Seriously, I think my Myspace is filled with those type of bulletins. :meh: It’s crazy because even though people know they’re chain mails, they still post them anyway, feeding the big chain mail monster.

“Repost this or else you’ll have a bad love life for the next 7 years!”

“Repost this or else you’ll have bad luck for the next 4 days!”

“Repost this or else the worst thing you can imagine will happen to you!”

Shawna pointed it out to me that all of that ^^ can also be considered threatening mail and can be reported. I didn’t realize it until she told me, but it’s true: You have to do this.. or else. :blank:

Really there are only two that I seem to get really upset about: “Repost this or else you’ll find the love your life in 4 days” and the ones in the Christian bulletins: “Repost this or Christ will be ashamed of you.”

Both, I think, are very personal and very cruel. You can’t base love on superstitions and luck… I know, I don’t have much experience in this area, but “I think ove is sacred, love is sweet,” to quote the Relient K song “Seventeen Magazine.” Basically the whole song speaks what I’m trying to say: You can’t base love or say love on something material like a chain letter or even a magazine quiz. I think it’s really stupid how people seem to believe it and do it. I’ll admit that I am a hypocrite, and that I have done those type of bulletins before. It really does aggravate me, though, how some people don’t think through it all and repost thinking something magical will happen when they know, deep down, that it won’t. It’s almost as bad as those pre-teen movies lying to the masses about how easy love, high school, and drama is.

The other bulletin tag… I’m not quite sure how I feel about it. Usually, the title will say “97% of you won’t repost this,” already creating deception. The body of the message will then say “Only 3% of teens will repost this saying they believe in God. Repost if you do. Remember, Christ will deny those who have denied Him before the Father.”

Personally, I think it’s pressure and deception. A Christian should be telling the truth all the time, not just in lame titles to make you click there. Second, these Christians are now giving off pressure to make other Christians repost it. I brought it up while talking to Shawna that there would be the same amount of pressure if you were at gun-point answering the question, but this isn’t gun-point and it isn’t by fellow teens who don’t Christ. These are from your brothers and sisters in Christ, fellow believers.

The verse these bulletins claim is Matt. 10:33-

But whoever deniers Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in Heaven.

The verse before it talks about confessing Christ before others, and how Christ will do the same before the Father. The verses above 32 and 33 both talk of how we are not to fear man because he can only destroy the body; we are to fear God because He can destroy both body and the soul.

I’m really on the fence about this topic. Really, I don’t think other Christians should be pressuing Christians to make a decision like that when it’s not really taken into context of the rest of the verses. The passage talks about pressure from unblievers, pressure of doing it before any real decision is made. In another passage in Matthew, Christ talks about how no one can take a personaway from the eternal life he has already received (John 10:28-29). Christ would not deny Christians in front of the Father because that would make His statement of never letting us go false.

Like I said before, people are taking the passage out of context and pressuring other Christians, and it’s not right. You should never be pressured into a decision.