One of my wisest and gentlest seminary professors put it like this: “It’s often said that you should respect other people’s beliefs. But that’s wrong: what’s vital is that you respect other people.” Indeed, when examined more closely, attempting to persuade others to change their beliefs is a sign of respect. You are treating them as thinking agents with the ability to decide what they believe, not just products of their cultural environment. We should not be offended when people challenge our beliefs: