To ask if there is a "No God Botherers Please" sign I can put up in my porch?

[Fab123]

OK, here's the rant (please bear in mind I'm pg and getting big enough now that getting up and down stairs for no reason is enough to make me want to throw anything to hand at your head):

I live alone and have 1001 things to do before baby arrives in July. At the bottom of my road is a fairly large church (does Alpha Courses, not sure what that makes them but strong flavoured Christians I imagine). Now I know it is Easter coming up and everything but I have just had to open the door for no less than the 7th time IN ONE WEEK to a couple with a leaflet about Jesus.

I know this sounds petty but when you have an open can of paint that you need to suddenly cover and check cats can't get to, need to manoeuvre yourself from the comfortable position you have finally found on the sofa or come breathlessly running in through the house from the garden...it's driving me a bit balmy!

I've told he last 4 couples that I have had a constant stream of them since last week but it doesn't seem to be getting back to their HQ. How strong is this community they hark on about if they can't even tell each other which road they have canvassed? And are they wasting collection money on all of the flyers and leaflets I get given and thrust through my door that go the same way as all of the kebab house leaflets?

My Q is: Is there a sign out there that I can put up (similar to the No Sales Callers) that used to be popular?

Send a text to all your friends and relatives asking them to phone/text you if they are calling in. Ignore everything else unless you're expecting a parcel.

Moneysavingexpert.com has a sign you can print out saying 'no cold callers'.

But what if they are not cold?
What if they are filled with the awesome power and warmth of God's love and want to share it with the world?
And you especially?

They are rude for knocking uninvited and I too find them bloody annoying.

There is a church down the road, I can SEE it. If I feel the need to talk to someone about a mystical man in the sky then I can take myself to that church of my own free will.

We have them on a weekly, sometimes daily basis. I usually ignore them, or open the door and say "I'm not interested, please go away".

Jehovas are the most persistent in my experience. They even ignore the no religious callers sign on the front door. No, I do not want to read the watchtower or speak to people who believe my gay friends are "sinners" and that it's acceptable to sit back and watch your child die a slow and painful death because you think they shouldn't have a life saving blood transfusion or transplant in the name of "religion" (sore subject with me). You are not worth my time, even opening the door to say piss off and leave me alone is too much effort for me to give to you.

Just a short note saying "No sales calls or religious callers please" should be enough.

Some of the notices people put are so pompous and OTT, they just look silly.

"We hereby indicate to all personell that we have zero desire to purchase items, alter our preferences for suppliers nor to contemplate modifying our non-religious philosophy, at the fore of our property. Therefore we politely insist forthwith that if you are categorised among the above that you thus decline from attempting to attract our attention by means of knocking or indenting the doorbell."

Have you considered "Feck off unless you're the postman" with "Polite notice" as a prefix?

Well, I've bought the eBay sign.

Fear now that they will continue to knock and this will annoy me ever more so if the sign is clearly visible...

Call the church and say you are being inundated, could they please stop calling, particularly as you are heavily pg and can't get to the door easily. (They'll pray for your baby and delivery! )

A lot of people are interested to hear about God so please don't think you speak for the majority. But if you don't want them coming to your door then make that clear, either a sign or call the church, who should be decent about your wishes. Don't be rude about them though, they usually mean well.

Are you sure they're from the church up the road? It's quite possible, but they might not be. I'd ask them before complaining to the wrong place.

I just politely say: "Thanks but we're Catholics so we're fine"
It's not entirely true, we're totally lapsed but they never take on a Catholic, they know they're beat!

Really springydaffs? I have yet to meet someone who wants people knocking uninvited to talk about god? Perhaps all the people who do want to hear about god are out knocking at other peoples doors doing the same thing :)

springydaffs - Mean well? that's so patronising but then again thats how I personally find so many Christians - they mean well so their intrusion is Ok

I've just rung the church as well (number on leaflet I fished out of bin - btw are these recyclable these shiny ones?!) but, of course, no one is in the office. I expect it's because they are all out on their missions of ensuring that everyone in the vicinity knows that they chose to knock on people's doors for a whole Saturday.

Left a polite message.

They are super annoying. I love your sign!

Next time they ring tell them you had complications during your last birth and had to have a blood transfusion. Then they'll think you are a lost soul

I'm a Christian and I think YANBU

I've had a similar problem lately as we have a Mormon church? temple? (I'm not sure of the correct terminology!) at the end of our road and I get several drop-ins a week (they ignore my 'no cold callers' sign), I've been struggling to stay polite as they can be rather pushy enthusiastic.

The other day they knocked at 8:30pm while I was trying to settle a fluey 2yr old who was crying upstairs at the time, tried explaining to them that she needed me and I couldn't talk now, and that I was sorry but I couldn't talk now, but they wouldn't take no for an answer and I ended up having to say as polite a 'goodbye' as I could manage and shut the door. Really put my back up!

I'd never try and sell my religious beliefs to another person, as it's a personal thing, although I do respect that they must feel very strongly about their religion to feel driven to do this. 'Tis annoying though!

Well, I'm Christian and I think 'No God Botherers Please' is funny, tba! Especially when they've called so often.

What also works, but you probably don't have the time for, is keeping them talking at the door for ages. You affect great interest in what they say, then reply to everything with 'Oh yes, my religion is very similar, we believe [complete opposite]'. Funnily enough, I don't find they enjoy calling on people who actually want to talk to them at length and disagree! Works with politicians too.

Katie I love that - please tell me somewhere actually sells 'feck off unless you're the postman' signs?

YANBU in wanting to put a sign in your window saying no, but it isn't nice to call them 'God Botherers'. I have sympathy, we seem to get religious callers very frequently, at least monthly and often more than that, main Jehovah's Witnesses I believe and have been considering putting up a sign asking them not to knock. Last time they did, I ignored the door and had to virtually pin my 5 year old down from answering the door as he said, in a very loud voice, I was being rude and should open the door! He continued to chastise me for the rest of the day for being rude to the people who had knocked, bless him!

You're not being rude at all, they are for invading your privacy.
Why should you feel that you have to hide in your own home and ignore the door, like you say, you're expecting parcels and stuff.
I respect people if they want to have a faith but keep it to yourself, don't go banging on people's doors trying to drum up recruits.

Yanbu. This really bothers me. We get it A LOT. I think they are more rude for knocking on my door. I once had the same problem. I asked the 7th caller if they wanted to buy some crack and come in for our gay orgy. That was the last one I saw, this did pop a leaflet through just after saying how god hates sinners.

IME most (not all) of the religious types who have darkened my doorstep over the years have been pushy and sometimes downright rude. The last one I had kept cutting me off mid sentence & wouldn't take no for an answer. She told me to go ask the other people in the house if they wanted to hear about god. I told her it was my house, thanks very much. She then tried to insist I go find my "husband" (nice assumptions there, I'm not married to DP but I could have been a lesbian for all she knew!) to check with him, as if my presence as little wifey wasn't authoritative enough.

I did not feel any guilt for slamming the door in her face at that point.

I also had an old lady leap out of a car & start talking at me as I was walking to the supermarket on a Sunday. I had my iPod on & was just wanting to get to A-Z. Why bother people like that?

I usually turn away from the door, and shout something to imaginery person in living room something like "OI!!!! DID I say you could take your gimp mask off yet? PUT IT BACK ON NOW!!!!" then turn to the door, smile very sweetly and say "yes how can i help you?"

They dont tend to come back for a loooooong time