The Everyday Club

6/25/11 Mike, Ben, Hillary   20's
Out riding my bike after dark here on Chicago's south side I rode past an old warehouse whose lofts are being rented out to various groups including a production studio. On the front steps were some band members dressed Goth/punk/rage style (not sure what to call it) They were passing around a joint and talking while on a break from shooting a music video, so I asked if i could run a question by them. When they found out it was religious in nature it started a lively conversation about everything they hate about Christianity. Ben turned out to be the most knowledgeable - and hateful - of the Christian concept of God - and he held forth in judgement of God and Christians which led the rest of the group of about 8 people to do likewise. I quickly became the lightening rod for all their blasphemous, hateful, judgemental and profanity-filled statements. Every once in a while they would turn to me a ask - "So what do you believe?" - but they didn't have the patence to hear me out. One guy videoed me and the conversation, saying it would be great for some backstage shots for their music video. I think I took all this verbal abuse well. If anything it got these people talking about their beliefs that they apparently had not talked about before, and it showed clearly why God's condemnation against sinful and rebellious man is justified. When it was time to get back to the shoot, the last - and most vocal - to leave were Mike and Ben. Mike had attended a non-denominational "health and wealth" church and Ben was a pastor's kid. They both explained they had done "the Christian thing" and had rejected it now that they've been enlightened to the truth. I believe the source of their rejection of all things Christian was the easy-believism of someone in their past church experience who assured them they were Christians when, in fact, they never were.