Site stuff type question

[picklemewalnuts]

Could we report comments on this board and have them deleted for being effectively 'off topic', please?

I've noticed it's really hard to have a conversation specifically within a religion, without people spamming the thread with 'God doesn't exist/your God is evil' type comments.

It's really off putting, and makes a decent conversation hard.

I'm not trying to stifle discussion, but when the OP has specified they want a response about or within the Christian tradition (for example) or a response from Christians, it would be good to be able to keep it free from 'only idiots and psychopaths believe in God' type comments.

I have unfortunately from MIL who in Hindu. She is v scathing of Islam and distrustful of Christianity. In fact she often is watching these conspiracy videos about Muslims /Christians trying to convert Hindus. I haven't come across this though on Mumsnet. I've also come across Christians like this.

Digita is doing an interesting job of trying to keep their discussion philosophical and theoretical. It's an interesting question for believers and unbelievers alike, but it's being derailed by people arguing that God doesn't exist and the church is evil.

And I can't help myself when the derail is just factually wrong. I get drawn in.

Amazing, isn't it, how people of different faiths, often with conflicting philosophies, manage to talk to each other without attacking each other for believing the unbelievable.

The believers (on MN, at least) don't attack the unbelievers. Heck, you lot don't even proselytise!

I’ve reported a few comments as “hate speech”. But it totally derails the treads.

I'm not sure what your point is?

By all means, report any Christians who are derailing other threads but that's not what we're talking about on this thread.

We are politely requesting that if others do not share our Christian beliefs that they refrain from commenting negatively on threads specifically started to gain Christian perspectives.

Your comment ignoring this request and telling us we need to be more respectful on other threads (though I have never seen the behaviour you describe) is exactly what we are talking about.....

If a poster is requesting a Christian perspective (or any other faith) then those who are of that faith should be responding. Those not of the faith should be respectful that the OP has requested a certain type of reply. Not how daft her request is.
I agree that MN needs to do more.

@TooMuchToDoTooLittleInclination I think of course they can say they don't believe in God but to call God a sky fairy is offensive. I don't believe in any of the Hindu deities but I would not call them anything that would offend others. One can simply say they don't believe. In fact sometimes it may not even be necessary to volunteer that information.

Of the 7 most current threads in the religion and philosophy boards 6 and christian threads- so well represented.

I reserve the right to criticise religion, gods, churches.
Personal attack is not OK, individual people
need respect but their faiths or gods do not.
I think Mumsnet mods gets the balance right.
The bible paints a picture of a murderous
fickle narcissist god.
I should be able to say that.
I should have my comments deleted if I describe someone as stupid or narrow minded for having beliefs.
I respect everyone's right to hold a belief, but I don't have to respect your dogma or gods.

Well yes. But if you say those things on a thread which is specifically in its OP asking for a Christian perspective or support, at best it makes you look a bit of a dick, doesn't it.

If you see a thread like that and think there are some interesting issues which you want to debate, maybe it'd be better to start a separate thread welcoming input from any perspective. I'd hope MNHQ wouldn't take that as a TAAT - the same issues are bound to arise repeatedly on the P&R board.

MN should do the reddit approach for topics - have a core default selection that automatically show for everyone when you join, but then make it really really clear that there is also a way to customise which topics you can view and easy to change that when you like, with a prompt to choose the topics you want when you sign up (or just click "show me default topics")

It would solve this issue - I have very little interest in religious threads (would never derail though because what is the point of that) and also help with the topics like special needs/neurodiversity being basically invisible to new posters.

I'm still upset about the neurodiversity section being made impossible to use for posters with ADHD.

No one is asking you to respect Christian beliefs or dogma or anything else.

But we are asking that if you wish to make your views on our beliefs known that you do it on your own threads. We will willing engage in robust discussion and debate (if that's what you'd like. If not,.we will politely ignore)

If you start a thread about your laundry or a colleague's rude behaviour, or your sick chinchilla you do not want Christians leaping on to suggest you pray about it or telling you to look for meaning in the Bible or placating you with "God will provide". So we don't.

But when someone posts LITERALLY asking for help with prayer, Bible study, or placing their trust in God we would like you and your dogma, beliefs, and cynicism to kindly back off.

I'm another who gets heartily sick of all the 'sky fairy' comments.

And why do people get so defensive ?- "I know how to behave without religion to tell me" is a favourite.

I get fed up of people attacking the Catholic Church because of the instances of child (sexual) abuse. It was wrong, it shouldn't have happened, we know that, but that's no reason to denigrate a whole religion.
Some athletes cheat by taking drugs - does that mean that all athletics should be banned?

I'm amazed that so many mumsnetters deny the existence of God, but if someone starts a 'woo' thread about things that go 'bump' in the night, it can run to 20 pages !

Moan over.

@Thesefeetaremadeforwalking Too right 👍

How would you feel if I went onto your current thread and started heckling you, saying it's a load of old cobblers etc? I won't of course, because it's plain rude and disrespectful. I did notice the only other comment by a Christian (not breaking any guidelines at all, by the way) has been deleted and I was flat out ignored after asking a question. Maybe we should take the same approach.

It depends on the thread. A general thread about “does God really care?” would be acceptable to post an opinion about how God is represented in the Bible, or how that is interpreted by branches of faith today. A thread about choosing which branch of faith to follow isn’t really acceptable to strafe with “God is fickle and cruel anyway” with the implication that anyone investigating their faith shouldn’t even bother.

Agree about the criticism of different Christian pathways. I could start a thread about how Catholicism is increasingly more attractive to me, but some aspects of it are offputting. Not fine to wade in on someone else’s thread shouting about child abuse as if that’s the be all and end all.

DH is an atheist. A quietly determined one, in fact. We just don’t discuss faith much these days, but when we do, we have boundaries of respect that we don’t cross. Be nice if threads in the topic on here followed the same boundaries but the AIBU mentality is a bit too baked in on MN.

I do smile about the long running witchcraft thread that's been happily trundling along without heckling. Clearly Christianity threads feel more threatening.

I gave up on this board partly for this reason.
Now I virtually never come on to it.

I am on another forum and Christianity is discussed far better.
Chalk and cheese.
Light and day.

What gets to me is people thinking they are oh so original.

There was a thread here I am not sure how long ago, and the youngish Christian said, I am a Christian, AMA
Oh the poor woman. It started off well enough, but i knew it would go badly. Which it did.

Christianity is Establishment. Rebellion needs Establishment to rebel against. Witchcraft as a religion is rebellion against Establishment. Hence the iconoclasts mock Christianity but leave witchcraft alone.

Isn't at least some of the annoyance about the 'sky fairy' comments are so trite, unoriginal and tedious? Yet always presented as if they are freshly plucked from a mind so sharp it could cut diamonds, when the reality is that mind could have custard poured on it and double up as a trifle?

I do love a good discussion about religion. Lobbing 'sky fairy' about doesn't even come close.

@picklemewalnuts

"Clearly Christianity threads feel more threatening."

And there you have it....

There is always this odd tension with the “lol sky fairy” types, where they talk like they’re lone voices of rebellion against the oppressive power of a Christian majority. Church attendance in the UK is something like 5%, we’re one of the least religious countries in Europe, and people want to feel like they’re being hunted down by the Inquisition. It is odd.

I am glad the witches don’t get their threads hijacked though! Good on them, long may that continue.

I think it's more that Christianity is familiar, and does affect the lives of everyone in the U.K. to some extent. There are, unfortunately, people whose lives have been screwed up in some way by it (or something purporting to be Christianity, even if a million miles from what Jesus taught.). Whereas it's pretty unlikely many have had any contact, positive or negative, with witchcraft. That doesn't excuse their bad behaviour but may in some cases explain it.

I do love a good discussion about religion. Lobbing 'sky fairy' about doesn't even come close.

ITA. It's rude and childish, at best.

How would you feel if I went onto your current thread and started heckling you, saying it's a load of old cobblers etc? I won't of course, because it's plain rude and disrespectful.

But you could. People do. And yet nobody is trying to get MN to ban people from posting 'this is a load of cobblers' on threads on other boards. Because opinions are opinions. Beliefs are beliefs. Your belief in a god is not automatically more universally sacrosanct or deserving of respect than someone else's belief that Paris is a rubbish holiday destination, toilet brushes are brilliant or that Taylor Swift is the best singer ever.

We all know that many religious people think religious belief is important and should be respected more than other types of opinion or belief. But that doesn't mean that the non-religious majority has to agree.