And the award goes to . . .

Perhaps the award for “Person Who Gives Christians a Bad Name” (this week) should go to Ms. Lou Landrum, executive director of the Spartanburg [South Carolina] Soup Kitchen.  Ms. Landrum refused to allow an atheist group, Upstate Atheists, to volunteer at the kitchen, even though they promised not to wear their atheist t-shirts or identify themselves as atheists.

Not to be daunted, the atheists, who participate in many activities sponsored by religious organizations, set up across the street and gave away “care packages” to the homeless.

I must be a novelist at heart, since I am always thinking “What if . . .?”  What if I were the director of a church soup kitchen and an atheist group wanted to help?

At first the answer seemed easy.  “Of course we’d be delighted to have you help . . .” Change that to  a Church Worker persona, “Golly, that would be terrific, what days can I put you down for?  But this is a Christian endeavor, representing the church, so please don’t talk about . . .  um . . . you know what to the guests.” 

Of course, in the back of my mind, I’d be hoping that the atheist volunteers would be so won over by everyone’s Christian witnessing (which would be by example, not proselytizing) that they would eventually believe.

Wouldn’t this make a wonderful Hallmark Channel movie?   But I can’t decide if the director should be young and beautiful (but probably perky) or of a certain age (not quite so perky, but aglow with the Holy Spirit.)  I am quickly adding that I fit neither of these descriptions.  Naturally, she and the head atheist (probably male; I don’t know if a same sex romance would work on Hallmark yet) fall in love.  I see him as either a sexy, troubled leftist or a charming old hippie.

Naturally, they fall in love and the atheist (Do you have any suggestions for the actor?) comes to Jesus.

But to get back to reality.  Would I really be right to ask the atheists to keep a low (non)spiritual profile?  Shouldn’t a Christian organization allow debate?  If I wanted to offer the guests spiritual options, wouldn’t they be entitled to hear the other side?

I have to admit that my feeling would be “Not in my soup kitchen!”  And I have to admit that I don’t know how I should feel about that.

What would Jesus do? What would you do?

 

Sources:  MSN Now;  Mediaite; The Raw Story