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This type of thread sounds like yet another attempt to understand atheists as wounded or angry. Some people's brains simply work out the truth with facts and logic.
This type of thread sounds like yet another attempt to understand atheists as wounded or angry. Some people's brains simply work out the truth with facts and logic.
I understand where you are coming from here. A lot of Christians characterize atheists as angry and then attempt to proselytize, accusing them of leaving Christianity because of being wounded and not because they actually don't believe. That wasn't my intention in creating this thread though. Right now, I am very disillusioned with Christianity. I also think that Christians today are far more angry than atheists. Their reaction to the SCOTUS decision on same-sex marriage mind boggling. I am simply wondering how many people were wounded by the church prior to departing from the faith and if that contributed. A lot of these stories are very interesting.
This type of thread sounds like yet another attempt to understand atheists as wounded or angry. Some people's brains simply work out the truth with facts and logic.
Yes, a lot of christians indulge themselves with this fantasy. (I've never heard it from jews, muslims, hindus, buddhists...)
I don't mind answering or reading other people's answers. It's interesting in itself, even though I doubt many of the theist posters that ask this question are capable of accepting the simple truth about this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PegE
Some people's brains simply work out the truth with facts and logic.
The fact that you think thinking is better than believing is exactly what separates you from religious fundamentalists of any kind.
I don't mind answering or reading other people's answers. It's interesting in itself, even though I doubt many of the theist posters that ask this question are capable of accepting the simple truth about this.
This isn't entirely true of all theists, though I would say its true of fundamentalists. They live in their own world where propaganda like "God's Not Dead" is reality to them.
More and more though, people who grew up fundamentalist are finding themselves in the "none" category. Not all of them are atheist, but there is a lot of frustration right now with evangelical Christianity, the culture wars, and the way they treat anyone who doesn't conform to their rigid standard.
I wasn't burned. I didn't believe in Omni dude very early in life. And I had "normal" parents that understood that loving your kids and being there for them on a consistent basis is the parents first job. They said 'well, you make sure you treat others the way you want to be treated. You don't have to believe in god to see the truth in that."
They also knew that "sparing the rod" didn't mean beat your kid for everything. They understood that it is about programming a child to be accountable for his/her actions. Oh wait, I mean teaching your kid, my bad.
A little side rant for me. I was, and am, burned every time a liberal stops a Christian from taking care of a molesting pastor in the best way possible for that group or allows a mental to get a second victim.
Good lesson. To love your kids and be there for them as much you can to love and care for them. Jesus said to not stop the kids from coming to him. He loves kids as well and being a good parent matters, not in disciplining your kids and hurting them or being so strict, but to be there for them and give them a good example to live by. Jesus loves the children and the antichrist hates them, it's that simple. BTW, some people are burned by religion, in that they have evil or hateful pastors.
I ask this because although I still consider myself a believer, I have become very disenfranchised with Christianity over the past year, mostly due to hypocrisy and the evangelical response to the SCOTUS decision on same-sex marriage. I can really feel the draw of atheism/agnosticism because it seems like a much more authentic way to live and my atheist friends are far "nicer" than my Christian friends. Christianity is about conformity and presenting an image of yourself that isn't real. In every conversation with my Christian friends, I have to think how I want to be perceived and whether what I am saying will help or harm your image of being a "good Christian." With my atheist friends, I can be myself, say what I really think, and there is no judgment.
In addition, the Bible is an ancient collection of writings, many of which I can't believe is literal history (like the talking donkey or Jonah). Don't get me started on young-earth creationism. One of the draws of Christian fundamentalism is the fact they think they have all the answers and take the Bible literally, but in doing so they take it way out of context. You have thousands of Christian denominations all preaching a different message interpreted from the same source material. Anybody who claims they have the answers and their way is correct without any doubt is very, very prideful.
So my question...for those raised Christian..what drew you to atheism or agnosticism? Was it science/reason, a bad experience in the church, or a combination?
Why not look into other faiths by understanding and analyzing their holy text to see what's their definition of God, and what's God's message, instead of jumping straight from Christianity into Atheism?
The definition of God is not limited to the concept which provided in the bible only.
Being "burned" by a church was not the reason I became an atheist, however, it was indirect factor. There were several occasions where I was let down pretty hard by a faith community. People weren't walking the talk. However, I always understood it as just people being people. We screw up, and I didn't view it as reason to conclude there was no deity.
However, because of the letdowns, I (i) no longer had strong ties to a faith community, which (ii) removed me from the "groupthink." Without a vested interest in keeping up the faith because it was an important factor regarding the primary human relationships I had, I was "free" to follow whatever path seemed right to me.
Anyway, after leaving the faith community, it was gradual change to believer to atheist, maybe 20 years? It just didn't make intellectual sense to me any more.
Being "burned" by a church was not the reason I became an atheist, however, it was indirect factor. There were several occasions where I was let down pretty hard by a faith community. People weren't walking the talk. However, I always understood it as just people being people. We screw up, and I didn't view it as reason to conclude there was no deity.
However, because of the letdowns, I (i) no longer had strong ties to a faith community, which (ii) removed me from the "groupthink." Without a vested interest in keeping up the faith because it was an important factor regarding the primary human relationships I had, I was "free" to follow whatever path seemed right to me.
Anyway, after leaving the faith community, it was gradual change to believer to atheist, maybe 20 years? It just didn't make intellectual sense to me any more.
Welcome, Mel.
My story of gradual "drifting away" is similar, except that being "burned" wasn't a factor at all. Instead of "letdowns" my wife and I at the time simply quit attending for different reasons -- she because she was sick of the sickness whereof she eventually died; me because I was already re-evaluating my beliefs. It didn't help that the last church my wife tried to be a part of lost interest in her when they realized she couldn't be "involved" enough, and I suppose you could call that a "letdown" but by the time it happened it was no surprise to me, and we both had bigger fish to fry anyway, namely day to day survival. We faced the end of her path alone, with no help from god OR his people. So it was no great loss when I finally walked away from the whole thing. It wasn't a matter of bitter disappointment, but of simple indifference by then.
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