tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2735771248514471225.post5044736245995279982..comments2019-01-02T23:34:52.338-08:00Comments on She Answers Abraham: In the Name of…She Answers Abrahamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00100433553612114433noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2735771248514471225.post-58647298725865241482012-02-02T11:49:50.921-08:002012-02-02T11:49:50.921-08:00My spiritual formation and practice are Jewish. Fo...My spiritual formation and practice are Jewish. For many years, I lived in the U.S. Bible Belt. During those years, many Christians witnessed to me. Each encouraged me to join their particular church. Some approached me because they genuinely believed that my life and soul would be better off. Some were fulfilling a church assignment. Some were looking for a date.<br /><br />In retrospect, I wish I had been more honest and open in my responses. Only with close Christian friends was I able to explain that the long history of tension and violence between Christians and Jews made their evangelism painful for me. <br /><br />Most people I simply brushed off -- "No thank you," "I'm Jewish," I'm married." <br /><br />Occasionally, if a missionary rang my doorbell, I diverted them. I said things like: <br /><br />"My cat just had a litter of kittens; do you want to see them?" (They were delighted.)<br /><br />"Were you a professional dancer? You look familiar." (She had been!)<br /><br />"Can you believe that new restaurant mixes bacon in everything, even with all the Jews, Christian sects, and Muslims in the neighbourhood who won't eat it?" (They hadn't gone, but agreed it was a bad business practice.)<br /><br />In retrospect, though these responses bypassed the witness's mission, I do hope they at least created a sense of mutual recognition and sharing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com