Dumas Walker wrote to Outatime <=-

@MSGID: <6AF0AA93.14271.dove-rel@vert.synchro.net>

A funny phenomenon I keep experiencing, or maybe always
experienced but now notice more as I get older and more
perceptive of others.

Those who says they are "not religious" can be the most
religious of all.

You are not the only one to experience this. I have met some
"atheists" who are at least as judgemental as the most conservatively-religious persons I have ever met when it comes to
religion (or lack thereof).

Pointing that out is a good way to get them really upset, too. ;)

Political Correctness/Woke is the prevailing religion today. It is a belief system that is based on faith.

There are very few people who don't have some faith-based belief system, who don't have at the core some assumptions that they build their belief system on.

Some of the most fanatical fundamentalists are those who describe themselves as atheists. They technically are, but they are religious, its just their religion doesn't have a God (unless you count Hitler as some sort of anti-God)


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Some of the most fanatical fundamentalists are those who describe
themselves as
atheists. They technically are, but they are religious, its just their religion doesn't have a God (unless you count Hitler as some sort of anti-God)

At this point the word "religious" is not part of my vocabulary when I talk about people of faith in God. Because at best it's meaningless in that context; at worst, it's derogatory.

There is a word used to describe certain Christians, "evangelical," which means strictly, according to the (Christian) Gospel, and a little more nuanced, referring to Christians who hold firm the authority of the Bible and a personal conversion to faith. A number of Christian denominations--perhaps not Catholic, Orthodox, or some protestant mainline--could be described this way. But in public, it's a stain. It's the evangelicals who (used to) terrorize abortion clinics. Evangelicals had a big hand in voting in Trump, twice! Evangelicals hate gays. I mean, that's what they say. But none of it is actually true. It's a misused label for conveniently grouping people together who don't necessarily belong grouped together.

So, even though it's a fine word with a solid definition, it's got baggage, like "religious" and I wouldn't use it among most company.


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Outatime wrote to Boraxman <=-

@MSGID: <6AF289DE.14273.dove-rel@vert.synchro.net>

Some of the most fanatical fundamentalists are those who describe themselves as
atheists. They technically are, but they are religious, its just their religion doesn't have a God (unless you count Hitler as some sort of anti-God)

At this point the word "religious" is not part of my vocabulary when I talk about people of faith in God. Because at best it's meaningless in that context; at worst, it's derogatory.

There is a word used to describe certain Christians, "evangelical,"
which means strictly, according to the (Christian) Gospel, and a little more nuanced, referring to Christians who hold firm the authority of
the Bible and a personal conversion to faith. A number of Christian denominations--perhaps not Catholic, Orthodox, or some protestant mainline--could be described this way. But in public, it's a stain.
It's the evangelicals who (used to) terrorize abortion clinics. Evangelicals had a big hand in voting in Trump, twice! Evangelicals
hate gays. I mean, that's what they say. But none of it is actually
true. It's a misused label for conveniently grouping people together
who don't necessarily belong grouped together.

So, even though it's a fine word with a solid definition, it's got baggage, like "religious" and I wouldn't use it among most company.

Evangelicals are not a big thing here in Australia. There are some, and they've grown in the last couple of decades (thanks to US influence :( ), but for most of us here, it is a curiosity, something strange. Most Australians would probably agree with me when I say we don't really want that kind of thing here.

This is a big cultural difference between us and the US. We don't do revivals. We don't do these big stadium filling political rallies. We're laid back and understated in the regard. I remember when a company I worked for was purchased by Americans, and the American managers came with their over-the-top "Gee golly aren't we all great today!" over-enthusiasm and we all cringed inside.

From the point of view of someone who tries not to be religious, the key defining feature is that faith based belief. It's the "trust me, its true". "Trust me, I know" aspect.

I'm agnostic, in the sense that I don't think anyone truly knows the nature of God, if there one, and anyone claiming to doesn't actually know more than me.



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Evangelicals are not a big thing here in Australia. There are some, and they've grown in the last couple of decades (thanks to US influence :(

Your biggest evangelical church - Hillsong - has actually had an outsized influence on the United States and globally. They are well known and their music has been sung in any US church that uses modern music, for about 20 years or so.



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I remember when a company I worked for was purchased by
Americans, and the American managers came with their
over-the-top "Gee golly aren't we all great today!"
over-enthusiasm and we all cringed inside.

I think that the American managers picked some of that up from the period when Japanese/other Asian companies started setting up offices and plants here. Several of them would start the day off with "employee rallies" that were, at the time, foreign to American employers.


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Re: Re: On deeply held belief
By: Outatime to Boraxman on Tue Nov 10 2026 10:03 pm

Evangelicals are not a big thing here in Australia. There are some, and they've grown in the last couple of decades (thanks to US influence :(

Your biggest evangelical church - Hillsong - has actually had an outsized influence on the United States and globally. They are well known and their music has been sung in any US church that uses modern music, for about 20 ye or so.

I have heard of Hillsong. They are a wierd exception, but to be honest I didn't know they influenced the US that much. I assumed it was the other way around, they were copying the US.

Learn something new everyday!

It seems they are quite big. I remember in the 2000s some politicians, including the Prime Minister attended their church at least once, that was when they got a bit of publicity.

To me though, this all seem just wierd and foreign. I just don't associate this type of Christianity with Australia.

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