Dating Outside your Religion (or lack thereof)

[SoonerMatt]

This topic came up during a conversation I had just a few minutes earlier and one of the things I heard that really irked me was "I would not feel comfortable if she was dating someone who wasn't a Christian." When probed, this person said that it just "didn't feel right" that two people with different beliefs couldn't be together.

I knew I wanted to say something, but not wanting to offend anyone or piss them off, I instead just bit my tongue and listened in. The gist of the conversation was just that: Dating outside of your faith, be it a Christian dating a Muslim or an atheist dating someone of any faith, just gave a weird vibe to most of the people in the conversation and it made me wish I had a scotch to better ignore them with.

So what are your thoughts on this? Being agnostic and having dated Christians and Buddhists I see nothing wrong with dating people who have faith when I don't (as long as I keep my mouth shut). I can see some strife between people of 2 different faiths dating, but I can't see faith being the ultimate breaking point if 2 people care about the other for who they are.

 

[Calobi]

Why should different religions matter so long as the two people don't care?

 

[GodsOneMistake]

Sure theres no problem to it if the people can control themselves and not allow religion to get in the way of their relationship, but alas people are morons.

 

[SharPhoe]

I honestly don't care that much. Christian, Catholic, Agnostic, Atheist, Buddhist, Muslim, Pagan, Wiccan, Satanist, whatever. IF the person and I make that first connection, nothing else matters. I'll take what I can get.

 

[teutonicman]

At least trolling the other person's religion would provide entertainment.

 

[bombchu]

I'd figure it doesn't matter. If so, they can make compromises, like, I think I vaguely remember something about a wedding that was like... both traditional Christian and traditional Jewish. It had the key ceremonial parts from both. And I've heard of people teaching their kids both religions (or lack thereof) and letting them choose. All of this is way down the road so, clearly, it shouldn't even matter earlier on in the relationship.

 

[quiet_samurai]

I eventually got dumped because I refused to convert to Catholocism. But then I also broke up with a jewish girl because i got tired of the shit she would say and how she would try to make me feel bad about not being a religious person. I don't think it's the religion itself, usually, it's the way the people in the relationship handle the conflicts of their two seperate beliefs and ultimately how devout the people truly are. Some religions will not allow you to marry someone of another faith, and if you do you will be excommunicated. So it's about the individuals, not the religion.

 

[sneakypenguin]

I couldn't date someone who wasn't a Christian, my beliefs would just be way too far apart. Plus like the Bible says be not unequally yoked.

 

[Jedoro]

I'm a Christian, and I've got no problem with "inter-belief relationships." Granted, I'm happy with my religion, and if you try to convert me I'll grab your holy book (favorite book for atheists) and let you know I desire to bludgeon you with it, but won't because I wouldn't hit a girl unless she hit me first and became a legitimate threat.

 

[SniperWolf427]

I believe that it's generally the people who are atheist or agnostic really couldn't care less about the religion of their other.

I find that strong Christians can sometimes have problems with it. My girlfriend is religious, though she hates being open about it because she thinks it is a private matter. Even still, she tells me sometimes that my lack of faith in anything whatsoever bothers her. She tells me she wishes I atleast had some sort of religion.

 

[Johninator712]

I am agnostic as well and some people have actually turned me down because of this. Very interesting to me that if someone finds someone attractive through personality or looks, beliefs can throw all of it down the drain!

Personally I don't care either. I would date anyone that had a good sense of humor and a nice personality. Beliefs really don't matter to me.


EDIT:

At least trolling the other person's religion would provide entertainment.

Epic Win

 

[SecretTacoNinja]

I tend to say what I think, more often than I should, so I reckon if I dated a religious person it wouldn't last long. If they were mildly religious and didn't discuss it often and didn't feel the need to discuss it, that would be cool.

At least trolling the other person's religion would provide entertainment.

Or a breakup faster than you can say "oops". Dumb-head...

 

[Yoshemo]

Well, Im christian dating an atheist and it dosn't cause any problems

 

[ThisTypeofThinking]

I could date someone not my religion, marry on the other hand, is a totally different thing. Everything else would have to be absolutely perfect or close. By perfect, I mean everything else just fits, either we're interested in the same things, or totally different enough to keep each other learning new things etc. The girl I like the most right now is the same religion as me, exact same beliefs. It's nice because you can get into deep conversations without arguing on the points you need to continue wit further.

 

[LevelSix]

I'm essentially an atheist, and I dated a Christian girl. She eventually broke up with me because of religious reasons. I never once said anything against her religion, and accepted her beliefs fully. She did ask me to go to church once, and I said I didn't feel comfortable doing so.

Whether or not it can work depends on the people involved.

 

[Souplex]

All non-Souplexists are heathens. All shall embrace the words of the newer testament!

And the boy did Suplex Yaweh and it was awesome. God defeated and humbled granted the boy his power and decreed that he would rule the universe, and it was awesome.

 

[Caimekaze]

I'm dating a fairly devout christian, whereas I have no strongly defined religious beliefs.

We're both extremely accepting of the other's point of view, so it hasn't interfered with us.

 

[Xcelsior]

I don't think there's anything wrong with dating out of your religion.

 

[LadyZephyr]

I have no problem with it, though I don't think I personally could seriously date someone of devout faith.