert, by any means? NO. Christianity isn't about converting people by any means necessary, it's about preaching salvation and bringing the truth of salvation to anyone who is willing to hear and accept it. Helping others is an extension of our faith - we believe that it is necessary for people to be saved for eternity, but of course if people are starving and dying in this temporal life, we must do everything we can to help them, whether it's by providing food, medicine, education, infrastructure, or anything else that might be needed. It's the missionaries who are at risk in India and other countries, not the other way around. Christians are the ones persecuted and killed (yes, this very day) in India. In the U.S, you almost never hear about Christians being persecuted for their faith (at most, we are ridiculed at this age in our nation), but it is a reality in India, China, and many other countries.
If you don't believe me, go ahead next time you are India to any mission "field" were there are missionaries working. Ask them yourself what their goals are. Ask to see what things they have done. Ask the locals who have been personally involved or affected by the work of the missionaries. Test for yourself and see if they are doing good. No one is telling you to believe me or anyone else blindly - go examine these things for yourself. See with your own eyes, hear with your own ears.
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