Tuesday, Bonnie and I inadvertently went to �Family Faith Night� at the Riverbend Music Festival.

For those of you who weren�t around last year, or who were around last year but weren�t paying attention: the Riverbend Music Festival is an annual week-long festival, which takes place in downtown Chattanooga, along the banks of the Tennessee River.

This year�s festival started while we were in Atlanta, and finishes this Saturday. Tuesday evening we decided to go along and check it out for a couple of hours or so. I thought something was up when we arrived at one of the entrances, and a man stood on the corner holding an anti-abortion sign. It had a graphic dead baby photograph on each side. I asked Bonnie: �is that legal?� and she informed me that since the sidewalk is a public place, unfortunately it is legal. Bonnie also said that it was perfectly normal for Chattanooga, since it is part of the Bible Belt, but I still felt uneasy. We stayed on the other side of the road and ignored the man.

Then we ran into a few people handing out postcards. The first postcard guy was quite obviously recruiting for his church, so we politely declined. A girl wearing a black T-Shirt with �London� emblazoned on it offered me a black postcard � I was intrigued by the �London� T-Shirt, so I took it. I turned the postcard over and it said �423Worship� on the back. Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, Bonnie and I declined every other postcard we were offered, and hurried onwards to the music. After all, the music was why we were there�

At the nearest stage, the current set of performers had just finished their act. Before going off stage, the lead launched into a closing speech. I didn�t hear the whole speech, but caught snatches of it:

�We�re all gonna go to Heaven or Hell one day, and we don�t know when it�s gonna happen, we just know that we�re gonna��

All around us, people were wearing �I love Jesus� or �Have You Found Jesus?� T-Shirts. I turned to Bonnie. �Is this Jesus Night or something?� She shrugged and said that she was used to seeing this kind of thing around here; however I still wasn�t convinced that this was �normal�. I didn�t remember last year�s Riverbend being so� well� Jesusy.

We registered for a couple of prize draws, but quickly moved out of earshot of the preaching. I honestly have nothing against Christians. I have several Christian friends who I love dearly. I think that the Christian principles of forgiveness and �love thy neighbour� etc are very valuable, and that people who live by them (i.e. people who are true to their beliefs while being tolerant of others) are to be admired. However, preaching � of any kind � pisses me right off. And this is why.

1) How do we know that these people actually live by what they preach? It�s one thing believing in something. It�s another thing to live by what you believe. If you want other people to live the same way as you, set an example and let people choose to follow it. Don�t just talk the talk � walk the walk as well. For all I know, this guy could steal money from his church and beat his wife and kids.

2) Faith is exactly that � FAITH. It�s all about what you believe � there is no scientific proof to back it up. (The Bible or any other holy book does not count as scientific proof.) If there was real, solid proof that the Bible is the be all and end all, then we would all be Christians. So how arrogant and closed-minded would you have to be to presume you are right, and that everybody else in the world should believe the same as you? I don�t go shouting about how the entire world should become pagan, and if I did try that here I would probably be shot. I don�t believe that everybody should believe the same as me anyway. I think that people should have the right to make up their own minds without being forced in certain directions.

3) Presenting belief as fact is a downright lie, and using scare tactics to convert people is just plain sick. I had my first encounter with scare tactics when I was fifteen. I was accosted in town by a girl who handed me a leaflet which said that I was going to go to Hell unless I joined a certain church and cleansed my soul. How can you do that to a fifteen-year-old and have a clear conscience? I wasn't even legally an adult yet, and here I was being told that I was going to burn for all eternity. Yup, catch them and convert them young, when they�re still trying to figure out what they believe. Then when they get older and start to question it, they�re in too deep to get out of it. That isn�t love, or respect, or tolerance. That�s just bullying.

Anyway. We were here to enjoy ourselves, not to get mad, so we headed towards the other stages. We got to Ross�s Landing and didn�t hear any other music, so we got out the programme � something we should have done much earlier. Of the six stages, only two were in use that night � the stage we had just come from, and the �kid�s stage� close by. Since we were then at the other end of the festival, we decided to forget about the music and explore a little instead.

Downtown Chattanooga has recently undergone a �Riverfront Renaissance,� which was under construction when I was there last year. Now the construction is almost finished, and everything is open to the public again. By now, I have come to expect that Chattanooga does not do a half-hearted job of anything. I thought the new riverfront would be impressive, and it is. It is a rare combination of interesting, artistic, practical, significant and� well, fun. Under the bridge, water flows down a series of wide, shallow steps which people can walk on and bathe their feet (extremely refreshing in the Southern heat.) There is enough water for the kids to play around in and get as wet as they like, without being dangerous. This was designed by the Cherokee, and the various platforms have different meanings within their culture � all explained on a plaque under the bridge. On the wall next to the steps is striking Indian artwork, which brings Chattanooga back to its roots as the starting point of the Trail of Tears.

The Cherokee also designed artwork for the side of the bridge, which consists of two themes: Stickball, AKA �Battle�s Little Brother� � a dangerous game which was used in the Cherokee culture to settle disputes � and the Cherokee legend of the Seven Sisters. The artwork is cut out of metal the same colour as the brick, so that at times it is barely visible, but when the light catches it, it becomes a vibrant and striking piece of artwork. There are also what look like six fire hose nozzles shooting powerful jets of water in graceful arcs over the river. Behind the jets of water, a wall isn�t quite finished yet, but it looks as though it will it will have small lights in it. Just enough to illuminate the water at night.

We spent a long time just enjoying the riverfront, and watching other people enjoy it � especially the young children, who were having a great time. It seemed as though every age and generation was considered, as was accessibility: we saw lots of people with wheeled contraptions � wheelchairs, scooters, strollers, etc. Nobody was left out.

When the sun began to set, we made our way back to the main stage to investigate the next act.

�Alleluia! Alleluia! Praise the Lord!�

This time it was singing, not speaking, but it still sounded very much like preaching to us. So we moved on to the kid�s stage, where another band was playing.

�Don�t be afraid to clap your hands and praise God!�

I turned to Bonnie again: �are you SURE this is just a normal Riverbend night?� By now Bonnie was also pretty convinced that this was beyond the usual, so we dug out the programme again. I noticed that Tuesday night�s music was sponsored by Little Debbie Snacks, and� Coalition of Community Churches. Well, that explained a few things. We then looked up the main act of Tuesday night, which was just about to start, in the performers directory.

Newsboys: Stirring spiritual experience indicative of the profundity of God�s love is evident in the hits �Presence�, �Devotion�, �Strong Tower�, I Love Your Ways� and combine to reveal a more vulnerable band focused on its listeners� encounter with joy while losing themselves in Christ and experiencing renewed faith.

We just looked at each other and started to laugh. Of all the nights we could have picked�

�Wanna head back to the truck?�

�OK�

As we left, we heard the lead singer of Newsboys say: �welcome to Family Faith Night! It�s so good to see you all here, in this great Christian community��

Family Faith Night. The anti abortion picture, the Jesus T-Shirts, the preaching, the postcards, the Christian bands� suddenly it all made sense.

�We didn�t stay for the Newsboys,� I said to Bonnie. �We�re going to go to Hell.�

She laughed. �I was destined for Hell long ago. Yeah, we�re both gonna go to Hell. But at least we�ll be together.�