I've spent most of this week alone at home, quietly studying. But it hasn't been without its occasional human diversions. One of the most interesting was on Monday, when the door rung unexpectedly.
I wandered downstairs in my shorts and the shirt I had slept in, and opened the door. A man stood there with a leaflet in hand, which was headed with 'The Truth.' Aha, I thought - there is a way to deal with this situation. I said emphatically:
"I'm Jewish, and I'm not interested in Christianity."
He paused for a second, and in a tremendously soft-spoken and reassuring voice (with that depth that comes easier to black men, and which led me to suspect he was probably quite good as a social worker and comforter of people): "OK - but, don't you think, what with the wars and the crime that are taking place, that it would be a better world if we could stop all the violence and hatred?"
Now the obvious answer would be 'Duh - of course'; but I had just been studying criminal law and was in no mood for a ridiculous conversation.
"I think human nature is incredibly complex and that I have no power to resolve these problems.
(pause)
I am, however, interested in the newspaper." I walk past him and grab the Financial Times lying on our doorstep. Of course, the paper would resolve nothing but the stare on his face.
"OK...so you're not interested in Christianity, but do you want me to come back so that we can discuss these issues."
"No."
And that was that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agTeW67f_y0
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