But You're So Nice...

Once, Twice, a hundred time.  How many times have I heard it? I'll be talking with someone new, or not so new, when the conversation gets around to What church do you go to? or What religion are you? I know it's going to happen sooner or later. I used to dread the moment but now I rather look forward to it.

It's a real character revealer, it is.

How a person responds to my open atheism is so interesting. The people who are cool and OK, the ones who remain interested and engaged with me are gaining in numbers. But there is still that person who will simply tip their heads, get that confused look with the wrinkly eyebrows, close down that cognitive dissonance bell going off in their heads, and they will say But you're so nice!

I realize that my response, too, is a character revealer. I do have a kind of prepared reply to the nice statement, a reply that I generally use whenever that comment comes up: Thank you, I am nice. Hmmm, I wonder why you would doubt that? Is your assumption incorrect, perhaps?

Not too confrontational. Not not confrontational. Just enough to, hopefully, encourage some further thought on the matter.