r

Christian Meeting 2

Last week I went to a Christian home meeting, expecting philosophy and free food, but was instead thrown headfirst into a Jesus love-fest aimed to pressure the weak-willed and lost into converting. Tonight I went again. Why?

  1. I withheld my tongue last week. Dave was there and I didn’t want to make a scene. Also I was caught off guard. This week I was ready, and I wasn’t going to hold back.
  2. Last week I was pretty emotionally charged. Anything that affects me this much is a great opportunity to practice equanimity.
  3. My mom believes that Christians will only hang out with other Christians or the soon-to-be-converted. If the newbie doesn’t convert after a while, he/she will be ostracized. Whether it’s by her influence or my own experience, I believed that as well. I want to believe that people of all beliefs can be friends, but my own prejudices against Christians stood in my way. The only way for me to prove myself wrong was to go again.

So I went. We basically repeated last week’s activities: singing, eating, more singing, discussion, reading from the manual on how to be a good Christian, and finishing with dessert.

But this time I just…chilled. I sat back and vibed in the warm energy of the circle. I took my song sheet but felt no pressure to sing. I read from the how-to-be-a-good-Christian manual because, hey, it’s just reading.

I realized that all of last week’s pressure was self-generated. There was never any “us-versus-them” situation, it was always just “us”.

Jessica was surprised that I decided to come, given how defensive I was last week. (I e-mailed to confirm before she had a chance to text me!) She especially remembered when I defended her last week: one of the guys was shocked that Jessica hadn’t told me the story of Adam and Eve, putting her on the spot to either explain herself or tell the story right then and there. I redirected the group focus, asking him for his version of the story.

Jessica was simultaneously shocked that she was on the spot, touched that I would defend her, surprised by my defensiveness, and impressed with my ability to manipulate social dynamics.

As Ajahn Brahm enjoys his Christian/Catholic/etc. friends, I, too, would like to have friends of all beliefs and backgrounds. Compassion for all beings!