in sin! in sin!

After three hours of drama, I was looking forward to a nice quiet bus ride home. but no, alas, soon after we got on at Waterloo, a group of youngish people got on and their leader started reading the Bible outloud. "How nice," I thought to myself, "a church group organising an alternative outing for young people on a Saturday. Hm." Then the praying got louder and I realised that this group had a more, uh, invasive mission in mind. The next thing I know, the woman sitting across the aisle from me is praying at the top of her lungs "Jesus, move these hearts of stone on the bus, we are not worthy Lord but we seek you, we SEEK YOU" (I was taking notes at this point in case "Unexpected City" ever needs a rewrite) and they were trying to hand out pamphlets to people who were getting fed up and leaving. I would have been more inclined to listen, but I happened to catch an early part of the "sermon" where the leader mentioned how "white people" waste their time and their money on useless things like Prada and Gucci bags ("and Louis Vuitton!" an acolyte helpfully pointed out) and how we shouldn't be doing things because they are popular, but because it is good in the Lord's eyes. The final straw came when the woman who was sitting across from me (I suspect she was praying for me to say something to her instead of scribbling down what she was saying--talking to me directly would be too difficult) finally leaned across and said "Can I just say something to you?! You have a heart of stone, of stone!" and helpfully held up a balled fist to demonstrate. "You need to SEEK God, SEEK Him." And I finally leaned over and said, "Listen, I'm a Christian. My relationship with God is personal. One to one. Me and Him," thinking that would earn me a "Praise Jesus, you're on the team." But no! Instead she says, "Then why do you not PROCLAIM Him?! If you have a relationship, that's the first step, now you must PROCLAIM Him." Lather rinse repeat, so that I couldn't get a word in edgewise. Convenient, then, that they were getting off at this point as well. I was mad that instead of a nice theological argument I got steamrollered by a righteous girl who had the gall to suggest that my heart was stone and that apparently my "relationship" with God wasn't good enough. Apparently, whatever church this is, "judge not lest ye be judged" isn't a part of the teachings. Geez. Sorry if I sound a little bitter, but I'm doubly mad that a) this group ruined my bus ride home (after SMing a 3 hour play about the Vatican as well, nonetheless!!!) and that b) they had the AUDACITY to SUGGEST that my faith is somehow not adequate because I don't go around harrassing people on Saturday nights. I may not carry around a well-worn copy of the Bible, but I proclaim Him in my own way, and if that's not good enough, I have no time for you.