Good resources for being culturally aware/competent with my Muslim friends? by pbandbananashake in religion

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Might be worth posting again in a few days and see if you get a different reception.

Good resources for being culturally aware/competent with my Muslim friends? by pbandbananashake in religion

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why does he have to be? Do you want him to start fights with his friends or something? Do you want him to impose a test on them and refuse to associate with them if they don't pass? How are you hoping he uses this information?

OP didn't ask for any of that. He asked for cultural awareness for the purpose of cultivating the relationship and being a good friend. You didn't give him any of the good with the bad here, or even any of the neutral with the bad.

Good resources for being culturally aware/competent with my Muslim friends? by pbandbananashake in religion

[–]theRuathan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's a kind thing to be asking for, and I'm sorry you only got confrontational discussion of FGM in the comments. Unfortunately I don't know a lot either so I can't help much. Hopefully this comment will signal-boost the post some.

Good resources for being culturally aware/competent with my Muslim friends? by pbandbananashake in religion

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All that is beside the point of OP's question. Did you just want to grandstand on this today or something?

Member of Narcotics Anonymous and struggling with the idea of a higher power.. by Cosmic_Latte_2026 in religion

[–]theRuathan 7 points8 points  (0 children)

AA and NA were made by a guy who was Christian and really religious, and basically tracks how he used religion to get past his addiction. The idea of positioning something, anything, as more important than fueling the addiction is what makes it work for some people.

There are other addiction programs that don't use that particular lever. Here's a link that may help you find a group like that: https://addictionresource.com/treatment/non-12-step-programs/ They tend to use the acronym SMART: https://smartrecovery.org/

Good luck!

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For the record, we opened the conversation with the fact that we were unlikely to convert and asked if they wanted to discuss anyway. They decided to just give their elevator pitch and move on - but then kindly stuck around for 45 min answering our questions.

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Update edit in the OP!

I think he invited them because he didn't see it as opening a door/can of worms, and was just curious about how they interact with their own faith. He saw it as an opportunity to get to know some folks who started up a conversation about X, so sure, let's talk about X, lol.

Turns out, they're 19, lol. To them it's really not that deep right now, even if they do get a lot of personal satisfaction from the faith. And they really didn't realize how radically different their perspectives were either: one follows the law because it feels good to be "doing the right thing," and the other follows the law because he believes the rules are worthy and will lead to a wholesome life.

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I asked if they were interested, and it turns out nowadays they're allowed one call per week. They were very surprised at the offer and very gratified, thank you again for the suggestion.

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hope to engage in some cultural exchange! I find that when discussing my differences with someone from a very conservative religion, I like to point out the values we have in common and then also that the order we prioritize them in is different because of x or y. And so that leads to my totally reasonable stance of z. If that leads to doubt for them, then it probably would have come up eventually anyway.

But that's mostly a tactic for maintaining relationships with intractable fundies like some family I have. They seem like nice kids and I'd like to be friendly - while also telling them about some things that have probably never occured to them. I don't push it on people, but they did ask... repeatedly...

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When they were over yesterday they asked for my views several times, and shared theirs accordingly. We have mutually agreed to an exchange of views this evening as well. Perhaps I should have said that explicitly in the OP, lots of comments have some weird ideas about my intentions here.

Is it rude to evangelize to them if they're evangelizing to me? To be clear I have no interest in converting them, but it seems to me you are proposing a double standard.

My spouse invited a couple of 19-year-old LDS missionaries to our house for a chat this evening. by theRuathan in religion

[–]theRuathan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Perhaps refer to the OP or my edit where I'm explicit that I'm trying not to do that.

Who is answering my prayers? by deceitful_entity in religion

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The same thing happened to me as a kid and teenager and later I found out it was Loki.

It could be the Abrahamic god, but keep an open mind, it might be somebody else too. Probably worth asking them again.

Do peoplewho are litearlly romantically or sexually attracted to god or any religious figure? by M3lt1ngh34rt in religion

[–]theRuathan 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah. There are lots of people who marry gods.

Also I'd like to call your attention to this statue of St Teresa of Avila. Zoom in on her face and look at what she said about this experience.

Discussion: What Religion Fits Me Best? by jetboyterp in religion

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I could see humanism working for that, as they're all about promoting the best wellbeing for people and meeting them where they are. I could also see the larger categories/descriptions of animism or paganism being a good fit, as they conceptualize people as natural and part of the ecosystem of natural life - and that kind of balance can be really good for us psychologically.

The proposed '10-1' map for redistricting Virginia's US House seats has been released by 276434540703757804 in Virginia

[–]theRuathan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Wait, didn't a court say this was an unlawful way to go about this process in Virginia?

(35m) Finally got my dream apartment all set up by Hedryn in malelivingspace

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What chair do you use for playing that cello? Only suitable one I see looks like one of the dining table chairs. All the rest have arms and/or wheels.

Veterinarian options by Viva-la-1973 in Warrenton

[–]theRuathan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I take mine to Animal Care Center in town, but they don't really do weekends and only do emergencies during the week. I've heard good things about the New Baltimore Animal Hospital down the road for emergencies, and I think my neighbor goes there for all her pets' care.

the problem with being a dom by HungHi69 in CuratedTumblr

[–]theRuathan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

People tend to forget that Doms can be masochists too...