Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Someone I really liked got into a bad car accident. I was shaken up how this could happen to such a good person. Where was god? Yet nothing bad happened to my father who was a monster that should have been incarcerated. I witnessed many times him beat up my mother right in front of me. He beat me up too, vivid memories that caused me to have nightmares for years. But it was always church on Sunday. As an ex-Catholic I went through all of the silly rituals, confession being the worst. I have stories, lots of them including one when I was 13 and swore a priest kept me in that dark phone booth like so he could get off. Of course I didn't realize that at the time, it was just something I remember when I converted over to the dark side.
Now 63 and I still have the mental scars, and they will never go away. All of the above came together and suddenly, bam, I was an atheist. I was 19 and never looked back...
When I was 13. I was put into foster care abruptly and removed from my mothers care for reasons literally unknown.
I had missed a lot of school and Children’s Aid here in Canada decided I should be placed in foster care because of this despite no abuse in my home. I was sent to a horrible foster home that I remained at for months.
After a beating from one of the “foster brothers” that knocked me out unconscious when I regained consciousness I crawled up stairs to the room I was placed in and cried for hours. I then got on my hands and knees and prayed that I could be able to go back home. I prayed the entire night actually and then fell asleep in the the early morning. When I woke up I was still in the same situation. I decided subconsciously then there was no God. Later on as an adult it only became more confirmed to me.
When I was 13. I was put into foster care abruptly and removed from my mothers care for reasons literally unknown.
I had missed a lot of school and Children’s Aid here in Canada decided I should be placed in foster care because of this despite no abuse in my home. I was sent to a horrible foster home that I remained at for months.
After a beating from one of the “foster brothers” that knocked me out unconscious when I regained consciousness I crawled up stairs to the room I was placed in and cried for hours. I then got on my hands and knees and prayed that I could be able to go back home. I prayed the entire night actually and then fell asleep in the the early morning. When I woke up I was still in the same situation. I decided subconsciously then there was no God. Later on as an adult it only became more confirmed to me.
A God who fails to come through for his faithful flock at the moment of their most dire need, is in no way obviously different from a God who never existed to begin with. That is just about as conclusive an experiment for the existence, or non existence, of God as anyone might conceive.
A God who fails to come through for his faithful flock at the moment of their most dire need, is in no way obviously different from a God who never existed to begin with. That is just about as conclusive an experiment for the existence, or non existence, of God as anyone might conceive.
Well, they could always explain, as the nuns, priests and brothers at my schools were constantly having to do, that god answering some prayers while neglecting others is a "mystery of faith", which was their all purpose gap closer in such situations.
In broad terms, I have noted that the conversion to atheism experience roughly falls into two classifications. One would be those who began to question the program when they were deeply disappointed by their god failing to work some specific miracle or respond positively to a specific request...what we might call the "How could a merciful god be so heartless?" school of thought.
The other class is the intellectual conversion, those who upon reaching the age of reason, began to see through the false logic and distorted facts being presented and wound up trashing their religion not out of disappointment, but simply because they could see that it wasn't backed by anything persuasive.
Anyone have an experience to report which does not fall into one of those two categories?
I did not have an "aha!" moment. It was a deconversion process that began in June '06 as I dedicated a lot of time to studying a variety of doctrines (first fruits, eschatology, soteriology) and later expanded to other doctrines and fields in biblical studies, textual criticism, ecclesiology, hermeneutics, christology, ANE history and religions, early Christianity, Pauline theology, Hellenism, ancient history, and so forth. Late December '07, I left the Church entirely. I identified as a Christian deist/pluralist at this point, whereas I had been a hyper-fundamentalist IFB apologist a couple years before.
Well, they could always explain, as the nuns, priests and brothers at my schools were constantly having to do, that god answering some prayers while neglecting others is a "mystery of faith", which was their all purpose gap closer in such situations.
In broad terms, I have noted that the conversion to atheism experience roughly falls into two classifications. One would be those who began to question the program when they were deeply disappointed by their god failing to work some specific miracle or respond positively to a specific request...what we might call the "How could a merciful god be so heartless?" school of thought.
The other class is the intellectual conversion, those who upon reaching the age of reason, began to see through the false logic and distorted facts being presented and wound up trashing their religion not out of disappointment, but simply because they could see that it wasn't backed by anything persuasive.
Anyone have an experience to report which does not fall into one of those two categories?
I certainly fall into the second category. By the time I was 13 years old it had become apparent to me that religious claims are far too silly to be true.
I suspect that many people have always had doubts about their religious beliefs. In the past however, when it came to explaining the mystery of existence, religion was the only apparent game in town. The 20th century however ushered in scientific explanations that indicate that existence is a natural condition, no intelligence required. This has changed the playing field forever. Superstitious religious beliefs really are just as silly as they appear to be. And people are beginning to understand that.
Last edited by Tired of the Nonsense; 06-29-2018 at 08:30 AM..
I remember going on a church youth group hike when I was 16, and being shocked that the leaders actually believed in creation over evolution. That same year I went to a religious summer camp and was shocked when a girl told me about how god had spoken directly to her the previous night. In an audible, clear voice that she could hear as clearly as any other sound. I could only conclude that she was delusional. And cute. But crazy. But with cleavage.
I spoke to a priest when I was 17, and asked him to explain the Council of Nicea and how the Bible canon was developed, and it appeared to be a pretty typical human political process. Further conversations very quickly devolved to him proving gods existence because the Bible said so, and the Bible’s truth because god said so.... in the Bible. Even to my relativel6 unsophisticated 17 year old brain that sounded like a pretty weak defense.
I tried to defend the special position of the Virgin Mary and couldn’t. My arguments sounded pathetic even to me. I tried to understand the reason behind it, and ultimately it made no sense.
I kept looking for god, never found god, and ultimately gave up.
There was a thread on this years ago, but always worth reviving. I was on the fence for a number of years until I realized it was ok to be an atheist, Dawkins, Maher, and other prominent people really helped me with that, it wasn't like I could ask family or friends.
But it slowly built up over time, particularly after hearing about one sensational crime after another, I couldn't understand why an all powerful supreme being that can read thoughts would just sit idly by while people suffered horrifically, course the believers always had an answer for that and I'm secretly amused listening to it now.
Believe it or not I still attend liturgy with family members, their strict orthodox Catholics, that doesn't bother me, it's not like lightning is going to strike. What bothers me is observing how careful and crafty they are in indoctrinating their younger members. Or sitting there listening to them read about circumcision and death and crucifixion in front of age groups that can't possibly understand any of it, but I seem to be the only one that finds it strange.
Teenage years. I remember thinking to myself "None of this makes any sense" and just decided around age 18 it wasn't for me.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
