Okay, I'ma stop talking about food now. The single slice of pizza I had for lunch was clearly not enough, as I am now hungry again.

Someone should bring me a snack.

Sure, I have no clue what an apertif is. It's the new jail lingo.

"He tossed my apertif."

aperitif = before-dinner cocktail to stimulate the apetite.

Ah!

I think it's a feeling that popular culture is out of control combined with publicized court cases about taking down religious symbols in public places that causes that.

It's more than that, though. There's certainly a feeling that Christianity is no longer the near religious monopoly it used to be. Now, it's finding itself competing with Islam, Wicca, atheism, and an areligious culture. Now Christians are having to answer the uncomfortable "why" questions involving faith and belief.

But, as well, there is a new anathema culturally to evangelical Christianity. Many Christians find that discussions of what they believe are being silenced or shouted down in public discourse, and that when Christianity is belittled in the public square there's approval of it where belittling non-Christian faiths brings derision. Believing, after all, is a sign that you are stupid, a sign that you need some crutch to get by.

There are a lot of people who are shutting an open, frank, and honest discussion of religion out of the public square. And these people are on all sides of the political and religious divides. We have to figure out how to get along and stop pre-judging people, and stop falling into the old blame crutches.

We have to figure out how to get along and stop pre-judging people

Let's toss our leader through a porthole their sibling opened and see how that works.

Many Christians find that discussions of what they believe are being silenced or shouted down in public discourse, and that when Christianity is belittled in the public square there's approval of it where belittling non-Christian faiths brings derision. Believing, after all, is a sign that you are stupid, a sign that you need some crutch to get by.

On the other hand, I know as a non-believer, I've reached something of a saturation point, and I'm really just about as tired as I can possibly be with people telling me what they think I should believe, or what the state of my immortal soul is.

In a similar vein, I've frequently run in to situations where any expression of my non-belief is read as an attack on Christianity.

Conversely, I know that I have a tendancy to be extra scornful of Christianity vs. other religions, because I'm confronted with it much more often. I'm hostile toward Christianity in a way that I am not toward Judaism, Islam, or just about any other religion. It's a tendancy I try to fight, but it's there.

Now, it's finding itself competing with Islam, Wicca, atheism, and an areligious culture.

Islam, Wicca, and atheism each comprise less than 1% of the American population.

Christianity is close to 76%. About 13% are agnostic/secular.

(Info from adherents.com. eta: Please pardon me while I fall over laughing as I notice that "Wicca/Pagan/Druid" is on their list of organized religions. 'Cause..no. Really, we're not.)

aperitif = before-dinner cocktail to stimulate the apetite.

I have NEVER needed booze to stimulate my appetite.

It's just a nice addition....