My commentary on religious proselytization

 One thing that you should know about me as an atheist, I don't engage in religious debates.  Believe me, I grew up as a Jehovah's Witness, I may have disagreed with most of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society's beliefs and practices, getting baptized into the denomination was not the smartest decision  to make knowing that I disagreed with so much of their worldview, but hey, at least I had exposure to it.  Jehovah's Witnesses don't care what the householders, whose homes that they visit have to say. In their eyes, they have " the truth", you are being deceived by Satan and if you do not become a baptized Jehovah's Witness and engage in the preaching work and unquestioningly follow the teachings of the Governing Body, if you are alive when Yahweh decides it's time to initiate the Battle of Armageddon, you are doing to be murdered by Jesus and the Heavenly Army and miss out on the chance to live on an earthly paradise.


LDS Church missionaries ( Orthodox Mormons) also don't care what objection you have to the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, if you do not become a baptized Latter-day Saint, engage in Temple work, share the restored gospel with others, marry in the Temple and do whatever the Prophet ( LDS Church President) requires of you, guess what, you aren't going to make it into the Celestial Kingdom. Now, as an ex-Jehovah's Witness and an ex-Orthodox Mormon, I am always polite to any JW proselytizers and LDS Church missionaries who come to my door. Granted, I tell them that I was one of them and that I have no interest in returning to the denomination and do not wish to discuss my former beliefs or my atheism with them. Usually, they are kind and polite enough to leave  it that and go on to the next home. I would never slam the door in their faces because I know what that is like. I wasn't an LDS Church missionary, but when I was still a member of the Church,  I did know a young African-American Mormon woman whose sister and her sister's friend went on a mission for the Church and these two girls were questioned by potential investigators as to why any black person would want to be a Mormon, considered the past racist beliefs and practices of the LDS Church.
I was questioned on this very same thing. I am half African-American and half-Jewish. I chose to become an Orthodox Mormon because I wanted to. Yes, eventually I came to disagree with a lot of things, but I don't regret having been a member of the LDS Church despite any disagreements, I had exposure to another culture.