Someone just knocked on the door and I am livid!!!!

[Morganpics]

I don't really see the issue. They come to my door and I say thanks, I have a church and a religion and have a nice day. They say ok and leave. I don't care if they leave their material-if I don't want to read it I use it to start the stove fire. Why is it such a big deal? I don't see it as "selling" religion. They are offering what they consider to be important to them. No, I am not one. I just don't see the point in being immediately rude.

 

[sweet angel]

I don't think it's rude to just not answer the door.

I think it's rude for them to assume it's okay to walk (trespass?) around the back of someone's property.

Some people are more tolerant than others.

 

[minniepumpernickel]

My view has totally changed on this isuue. I spent an evening hanging out at a church with the "bible beaters" and they were just the nicest people. I'll never be mean or rude to them again. I haven't converted, of course but they totally get my respect now.

I really have learned a lesson.

 

[Mskanga]

Morgan;
They came to my front door and because I didn't answer , they came around the house to the backyard and went up on the back deck and knocked on the sliding door. Many times in the summer I sit outside on my deck to drink my cup of coffee and read something in my pj's and my husband walks around in his undies sometimes.

Minnie I do not doubt for one moment that there are very nice people within them , I know quite a few, but regardless nobody has the right to impose anything, much less when they are disrupting my privacy.
I wish a fence was an option here , my community does not allow them easily, maybe that's one thing they should start changing...

 

[CRB#33]

Originally posted by Morganpics
I don't really see the issue. They come to my door and I say thanks, I have a church and a religion and have a nice day. They say ok and leave. I don't care if they leave their material-if I don't want to read it I use it to start the stove fire. Why is it such a big deal? I don't see it as "selling" religion. They are offering what they consider to be important to them. No, I am not one. I just don't see the point in being immediately rude.

I guess the way I see it is that they are being rude by soliciting on private property. They are being doubly rude by checking around the house to see if there's another way they can get to you.

It's invasive and it's acceptable to them to be that way.

And that's rude.

 

[gometros]

Originally posted by Miss Jasmine
Seaspray, I think that JW or any other religious order that goes door-to-door deserves to be treated with common courtesy. And I understand why. Believers are not supposed to hide their light under a bushel, right? Also we are to be fishers of men. There are lots of biblical passages that back up why people spread the word.

Jas - that's fine - if you believe in those passages. I find it very annoying when they come to MY door, which clearly marks it the home of a Jewish family. What are they trying to accomplish then?

 

[Cebhfhionn]

I would be mad too! I would NOT go around to someone's backdoor if they didn't answer the front. Of course, if they were my friends or neighbors then yes I would.

I don't want anyone shoving their religious beliefs on me let alone coming to my door to do it!

 

[JayBee]

Most of the delivery people and guests come to my back door, as it is connected to the driveway, so the huge indignation about people coming to a backdoor is odd , to me at least.



Question......how can someone indicate that a house is "obviously" a Jewish house, as a previous poster indicated? And why would that knowledge make the door to door evangelist reason not to knock there?

 

[gometros]

Originally posted by WDWHound
Actually, they do have that right, its called free speech. You have the right to tell them to go away, ignore them or press charges if they don't leave you alone after you tell them to go away. They have the right to speak, no one says you have to listen.

Free speech only applies to the public domain, not to the privacy of one's home. So, no, they do not have the right to invade MY home and proselytize about things I care nothing about.

I recognize that their intentions are good (in most cases they really are concerned about the welfare of my soul) and that they are trying to be true to what they feel their faith calls them to do, so I try to be polite and tell them I am not interested.

My soul is fine, thank you very much. I feed my soul the way I choose and I do not care for people to tell me what will happen to me if I don't believe they way they do.

 

[pw2pp]

It's amazing how many people complain about unwanted SPAM in their e-mail, but they don't care if someone physically intrudes on their property to sell a product or their religion?
I'd rather get SPAM then have to interupt my day by opening my door to a pushy salesperson or or someone pushing their religion on me.

Maybe I'll answer the door naked next time. That will scare them away for sure.

 

[Mskanga]

Originally posted by pw2pp
It's amazing how many people complain about unwanted SPAM in their e-mail, but they don't care if someone physically intrudes on their property to sell a product or their religion?
I'd rather get SPAM then have to interupt my day by opening my door to a pushy salesperson or or someone pushing their religion on me.

Funny that you say that because if it was on the phone they would tell me don't asnwer it or get caller ID , if it was my personal e-mail they would say don't give out your personal e-mail address, but since it's my front door , they say open the door be polite and say "no thanks" , they don't say don't open the door and they will go away....interesting.

My friend is Jewish, she has a menorah hanging on her door, would that give them an idea that Jewish people live there? I know people who have a star of David hanging on their door too.

 

[ladydancer]

Originally posted by Mskanga
Then maybe you should have read the entire thread because in my original post there was nothing posted about JW's and it wasn't until SeaSpray mentioned that she "assumed" that they were JW's because I had mentioned that they were carrying the famous magazine.
I had also said to SeaSpray that it is the people like the ones knocking on my door yesterday that give the rest a bad reputation, you can blame those two people for that, don't blame me for complaining because of what they did , not what they are.
And yes I do know a lot about JW's, my stepfather, stepsister and stepbrother used to be JW's and I have friends who are JW's, so assuming that we know nothing, again is wrong.
People are being criticized constanly for many reasons, religion, ethnic group, you name it, but eventhough I am in some of those groups at times I do not take personal offense ever because I know it doesn't involve me.
You feel this was a personal attack to your gd and I am sure that you feel that way because you love her, I can't blame you for that, but I do not appreciate your implying that I am attacking someone after two people who happen to be of the same religion come into my private property, uninvited, trespassing and insisting on me opening ANY door in my home just so they can reach their goal at any cost. I do not open any doors to anyone I do not know. I teach my children not to go on people's private property unless they are invited, and I expect the same kind of respect from everyone else.
And for the record, I do not have anything against people of other race or religion , but I do have a problem when they try to impose something on me that I am not interested in. Sometimes a simple "no thank you " is not enough for them, they won't go away. Those few people are the ones who give a bad reputation, unfortunately.

I did read your first post. I said I didn't read ALL but I did read many. From what I gathered from your first post was you didn't talk to "these" people therefore you really don't know who they were.

As I had also posted earlier I had people selling window cleaner come to my door just last week with pamplets. Could have easily mistaken them for religious people.

I didn't post to debate weather certain faiths should or shouldn't go door to door. IMO I don't believe they were JW because they don't go to back doors. That is neither here or there.

Also I didn't single you out as being the person who brought a specific religion into the post. I was posting how I felt about this becoming a bashing sestion against JW and if it had been about other groups this would NOT have been tolerated here!

 

[sweet angel]

I was posting how I felt about this becoming a bashing sestion against JW and if it had been about other groups this would NOT have been tolerated here!

I didn't perceive this to be a bashing session about any particular religious group. I took it to be against ANYONE who goes door-to-door and invades your privacy by walking around to the BACK of your house.

I might respond differently if my "back" door was actually on the "side" of my house. It doesn't seem as much of an imposition then.

 

[sha_lyn]

I had a group of JW circle my car one morning (in june I believe)in the parking lot of Hobby Lobby. I could not believe it. I have to say they were very polite and not pushy at all and let me alone when I said I was not interested. I just think it was very strange and dangerous.

 

[Mskanga]

Originally posted by ladydancer
I did read your first post. I said I didn't read ALL but I did read many. From what I gathered from your first post was you didn't talk to "these" people therefore you really don't know who they were.

Well I'm glad that you know better than I do eventhough you weren't here, but as I said before three of my family members living with me at home were JW's for years, I have seen their literature a million times and I know their practices, I know very well what I am talking about, that's beside the point that I saw who and what they were when I spoke to them in the backyard and told them to get out of my private property.

BTW, I don't have a back door to get into the house, so for me yes this was very odd that someone would actually come up the stairs and knock on the slider, nobody has ever done that before.

 

[MosMom]

 

[CRB#33]

As to the "Go forth into all the world and spread my Gospel to all the Nations," I do not believe that God wants us to be offensive.

This invasive practice is offensive.

I'm a true believer in spreading the word of Jesus Christ. I talk to people I meet, I participate in mission work and I substitue teach and if an opening is "given to me," I will talk about my faith. I do need to be careful because of the separation of church and state and I must wait for someone to ask or bring it up.

I will not intrude on personal space or property. It's wrong and it will not get me of God anywhere.

Ask a JW if they believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God if He is their personal Lord and Savior. I'm not sure what the answer to that is, because it usually sends them running.

 

[phorsenuf]

There are back doors and then there are back doors. Some back doors have a walkway from the driveway to the door. Others are truly in the back where you actually have to cut thru the yard to get there. It seems that some of the confusion is we don't know what kind of back door it was.
My back door has a walkway from the driveway. It goes to a porch that has a swinging gate. (about 3 feet tall). Once on the proch you can turn left for the door or right to go down some steps to the back yard. I have people that come to that door and it doesn't bother me. Now if my back door was where my basement door was, that would be different because it's quite obvious its not for everyday use except by the homeowners.
My guess is if it has a walkway and looks like it can be used as an "either/or" to the front door, then people will use it.

I know sometimes if I'm going to someones house and had never been there before and I see this kind of setup I don't always know which door to use. I have been known to use both when they don't answer the front.

 

[Mskanga]

Just imagine, the slider on the back of the house, with the only exception that the stairs going down are on the back side of the house, still unacceptable for anyone to come up that way uninvited unless the house is on fire, as plain as that.
Oh , and there are no walkways of any kind on the side of the house, no indication that you can also go in that way, because nobody ever does, nor do we want anyone to do so.

 

[SeaSpray]

Originally posted by CRB#33

Ask a JW if they believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God if He is their personal Lord and Savior. I'm not sure what the answer to that is, because it usually sends them running.

As I've previously mentioned, I am one of Jehovah's Witnesses, and that question would definitely NOT send me running. LOL We absolutely believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God, who's shed blood is the basis for salvation for mankind.