Poll follow up questions

[awitch]

This thread is a followup to the poll found here.
(I'm including @Caliban 's response since he replied before I could create this thread)

For the question regarding non-Christians' outlook on Christianity in the last 3 years,
7% said their outlook improved.
36% said their outlook remained unchanged.
57% said their outlook became more negative.
(14 responses)

For the question regarding non-Christians' outlook on on Christians in the last 3 years,
7% said they their outlook improved.
33% said their outlook remained the same.
60% said their outlook became more negative.
(15 responses)

For those who saw a change either positive or negative:
1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?

 

[Caliban]

My change moved in a negative direction.
1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?
My change occurred slowly. The more I studied and read about the development of Christianity and the obstacles it has placed on scientific discovery and moral progress, the more my I considered those beliefs to be bad for the world.

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?
I'm not sure how to answer this one. I spent a lot of time in the last few years reading and drawing new conclusions from those of my previous religious beliefs.

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?
As a believer, my outlook on Christians and Christianity was very positive.

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?
That's not going to happen unless someone can actually demonstrate the Christian god exists.

 

[JohnB445]

My change moved in a negative direction.
1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?
My change occurred slowly. The more I studied and read about the development of Christianity and the obstacles it has placed on scientific discovery and moral progress, the more my I considered those beliefs to be bad for the world.

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?
I'm not sure how to answer this one. I spent a lot of time in the last few years reading and drawing new conclusions from those of my previous religious beliefs.

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?
As a believer, my outlook on Christians and Christianity was very positive.

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?
That's not going to happen unless someone can actually demonstrate the Christian god exists.

Would you like to share with me your sources from what your conclusions came from?

Because I study Christianity, in a non-biased manner only in the search for what is true, I obviously don't want to just stick my head in the sand and hope for the best, and just curious how you and other people are arriving to a different conclusion.

 

[Caliban]

Would you like to share with me your sources from what your conclusions came from?

Because I study Christianity, in a non-biased manner only in the search for what is true, I obviously don't want to just stick my head in the sand and hope for the best, and just curious how you and other people are arriving to a different conclusion.

Sure, here are a few off the top of my head
Books:
Bertrand Russel--Why I'm Not a Christian
Catherine Nixey--The Darkening Age
Daniel Dennett--Breaking the Spell
Susan Jacoby--Freethinkers
Sam Harris--The Moral Landscape

Peer Reviewed Scholarship:
Albright, William F. "Abram the Hebrew a new archaeological interpretation." Bulletin of the American schools of Oriental Research 163.1 (1961): 36-54.

Ehrman, Bart D. "A Problem of Textual Circularity: The Alands on the Classification of New Testament Manuscripts." Biblica70.3 (1989): 377-388.

Stavrakopoulou, Francesca. "The Jerusalem Tophet: Ideological Dispute and Religious Transformation." Studi epigrafici e linguistici sul Vicino Oriente antico (2012): 29-30.

 

[cloudyday2]

For those who saw a change either positive or negative:
1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?
slow

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?
yes and others

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?
lukewarm initially and a small change in the positive direction for my opinion of CF Christian members

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?
My improved opinion of CF Christian members could change if the more crusading or hostile Christian members become active again in the Outreach sub-forums. My opinion on Christianity hasn't changed and is unlikely to change in the future unless I learn something new, and that seems unlikely now.

 

[Zoness]

For those who saw a change either positive or negative:
1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?
Many events over the last few years.

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?
Most of them did not involve me but a handful did.

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?
It was mildly positive and varied quite a bit by denomination; there were some internal shifts as well. Catholics and Orthodox were much higher than Protestant originally but both categories made a nosedive, especially Orthodox, relative to Protestantism which remained about the same.

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?
Not very likely.

 

[dlamberth]

1. Was the change caused by a specific event or a slow change over time involving multiple events?
Many multiple events, some from direct exchanges. And some from seeing what I feel are heretic support for the current person in the White House. In some cases, I'd even say apostasy as the faithful will over ride the directions of Jesus with the wants of Trump.

2. Did the event(s) personally involve you?
Yes.

3. How positive was your outlook initially and was it a small, medium, or large change?
Based on the my understand of the Love taught by Jesus, from that perspective my outlook is very positive of the "potential" of Christianity. BUT, and this is a very big issue for me, in the way it's practiced, it's like Jesus is in a completely different world than His followers. So my starting outlook wasn't very positive to begin with.

4. How likely is it that your outlook will return to what is was 3 years ago?
I don't know. We are in the middle of a change of consciousness and I have no idea where we will land once on the other side. What does give me hope are the bubbling up of social consciousness Christian leaders who are beginning to call out for change.