6 ms·

There's a pastor who sometimes answers this question with "I'm a doctor for souls." .... The answer "Pastor" can be a conversation killer.

by m1n1 9y ago

chrisseaton 9y ago
This is strange - a pastor is a pretty ordinary job and has lots of polite follow-on questions like 'where is your church'. 'Doctor for souls' sounds like you're you're either giving me a nonsense answer for some unknown reason or you're genuinely unhinged. I don't know why it would lead to a better conversation!
- m1n1 9y ago
  There's a lot of people who avoid conversations about religion, especially if they think someone will try to 'convert' them. Edit: "doctor for souls" might invite "what do you mean?"
  - chrisseaton 9y ago
    If I'm avoiding conversations with religious people, you can be certain I'm avoiding them with people who claim to be a doctor of souls though. He sounds like he wants to vivisect me rather than just convert me!
    - ph0rque 9y ago
      No, you're thinking "soul surgeon".
    - m1n1 9y ago
      He is trying to improve his bedside manner. It's an ongoing effort. :)
- sigi45 9y ago
  If there are enough people like me, i can understand why. I would have to hold back to discuss my views against religion with a pastor.
- ergothus 9y ago
  As a yankee that moved to the south for a while before retreating to Seattle, I can say that my reaction would vary based on the local culture. There are areas where it seems EVERYONE is a pastor and enough of them are preachy and/or judgmental enough that, yeah, it's a conversation killer. The constant barrage can also make you hypersensitive. I didn't much care until after a few years of living there, but by the time I left the constant "have a blessed day!", the bumper stickers, the billboards, the email signatures (even from state govt employees), most any personal local story in person, in writing, or in news...I mentally flinch if something gets near the topic even though I used to not have much reaction at all. I imagine 'doctor for souls' is intended to show humor and approachability, but as you say, it would not work that way for me.
brookside 9y ago
> The answer "Pastor" can be a conversation killer. As it maybe should be. I'm certainly not denying that people identifying as pastors can offer solace and comfort to people in times of trouble, but they are doing so in the context of mysticism, in a particular form that has been catastrophic for many groups in our society.

There's a pastor who sometimes answers this question with "I'm a doctor for souls." .... The answer "Pastor" can be a conversation killer.

by m1n1 9y ago

There's a pastor who sometimes answers this question with "I'm a doctor for souls." .... The answer "Pastor" can be a conversation killer.

chrisseaton 9y ago

This is strange - a pastor is a pretty ordinary job and has lots of polite follow-on questions like 'where is your church'. 'Doctor for souls' sounds like you're you're either giving me a nonsense answer for some unknown reason or you're genuinely unhinged. I don't know why it would lead to a better conversation!

m1n1 9y ago
There's a lot of people who avoid conversations about religion, especially if they think someone will try to 'convert' them. Edit: "doctor for souls" might invite "what do you mean?"
- chrisseaton 9y ago
  If I'm avoiding conversations with religious people, you can be certain I'm avoiding them with people who claim to be a doctor of souls though. He sounds like he wants to vivisect me rather than just convert me!
  - ph0rque 9y ago
    No, you're thinking "soul surgeon".
  - m1n1 9y ago
    He is trying to improve his bedside manner. It's an ongoing effort. :)
sigi45 9y ago
If there are enough people like me, i can understand why. I would have to hold back to discuss my views against religion with a pastor.
ergothus 9y ago
As a yankee that moved to the south for a while before retreating to Seattle, I can say that my reaction would vary based on the local culture. There are areas where it seems EVERYONE is a pastor and enough of them are preachy and/or judgmental enough that, yeah, it's a conversation killer. The constant barrage can also make you hypersensitive. I didn't much care until after a few years of living there, but by the time I left the constant "have a blessed day!", the bumper stickers, the billboards, the email signatures (even from state govt employees), most any personal local story in person, in writing, or in news...I mentally flinch if something gets near the topic even though I used to not have much reaction at all. I imagine 'doctor for souls' is intended to show humor and approachability, but as you say, it would not work that way for me.

brookside 9y ago

> The answer "Pastor" can be a conversation killer. As it maybe should be. I'm certainly not denying that people identifying as pastors can offer solace and comfort to people in times of trouble, but they are doing so in the context of mysticism, in a particular form that has been catastrophic for many groups in our society.