very good and very true

I am not offended nor much comforted by it. They mean well.

Having a christian 'pray for me' isn't offensive - just utterly pointless. It is no more objectional, but no more valuable, than having them pat their dog for me, or ride a camel for me, or recite pi to twenty decimal places for me.

Their prayers do me no harm and cause me no distress - so why should I be offended?

That’s funny and insightful. But being the curmudgeon I am, I feel I must point out that it’s not really fair. “I’ll pray for you” would be received well by another Christian, but “I’ll think rationally for you” is probably not going to be appreciated by another atheist. “I’ll wish you the best” might be a more realistic replacement, but some radical rationalists might find wishing as useless as praying (and it would remove all humor from the joke). So what would be guaranteed not to offend rationality? “I can see that your life is in a terrible mess, but since we have no free will there will be nothing you can do about it”? Now THAT’s funny!

I will reply with: "I will write a letter to Santa for you"

There's a well known saying: "It isn't possible to give offence, only to take it."

I don't believe it's universally true. I believe it's possible to say things that are downright offensive. But choosing to be offended on principle someone offering good will in good faith, because of differences in belief systems, is a clear example of taking offence when none was intended.

George Carlin had my favorite reply: "When a Christian says 'I'll pray for you,' I always reply, 'well, I'll jerk off for you. The difference is, when I'm done, I'll have something to show for it.'"

I always think "I'll pray for you." is christian for "fuck you."

Okay some of them may mean well, but generally it's their way of saying, "it sucks to be you."

"Threatening an atheist with hell is like a hippy threatening to punch you in your aura" is another good one.

I'm indifferent to it. I take it as them meaning well.

I'll have to remember that next time someone tells me they'll pray for me or I'm in their prayers. I don't know why people even think that's appropriate. All it does is creep me out that they're including me in their conversations with a figment of the imagination.

Yeah, don't try to teach your religion at my public school, or I'll show up at your church on Sunday with some Dawkins.

I tell Christians, you can pray for me and I'll dance naked in the woods for you

I like this one..

Ask them how they would feel if you said, "May Allah watch over you and your children".

I'm usually not offended because I think they mean well. However, when they do nothing to solve a problem but say the whole thoughts and prayers thing its so insincere it upsets me. "Oh theres homeless people starving? I won't donate money or food, but I'll pray for them!" That kinda crap.

I get a lot of that, mostly from condescending holier than thou Christians with a superiority complex. Most recently, a lady was saying how God is the only way to stop shootings, and I called her out on it. She said "I'm sorry you hold so much hate and anger. I'll pray that you see the light one day." Like go ahead, it'll do as much good as praying to stop shootings has.

Which it hasn't.

If someone who doesn't know my position says I'll pray for you in an earnest manner, I don't take offence. If they know I'm an atheist and say it, that is another matter.

Let them pray if it keeps them busy enough they don't bother you again.

It would be 100% equivalent if Christians didn't pray for one another. They do. On the other hand no one thinks rationally for others, or can.

In other words I think many Christians really do mean it as a kindness and not a condescention. If they KNOW you're an unbeliever then things can rapidly deteriorate as they make all sorts of assumptions about you, none of them good. And there's a perfunctory aspect to it with many of them, even when used among their own tribe. So I understand the offensive aspect, but in the interest of not being up in arms all the time about it, I try to see the human and positive side of it. Sometimes it's easier than others, admittedly.

Which is why I only say the latter in response to the former.

This particular phrase has caused me more aggravation than nearly anything. I don't want their presence in my life, and that includes praying (thinking) about me.

Along with sending “thoughts and prayers” (especially by people who should be actually working to make change) and telling you to “have a blessed day.”

Absolutely!

I think the best description for it is ''condescending''