Stand up for what you believe OR pray for patience?

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**My boyfriend and I have been together for almost 2 years, and I truely believe that we will get married, therefore how I get along with his family is extremely important to me. However, his mother is very opinionated and her opinions are very different from mine.

This morning I recieved the following email **:

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul , Minnesota , points out some interesting facts concerning last November’s Presidential election:

Number of States won by: Obama: 19 McCain: 29
Square miles of land won by: Obama: 580,000 McCain: 2,427,000
Population of counties won by: Obama: 127 million
Code: 
                                               McCain: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:

Obama: 13.2 McCain: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory McCain won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country.
Code: 
Obama territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in low income tenements and living off various forms of government welfare..." 


Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase. 


If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders  called  illegals and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the   USA in fewer than five years. 

   If you are in favor of this, then by all means, delete this message.
If you are not, then pass this along to help everyone realize just how much is at stake, knowing that apathy is the greatest danger to our freedom.

**She knows that this is not my opinion and this is the following email that I want to send back to her in response: **

Obama may have been voted in by less people, and people who are poorer, but that is WHY he was voted in. These people need help, and Obama was and is their HOPE.

The people who wanted McCain are ‘taxpayers’ aka working and therefore wealthier, people who are content with the way America is, content with millions of people going through life without healthcare for example. Those people should be ashamed that they don’t want change because they have access to everything they need. Those people don’t want to support their PRESIDENT and fellow Americans who are in OBVIOUS need of help.

God put us on this earth to respect, love and care for one another without boundries, and if that involves scarificies then that is the LEAST we can do considering Jesus sacrifcied so much for us!!

**However, by doing this I am not sure if it is rude, I know it is not going to change her opinion and I know she will be offended. BUT I am sick of being on the recieving ends of her comments!

Should I stand up for what I believe or just hold my tongue and pray for patience!!

Thanks again!!**
 
Pray to both your guardian angels that your hearts will be open to the holy spirit when you communicate.

Personally, I hate those kind of e-mails, regardless of political content. I would also pray for patience and prudence. I tend to not get into debates with folks, co-workers.

There are smarter folks here than I on moral matters but I think in this culture people think it is a virtue to “let it all hang out” by telling people what you think. We neglect prudence about when and where and how we “stand up for what we believe in”.

I can see how you would not want to give the impression you agree with her.
 
I wouldn’t respond to this…simply because I’d give in to my temper…

Regardless of what people think about either candidate…the Church has very strong words about caring for the poor, regardless of boundaries or nationality.

Is your boyfriend’s family Catholic?

It’s ironic…I know so many ultra-conservative Catholics who shoot down those who did vote for our current President for being cafeteria Catholics…but conveniently forget that the Pope has been speaking on the human rights of immigrants and the importance of taking care of the environment. Trust me, I understand the frustration…

I’d pray for them.
 
**What is the pont she’s trying to make by this e-mail? I don’t get it, myself.

King David–no mean politician himself–sang, “Put not your trust in princes [or politicians], in sons of men, in whom is NO salvation.”

And Jesus said, “My Kingdom is NOT of this world.”**

\Obama may have been voted in by less people, and people who are poorer, but that is WHY he was voted in. These people need help, and Obama was and is their HOPE.\

The best politicians of any party can offer is stones for bread–and that’s MY opinion.
 
I get those emails as well, and I rarely respond. As a matter of fact, once I realize that it’s a political attack message, I stop reading and delete. Here’s why I don’t respond. First, I don’t expect to change the other person’s position. Second, it may just create tension in our relationship.

There is just one exception to my lack of response. I lead a book club at church and a Bible Study group. A friend who attends both forwarded a political email (“this person/party is wrong”). I wrote back that we had been talking about having conversations that were edifying to others and pleasing to God, and I didn’t think this reflected such a conversation. I knew the man well enough to know that he would not be offended by my comments (and he wasn’t - he responded that I was right). He is a man who loves the Lord and is always trying to do what is pleasing in His sight.

So my advice:
  • Save yourself the frustration and don’t read what you know will get your back up
  • Do not respond in email or live to her messages.
  • If you are visiting her, change the subject or leave the room (go to the bathroom, refill your drink, etc.).
  • Ask your fiance how he deals with this (if he is of the same opinion as you are). Maybe he will have some suggestions.
And of course, pray that you and she will have a positive, loving relationship. This is important for your marriage!
 
I also think that you should not read or respond to emails like this–no matter who they come from. Just hit delete and move on.

In f2f conversations, try also not to get your temper up. It does you no good to ruin your relationship with your future mil all for the sake of being ‘right’. I like the idea of excusing yourself at that moment and then changing the conversation when you get back. “Oh dear mil-to-be I have been meaning to ask for your pickled rubabrb recipe!”

Pray that you will both have open hearts and minds and that you will put the good of your marriage and future children above any personal frustrations with her junk email. Pray for her. Pray for your boyfriend and your potential marriage.
 
that_name said:
Do not discuss politics with your relatives.
Click to expand...
Or religion, for that matter. :rolleyes:

What is it with people who say that… those are the only 2 things worth speaking up about with anyone! TALK ABOUT IT! Its okay to call the elected man a liar and sham, because frankly thats what HE IS and the majority of the people who support and surround him! Bunch of lapdogs on the payroll. Truth hurts. I’m tired of people walking on eggshells about the guy and politics… go learn! Read the news, the real news! Not CNN, MSNBC or some other puppet channel for the govt. Go read drudge report, go watch some Fox news (with a keen eye, of course).

The email has some merit. It was a lot of ACORN promoted voters; aka poor people, both black and white in low-income areas. If you don’t know anything about ACORN, then go research and you’ll see what I mean. Corruption.

No practicing Catholic, in my opinion, can be a supporter of the current president without violating Catholic teaching or sinning themselves in doing so by ignoring the truth about him and his administration. Politics are important by earthly standards because under a just government, people are free to practice their religion and have a right to life. The right to life is being terribly infringed upon and trampled by current leaders and MUST BE SPOKEN UP AGAINST! :mad:

I hope this all doesn’t fall upon deaf ears…
 
It is very true that there is quite a bit of learning needed with some folks to realize the truth of what the Church teaches us in temporal matters. However, sending a nasty-gram back to her future mil in response to this email is not the way to go about doing it.

A better method would be to combine sincere prayer for her mil with action in a parish or diocesean group dedicated to helping needy people.
 
Just ignore it.

Neither political party is worth getting into *heated *debates over. Neither one *fully *supports the Catholic point of view.

I wouldn’t “stand up” for Obama… but neither would I go around pushing McCain’s entire platform either (even though I did vote for McCain - he was just the lesser of two evils, in my opinion)…

Focus on MORAL rights and wrongs…
 
Political opinions are OPINIONS, not beliefs.

Matters of Faith and Morals are what are important, they are what you stand up for, they are beliefs.
 
I think I would not respond. My father in law and I disagree politically as well and usually we just avoid the topic. I try to be the one who stops first. For me, winning a political arguement is not worth a lifetime of discomfort around someone who is now my family. But that is my personality. You can always just wait to see if she brings up the topic and then simply say, “you know, I really try to avoid getting into politics with people I care about” and just leave it there. That way she may get the idea that that is an area that you really don’t discuss. Then, do not get sucked in. Every time she brings it up after that just do as another poster suggested and excuse yourself, or just say again, I really don’t like talking about politics. Eventually she will stop bringing it up with you because she doesn’t get any response back. She is looking for a response. I think if you refuse to respond, she will stop looking for one. Having said all that, you know her better though, so take all advice with a grain of salt and just do what you feel is the best for your situation. Best of luck to you and your family.
 
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