Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Apple on July 27, 2010 at 11:38am

Very similar situation. My parents are very neutral, although my mother's mom was very catholic. But none of my grandparents were still living when I "came out" as an atheist, so it was quite easy for my neutral family to accept. My mom would always look at the effects religion has on the world rather than its truth value, which is of course backwards from my way of thinking. But with all the child rape scandles she pretty much stopped believing entirely. I find it funny, becuase obviously the biblical god either exists or he doesn't, regardless of any child rapes. But yeah, whatever works.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Vaughan on July 27, 2010 at 11:47am

Id rather people lose faith for the wrong reasons, than continue to believe.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Yet Another Atheist on July 27, 2010 at 12:28pm

My family is VERY religious. I come from a Portuguese, Catholic family, where nearly every generation has at least one priest. That should explain how religious they are.

However, with each generation came more and more leniency and laziness about going to church. My parents rarely went to church; oh sure, I received First Communion, was Confirmed, and all that baloney, but it always felt like it was being put upon me just for the sake of following others and going with tradition.

But I never truly believed [in] any of it. When I was around 13, just after my Confirmation, I knew in my heart that, at the very least, I didn't believe in any of the Catholic Church's bullshit. I masturbated quite frequently (and still do, don't worry), didn't think premarital sex was that big a deal, and certainly didn't think a bad thought about homosexuality — mainly because my dad kept quiet for decades about his latent homophobia.

From there it was a gradual transformation for me... from rejecting the Catholic Church specifically, to rejecting all Christianity, to rejecting all religion, to rejecting the Judeo-Christian God, to finally rejecting any notion of a magical higher power altogether.

I didn't become a "true" atheist (fully accepting that there is no higher power) until a year ago. Before then, I was a confused, unsure agnostic. It took 15 years to finally understand what it was to be an atheist and to accept that I was indeed one.

It's funny... my parents will occasionally get the religious "bug" and go to church everyday and officially recognize God and all the stuff he allegedly does... all of which lasts about a week or two, before it's never heard about again. It's like their inner atheist is begging to burst out, but their religious, dogmatic conditioning and training is working hard to suppress those feelings.

They often say they feel sorry for my kids, for they will never know God. Instead, I'm the one who feels sorry for them, for they will never know freedom or true liberation from dogma and mindless tradition and fairy-tale hogwash.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Robert Vince Jr on July 27, 2010 at 12:30pm

I came from a very religious background in 2005 I became an open minded religiously ultra liberal. My mother is a Pentecostal and her side of the family there were 2 nuns and a priest in Catholic faith.
I respect all views of religious or any other issues. Life is to short to be judgmental!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jānis Ķimsis on July 27, 2010 at 1:37pm

What caused them to "fall into the idiot pit"?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Vaughan on July 27, 2010 at 2:44pm

It seems like noone finds god rationally. Nobody thinks about life, and how we got here reasonably and then comes to the God conclusion. You have to ushered into it.

Trickery, I tell ya.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Doug Reardon on July 27, 2010 at 12:46pm

My parents were semi-obedient catholics as were my father's parents. My mother's parents were fundamental baptists, though not necessarily obedient. My wife, my son, and I are heathens.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jānis Ķimsis on July 27, 2010 at 1:35pm

Not really. My maternal grandmother once made me and my siblings learn the Lord's prayer in stead of a Christmass rhime (it's a tradition in Latvia to recite a short poem or one of the traditional four-line Latvian folksongs "dainas" to get a present from the Old Winterfest Man or Ziemassvētku Vecītis), but I think that was the last attempt by her to make us religious. She's still the only person I'm afraid to tell about my atheism, not because I think she'd disown me, but because she'd probably worry about my immortal and nonexistant soul.

I was baptised, but in a "he might need it later in life" way, and as far as I can gather my parents haven't given god much thought.

Interestingly, my paternal grandmother was a staunch atheist, but I only found this out in her funeral, and was too young to think much of it anyway. I never knew my maternal grandfather, but my paternal grandfather, as far as I know, was an atheist or atleast nonreligious too.

Coming out atheist really wasn't hard at all.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Vaughan on July 27, 2010 at 1:38pm

My grandma is the only person I haven't told. I think its just best to avoid it, nothing good could come of it. lol.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jānis Ķimsis on July 27, 2010 at 2:47pm

Yeah, I me too.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Eoganacht on July 28, 2010 at 1:09am

My family is not very religious; my parents were raisesd xians but never continued the faith. Religion is not raised much so I am not sure about my extended family although they are not practicing in any way that I am aware of. I never really 'got out' but rather found myself as an atheist when I was old enough to actually make an informed decision.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Vaughan on July 28, 2010 at 8:55am

I always tell people that I was Christian like my family, until Free Will came out.

• ▶ Reply