"I'll pray for you ..."

The arrogance of this statement infuriates me so. I have heard this statement several times over the last two months when I acknowledged that (A) I do not practice organized religion and (B) I do not believe in god (at least not a christian god in the classical sense*). Once I was interrupted in a restaurant by someone eavesdropping and once from a relative at the Holidays with this arrogant, condescending phrase. My immediate response was "Is something wrong with me, what is wrong with me, what have you heard?"

And of course what is wrong with me is that I do not share their belief. I told them "I do not think there is anything wrong with you for believing what you believe, so why is something wrong with me." That pretty much ended the discussion, there was complete inability to understand my question and a quick bandwagon appeal to the masses and that 90 percent of the U.S. believes, etc.

Therein lies the danger of belief, when you have arrived at your place in the world and are convinced of its origins and deity that you believe all should share this belief. That is why I hate missionary work, because couched behind their "good deeds" is the desire to convert, cajole, force and even kill others to believe like they do. What "good christians" did to Native Americans is and always will be unforgivable, to cite one of a endless list of such atrocities. But the fucking Mormons are so good at (I must admit I am a bit intolerant to Mormonism, which contradicts what I am about to say below, but fuck Joseph Smith).

Yes, I often mock and crack wise about religion and people who practice it. But deep down I ultimately say believe what you want BUT your belief ends with you. I only care what you believe once you attempt to impose it upon another. The moment you think you have the answers, you know the truth - well, you are an asshole. But this is in conflict with my very strong personal belief that all religions are based on superstition, mysticism and have been mostly corrupted by man's interpretation. Yes, there are many powerful examples of people that believe doing good deeds, but do they really need the belief to do so?

(* I do have a personal ethos about how I want to contribute and be on this world, and I do believe there is something magical, unknowable about the collective human spirit, but that is another story for another day.)