Howdy and hello. :)
I just signed up and wanted to pop in for a quick introduction. I'm 37, I've been openly agnostic with atheist tendencies since the age of 13. My mother is catholic, father was raised Protestant but they didn't force religion or even take me to church. I did attend church and bible camp with friends regularly(Lutheran and baptist) but I never could catch the religious germ. I tried hard to become infected but I seem to be impossibly resistant :)
Growing up with these views was stifling! I was shot down and my opinions ridiculed every time I tried to express myself. Ultimately, I stops expressing myself and was okay with that for many years. It just wasn't worth the social ostracisation at the time. Anyone who knew me, knew my views and made it clear they felt sorry for me. I laughed that off for a long time, but it got really old.
for the past several years, I've lost the ability to remain quiet. I hope I don't offend anyone, but I find religion and the religious to be positively frightening! Watching religion seep more heavility into our government is the worst part of it all.
Speaking out is something I need to do, ......it's like eating and breathing but it's coming at a high cost. My friends are all religious, and cannot understand why I need to make points against religion (but of course they can talk about God all they want). I'm treated like I'm crazy, confused, ignorant. It's incredibly frustrating, especially since I care about these people. It's also hard to be the only vocal/active agnostic/atheist I know in real life. I'm not lacking for friends and family, but I am lacking like minded friends and that's why I'm here. :)
I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone, and I admit I'm genuinely hoping to meet some allies. I feel like I'm the enemy whenever I discuss issues that appeal to me. I'm still familiarizing myself with the forum so it might take awhile for me to fully dive in.....but I'll get there :). I'm having trouble uploading a photo but I think it's because I'm on an iPad. Thanks for reading.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by dizzyduckie on -
He's not alone; I thought it was hilarious too! XD
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Permalink Reply by Tiffany bottoms on -
Awesome! There is hope for a career in STAND Up :)
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Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on -
I gotta share this, whether it's the appropriate place or not --
I'm watching the season finale of the TV show, "Bones," and for those unfamiliar with the format, FBI Agent Booth (guy) finally, after five seasons, got together with Cultural Anthropologist Dr. Brennan (girl), and they had a baby daughter. Booth is a devout Catholic, Brennan, an atheist. Booth tells Brennan he wants to take their baby daughter to church, to be christened, asking Brennan if it's OK. With wide-eyed innocence (masking blatant sarcasm), she answers, "Of course, I think taking our daughter to have water sprinkled on her head to absolve her of sins she committed before birth is an excellent idea,"
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Permalink Reply by Tiffany bottoms on
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Oh no!! I wanted to buy the fifth season of bones on DVD and now you've ruined it! Lol....just kidding :). I love that story...I watched several episodes of Bones and LOVED Brennan.....her comment was SPOT ON!
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Permalink Reply by Rob Klaers on -
Tiffany.. hello and welcome to TA.. As for the photo on the iPad, I've found in relation to FB.. you need to DL the pic to your iPad then upload it to the site. May need to do the same for TA here.. I should say too, it seems more than a few of us realized when we were preteens or early teens where we stood in regards to religion. I was 12. Though it was only recently that I've come to embrace, whole-heartly, my atheism. Again welcome.. and be sure to drop into chat.. (lower right). ... Be seeing you.
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Permalink Reply by Tiffany bottoms on
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Thanks for the advise. I'm glad to know I'm not alone on figuring this out at such an age. I think people thought I'd grow out of it (wrong!) :). I'll check out the chat soon.....looking forward to it.
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Permalink Reply by Rob Klaers on
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I kept it quiet for a long time. I have too many religious family members and I didn't really think too much of it to be honest..Knowing most of my family, I know it wouldn't effect how they saw me.. at least the local family. My out-of-state rellies.... well, that's something different entirely. LOL Dyed-in-the-wool Southern Baptist living in Detroit.
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Permalink Reply by GD Heathen on -
Hi Tiffany,
Welcome aboard, I think it's great to hear stories of how others came out. You were so young and still have so much religion around you which makes it pretty tough. Sometimes those in other parts of the country don't completely understand predicaments like ours (I'm in South Central Texas), but a few do. It's part of the atheist genre which consists of those that speak out to help bring attention to the fact that we are out there, but everyone pays a little different price for that.
Someone in Seattle for instance may not suffer any repercussions for coming out and standing up for our right to disbelieve, but far more don't because they don't see the value in it. It's more of a way of life for them as opposed to central Tennessee or Dallas. Some days I think it's pretty easy to get along here (TX), but I can tell my neighbors who have no doubt heard spirited conversations with my religious friends on the back porch, no longer have the inclination to say hello on the way to church every Sunday. Other times it's very easy to speak up when someone is pushing religion on me or someone near me to tell them their views are outdated and encourage them to think for themselves. There are a lot more like us than we even know about and hopefully you'll find some people in the community to connect with.
Welcome to Think Atheist, I like it here more than most forums. There are lot of supportive, empathetic, and not so sympathetic individuals here but we all have our own opinions and for the most part everyone listens to your viewpoint openly but the best part is their advice. I've learned a lot from this community and hope you find the same to be true.
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Permalink Reply by archaeopteryx on
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GD - RE: a "lot of supportive, empathetic, and not so sympathetic individuals" - sounds like you just defined a family.
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Permalink Reply by ernie garcia on -
Hello. You may also want to check out any local skeptic or atheist group for further support. I just started attending Houston Atheist meetings and plan to go to another one this Friday.
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Permalink Reply by Georgie Kiely on -
I agree with Ernie. I just came out of a life of christianity and felt really alone in my new beliefs and thoughts. I craved for someone that I could share my new beliefs with and speak candidly about atheism. It wasn't until I searched for a local atheist/agnostic/freethought groups in my area that I was able to satisfy that craving. Now I have a couple of good like-minded friends from attending these groups. It really is a great outlet and relief. Check out the site meetup.com and search for these groups in your area. Oh by the way, WELCOME! :)
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