Contradicting?

 

On Fasting:

No:

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” --Mark 2:18

Yes:

“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. --Matthew 6:16

 

On Divorce:

No:

He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her. --Mark 10:11

Well, Sometimes:

I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” --Matthew 19:9

 

Preaching to Non Jews:

No:

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. --Matthew 10:5

Yes:

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, --Matthew 28:19

³⁵ Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. ³⁶ Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. ³⁷ Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. ³⁸ I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

Many Samaritans Believe

 ³⁹ Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. ⁴¹ And because of his words many more became believers.  ⁴² They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” --John 4:35-42

 

Family vs Relgion:

Pro Family:

⁹ And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe^[a] your own traditions! ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’^[b] and, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’^{[c] 11} But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)— ¹² then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother. ¹³ Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”
 ¹⁴ Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. ¹⁵ Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.” --Mark 7:9-15

Pro Religion:

 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. --Luke 14:26

²¹ Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
 ²² But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” --Matthew 8:21-22

Christians are Cool, Right?

So as a Christian, I could never understand why the atheists and other nonbelievers considered us such assholes.  All my friends were cool.  Sure, there were a few Christians out there who may be a little on the obnoxious side, but they still were guided by love, right?

Now that I'm a doubter, and "in the closet", I totally understand.  I've thought through the process of coming out several times over the last few weeks, and thought about what sort of response I'd receive.  It's kind of scary.  Maybe nothing at all would change, but I kinda doubt it.  Some things would change.  I won't venture to guess from who, but out of all of our friends, I suspect we'd get ostracized by at least a few of them.  I'd also be afraid of how it would affect my job.  I work in a company where at least half of the employees seem to go to the same church as my boss, and they're all very outspoken about their faith.  In the employee handbook, my boss states that he'd never discriminate against someone for their beliefs, but he'd be happy to talk to anyone about his if they wanted to.  He's a truly nice guy, but I really wonder if my potential at the company would be the same if I was out of the closet compared to staying in. 

It's funny how just changing your mind about something can make you afraid for your job and your friendships.  I now understand why a friend of mine moved to Oregon just because it was the least religious of the states in the U.S.  I thought it was silly at the time, but it makes sense to me now.  The more and more I doubt, the more I realize that life as a nonbeliever in the Bible belt is going to be challenging.

Actually, what scares me the most is how life will be for my daughter.  Christians... my buddies... really do start to seem like assholes when I think about how they'll probably treat my daughter for not being a part of their group.  I'll give them the benefit of the doubt until something specific happens, but I can't say that my outlook is good.