Jay Honeck wrote:

Until yesterday I had run into religious fanatics and cult followers in
every walk of life EXCEPT aviation. I guess I had assumed that anyone smart
enough to get their pilot's certificate couldn't be so gullible -- and
rude -- as to go around trying to "save" perfect strangers. I still have a
hard time believing that it wasn't some sort of a "Candid Camera" set up,
but I'm afraid they really, honestly thought they were doing the right
thing.

Anyone ever run into this before? What did you do?

You (and I) need to be careful about how we talk about this, and make
sure it's clear
that the "ignorance" and "rudeness" refers to how your companions tried
to force their
religion on you, and not on the fact that they are believers.

Having said that, in a similar situation I would at first try to be
polite. I would tell them
that I have my own set of beliefs and that they may or may not be
consistent with
their beliefs, that I am comfortable in my beliefs, and that I don't
feel anything would
be accomplished by continuing the present direction of the conversation.
If they persist,
I would tell them flat out that I'm sorry, but it's apparent they aren't
interested in a
mutual conversation, and that I do not have the inclination to have
someone else's
religion forced down my throat.

I would not worry about whether my last remark offended them, because
it really isn't
going to change their opinion of you. As far as they are concerned,
unless you agree
completely with their beliefs and practice the same rituals, your damned
to hell anyway.
You could be the Pope, but it doesn't make any difference to them - you
don't believe
in "the one true way", so you're damned. It's kind of frightening to
think how similar
they are to the radical Islamic fundamentalists, but it's even more
frightening to realize
that they don't see the similarities.