Quick background, parents have been divorced since I was 3, SM and dad have been married since I was 4. SM and dad are religious, I and siblings grew up in the church (we were at church at least twice a week most weeks, for either choir or awana during the week and at least 1-2 services on Sundays). If this is what other people are comfortable with it, I have no issues with that, to each their own.
I began moving away from the faith in high school, when I moved in with my mother at 16, she never forced me to go to church, she just suggested it on Holidays and I went along. I stopped attending Christian services at 20. For a few years I attended a UU church and might consider going back as UU churches are not specifically one type of religion.
SM's entire family is religious. When we lived in the same state/city as they did, we all went to the same church. SGPA was a pastor, I often went to church with him.
DH is agnostic and I am pagan. We have both agreed that while we will raise DS celebrating pagan holidays with me, if he choses later on that he doesn't want to, he will not be forced to in any way, shape or form. As he gets older if he wants to explore religion, we will encourage him to research and make his own decisions.
My mom's family doesn't ask me about religion, they figured out where I stood when I stopped attending the family church. Dad's family isn't really religious and has never asked. SM's family on the other hand has various members popping in with "oh did you want a Veggie Tales dvd for him, oh, what about a bible, when are you going to dedicate him?" Questions like that. They live over 1000 miles away so it typically only comes up through FB messages and phone calls. I typically answer with a 'no' or 'we're not' and beandip by redirecting their attention with questions about how their kids are doing or how they are doing,etc.
This past week I called SGMA because it was her birthday. I talk to her roughly every few months. I am not as close to her as I was to SGPA. After the exchange of happy birthdays and how are yous, she asked when I was going to get DS dedicated. I told her I wasn't, I didn't believe in child dedication and beandipped. The same bloody question came up again 5 minuter later. After another 10 minutes or so of inquiring about extended family members and her bringing up things about what they'd done at church, etc, etc, I ended the call.
Similiarly on Christmas eve while speaking to SM, she asked if we were taking DS to a children's service and I told her we weren't interested in going to church and beandipped.
Questions like these irk me to no end. Other than religion, none of these people are boundry stompers (distance probably helps), and I only talk to them every few months, with exception of SM which is about once a month.
Am I just BEC on this subject? And does anyone with similar experience have any phrases they used when these subjects came up that shut people down and kept the subject shut down?
Thanks in advance.