Annoying People Is Not Courageous

[debrand]

Another video from On The Box. Apparently, these people need to get a new dictionary because the behavior in the video does not show courage.

A man is walking up and down the streets in NY, screaming to gay people getting married that they need to repent. For the most part, he is annoyed but at one point the cops ask him to go home. The police are very polite but he refuses. The next shot is of him, walking up and down the street again.

Do other countries have street preachers or is this just an American phenomena?

onthebox.us/2011/07/true-courage-true-heralds.html

jeremiahcry.com/

I skimmed through the second site and apparently, America is exporting street preaching to other countries.

My feelings about this are mixed. Freedom of speech and the ability to protest are rights that I value. Also, I think that he is turning more people against him than he is bringing over to his side. But I could see some of these preachers angering people to the point that something gets out of hand.

(edited because I realized that I made it sound as if only Americans have certain rights. Sorry)

[Patsy]

Do other countries have street preachers or is this just an American phenomena?

I've seen them twice in my life, that I can remember.

[alysee]

We have them in Canada too! Especially in the cities!

[Artemis]

We have a regular street preacher in Bristol (SW UK) in the shopping centre at Broadmead. People just politely look the other way and detour round him. I've never seen anyone even bother to heckle.

We're all far too stiff upper lip to embarass ourselves by noticing him. :lol:

[Sola]

I had my first experience with a street preacher just last week whilst on holiday in Wales. Now Wales is a little more religious than the rest of the UK; I swear it has more churches and chapels than pubs. We went to Portmadog for the day and encountered a street evangelist - all annoying and loud, shouting fire and brimstone for those who do not turn to Jesus. I did have to laugh though, we had to walk past him and my son (age nearly 16) and my husband took hold of each of my arms at the elbow and ushered me past! My son was saying, 'ignore him mum, deep breaths, count to ten'! He knows me too well! I really fancied debating him!

That's the very first time I have ever seen a street evangelist, though in my home town we often see a man who hangs about in the town center wearing one of those sandwich boards which states some religious bumf or other. He never says anything though.

[apple1]

I'm in the US, and I am pro freedom of speech.

That said, as a Christian, I find street preachers highly embarrassing, and not in any way representative of my personal Christian beliefs. So I really deep inside just wish they would go away. :-(

[cindyluvs24]

Well, here on the beautiful Jersey Shore we rarely, but sometimes, get a crackpot who marches up and down the street and/or boardwalk lambasting the gals in bikinis, the end of the world, or the legitimacy of the Pope etc. Unfortunately, the business owners (who all tend to have a picture of the Pope taped to the wall) are easily annoyed by anyone who would interfere with a person's right to sit in front of their restaurant and enjoy a slice of pizza. These "preachers " are usually dissuaded by the appearance of a guy named either Nick or Vinnie, holding a bat. You don't want to know what they do when they catch a youngster with a can of spray paint. First Amendment issues never arise because the cop is usually a brother of the aforementioned Nick or Vinnie. I love the shore!!!!

[oscar]

I haven't seen our local street preacher in a while, and I'm a little worried about him. He's not full-on crazy, but it doesn't seem like he's fully able to function on his own, either. Some of the ladies who work in the library will bring him water or lunch. It seems like he is quite sincere in his effort to win people to Christ by his efforts, and even though some of his preaching - ranting? - is desperately misguided and occasionally offensive, he's generally a pleasant person otherwise. I know someone talked to him about not using hate speech when preaching against same-sex marriage, and he actually dropped the offensive language.

Sometimes, you can see he's becoming more disheveled, he starts smelling bad, he talks too fast and the things he says stop making sense. At times like this, I always wonder if I should call Adult Protective Services, but I've never done it, because it seems like plenty of people are looking out for this guy.

[latraviata]

Another video from On The Box. Apparently, these people need to get a new dictionary because the behavior in the video does not show courage.

A man is walking up and down the streets in NY, screaming to gay people getting married that they need to repent. For the most part, he is annoyed but at one point the cops ask him to go home. The police are very polite but he refuses. The next shot is of him, walking up and down the street again.

Do other countries have street preachers or is this just an American phenomena?

onthebox.us/2011/07/true-courage-true-heralds.html

jeremiahcry.com/

I skimmed through the second site and apparently, America is exporting street preaching to other countries.

My feelings about this are mixed. Freedom of speech and the ability to protest are rights that I value. Also, I think that he is turning more people against him than he is bringing over to his side. But I could see some of these preachers angering people to the point that something gets out of hand.

(edited because I realized that I made it sound as if only Americans have certain rights. Sorry)

In the Netherlands we have an occasional Mormon from the USA and Salvation Army singers or very sporadically Pentecostalish loud preachers.

[formergothardite]

I can't stand street preachers and we have them here in NC. I don't see how they could possibly draw anyone to want to be a Christian.

[browngrl]

We have these folks in Toronto too. Of course it is hard to tell a street preacher from someone who is full on crazy so I could be wrong and it may be that we just have bat shit crazy folks standing on the street corner spewing their own personal brand of lunacy.

[Antigone]

well I haven't experienced someone like that but when I was attending uni, they had this sweet old guy that would stand on the corner of a street on campus and hand out little bibles. I felt bad for him and always took one, he was pretty sweet, too, never yelled or preached, just said 'have a nice day, god bless you'. After my second or third year I never saw him again :( due to the conservative/fundie ish area, he probably moved on to another place... they wouldn't have asked him to leave :-P lol.

I have a soft spot in my heart for people like that.

[ElphabaGalinda]

We have these folks in Toronto too. Of course it is hard to tell a street preacher from someone who is full on crazy so I could be wrong and it may be that we just have bat shit crazy folks standing on the street corner spewing their own personal brand of lunacy.

You know the guy who sporadically yells Jesus really loud at the corner of Yonge and Dundas? He's been there for years :D Anyways, all the street preachers I've personally seen in Toronto have seemed to me like toned down versions of that guy, so in my experience it's been more on the bat shit crazy side than the preachery side. There was this Jehovah's Witness or something that sat next to me on the bus once and started to try to convert me. I've had a lot more experience with public transportation preachers than with the street kind.

[snarkykitty]

Hubby and I had a scary experience with a street preacher in NYC, who was surrounded by a group of at least 25 other people.

We were going to see a talk show being taped and had no other choice than to walk through this particular corner. The preacher, who was standing on a wooden crate and waving a bible, was yelling that "the (race that we are) man should be hung for the sins against the (a race we are not)" and that "their women be taught what a real man of god is".

I know that crazies exist in every religion, race and ethnicity, so we took it as just that, but boy, I was pretty scared. Hubby just grabbed my hand tight and maneuvered his way through the crowd. I'm quite small, and sometimes he has to "pave the way" through busy areas.

[pebbles]

Nothing here but Mormons. Handsome, clean living, fresh-faced, young, blonde Mormon men. I secretly hope they'll talk to me cause they're so beautiful, and then I feel like a pervert for having such evil evil thoughts about men of God ;)

[browngrl]

You know the guy who sporadically yells Jesus really loud at the corner of Yonge and Dundas? He's been there for years :D Anyways, all the street preachers I've personally seen in Toronto have seemed to me like toned down versions of that guy, so in my experience it's been more on the bat shit crazy side than the preachery side. There was this Jehovah's Witness or something that sat next to me on the bus once and started to try to convert me. I've had a lot more experience with public transportation preachers than with the street kind.

I know who you are talking about - he used to have some huge growth on his neck ( now seems to be removed). My favourite crazies on the Yonge and Dundas corner are the crazy old lady in a long black leather coat (she never says anything above a mutter though) and the guy (now gone - not sure what happened to him) that would stand on the corner and scream "F*CK, F*CK etc" at the building walls. My favourite TTC crazy is the woman who periodically rides the 501 and spends the whole ride crying loudly "Oh Lord won't someone help me find the Broadview bus" - when the driver stops at the Broadview stop and tells her she is at the Broadview stop she always refuses to get off and says things like "oh Lord it is too hot/cold/wet etc for me to wait for the Broadview bus, won't someone help me?" Clearly I am spending too much time on the TTC/ at Yonge and Dundas. :D

[Soldevi]

In Finland religion is considered to be a very very private issue and people get annoyed if opinions are forced to them, even if they are believers themselves. I haven't seen a single Finnish street preacher in my life. Public preaching is a strange concept but there a few and they are usually categorised as village idiots...

I have seen a few silent ones, though. Those who march with signs in their back and chest but they don't say a word, just march around.

[ElphabaGalinda]

I know who you are talking about - he used to have some huge growth on his neck ( now seems to be removed). My favourite crazies on the Yonge and Dundas corner are the crazy old lady in a long black leather coat (she never says anything above a mutter though) and the guy (now gone - not sure what happened to him) that would stand on the corner and scream "F*CK, F*CK etc" at the building walls. My favourite TTC crazy is the woman who periodically rides the 501 and spends the whole ride crying loudly "Oh Lord won't someone help me find the Broadview bus" - when the driver stops at the Broadview stop and tells her she is at the Broadview stop she always refuses to get off and says things like "oh Lord it is too hot/cold/wet etc for me to wait for the Broadview bus, won't someone help me?" Clearly I am spending too much time on the TTC/ at Yonge and Dundas. :D

I have a certain fondness of the Jesus yelling guy :) He used to terrify me when I was a kid...which must be like 15 years ago, but he is super dedicated to that corner. I spend a lot of time everyday on the TTC, and along Wilson, York Mills, and occasionally Lawrence I see a lot of what I call "TTC preachers"...kinda like street preachers I guess. They're wearing these suits and look very clean cut, and they sit next to people (when there are open seats not next to anyone, which is just something you don't do), and start asking them if they know Jesus and if they would like to go to church. I've seen it happen many times, but it's only happened to me once. When they asked if I know Jesus I said we've met but we don't really get along. Recently, I had one of them normal TTC crazies on the Spadina streetcar. He told me I am a sex godess and he is very good at the sex, and he would pay me very good money to have the dirty sex with him. This was the middle of the day. I see a lot of crazies downtown that i can ignore, but on the bus you're kinda trapped because it's not like you can walk that far away.

[pomology]

In Finland religion is considered to be a very very private issue and people get annoyed if opinions are forced to them, even if they are believers themselves. I haven't seen a single Finnish street preacher in my life. Public preaching is a strange concept but there a few and they are usually categorised as village idiots...

I have seen a few silent ones, though. Those who march with signs in their back and chest but they don't say a word, just march around.

Religion is a very, very private issue. I wish Americans would learn that.

[snarkykitty]

We get the Mormons, too. A pair harassed me at the train depot. In the town where we we use to live, there was a very small vestibule at the train stop. Although there were several other people there, they chose me to bug. Maybe it was because I was all dolled up

Each of the two well-dressed young men had "The Book of Mormon" in their hands and one tried to give his to me, "to share with your family", while trying to convince me that my bible wasn't complete. I was aggravated and insulted.

I must have said "no thank you" four or five times, without them giving up. Finally, I got really irritated and said rather loudly, "If you don't leave me alone I am calling the police". They got quiet and walked away. After they left, a woman who had been standing there said "at least they weren't Jehovah's Witnesses, those people never shut up!"

[ladypuglover]

We get the Mormons, too. A pair harassed me at the train depot. In the town where we we use to live, there was a very small vestibule at the train stop. Although there were several other people there, they chose me to bug. Maybe it was because I was all dolled up

Each of the two well-dressed young men had "The Book of Mormon" in their hands and one tried to give his to me, "to share with your family", while trying to convince me that my bible wasn't complete. I was aggravated and insulted.

I must have said "no thank you" four or five times, without them giving up. Finally, I got really irritated and said rather loudly, "If you don't leave me alone I am calling the police". They got quiet and walked away. After they left, a woman who had been standing there said "at least they weren't Jehovah's Witnesses, those people never shut up!"

I just get the JWs who really don't ever shut up but I love getting the few Mormons who fall into my snareknock on my door. Once after being confined to total bedrest for 6 months, they came knocking. I was a hot mess with 6 months worth of bad bed head, leaking breasts and a body that made the Pillsbury Dough Boy look like a Playgirl center fold. I had a newborn in my arms, a toddler at my feet and 3 other sons drapped randomly over the front porch. I was desperate for adult conversation and after 20-30 minutes they were running down the street trying to escape me with me running behind crying comeback, I have cookies! Good times, good times. :shifty:

[emmiedahl]

I have had JW's try to force their way in my door. I tried to shut the door and she put her foot in it.

I have had bad experiences with door-to-door people (and some good ones as well) but I don't think I've ever seen a proper street preacher. I have seen the WBC idiots, do they count?

[Sydney Fox]

I just get the JWs who really don't ever shut up but I love getting the few Mormons who fall into my snareknock on my door. Once after being confined to total bedrest for 6 months, they came knocking. I was a hot mess with 6 months worth of bad bed head, leaking breasts and a body that made the Pillsbury Dough Boy look like a Playgirl center fold. I had a newborn in my arms, a toddler at my feet and 3 other sons drapped randomly over the front porch. I was desperate for adult conversation and after 20-30 minutes they were running down the street trying to escape me with me running behind crying comeback, I have cookies! Good times, good times. :shifty:

LOL! When I was a teenager my Dad used to invite them in to do some religious sparring. If the hockey game was on, though, he'd make me get rid of them. Thanks Dad.

[Guest Anonymous]

I live in a valley town in South Wales, UK, where there is a chapel on every corner, but over the last 50 years most have been converted into shops or luxury apartments. :P

We don't have anywhere near the evangelism that goes on in the USA but I was absolutely thrilled (in a thinking-of-free-jinger way :lol: ) last week, to hear a guitar strumming a Christian song as I parked in my local town. I spoke to the ladies in the charity shop I visited and they said a street preacher had taken residence a month or so back and sings and preachers using PA equipment most days now. They were very resentful that he must be living on state benefits in order to have the time to do that.

I stopped and listened and it was the most cringe-worthy tripe imaginable... it felt like the guy was repeating fragments of every gospel service I ever sat through as a teenager. Thankfully, Valleys-women are more outspoken than most Brits and a middle-aged lady stopped him mid-flow to tell him that she was tired of hearing his preaching about hell because the Jesus she loves was her friend. He responded that he knew she was going to hell because what she was speaking wasn't biblical.

I'm sorry to say I didn't join in, because I was too fascinate watching it all play out, but I have thought of going back and heckling myself. :lol:

[Soldevi]

I have had JWs at my doorstep once. Three very young ladies came by and they left at once when they heard my brother´s words when he hit his finger with a hammer. We had just moved and he was hanging blinds in a living room :D

I have wanted to meet Mormons so badly but no :( I know they are around, we have a mormon church in my town and local mormon girls are always so exited around young American males, lol). I have seen them around, wearing a suit and a name badge but they have never been at my doorstep, alas.