this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2023
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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (4 children)

My experience with American Christianity teaches me that there are three main types (of course, subtypes exist within each type).

  • (1) the true Christian. S/he would happily talk to you about his/her faith, if prompted, though s/he will never push you to it. This is a two-way conversation, where s/he is as excited to share his/her faith with you, as s/he is to learn about yours. This Christian is more likely to categorize him/herself as a 'Christ-follower' than a 'Christian', due to the stigma created by the other two types of Christians, but won't take offense when s/he is called a Christian, and s/he would often call him/herself 'Christian' when in conversation with others, for the sake of simplicity that it provides to others. This Christian celebrates 'Christmas' as the birth of his/her savior. Though s/he tries to go to church, s/he finds communion with her/his savior anywhere. S/he understands that communion and church are different, and s/he strives for a relationship with his/her god. While there are more of them than the other two types, this Christian is respectful of others, and won't trump others' rights, which often makes them quieter than the masses. This Christian tends to respect your right to believe in whatever you want, though s/he would love it if you, too, started believing.
  • (2) the media Christian. S/he would happily, and often forcefully, talk to you about his/her religion. Whether or not this person holds the faith is irrelevant, as their followings are surrounding religion, instead of faith (though faith may exist). Because of this, this conversation is one-sided, as s/he talks at you, instead of with you, and the goal of this "conversation" is to convert you to his/her side. Whether this is by choice or by force, is irrelevant. S/he is part of the remnants of the Crusader-types. While there are fewer of them than the other two types, they tend to be the loudest. They celebrate 'Christmas' as a holiday. S/he goes to church and generally shuns those who don't. A communion with his/her god is not the goal of attending church. If you find yourself in a "conversation" with this Christian about his/her religion, you will also find yourself being forcefully pushed into their way of thinking. More often than not, this will become a heated argument.
  • (3) the non-Christian Christian. S/he was raised in an extreme household of one of the two other types (more often than not, type 2), but is not sure whether s/he believes in the faith or religion, or are just going through the motions. S/he would rather not talk about his/her faith nor his/her religion, because s/he isn't sure what they believe and s/he would rather not dredge up (often negative) memories of his/her parents pushing their religion onto him/her. S/he generally celebrates 'X-mas' as a time to spend with family and friends, and as a break from the humdrum of work/standard daily life. S/he may go to church, but it's a chore, and s/he will eventually cease going. This Christian is 50:50 loud:quiet, depending on how his/her upbringing ended up affecting his/her personality. More often than not, this Christian is against religion, as a whole, but respects your right to believe in whatever you want.
[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

ser the word "they" exists 😂

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Haha! I did that first, but didn't want to offend anyone, and redid. So, instead, apparently, I went with s/he, her/his... not sure that's better hahahaha

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

as an expert^1^ I can affirm that singular usage of they/them is absolutely acceptable in polite conversation with people who may be non-binary or with people whom you don't wish to assume what gender they identify as.

1 - Why am I claiming I am an expert? I'm nonbinary and trans myself; and I moderated /r/genderqueer for a long time; so I do see trends.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You mean say, "they is"? I can't do that. As an early ESL student, "they are" was hammered into me, and using plural noun as a singular noun, or vice versa, physically hurts me (as in, it actually causes me anxiety to say it). I don't mind hearing it, though. If this is not what you meant, would you mind elaborating?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

No; afaik as a native speaker we use "they are". Even when using them in the singular form.

I can't do anything about your reaction. Using they as a singular word has been valid for a long time. (at least 10 years)

https://grammarist.com/usage/they/ https://www.verywellmind.com/they-them-pronouns-7110726

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

The article is dated 2023, which kind of adds to it's modern validity, so thank you for that. It does mention the use of "they are" referring to a singular person, as early as 1375. Looking into that further (off article), its use was generally only accepted when the gender of the person/animal was unknown. Regardless, I don't have an issue saying "they are" when referring to an individual (a Trans, for example). The hella annoying physical reaction is when I try to use "they is". So, follow-up question: "they are my friend" when referring to a Trans is fine? I mean, I don't have to use "they is my friend"?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

God the religion vs. faith thing, I'm glad to see someone articulate it. It's bizarre to me how many people are seemingly super hardcore into their religion as a social club, but if you observe them closely they come across like "believing it" is just a game they play for the sake of staying in.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The frequent 'S/he' s make it so tiring to get through this. And calling one of them a 'true Christian' seems a bit biased.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

It's all very generalized. I was hoping that was clear. How is it biased calling someone who falls fully into cat1 a True Christian? I'm seriously asking. I'm not starting a fight. I'm genuinely curious how I messed it up.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I just wanted to say that you nailed this perfectly.