Proselytism

Coming home from work this evening, I was approached by two men in well cut, sombre suits. They were holding Bibles and very intent on my 'accepting Jesus Christ as my savior.'

I understand that proselytism is a very important aspect of certain Christian sects. I can even accept that they won't take no for an answer because they genuinely believe my soul is in peril. I see some people who immediately brush off this proselytizers, and quite rudely. I, however, have no idea how to handle this sort of situation. I generally say something along the lines of "I know you need to do this, but I'm not looking to change faiths. Please move on." This tends to work in a scenario such as the one I encountered this afternoon.

Then there are cases like I had at my old house, where very persistent Jehovah's Witnesses kept on knocking. Three times, I opened the door to them and politely told them that I was not interested in changing my faith. The fourth time, I had enough and told them flat out "I'm a Witch and while I'm sure Christ was a very nice man, I have no need for him to save me." Horrified, they scurried off... only to return two weeks later!!! I pretended to not be home that day and once they left, I put a protection and banishment spell around my property! That worked, but I find it a tad extreme!

How do I balance my belief that it is the right of certain Christians to proselytize (even if I am personally against this practise) with my belief that I have a right to have my no taken as an answer? At which point does asserting my own religious beliefs stomp on that of others and become intolerance? Is it possible to be too tolerant?

My problem, I think, is that while there are certain beliefs which are absolutes and the only valid ones for me, I have no doubt of the validity of conflicting beliefs for others. So, I have a hard time understanding someone who doesn't get that I find their beliefs valid, have no desire to change mine, and cannot see things the same way.

If any of that makes any sense at all....