People trying to “save” you are intrusive, bullying, arrogant, and obnoxious.

[raccoon]

It’s a way of trying to control/bully you, under the guise of “helping” you, doing
something “good.”

I hope at least one of them, somewhere, reads this.

[rrneck]

1. Yep

There's really nothing wrong with inviting others to share what amounts to a good feeling, but when that offer is coupled with christian theology it brings with it an implied threat: "Feel good about something or burn in hell for eternity".

[zipplewrath]

2. Personal history

They really ignore the fact that a tremondous number of people have already "heard the word" and heard it in settings that were abusive in some sense. Abusive parents that used faith as a pretext for their abuse. Schools that used faith as a context for harsh treatment of nonconformists. Relationships that pivoted on issues of faith and gender roles. Many people have a wide variety of experiences that bring up very harsh emotional reactions. So there they are walking down the street and suddenly have some "bible thumper" wanting to witness to them. It isn't surprising they get hostile responses. Faith is a very personal issue and not something alot of people want to discuss with random strangers.

[rrneck]

4. Ain't that the truth.

"The word" is kinda hard to miss in this country. It has its own media empire. I suspect most people recognize proselytizing for what it is, a system of self serving indoctrination for believers that has little to do with actually "swelling the ranks".

[saras]

3. What I was taught was "don't offer something someone isn't asking for"...

...but that, of course, violates the whole RATIONALE of proselytizing, which is that you have secret knowledge that others can't possibly know except by your telling them.

If someone offers me THEIR way of life, without being asked, I feel that I have the right to offer MY way of life (or any selected parts of it) in return.

[deacon_sephiroth]

5. I always loved the camparison Hitchens made about it.

Something about how it's alright for religious types to harass you on your death bed about converting, but if Dakins, Harris, and Hitchens went around telling the sick and dying that they better convert to Atheism, it's their last chance to not die an ignorant slave, they'd have them locked up.