Re: forwarded "Christian" e-mails from friends who want you to forward them to others

[Janie]

Caveat: For those who do not know me (there are so many new members here now!), please remember as you read this that I am a Christian of the reformed persuasion. And please note that my expressed negativity is not toward Christianity.

 

Thankfully, I only have one friend who sends me e-mails to forward to other people. I'd prefer not to be on her friend list for this sort of mail, but telling her not to include me is just not a wise move considering other factors.

 

This friend regularly send me one of those e-mails that says something about read this, pray, and forward to ten others. Sometimes it even says to forward it back to her. I'm sure some of you all have gotten the same type of thing.

 

I admit that I never do it. I delete all of them. I do not have time to clutter other people's mailboxes with this Christian-coated junk mail. AND, I believe that this "prayer over this message and send it to xxx others, and you will receive xxx blessings" sort of stuff borders on the stuff that might be seen from television preachers bilking little old women of their savings.

 

Below, I've pasted an example of the most recent e-mail. One thing that stood out to me was the prayer. Prayer, imho, is towards God, not a "wish" toward a person as this "prayer" is.

 

All this just reminds me of chain letters popular back in the 60s-70s for those here old enough to remember it. Or like a Ponzi scheme with prayer sans money.

 

I would like to know what some of you all do with this type of e-mail. Delete, respond in earnest, respond reluctantly?

 

Thanks!

 

Greetings!

 

 

 

I am supposed to pick 12 women (who have touched my life) and whom I think would want to participate. I think that if this group of women were ever to be in a room together, there is nothing that would be impossible. I hope I chose the right twelve. My hugs, love, gestures and communications hopefully remind you how special that you are. Please send this back to me. (I sent this to the women that I knew would participate.) Remember to say a prayer before you read the prayer. That's all you have to do. There is nothing attached. Just send this to twelve people and let me know what happens on the fourth day. Sorry you have to forward the message, but try not to break this, please. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. Did you say a prayer yet? Now is your time to say a prayer of your own!

 

 

 

Then read the prayer below;

 

 

 

'May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others. May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.

 

 

 

May you be content with yourself just the way you are. Let this knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.'

 

 

 

Now, send this to 12 women within the next 5 minutes. And remember to send this back. I count as 1...you'll see why.

 

Suggestion: copy and paste rather than forwarding it.

 

[Jackie in AR]

I delete immediately. Most of the ones I've received have requested me to send something back to the sender. Since I have never responded, I guess they got tired of sending them to me because I haven't received one in ages. I've never had anyone ask me about not responding, but I would have just said that I don't participate in those types of things.

[Melinda in VT]

I've received that one before! I felt kind of bad deleting it, as it was from a woman at church that I would like to be better friends with, but I'm just going to have to develop the friendship in other ways.

 

Delete, delete, delete.

[TN Mama]

I am also a Christian and love the occasional encouraging story in my inbox. However, the e-mails that ask me to forward to x number of people to prove my faith or what have you... d-e-l-e-t-e. I don't need to spam people to show my faithfulness.

 

I also receive e-mails that are similar but about friendship. Sorry, those are deleted as well. If you are waiting on an e-mail response from me about the strength of our friendship, we obviously aren't great friends to begin with.

[sunflowerlady]

I definitely delete. I am just not into that kind of thing.:glare:

[fivetails]

*That* email fwd, I would delete...I don't send the "plz fwd this to fifteen people!!" emails on to anyone like that...

 

If - and this is IF - I get a fwd that I think it's really cute (like something with totally adorable kitten photos or whatever - or it could be a Christian themed one that spoke to me in a special way) or particularly meaningful, I may pass it on to specific people ---- people who will enjoy it, and I know they will because they've told me so the times I've seen them something before. I fix it up though - it doesn't go on with all the junk attached (a million email addresses, all the text that doesn't belong, etc) .. I fix it and send it to that/those specific people. :)

 

The one you just posted though? Nope. Delete.

[Ellie]

I don't even open them. Ever. Delete, delete, delete.

[imeverywoman]

I don't forward emails unless there is something REALLY and I do mean REALLY important that I feel I should share with other people. I wouldn't intrude on my friends' home mailboxes, neither would I harrass them by phone, therefore, I refuse to do it by email. Just my .02

[JFSinIL]

Delete. Do not forward anything! Do you think others want to receive the psot any more than you do?

[MIch elle]

I know what you mean about not wanting to tell them to remove you from their friend email list. I read some and delete, and some I never read & delete. There have been some that I've read that are JUST beautiful - slide shows, Christian poetry, etc. SO I pick & choose and leave it at that.

[Hillary in KS]

I haven't read all the replies, but I delete them.

 

But whether they are Christian in nature, or sent by a Christian doesn't matter. I. don't. like. junk. mail.

 

I also delete internet petitions and giveaway offers. I delete all requests to see how I can "enlargen my membre." I delete 90% of e-mail containing pictures of someone's pets and other random, "cute" animals. I also delete all the "send people you love a hug today" sorts of e-mails.

[Parrothead]

I get those every week. The ones I think one friend in particular might like I'll forward to her. This might happen 3 or 4 times a year. Other than that they get deleted.

[OnTheBrink]

I only allowed one friend to send me that stuff, and the reason I allowed her to do it was because she was very sick and if I was getting those emails, I knew she was at least doing ok for the moment. She's passed away now, so I don't get FWD emails any more.

 

And, I never forwarded her FWD emails. I don't forward junk mail at all.

[Crissy]

I don't even open them. Ever. Delete, delete, delete.

 

:iagree:

[elegantlion]

I read some but never forward them. I have one friend who sends them. What bothers me more than the e-mails is the lengthy amount of forwards she neglects to remove. I could have 100 new e-mail addresses to spam if I really wanted.

 

I don't say anything because this friend is sensitive and it really isn't a big deal. I just browse and delete.

[Robin M]

I automatically delete them. Doesn't matter what the message is or who it is from, it is still chain mail. I don't do chain mail. My mother gets these all the time from her friends and passes them on to me and my siblings. We all delete without saying a word to her and go about our days. She doesn't ask and we don't mention it.

[mom4him]

*That* email fwd, I would delete...I don't send the "plz fwd this to fifteen people!!" emails on to anyone like that...

 

If - and this is IF - I get a fwd that I think it's really cute (like something with totally adorable kitten photos or whatever - or it could be a Christian themed one that spoke to me in a special way) or particularly meaningful, I may pass it on to specific people ---- people who will enjoy it, and I know they will because they've told me so the times I've seen them something before. I fix it up though - it doesn't go on with all the junk attached (a million email addresses, all the text that doesn't belong, etc) .. I fix it and send it to that/those specific people. :)

 

The one you just posted though? Nope. Delete.

 

This is what I do also IF I have the time to even open it and look at it. Most of the time I hit delete on forwards.

I really don't get very many any more as I have casually mentioned to most that send that I just delete most. It works for me.

[Lakeside]

I delete them, unfortunately I usually read them first. I say unfortunately because the ones I receive all seem to say that if I forward this to however number of people that God will answer my prayers. :001_huh:

 

I have a hard time believing that the infertility we've been suffering through and praying about for years will end because I forward an email.

[RebeccaS]

I don't even open them. Ever. Delete, delete, delete.

:iagree:

[Cricket]

So if no one here forwards them, why do I get so many?!?! :D

[RebeccaS]

So if no one here forwards them, why do I get so many?!?! :D

I gave your email to my mil.

[FO4UR]

delete!

[Crissy]

So if no one here forwards them, why do I get so many?!?! :D

 

Maybe you're in the address books of both my aunt and my dad. :D

[chaik76]

I delete.

[Sahamamama]

I have one dear friend who does this often, I just delete those emails. Not a bit of guilt here about it. Not a bit.

[Cranberry]

I delete anything that resembles chain letters.

 

I'd say that email is nothing short of superstitious junk and the fact that they mask it with Christian stuff is just kind of sad....

[Peek a Boo]

OTHER:

I hit "reply all", include any other emails in the history of the email that didn't get caught when I hit "reply all," and remind EVERYONE that salvation is by faith, not works, and that any email telling me my faith is decided by whether i forward it or not is from the devil himself. and that i will NOT forward it to ANYONE.

 

THEN I delete it. :)

 

how's that?

[Lovedtodeath]

I have tried writing or even calling or talking in person to the people that send this garbage. I have told them to stop, I only delete it, or that it is unwise for them to be spreading this around... One even said I was right and she wouldn't do it anymore. Well that lasted for about a week, tops.:glare:

 

Anyway... delete. delete. and delete.:D

[Alphabetika]

I delete them.

 

If I receive a forwarded email that has any kind of "story" in it, I look it up on Truthorfiction.com, or Snopes.com. These are websites that allow you to check whether a commonly-forwarded/told story is true or not. Many of these stories are forwarded prayer requests for children with cancer, etc. In my experience, they are ALWAYS false, so I reply to the person who sent the email, including a link to the information I've found. I am SO AMAZED at how gullible people are.

[Peela]

I get plenty of these.

Anything that is trying to make me forward something through making me feel guilty, gets deleted. I consider it spam, or as bad as spam.

The internet is useful for many things, but I dont want to support those types of emails. If they bug me, they will bug others.

I do forward many emails. Just not ones that tell me to send to 10 friends or else.

[KarenNC]

I delete any emails that say "forward to ...... people". I don't care if it's pictures, jokes, political surveys, religious material (of whatever religion), a "tell your friends about yourself", recipe chains, dishcloth chains, whatever---delete.

 

I know folks who know this about me and *still* send the junk. More than once I've had one of those "answer these questions and send it to 10 people" emails where one of the questions is "who is the least likely person to respond to this". My name is always there, but she just doesn't seem to be able to connect the dots!

[Marylou]

 

Delete, delete, delete.

 

:iagree:

[mazakaal]

I rarely get that sort of e-mail, but I would delete immediately. I have gotten e-mails to pray for someone, and, to be honest, I usually ignore them unless I know that this person is a personal friend of the person who wrote to me. I hate those forwarded, 'please pray for..' e-mails. I got one a few months ago about some Christians who were being persecuted, and the e-mail made it all sound very urgent - such and such happened yesterday and they are all hold up in the missions complex afraid for their lives. I google searched and found that the event had happened months previously and had all be resolved.

[michaeljenn]

DELETE... It is an email and that is all.... Like something is really going to happen on the 4th day... whatever. I always delete these types of emails and rarely even read them I am a christian by the way and just hate this type of stuff.

 

Now, if I can convince my 12yo daughter not to send these things out, that would be perfect:lol::lol::lol::lol:

[erica471]

My MIL does this, a lot. I think that often times this happens when people are "new" to email.

 

I don't ever read this stuff.

[QuirkyKapers]

I delete them. There have been too many times that after I have just deleted and not read them, I get another email saying, "I never sent that email, don't open it, it has a virus!"

[threeturn]

I delete all forwarded emails usually without reading them. Big waste of time.