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Difficult Choices
Apr. 1st, 2023 03:58 pmI live in rural Tennessee. It's very pretty and green, and there are lakes nearby, and some very nice people, but we are mostly here because my husband's job is here and jobs like it are not thick on the ground.
One of the problems is the Christianity of the area.
They just assume everyone is Christian, and they just walk in and take things over. Any potluck becomes an opportunity to parade their piety in front of each other by praying. And every time it happens I have two seconds to make up my mind. Am I going be true to myself, and supportive of any other closet non Christian who may be attending, by refusing to participate and then live with whatever fallout comes my way for having been revealed as an unbeliever? (And for "making unpleasantness" because you know perfectly well people are going to blame me for objecting rather than Christians for dragging their religion into a secular event in order to be admired for their piety.) Or am I going to knuckle under and stay in the closet, because it's not like I can move away any time soon?
I find that I resent being forced to make this choice over and over and over. So far I have always knuckled under and then felt bad about it. But I hate it. To the point where I'm thinking about just not attending potlucks any more.
One of the problems is the Christianity of the area.
They just assume everyone is Christian, and they just walk in and take things over. Any potluck becomes an opportunity to parade their piety in front of each other by praying. And every time it happens I have two seconds to make up my mind. Am I going be true to myself, and supportive of any other closet non Christian who may be attending, by refusing to participate and then live with whatever fallout comes my way for having been revealed as an unbeliever? (And for "making unpleasantness" because you know perfectly well people are going to blame me for objecting rather than Christians for dragging their religion into a secular event in order to be admired for their piety.) Or am I going to knuckle under and stay in the closet, because it's not like I can move away any time soon?
I find that I resent being forced to make this choice over and over and over. So far I have always knuckled under and then felt bad about it. But I hate it. To the point where I'm thinking about just not attending potlucks any more.
