Kat, I do sympathise with what you're trying to say, and I try to make it a rule to assume the best of people and their posts. That i reacted in this particular case is almost definately because of something in me, not any particular desire to give sorcha or you a hard time.
If the discussion surrounding your post had not gone as far as it did, i would've glanced at it once and kept going...because, as you say, some one elses humor is not worth getting your feathers ruffled about. But my knee jerk reaction to some of the commentary here was to be not only offended, but hurt. Not because anything out of the ordinary was said, but precisely because it is nothing out of the ordinary to me.
I don't know what non-Christians go thru, I don't know your experience, or sorchas, but i know i have never once ventured to insult anothers faith, church (or lack thereof), or intelligence in a public forum, nor have i ever suggested i knew better what someones major religious figure would say or do, or think. I'm too busy with my own faith journey to do that. But others have rarely been so kind to me. In my 19 years of life, my 3.5 years of serious Catholicism, I have been ridiculed, I have been accused repeatedly of being brainwashed and had it insinuated several times that I cannot think for myself. I've been accused of crimes and mistakes that i wasn't alive to commit, i've been labeled a bigot and a member of the 'religious right', which seems to be a code word for "hypocritical self-serving fat capitalist hick". These things are not true for me, and I believe that most Christians are, like me, sincerely trying to do their best. So I reacted to Sorchas post, and her terminology.
All I want, I guess, is to feel like if i have concerns that do happen to correspond with those of politically right leaning socially conservative Christians, they will be addressed as my concerns, not swept away with a shrug as i am assigned my label.

This is probably too much, and inappropriate to the forum to boot. Anyone who actually cares enough to want to continue this conversation with me can PM me.

Pax,
Ceitagh