Let's see what my no so humble self can offer on this matter:
"Take for example the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:19. "19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.""
Sort of the issue with things like initiation and formalities is that they are inherently pushy, which seems to run counter to the love they are supposed to promote. You can still make disciples out of people, but that is best done by inspiring them with the desired attitudes, not pouring water over the heads (it's just a symbolic ritual) or even necessarily expecting them to attend church (as that environment may not be best suitable for their enrichment). But even worse, even when the message is spread, it is often done wrongly, as we've seen considerable prejudice from religious sorts -- and TGers are typically victims in this regard. In fact, many of the people "spreading the word" (particularly higher-ups) seem to resemble sociopaths looking for personal gain, and these sorts are the most dangerous (your Falwells and Haggards).
"Earlier I stated that if Christians stopped sharing the gospel (both in word and deed) there would be a significant negative impact on society."
Education (science, philosophy, sociology, fine arts, etc) is reasonably capable of picking up the slack, as people without religion tend to pay more diligence to non-religious education. While you are probably partial to your religion in this capacity, I believe secular education has better answers, as it has shown itself to be more responsive and methodical in obtaining its results (especially when it is free of the religious meddling seen in centuries past).
"To show the impact of what will happen I will briefly mention a few things the Salvation Army in the name of Jesus Christ and does it only because of Jesus."
There are secular organizations that are equally capable of providing charity, and they do it without promoting a religious agenda. They'll pick up the slack if the religion ones were to disappear.
From someone else: "you say- Christians organizations caused 9/11 by voting in bush. prove to me that 9/11 happened because of bush. I don't think the talaban thought to themselves will if kerry wins we won't attack. This simply is an outrages claim until further proof is displayed."
It's a very weak connection. Bush's administration had downgraded the threat value for al Qaeda before 9/11. Also, Bush does present a religious arrogance (he said he was God's choice for President for crying out loud) that helps fuel hatred against the United States on the basis of religion. He didn't cause the attack as much as made us more vulnerable and by adding fuel to the fire. CIA deserves primary blame, as they were the ones who provided Osama's organization with weapons throughout the '80s (to fight the Russians in a Cold War-related battlefront), and they also failed to give Clinton's administration the go-ahead to execute their battle plans back in the '90s.
........
Sort of my feeling on the original premise of the thread is that religion is not necessarily supposed to be a private or personal thing, but it should be a *personal* thing. It is okay to gather in large groups to talk about it, but people should not be in the business of preaching at others. People should be given the freedom to decide what is right for themselves rather than rely on the judgment of others. We are too-well educated nowadays to look at each other as vessels to pour our beliefs into. We should recognize the humanity of others and be willing to learn from them just as we hope they might learn from us. Some people will have greater expertise than others, but it's necessary for even the lowest to take responsibility for their own beliefs, so that they have a foundation they can trust -- and even they are capable of compelling us to refine ideas we had taken for granted.
"This is the truth! This is my belief! ...At least for now."
