sethpayne wrote:really? you don't think approaching captive strangers is obnoxious?
I don't. Religious beliefs don't exist in a vacuum, and should be part of public discourse, just like conversation about the weather. People need to think more about their faith, and the best way to do that sometimes is in polite but perhaps passionate conversation with some fresh faced youth trying to live their own convictions.
It would be obnoxious to me if they were doing some kind of lame shtick, or being gimmicky.
Ok. I see where you are coming from and you make an excellent point about religion being part of the public discourse. I suppose I'm just wary of religious proselytizing that may border on harassment but, if these missionaries are being respectful and polite then a simple "no thank you" from the passengers should be sufficient to keep everyone happy.
sethpayne wrote: You make a good point though. When I was a missionary I HATED being asked by mission leadership to tract during dinnertime or to do so-called "street contacting."
Just temporarily interrupting my absence to agree with a brilliant point. I eventually refused to do "street contacting", and was immediately questioned by zone leaders whether I "had a testimony". "Obnoxious" is too tame a word for this. It revolted me, and for the first time on my mission I felt like telling the MP where to go, and catch the next plane home. Stopping people in the street to "preach" to them was not my idea of a mission. Knocking on doors was bad enough.
I served over in England and can remember having a companion teach me the 1st discussion while on a train or bus and then counting the people sitting around us as 1st discussions. Of course he ended up AP because his numbers were always so impressive every month. Luckily I was only with him for one month when he was the DL. With him it was always about the numbers. All I wanted to do was chill while on public transportation.
Personally I would be pissed off if anyone approached me on a Plane, train, bus, or cruise ship and tried to sell me something whether it is religion, insurance, or vitamins. If I am interested then let me start the conversation.
by the way: In this same category, I can't stand having to listen to the "LOUD" people talking on their cell phones in these same areas. I don't care what you want to say to your kids...talk softly or hang up the phone.