I have very recently deconverted, and it has been very difficult. After my son died 5 years ago, I clung to religion as a way to cope. It became my crutch. I was comforted by the idea that "everything happens for a reason", "it's part of God's plan", and that I would "see him again". When I finally realized a couple of months ago that I cannot believe in God, that it just didn't add up, I had to find a new way to make sense of what happened to my son, on top of realizing I have been lied to.
@meteeples That's sad that you lost your son. Tragic events often figure prominently in changing one's beliefs, even if they aren't directly an indication of the correctness or evidence for those beliefs.
Being speculative does not inheritable make one an atheist. Looking at Christianity through the eyeglass of science simply enhances one's faith or "deconverts" them. The fact is that the Bible held amazingly accurate knowledge of science for its time, far past the philosophers and scientists of later times. In fact, many philosophers, even non-Christians, based their ideas on the Bible its self.
I was raised protestant, basically as little religious as one can get. As soon as I realised there are other religions with just as much to show me (nothing but a book), I became deist. I was about 12 years back then. I never thought about it anymore and didn't care until I discovered debate videos on youtube when it was new. Atheists made sense, theists argued with lies, blind faith and illogical, circular arguments. After a little more research on my own, I realised that I was an atheist.
I'll be 30 next month and have been an atheist for about 4 years. I'm very happy with the transition and take a lot of pride in the fact that I allowed myself to honestly question what I was taught growing up in a southern Baptist church. Of course, atheists are despised in America. While my Christian philosophizing would bring the praise of my peers, any atheistic discussion can bring their condemnation. That takes some getting used to, but I think I'm a stronger person overall.
@Zaunstar you should give Matt Dillahunty of the Atheist Experience and the ACA a call, im sure he could let you in on his dereligionizing experience :)
ya, my dad went from catholic to atheist, and he did it by trying to rationalize every piece of catholic beliefs and then realizing that none of them could be true one by one. it took him YEARS to actually realize that his whole religion was a lie. started at 16 or younger, completely gave up in his late 20's.
I turned atheist in 6th grade, 5 years ago. The change was rather easy, but I didn't speak about my change of mind to anyone until the 8th grade where I met others like me. I only told a few up until last year.
My belief was very weak. I went to catholic school as a kid, but I NEVER paid attention. It wasn't so much religious indoctrination, as religious osmosis. I just soaked up some of the general non-denominational stuff from my surroundings. I wondered about some of the contradictory things, but didn't care enough about religion to really think hard. The first time I did think about it all, I stopped being religious practically overnight, with almost no baggage. I was lucky.
I was raised in a catholic family and they seem to kind of pretend I never said I was an atheist when I told them (Shortly before they forced me to be confirmed) My mom even went into a rage when I expressed my opinion. Also my beliefs on politics etc... usually tie into religion somewhere and I get my opinions ridiculed in my household. It's also hard to sit by and watch my parents indoctrinate my brother and sister who are only 5. Anyway...was that a reaper picture at 2:20?
@Zaunstar I want to, I just don't want to do the same thing. I still want them to have a choice but to them religion is reality. Perhaps it would just be better to tell them flat out.
I lost my religion at about age 38 or 39 and I can tell you it took almost 2 years (which is why I can't be sure of my exact age when I lost my faith) to get over the fear of hell, group think (why is everyone else around me crazy, that has a lot of power, how often is that everyone else is wrong and you are the only sane one in the room?), fear of loosing friends, almost loosing my girlfriend etc. de-conversion is MUCH harder than you might think.(CONT)
@christo930 But you are right, you also tend to change a lot of your other positions, some of which aren't even strongly correlated with the religious belief you are rejecting. De-conversion gives you a new view of the world, but it takes time, especially if you are older and have decades of belief to undo.
I really enjoy your videos. Im an atheist but I've noticed that whenever I make a post on FB or any other social media about how I despise religion, the 'loudest' comments strangely come from my agnostic friends. I have nothing against agnostics. Do you think that those who have internal struggles prefer to be agnostic? Also, it seems like religious discussions always morph into "what title is more rational", when an agnostic enters the discussion. It gets tiresome. Would love to hear your take.
@ThePapermusic Hi there, and thanks, glad you are enjoying. Remember that being agnostic and being atheist are not mutually exclusive. I have always been an agnostic atheist actually, but always called myself agnostic until a few years ago due to misunderstanding what the terms meant. I think what you are encountering are people that enjoy the purity of "I don't know", which is fine, but when you add in "and I don't believe in stuff without evidence", it nearly forces atheism too.
@Zaunstar Loving your work! Yeh, its a big misconception that by saying I am atheist, I am saying "I KNOW FOR SURE THAT THERE IS NO GOD" I sometimes get accused of intellectual arrogance by agnostic friends, who say that 'we can't tell' if there is or isn't a God- but in reality, all I'm saying is that there is no evidence based, good reason, to believe in a god, its like tipping the scales to the side of non- belief, rather than breaking them on one side with the infinite weight of 'CERTAINTY'.
@ThePapermusic Hate to butt in, but agnostic doesn't mean what most people think it means. Agnostic simply means that you can not know if there is a god or not. There are agnostic theists and agnostic atheists (which is what I am). If you point this out, that agnostic isn't some middle ground of "I don't know" (which is really atheism), I think you will get better responses.
@christo930 well, atheism by definition means anti-theist, which in the context the term is typically used in translates to no god. The only aspect of atheism set in stone actually is that there isn't a god. The definition of agnostic, "A person who believes that nothing is known or can be known of the existence or nature of God or of anything beyond material phenomena". Def of atheism, "The theory or belief that God does not exist.". I hope this clarifies.
@natesdevices Atheism does not mean "anti-theist." It means "a-theism" or "no deity." Many atheists (myself included) are anti-theists, but many others respect religion and even wish they could bring themselves to believe in god.
My biggest problem was actually shaking this intense, irrational fear of hell. As a Pentecostal Christian, I believed in a literal hell, so when I first became an atheist I would have moments of panic when I thought about the idea of death. This happened even after I realized that hell couldn't possibly exist. That fear had been so deeply ingrained into my mind that it was difficult to break free from it.
@ShenanigansCheck i don't mean to freak you out, but consider the incomprehensible oblivion of nothingness that follows death is awful. To never see one's family, one's own life, to never sip from a glass a can of coke, to never pet a dog, to never lazily sit around and watch tv. It freaked me out to point where i invented my own belief system, which i still believe to this day, where i can just deny that all encompassing fact. i know what you're thinking, "thats unhealthy."
@natesdevices Yeah, the thought of death is scary, but I think it's a good thing. Living forever might be great for the first few hundred years, but after a while I would go insane. The fact that I have an ending is okay. The only aspect of death that scares me now is how I'm gonna die as I'm allergic to pain and would prefer my death to be swift and painless.
Also, the problem with believing in an afterlife is it decreases one's motivation to live life to the fullest. That's truly a shame.
For the past year or so, i've slowly been transitioning from Christian to Agnostic. I haven't made the final leap to Atheism, but I feel that leap is approaching. I've been Christian for a majority of my life, growing up in a moderately Christian house. But, about a year ago, I sat down and truly evaluated my beliefs. I came to the realization that I never really cared about religion to begin with. The feeling i had after that relization was unbelievably liberating.
I was in the process of re-evaluating my ideologies and opinions as a christian when I became an atheist. I progressed from moderate charismatic to liberal christian to atheist in the space of about 2 years. I think it was the build-up of cognitive dissonance that broke the spell for me. This meant that I found it relatively easy to submit everything I believed to rational thought. Contrary to not giving it much thought, I probably spend too much time on it still, 3 years on. Thanks for this!
As a kid I wasn't really pushed into being a catholic, I just really did it because my mom was the most protective entity. until I was about 14 I met a girl that was wiccan, and it inspired me so much and gave me a new prespective of the world, it was a lot more colourful. Eventually I started a long distance relationship, and after six months we broke off, and since she was my mentor I felt lost. Eventually caught myself watching atheists on youtube, and questioning my beliefs. (cont.)
@Willknockingdoors I felt contradicted by the videos, and eventually it just stopped making sense and I claimed myself as an atheist, thus feeling really insecure and scared. Since I am still a child by heart, I still hold the fear of hell, and that's something I am still coming through, as a 17 year old. Reality is still setting and it's still of an inner struggle to realize hell is not a real place and there probably is no such thing as God. Forgive my mistakes, mother tounge isn't english.
I fully let go of my christian beliefs for about 4 months ago, and I told my parents that I am a Atheist this Christmas. They think I'm just in some sort of phase so I would not say that they have fully accepted it yet. They are disappointed but at least they respect my choice. Everything got so much more real when I threw away religious beliefs. over the last few months I have been constantly reading or listening to biology and astronomy. So much to catch up on, and it's quite amazing.
@Zaunstar Indeed, But as my parents, teachers and pretty much everyone I knew told me science, and especially evolution was wrong and I would go to hell if I started doubting the bible. So it was not easy to think for myself. It was first when I went to collage, were I was not constantly bombarded by christian believes, rules and condemnation of enlightened thought I was able to start questioning my own beliefs.
When I turned 17 I think, it was when I could consider myself an atheist. I thought even deeper about religion and God and turned into philosophy, ethics, and other things which I consider more important than religion itself. Today I'm an Apatheist and also an Ignostic. I don't care much about religion anymore, since it says nothing about you. I watched a lot of videos about atheism on youtube when I was 18 or so, but nowadays I just find them boring and watch Physics and Philosophy stuff.
The results shocked me. God appeared so evil to me all of a sudden. It scared me how I considered other people to get what they deserve during the flood, because when I read that, I was geninuinely considering what was God's moral code and ideals, and how different they were from the ones I grew up with and the ones I managed to find out through thinking about it. For a few months I remained theist, but my views on God have changed. Now thinking that God was real, but he was evil. (cont.)
I was raised catholic. Unlike church in the US, church for me was a repeating ritual over and over without any moral basis behind it. My basis on religion came from my grandmother, who gave me unsatisfactory and brief answers about God. She just said "God is love and all you can do is love each other." I was curious and wanted to know more details about God, heaven, what were angels, what was hell like, etc. When I was 14 I started to read the bible in order to learn about said details, (cont.)
Nice. What would you call someone who grew up in a mildly religious environment and who just one day realised that (s)he actually never bought into the BS, they just didn't realise it? "Deconverted" doesn't sound right in that context.
@rozeboosje I would consider that a bit of a gray area, and I see what you're saying. There are many such people that grew up only moderately or barely religious, some of which have also commented here. It does make a difference usually in the difficulty of the deconversion. If you or anyone else can come up with a word that better describes it, I would welcome it.
My deconversion was really simple - I actually read the bible. The irrationality, the morally repugnant teachings and the whole egocentric idea of 'my religion is the only right one' was enough.
My deconversion happened to me at a fairly young age. I was in the 5th grade when the gears were set in motion. That December we had to move, which is fairly traumatic on its own, but what made the experience even worse was that my grandmother died that Christmas eve. Those to events sent me into a clinical depression which I battled for many years. The whole experience made me question my faith and it was around 8th grade when I began labeling my self as an atheist.
My deconversion really wasn't a painful experience. It happened only a few months ago (I'm 16). I became good friends with an atheist and we got to talking one day (I was Catholic). After that, we had quite a few debates on the subject and I couldn't deny that he out-reasoned me. But, I still held on to my religion. Then, one day, I was inspired to do my own research on God. I found nothing but logical arguments for atheism and nothing but blind faith for theism. I dropped theism the next day.
My logic on this issue came from watching and observing the many different belief systems and religions conflicting with each other on their own basic ideological principles. On top of this, there has been no actual proof that God or any deity for that matter has put his mark on our universe. Scriptures seem to be propaganda made to control people based on their superstitious fears back when people knew barely anything about the world around them. Which is sad they still need this crutch.
I have straddled the line between theism and atheism for many years. Brought up on one side, my Catholic mother who would drag me to church, and the other my late protestant father who didn't really give a damn about religion and was geared towards logical reasoning than a magic man in the sky. After thinking about it for all these years, is I would like to believe there is a higher power at work, but given all the data I know the chances of that are 0%.
That is the struggle of how I lost my faith, and it is on-going in that I struggle with the shame and fear of my mother's apparent mental illness. I fear that I will suffer from the same in the future, or at the very least that she will in fact grow to be hailed as some glorious televangelist and I will be forced to live in her shadow as the lost son no matter what I do.
That is my story. I can only hope it turns out to have a happy ending.
Currently, I'm 19 years old and in college. My mother, I believe, suffers from a rare but serious mental illness. She now believes she is a prophet and plans to move out of state with my family without a single idea about why or what she's going to do. She believes God will tell her when the time is right.
She's moving to Baton Rogue, Louisiana. She claims not to know why "the Holy Spirit" is telling her to go there, but that is where Jimmy Swaggart Ministries is located, and she knows it.
My mother's reaction was negative, to say the very least. The fights she would instigate, the pressure she would apply to try to convert me back was endless. I never wanted to fight, I just wanted to be left alone, but she harassed me persistently.
I wavered between belief and non-belief for a long time until I eventually lost my faith altogether. My relationship with my family will never be the same.
but I still believed because I was told that if I kept having faith, it would eventually get better. It did, but only when I realized that if I died, I would probably be better off anyway. It's a bit dark, but realizing that death might not be so bad compared to life was what truly lifted my fear of it.
Later, when I was about 15, I started to sit under the loud and boisterous Pentecostal preacher with skepticism, and that skepticism grew everyday until finally I stopped believing altogether.
When I was 11, I became devoutly religious because I believed I was on the brink of death. I began suffering from a debilitating anxiety disorder and suffered with the fear of dying everyday for a very long time.
I was inspired by my mother, who was, and ever more so today still is, a zealous conservative Christian. I believed that if I swore my allegiance to God, I would be saved from death. No amount of prayer or faith helped my symptoms...
I've never really believed in that sense taht I could feel it in my heart and I always "knew" God existed. Iwas what you may consider a believer until age 9, and even then my mindset was "Yeah, there's a God and if I'm a good boy I'll go to heaven" and that was all that it was. But at age 9, I was reading a children's world atlas picture book with "fun facts" on each page. One of them changed my mindset forever because it said "There are over 100,000 organised religions in the world.
@MajorSamsquamch Cont'd... I rememberd thinking to myself "Well, how can they all be right at the same time?". From that point on up until I finally accepted my disbelief in God at age 11, I was looking into what other religions had to offer besides Catholicism (Which my whole family was and still is, apart from myself of course). It was an easy transition for me from an agnostic viewpoint to atheism.
though I was never raise religious I can attest to the fact that many of my friends that I've tried to convert down from religion have had a hard time doing so not only because of the fact that they believe in no God in their family around them believes in God but because of the whole reason why religion was built to begin with which was the control people on opinions that made them controlable which really related to money and it's not surprising that a large number of the Republicans who are
on a side note- in the world we live it, i feel like it's still deemed unacceptable to be athiest. it seems like the majority of americans have some sort of religious belief. it would also seem that anybody that DISAGREES with these beliefs is -almost- looked down upon. it becomes an issue of social standing vs personal belief, and this kind of thing shows up EVERYWHERE no matter how you try to avoid it. (these are the only people i can relate this to, feel free to clarify for other countries)
@MrFishAssassin Actually, that is very regional though. Definitely in the Bible Belt it's like that, but in the northeast, a lot of places that would be considered no big deal. Also, interestingly, you'll find that labels make a big difference, even if they are meant in the same way. It's like declaring yourself a "non-believer" or an "agnostic" even though the latter isn't really even the same as being an atheist, will get you a very different reaction.
@Zaunstar hmm.. that is interesting. for the record, i am in highschool yet, so some people that i'm exposed to are... lets just say "less than creative" lol. but the reactions that i get from people when they find out that i'm atheist are silly. it's been everything from "oh, okay" to "so wait.. you worship satan then?!" like you said, it seems to be regional, but around chicagoland, things are a bit ridiculous if you ask me.
my deconversion (from christianity) didnt really seem all that challenging. it was about a year or two ago that i finally decided once and for all that the notion of some ancient fellow floating in the sky was silly, but my trust in the religious system of beliefs had been declining for a while. Things just didn't seem to make sense (for obvious reasons). I had always had to struggle with myself to understand why things were just "not acceptable" ex: gay people, athiests etc. but this is better.
Even for those of us who were never raised religious, or me, had only limited religious upbringing with little long lasting effects, it's still a very good idea to make a habit of regularly examining your beliefs and trying to throw out any dogma you might find.
perhaps the proper name for that group would more be "group therapy for ex-theists" ?
i know, hardly important, but i'm a "never-theist" (as i read in your tags :) and hence my ignorance of "being theist" kind of makes me write that alternative "name" ... i think i know it was just a video title, but i just wanted to write something in the comment section of this nice video :D
@mindwis3 I take some poetic license with my titles sometimes. If I added caveats to everything I said, it would lose impact. Just like when I refer to Christians as a whole, it's usually "some Christians", and so on. I make distinctions when I feel like it's important to make them. Thanks!
I'm in a similar boat to @zaunstar, having grown up in a nominally Christian household. Even so, my full-blown atheism only blossomed in the last couple of years. Ideas about human society can still be subtly influenced by former religious traditions and beliefs. Because I never felt strongly about religion, I have to consciously make the effort to think about what it means to be an atheist and take a fresh view of things. Most of the time I don't give it much thought.
@LsBaba I grew up in a secular household actually. Yes, it's always good to give your beliefs a checkup from time to time, no matter what your views on religion.
I went on a seven year long panic-attack when I lost my faith. It was pretty horrible. I was absolutely terrified at the prospect of an eternal nothingness. Once I figured out WHY I was afraid to die, it became easier to articulate that particular fear as an irrational one, that was out of my control - and things got easier and easier as time passed. Nowadays, I feel so LUCKY that I can think about eternal death, and not be afraid of it.
@Mualkoth That can't be a pleasant feeling. *:-( I can understand that fear too, but I guess I'm used to the reality of it and it doesn't seem shocking. So what was it you figured out about WHAT it was, if you don't mind sharing?
@Zaunstar I was afraid of the certainty of death. I was afraid of something I couldn't control nor change. I was afraid of the fleeting nature of time, and how fast death would happen. I often thought about how fast time had passed between childhood or something and the present. If you really think about it, life happened in a BLINK. I was afraid that was what death would be like. Once I learned how to appreciate the moment for what it was, everything changed. The book Hagakure helped a lot.
@Zaunstar Religion, God, the later, weirder superstitions and the promises therein, somehow took the sting out of that looming certainty. But you know how it goes. Some of us just can't help but acknowledge the demonstrable, categorical certainty of truth - at least as much of a truth that we could possibly know at the moment.
@Zaunstar The conflict was not necessarily knowing anything, but learning the contradictions in my beliefs, and reconciling those contradictions with my fear of death. I apologize if I'm not articulating this right, but I don't know how else to explain it. I hope that answers your question.
@Mualkoth It does, thank you. No apology necessary. I appreciate your sharing it. Maybe others can get something out of it too. That's what this is all about.
For like 2 weeks after I became an atheist I felt like somebody just died and it was really hard for me to be honest with myself. To be honest the only reason I became an atheist is because being an intellectual coward/intellectually dishonest is something I found even worse than not having that blanket.
@SkeetYaOnFace9 It just kind of... evolved... sometime in the first few months of when I started making videos regularly. I think there is a little explanation on my channel page too.
I'm not sure which type of atheist I am. My parents wanted me to be confirmed in the Lutheran church, but after that they didn't really care what I decided to believe in. I consider myself lucky that religion has never been very big in my family; none of my grandparents are/were outspoken about god or Jesus, and most of my relatives haven't been to church in years. And to be honest, Lutheranism is a very wishy-washy brand of Christianity; it's more of a social activity than a religion.
@cyanmanta I actually have some Lutheran ministers in my lineage supposedly on the Swedish side. Yeah, they don't tend to be very hard core, though I think it varies a lot.
@Zaunstar Sweden, I think, is very much like Norway. The christians don´t judge others as much and many of them just say they believe there is "something there".
My deconversion was a very long process spanning over several years and there was never really a point where I just suddenly realized I didn't believe in god anymore; it just sort of happened and then later on I figured out I was an atheist through watching clips of the Atheist Experience on YouTube and eventually watching full episodes of their show on their website. The biggest hurdle I had to overcome was my fear of hell. Once I realized hell wasn't real, I broke my ties easily.
Unexamined assumptions... Am I a spirit in a sinful body? If I am a spirit, what do I do while my body is asleep? Do I have a conscience? Are these my opinions? Who's opinions are they? Who gave them to me and why do I have to pay him for the privilege? Does giving blind faith to someone create a conflict of interest? If we are evil, how can we tell good from evil? What does blaarg gokkl Help! I can't think any more.
You are so right and were brave to bring up your wife ;) For me for some reason it was automatic: as soon as I was able to see clearly that my particular religion was false, it took less than 24 hours for me to question whether the Jesus story was also false. This was in my mid-twenties. I'm not totally sure why I quickly questioned everything else, I have a pretty logical brain like that but I was also in college. I appreciate your videos and encouragement, keep up the good work.
@soulure Heh, she said it was OK for me to mention that. College is when a lot of people ditch religion, because they no longer have that constant reinforcement of their family hammering the stories home.
In my psych classes it hammered that you MUST grab a child's mind from the womb to age 7. (For some reason the schooling "authorities" say it has to do with neurological connecters.) I guess the fascists knew this in the 1840s when the Rothschilds paid Marx to write the COMMUNIST MANIFESTO.
The elite bloodlines have lived long enough to rue the day when their ancestors pushed religion in order to manage (rule) their human farms.
It is now a conundrum! How to get rid of the religion??????
Atheists can be just as bigoted as any religious person. I think its unfortunately natural. The biggest difference between an atheist and a theist is that a theist will use his/her religion to justify their world views. I don't ever remember being religious but I do remember a time when I was homophobic. I've out grown it but it took time. Its a cultural thing. Kids start calling other kids they don't like "faggots" before they even understand what the word really means.
I've found since becoming an atheist my poltical views and over all world view continues to veer farther and farther to the left where as before I was total misanthrope (as a teen) and felt Hitler had the right idea (to quote my dad, "kill em all, let god sort em out".) Then life sudden had far more meaning and value when I realize there's probably no tyrants in the sky. I'm still uncomfortable around people and stupid irritates me, but I'm not full of hate against "heathens" anymore.
@Nagneto Funny, because my Atheism had actually led me to fall entirely out of the political spectrum. I want abortion and gay rights to improve, but I also want gun rights to be preserved, with no government control whatsoever. Minimum wage? The hell with that.
@tetleydidley I was born and raised in poverty and continue to work to eek out rent to pay for my apartment and shitty car. So it's in my immediate interest to make sure I regulation allows me the same oppertunites as everyone else. Since higher education is by all account privatized, and debt is a death sentence in this country, I'm not applying for any loans.
yes i'm having some problems. my deconversion started about a year ago. i live in MS and have nobody to talk to about anything.. i mean NOBODY! if i say anything i might get lynched and hung up on a limb somewhere..HELP!
@bill51891 That's what youtube is for! Subscribe, talk to people, make some videos that you will NOT share with the "locals". You are far from alone, even if in MS it might feel like it. I have met tons of atheists just randomly, but then again, I don't live in MS. Hang in there. You're among friends.
@cjeffers101 Thanks CJeff! The story about the guy who said I was lucky I didn't have to go through that was you, by the way, but you knew that, right? Hehheh.
I'm glad you thought it was one of my better ones. I didn't think it was one of my better ones at all, but I'm not always a good judge of what will be well-received.
@Zaunstar Others had a rough time too, I wasn't certain. Judging the responses easily many people. panic attacks, depression, guilt...I am reading Michael Shermer's The Believing Brain. In it he quotes Einstein as saying (paraphrasing) he never needed to be Anti-theist as one who has freed himself from the bondage of belief, which only reminded me of Harriet Tubman "I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves." It rocks & changes you.
@johauHAU Yeah, it is. It flips between looking kind of pale and looking kind of yellow. I don't know quite how to fix it and haven't been able to put in the time to figure it out yet.
My deconversion began around 2000. My family was not strongly religious, but the idea of atheism all the same was scandalous. You are quite right about the safety blanket effect. I'm a joyful happy atheist who revels in my new intellectual and social freedom but I still hold this mild superstitious fear of priests (embarrassing to admit) and am still occasionally struck cold late at night by reflecting on the death of my god.
@rldickie That is a recurring them. Many ex-theists retain some "in the back of my head" sorts of reflexes. Many are embarrassed by them, but I don't think you have any reason to be! Thank you for sharing, and I'm glad you are joyful.
I think calling religiously indoctrinating a child insidious is false because the indoctrinator believes what he is indoctrinating, in most circumstances. While I agree it is their new reality, to call that THE reality is not necessary true as if one looks objecivily at the facts either atheism or one of many religions could be correct. Saddled? Well since you have never been “saddled” with religion you might be unaware of this but, for most religions one is not “saddled” with it.
@LinkMEP I never said that the saddle wasn't comfortable for many people. Some people revel in it. As for reality, I could make lots of caveats to many things I say, but it would make what I say endlessly cluttered with if/then statements and such. Feel free to make a video response if you disagree with me, and explain why. Which religions do you think could be real based on objectively looking at facts as you suggest? Responses are open, as always.
My school was very religious, but my parents... not so much. I heard the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah's Flood, Jonah and the Whale and Baby Jesus in the Manger but as a kid they were as real as the stories of King Arthur, or Persephone or the Monkey King. And THEY were as real as He-Man or the Ewoks, EVERYTHING was real when I was 6.
When I watch your videos, I feel powerful lol I'm just happy to know there's way more Atheists in the world then I thought. I was beginning to think I was the only one with my head screwed on right.
Grew up in a house with not practicing deist. I personally never understood religion and didn't get how people could believe what was said in the bible.
The only hang up I can think of that took me a while to let go of was the sex taboos, particularly those around homosexuality and transsexuals (inc. cross-dressing).
Then I actually started reading up on how the mind works -- at a high level, mind you -- and it gradually dawned on me that none of these behaviours was anything like what was described.
I used to be a devoted Russian orthodox until about 4 years ago. From then on I have been slowly (though unintentionally) deconverted by friend of mine who's very into science. He kept introducing me to more and more fascinating ideas in biology and astronomy until I woke up one day and said "Wow, how come I never realized it before?" But it was difficult to just let go, as my family is still very religious. However they have accepted my choice and I feel very comfortable with my "new" life.
Great vid! It speaks from the what I'm experiencing as a person who's recently de-converted, as of last years. I'm realizing its a process that not only takes time but learning and assistance. Though I still retain some indoctrinated beliefs (the whole "wrath of God" thingy) embedded by my family etc., its slowly diminishing after realizing only I have the power to take control of me destiny. I think thats the next step of this process, though I still have a ways to go. hope that understandable
Oh hey, I just used a clip of "those kids from Jesus Camp" in my reply to VenomFangX. While pulling that video up to download, I saw another video in the side bar that would have depressed me if I had felt even the least bit surprised, which was about the main young boy from Jesus Camp, Levi, and interviewing him like 5 years after the movie. If you're interested, /watch?v=SFGK6Qa4VsY
@MrTomfooligans Interesting! Man, that kid needs to lose the facial hair until he can grow it more convincingly though! Yeah, that's kind of how I expect most of those kids to grow up. Kind of hard when that's all you know, though some are able to break free in spite of it.
As a newer atheist coming from a theist tradition. Believe wise I still hold true to an after life, angles, and souls. Although, I think I still keep them only because my father died two years before I became an atheist and I have kept the hope of seeing him one day.
@thatOfTheGiven I know someone that lost his father before he could ever form a memory of him that believes in those "basics" of Christianity for that same reason.
thats the same as an experience I had. I knew an atheist who was a homophobe and when I asked why they disliked gays they said "its wrong, it says so in the bible", I pointed out the obvious flaws in this line of thinking and now they aren't homophobic to my knowledge, they realised that they were just parroting what they had grown up hearing without giving much thought. So there is hope.
@nerdlass Heh, well, deism isn't atheism, but it's at least pretty innocuous to me. Pantheism seems to have different meanings to different people. I should read up on it. Glad you were able to escape the southern Baptist life!
Ex-Xtian myself. My struggle is mostly internal. The reactions from still believing family scared me but it was not as bad as I thought it would be. I assumed I would forever be uncomfortable around them. Instead, they seem uncomfortable around me...Untill they realize I am somewhat the same person. I think they even notice that I am a better, more confident person.My non-belief is not talked about by them. I do still have the habit of sending up silent prayers whenever I see an ambulance.
I became in atheist in actual belief around grade 5 (still in a private christian school) and accepted the term atheist for myself around 1-2 years later, so for me it was young enough and in an environment that constantly made me question things... so for me I have no... "clingings" that I know of, strange as my friend who was brought up in a christian house and school but was Never religious at any point still does =/
I'm an ex-christian and I was angry for along time thinking I was lied to. Then I thought "is it still a lie if my parents believed it whole heartedly, because some preacher lied to them?" It's a cycle of ignorance going around and around. I feel sorry for my father and step mother now. I almost hate challenging they're beliefs cause they're ignorant to the facts science and reality. I'm happier now in life then I was as a christian, no big brother watching my every move, and the fact that my
@CtrlAltWtf1 Sadly, yes, it's still a lie. If you don't bother to independently verify something you've heard, and then spread it around without knowing the veracity of what you're saying, you're lying.
That's why there should be a law that says anytime you want to pontificate about your religion, you must begin each sentence with the words, "I believe..." That removes the lie and sets up anything said as suspect.
Im an ex-christian, though not an athiest. The thing I still have the most problem with is fear of hell, even though my new belief system does not have a hell in it. I tell myself that even IF the bible is true, do I want to worship a being that condones torture and genocide? I, frankly, can't answer that question yet, if worship would keep me from being tortured. Yes, I know, I have fallen for pascals wager... but I was heavily indoctrinated.
Recovering from religion was very difficult. I never went full-fledged atheist although I've been close. I still consider myself agnostic--I'm 38 and I got out of religion in my late teens and early 20s. The issue I struggle the most with is what happens when you die--I have a hard time facing the idea of not existing.
took two wars for me to realize that gods don't exist just because people think they do. i held a pagan belief before than and thought that any god that had influence in the world was at least real enough to effect the world. but later i realized that any idea can do that, and that god is alive in the exact same manner that the pursuit of justice is alive. god was a useful idea once upon a time, but its too dangerous of an idea in the modern world.
...Then I realized everyone I loved lied to me my entire life, I felt manipulated, angry, and stupid. After that though things began to look up, I enjoyed educating myself on subjects I was afraid to look into before. Enjoyed life more because it is so short. The best part was I could feel like my mind was freed, and gained the intellectual courage to ask tough questions.
Well, I'll forever be a christian. I'm not theist actually. I have had doubts about all the "God" theory almost from when I was born, but there is another reason why I accept Christianity.
For most nations, religion did terrible things and still does. But if religion didn't exist, or wasn't accepted enough where I live, probably my country (Macedonia) wouldn't exist. So I appreciate Christianity as a tradition. I have to cover a lot of history to explain this, so I won't cover any details.
As an ex-christian I felt the hardest part was the disenchantment. Since I was raised in the church at a young age I accepted the beliefs as you would accept the law of gravity. As evidence began to pile against Christianity as I aged I began to go through mental stress and attempted to shield myself from it through ignorance. What the truth made me face was death. I would not live forever, I remember laying in my bed at night immediately after my deconversion and realized I would die...
As far as i know there have been no religious people in my larger family for 2 generations. I admit, it is hard to emphasize with converted atheists.
On a more funnier note, i have always thought that there should be a 2 weeks holiday package for unsuspecting and ignorant europeans like myself, living with a family in the heart of the bible belt. I would love to go.
As someone who's been Atheist since early childhood this video was quite enlightening for me. I never really thought of the fact that just because you abandon one part of your belief doesn't mean you abandon the rest. I guess I just subconsciously figured that if you get rid of the cause you also get rid of the effect.
The same happened to me. It took a good couple of years to accept evolution after my deconversion. It just didn't occur to me that I could have been so lied to about it.
After my awakening, I spent the next 11 years pissed off at how I was lied to, by my catholic family. I still have a lot of anger over a great many things, and I don't think I'll ever get over it. My mother is still alive, still believes and is in deep denial of my atheism. She just doesn't want to hear it. I'm still speaking with her, she's still in my life. Though sometimes I wonder why?
The thought processes developed during indoctrination is nearly impossible to truly break, it's insidious in both form and function. It really sucks because I catch myself in that mode all the time.
Great video! When I realized that I was turning into an agnostic atheist, it took several years to challenge my beliefs. There are so many that are just ingrained in our society (and in ourselves).
when i was 4 my family was Russian Orthodox. it was a scarring experience and i was publicly humiliated by being spanked by a priest for a crime disproportionate with the punishment. growing up it was brought up alot and caused me emotional distress. as a result i began to resent christians and hate them and blame them. the problem i had to overcome was learning that i cant hold all christians responsible for the actions of a few of them. even if the evils of religion arent exaggerated.
Good video. I am an ex-Southern Baptist who deserted the church over 40 years ago. I have not regretted it, and the longer the span of time, the more I see what evil organized religion has done to this country. Fear is what motivates people in religion, and fear is used to control the people. Sad. These crooked politicians use religion to hide behind when they get caught. You can get away with anything in this country if you say you are saved and have repented of yours sins!
@MrMusiclover41 Yes, it's like that scene from "Oh Brother, Where Art Though?" where the one convict gets re-born in the river and he says with pride, "All my sins is warshed away!"
I did it the other way round. I did not stop believing in god and then question the other issues that were affected by my dogma, I questioned the other issues first, realized that the cause of my confusion was god, questioned him, found no answers and set myself free. I don't think it matters in what order it is done, but at some point non-believers need to explore all the issues that could have been potentially influenced by their religion. Work through each issue one at a time, ... (cont 1)
@SpaceFrawg (cont from 1)... one at a time, applying critical thinking to each one, question assumptions, decide whether a claim is true, false; sometimes true, or partly true. When you do this honestly, you find yourself agreeing with many other non belivers on a wide variety of issues besides whether or not there is a god. Theists will often point to this and call it group think or just another religion, but it is very interesting ...(cont 2)
@SpaceFrawg (cont from 2) ...but it is very interesting that many people, freed from the bonds of religion, are able to come together and be on the same page on a number of different subjects
I've been atheist for a couple of years now and I was raised in a Southern Baptist family. They encouraged me to learn and think on my own. I was religious for a few years in my mid teens, but I saw that the Pastor was always asking for tithes and offerings. What really opened my eyes was when I was lead in the Salvation Prayer/ritual. The gentleman who lead me in prayer told me that the Holy Spirit moves like a wind, he asked me how do you know that the wind is blowing?
@MrWill7980 Me being the science geek that I was and am, looked at him slightly puzzled and say that you hear it. He says" No, you feel it." You can hear the wind blowing through the trees and your surroundings long before you feel it. Then to re-enforce my misgivings, my parents would watch a televangelist whose sign off was Remember: We walk by faith, not by sight. Close your eyes and try that, I think you know what will happen.
@MrWill7980 but it is hard for me to sit through a service or a Christian oriented event because when they start preaching they use almost like a Jedi mind trick and I almost want to start believing again. You are lucky, Zaunstar, because you never had that shit implanted in to your mind. It's like an addiction. You have been off of crack 4 10 years, then you snort a line at a party and think that you'll b ok, then you are hooked all over again. Christianity is the exact same way.
Honestly, I've seen no troubles deconverting. I was something of a skeptic even while I believed, and so I was always for gay rights, abortion, science, etc. I honestly think that god was always second to my internal morality and common sense. Then one day, I saw a few atheist YouTube videos, and I found myself agnostic in about a week. Since then I've been educating myself on the whole idea, and now I find myself to be more an atheist. I don't think I had any problems, so I guess I'm lucky.
I was a non denominational Christian. I was always open minded though. I believed in pro-choice and gay rights, etc. I guess my open mindedness eventually lead me to see what really does seem to be the truth of what reality really is. The questions were always there; 'If God is good, then why are most religious people so mean' etc. It did pain me for a long while dealing with it. Still really not comforted about death being the end but that's a side effect of blind faith.
I have very recently deconverted, and it has been very difficult. After my son died 5 years ago, I clung to religion as a way to cope. It became my crutch. I was comforted by the idea that "everything happens for a reason", "it's part of God's plan", and that I would "see him again". When I finally realized a couple of months ago that I cannot believe in God, that it just didn't add up, I had to find a new way to make sense of what happened to my son, on top of realizing I have been lied to.
meteeples 1 day ago
@meteeples That's sad that you lost your son. Tragic events often figure prominently in changing one's beliefs, even if they aren't directly an indication of the correctness or evidence for those beliefs.
Zaunstar 1 day ago
Being speculative does not inheritable make one an atheist. Looking at Christianity through the eyeglass of science simply enhances one's faith or "deconverts" them. The fact is that the Bible held amazingly accurate knowledge of science for its time, far past the philosophers and scientists of later times. In fact, many philosophers, even non-Christians, based their ideas on the Bible its self.
DefensiveChristian 6 days ago
I was raised protestant, basically as little religious as one can get. As soon as I realised there are other religions with just as much to show me (nothing but a book), I became deist. I was about 12 years back then. I never thought about it anymore and didn't care until I discovered debate videos on youtube when it was new. Atheists made sense, theists argued with lies, blind faith and illogical, circular arguments. After a little more research on my own, I realised that I was an atheist.
hanspeterpitsch 1 week ago
I'll be 30 next month and have been an atheist for about 4 years. I'm very happy with the transition and take a lot of pride in the fact that I allowed myself to honestly question what I was taught growing up in a southern Baptist church. Of course, atheists are despised in America. While my Christian philosophizing would bring the praise of my peers, any atheistic discussion can bring their condemnation. That takes some getting used to, but I think I'm a stronger person overall.
jrdavis1 1 week ago
@Zaunstar you should give Matt Dillahunty of the Atheist Experience and the ACA a call, im sure he could let you in on his dereligionizing experience :)
guyfromdubai 1 week ago
@guyfromdubai Oh yes, I'm quite familiar with his story. He's an interesting guy.
Zaunstar 6 days ago
ya, my dad went from catholic to atheist, and he did it by trying to rationalize every piece of catholic beliefs and then realizing that none of them could be true one by one. it took him YEARS to actually realize that his whole religion was a lie. started at 16 or younger, completely gave up in his late 20's.
MrYoukingtube 1 week ago
I turned atheist in 6th grade, 5 years ago. The change was rather easy, but I didn't speak about my change of mind to anyone until the 8th grade where I met others like me. I only told a few up until last year.
chukman102 1 week ago
My belief was very weak. I went to catholic school as a kid, but I NEVER paid attention. It wasn't so much religious indoctrination, as religious osmosis. I just soaked up some of the general non-denominational stuff from my surroundings. I wondered about some of the contradictory things, but didn't care enough about religion to really think hard. The first time I did think about it all, I stopped being religious practically overnight, with almost no baggage. I was lucky.
Sines314 1 week ago
I was raised in a catholic family and they seem to kind of pretend I never said I was an atheist when I told them (Shortly before they forced me to be confirmed) My mom even went into a rage when I expressed my opinion. Also my beliefs on politics etc... usually tie into religion somewhere and I get my opinions ridiculed in my household. It's also hard to sit by and watch my parents indoctrinate my brother and sister who are only 5. Anyway...was that a reaper picture at 2:20?
TeamMuffinFTW1 1 week ago
@TeamMuffinFTW1 That must be hard to watch happen. Maybe you can find ways to subvert it.
Zaunstar 6 days ago
@Zaunstar I want to, I just don't want to do the same thing. I still want them to have a choice but to them religion is reality. Perhaps it would just be better to tell them flat out.
TeamMuffinFTW1 6 days ago
I lost my religion at about age 38 or 39 and I can tell you it took almost 2 years (which is why I can't be sure of my exact age when I lost my faith) to get over the fear of hell, group think (why is everyone else around me crazy, that has a lot of power, how often is that everyone else is wrong and you are the only sane one in the room?), fear of loosing friends, almost loosing my girlfriend etc. de-conversion is MUCH harder than you might think.(CONT)
christo930 1 week ago
@christo930 But you are right, you also tend to change a lot of your other positions, some of which aren't even strongly correlated with the religious belief you are rejecting. De-conversion gives you a new view of the world, but it takes time, especially if you are older and have decades of belief to undo.
christo930 1 week ago
I really enjoy your videos. Im an atheist but I've noticed that whenever I make a post on FB or any other social media about how I despise religion, the 'loudest' comments strangely come from my agnostic friends. I have nothing against agnostics. Do you think that those who have internal struggles prefer to be agnostic? Also, it seems like religious discussions always morph into "what title is more rational", when an agnostic enters the discussion. It gets tiresome. Would love to hear your take.
ThePapermusic 1 week ago
@ThePapermusic Hi there, and thanks, glad you are enjoying. Remember that being agnostic and being atheist are not mutually exclusive. I have always been an agnostic atheist actually, but always called myself agnostic until a few years ago due to misunderstanding what the terms meant. I think what you are encountering are people that enjoy the purity of "I don't know", which is fine, but when you add in "and I don't believe in stuff without evidence", it nearly forces atheism too.
Zaunstar 1 week ago
@Zaunstar Loving your work! Yeh, its a big misconception that by saying I am atheist, I am saying "I KNOW FOR SURE THAT THERE IS NO GOD" I sometimes get accused of intellectual arrogance by agnostic friends, who say that 'we can't tell' if there is or isn't a God- but in reality, all I'm saying is that there is no evidence based, good reason, to believe in a god, its like tipping the scales to the side of non- belief, rather than breaking them on one side with the infinite weight of 'CERTAINTY'.
TheMightyTed 1 week ago
@ThePapermusic Hate to butt in, but agnostic doesn't mean what most people think it means. Agnostic simply means that you can not know if there is a god or not. There are agnostic theists and agnostic atheists (which is what I am). If you point this out, that agnostic isn't some middle ground of "I don't know" (which is really atheism), I think you will get better responses.
christo930 1 week ago
@christo930 well, atheism by definition means anti-theist, which in the context the term is typically used in translates to no god. The only aspect of atheism set in stone actually is that there isn't a god. The definition of agnostic, "A person who believes that nothing is known or can be known of the existence or nature of God or of anything beyond material phenomena". Def of atheism, "The theory or belief that God does not exist.". I hope this clarifies.
natesdevices 1 week ago
@natesdevices Atheism does not mean "anti-theist." It means "a-theism" or "no deity." Many atheists (myself included) are anti-theists, but many others respect religion and even wish they could bring themselves to believe in god.
jrdavis1 1 week ago
@jrdavis1 thats valid.
natesdevices 1 week ago
My biggest problem was actually shaking this intense, irrational fear of hell. As a Pentecostal Christian, I believed in a literal hell, so when I first became an atheist I would have moments of panic when I thought about the idea of death. This happened even after I realized that hell couldn't possibly exist. That fear had been so deeply ingrained into my mind that it was difficult to break free from it.
I'm good now.
ShenanigansCheck 2 weeks ago
@ShenanigansCheck Glad to hear it! It must be quite a relief. Welcome to reality!
Zaunstar 2 weeks ago
@ShenanigansCheck i don't mean to freak you out, but consider the incomprehensible oblivion of nothingness that follows death is awful. To never see one's family, one's own life, to never sip from a glass a can of coke, to never pet a dog, to never lazily sit around and watch tv. It freaked me out to point where i invented my own belief system, which i still believe to this day, where i can just deny that all encompassing fact. i know what you're thinking, "thats unhealthy."
natesdevices 1 week ago
@natesdevices Yeah, the thought of death is scary, but I think it's a good thing. Living forever might be great for the first few hundred years, but after a while I would go insane. The fact that I have an ending is okay. The only aspect of death that scares me now is how I'm gonna die as I'm allergic to pain and would prefer my death to be swift and painless.
Also, the problem with believing in an afterlife is it decreases one's motivation to live life to the fullest. That's truly a shame.
ShenanigansCheck 4 days ago
For the past year or so, i've slowly been transitioning from Christian to Agnostic. I haven't made the final leap to Atheism, but I feel that leap is approaching. I've been Christian for a majority of my life, growing up in a moderately Christian house. But, about a year ago, I sat down and truly evaluated my beliefs. I came to the realization that I never really cared about religion to begin with. The feeling i had after that relization was unbelievably liberating.
WinstonSmith144 2 weeks ago
I was in the process of re-evaluating my ideologies and opinions as a christian when I became an atheist. I progressed from moderate charismatic to liberal christian to atheist in the space of about 2 years. I think it was the build-up of cognitive dissonance that broke the spell for me. This meant that I found it relatively easy to submit everything I believed to rational thought. Contrary to not giving it much thought, I probably spend too much time on it still, 3 years on. Thanks for this!
Soulus101 3 weeks ago
@Soulus101 Congrats on getting it figured it out, and thank you for sharing your story.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
As a kid I wasn't really pushed into being a catholic, I just really did it because my mom was the most protective entity. until I was about 14 I met a girl that was wiccan, and it inspired me so much and gave me a new prespective of the world, it was a lot more colourful. Eventually I started a long distance relationship, and after six months we broke off, and since she was my mentor I felt lost. Eventually caught myself watching atheists on youtube, and questioning my beliefs. (cont.)
Willknockingdoors 3 weeks ago
@Willknockingdoors I felt contradicted by the videos, and eventually it just stopped making sense and I claimed myself as an atheist, thus feeling really insecure and scared. Since I am still a child by heart, I still hold the fear of hell, and that's something I am still coming through, as a 17 year old. Reality is still setting and it's still of an inner struggle to realize hell is not a real place and there probably is no such thing as God. Forgive my mistakes, mother tounge isn't english.
Willknockingdoors 3 weeks ago
@Willknockingdoors vey impressive english.
natesdevices 1 week ago
I fully let go of my christian beliefs for about 4 months ago, and I told my parents that I am a Atheist this Christmas. They think I'm just in some sort of phase so I would not say that they have fully accepted it yet. They are disappointed but at least they respect my choice. Everything got so much more real when I threw away religious beliefs. over the last few months I have been constantly reading or listening to biology and astronomy. So much to catch up on, and it's quite amazing.
Graystopurples 3 weeks ago
@Graystopurples It's lots more interesting when you realize that it's not all in one book like they told you, right?
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
@Zaunstar Indeed, But as my parents, teachers and pretty much everyone I knew told me science, and especially evolution was wrong and I would go to hell if I started doubting the bible. So it was not easy to think for myself. It was first when I went to collage, were I was not constantly bombarded by christian believes, rules and condemnation of enlightened thought I was able to start questioning my own beliefs.
Graystopurples 3 weeks ago
@Graystopurples
Im happy for you that your parents are, at least, respecting your beliefs :)
There are some who aren't as lucky ;_;
Elementboy6522 3 weeks ago
When I turned 17 I think, it was when I could consider myself an atheist. I thought even deeper about religion and God and turned into philosophy, ethics, and other things which I consider more important than religion itself. Today I'm an Apatheist and also an Ignostic. I don't care much about religion anymore, since it says nothing about you. I watched a lot of videos about atheism on youtube when I was 18 or so, but nowadays I just find them boring and watch Physics and Philosophy stuff.
Metallosaurus 3 weeks ago
The results shocked me. God appeared so evil to me all of a sudden. It scared me how I considered other people to get what they deserve during the flood, because when I read that, I was geninuinely considering what was God's moral code and ideals, and how different they were from the ones I grew up with and the ones I managed to find out through thinking about it. For a few months I remained theist, but my views on God have changed. Now thinking that God was real, but he was evil. (cont.)
Metallosaurus 3 weeks ago
I was raised catholic. Unlike church in the US, church for me was a repeating ritual over and over without any moral basis behind it. My basis on religion came from my grandmother, who gave me unsatisfactory and brief answers about God. She just said "God is love and all you can do is love each other." I was curious and wanted to know more details about God, heaven, what were angels, what was hell like, etc. When I was 14 I started to read the bible in order to learn about said details, (cont.)
Metallosaurus 3 weeks ago
Nice. What would you call someone who grew up in a mildly religious environment and who just one day realised that (s)he actually never bought into the BS, they just didn't realise it? "Deconverted" doesn't sound right in that context.
rozeboosje 3 weeks ago
@rozeboosje I would consider that a bit of a gray area, and I see what you're saying. There are many such people that grew up only moderately or barely religious, some of which have also commented here. It does make a difference usually in the difficulty of the deconversion. If you or anyone else can come up with a word that better describes it, I would welcome it.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
@Zaunstar TBH, I don't think I could. I'm happy to consider myself in the camp of those who were never lumbered with religion. Thank g..DOH!
rozeboosje 3 weeks ago
My deconversion was really simple - I actually read the bible. The irrationality, the morally repugnant teachings and the whole egocentric idea of 'my religion is the only right one' was enough.
TruthofthePeople 3 weeks ago
My deconversion happened to me at a fairly young age. I was in the 5th grade when the gears were set in motion. That December we had to move, which is fairly traumatic on its own, but what made the experience even worse was that my grandmother died that Christmas eve. Those to events sent me into a clinical depression which I battled for many years. The whole experience made me question my faith and it was around 8th grade when I began labeling my self as an atheist.
TheKuiske 3 weeks ago
My deconversion really wasn't a painful experience. It happened only a few months ago (I'm 16). I became good friends with an atheist and we got to talking one day (I was Catholic). After that, we had quite a few debates on the subject and I couldn't deny that he out-reasoned me. But, I still held on to my religion. Then, one day, I was inspired to do my own research on God. I found nothing but logical arguments for atheism and nothing but blind faith for theism. I dropped theism the next day.
njrosatoii 3 weeks ago 4
@njrosatoii Glad you got out early! Now you are free to pursue knowledge. After all if faith was knowledge, they wouldn't call it faith.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
My logic on this issue came from watching and observing the many different belief systems and religions conflicting with each other on their own basic ideological principles. On top of this, there has been no actual proof that God or any deity for that matter has put his mark on our universe. Scriptures seem to be propaganda made to control people based on their superstitious fears back when people knew barely anything about the world around them. Which is sad they still need this crutch.
TheGrimGary 3 weeks ago
I have straddled the line between theism and atheism for many years. Brought up on one side, my Catholic mother who would drag me to church, and the other my late protestant father who didn't really give a damn about religion and was geared towards logical reasoning than a magic man in the sky. After thinking about it for all these years, is I would like to believe there is a higher power at work, but given all the data I know the chances of that are 0%.
TheGrimGary 3 weeks ago
P.S. Sorry for spamming your wall.
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
@TheBCExperience1 Don't be sorry. I appreciate you sharing your story. Not all stories fit in 500 characters.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
That is the struggle of how I lost my faith, and it is on-going in that I struggle with the shame and fear of my mother's apparent mental illness. I fear that I will suffer from the same in the future, or at the very least that she will in fact grow to be hailed as some glorious televangelist and I will be forced to live in her shadow as the lost son no matter what I do.
That is my story. I can only hope it turns out to have a happy ending.
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
Currently, I'm 19 years old and in college. My mother, I believe, suffers from a rare but serious mental illness. She now believes she is a prophet and plans to move out of state with my family without a single idea about why or what she's going to do. She believes God will tell her when the time is right.
She's moving to Baton Rogue, Louisiana. She claims not to know why "the Holy Spirit" is telling her to go there, but that is where Jimmy Swaggart Ministries is located, and she knows it.
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
My mother's reaction was negative, to say the very least. The fights she would instigate, the pressure she would apply to try to convert me back was endless. I never wanted to fight, I just wanted to be left alone, but she harassed me persistently.
I wavered between belief and non-belief for a long time until I eventually lost my faith altogether. My relationship with my family will never be the same.
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
but I still believed because I was told that if I kept having faith, it would eventually get better. It did, but only when I realized that if I died, I would probably be better off anyway. It's a bit dark, but realizing that death might not be so bad compared to life was what truly lifted my fear of it.
Later, when I was about 15, I started to sit under the loud and boisterous Pentecostal preacher with skepticism, and that skepticism grew everyday until finally I stopped believing altogether.
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
When I was 11, I became devoutly religious because I believed I was on the brink of death. I began suffering from a debilitating anxiety disorder and suffered with the fear of dying everyday for a very long time.
I was inspired by my mother, who was, and ever more so today still is, a zealous conservative Christian. I believed that if I swore my allegiance to God, I would be saved from death. No amount of prayer or faith helped my symptoms...
TheBCExperience1 3 weeks ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I've never really believed in that sense taht I could feel it in my heart and I always "knew" God existed. Iwas what you may consider a believer until age 9, and even then my mindset was "Yeah, there's a God and if I'm a good boy I'll go to heaven" and that was all that it was. But at age 9, I was reading a children's world atlas picture book with "fun facts" on each page. One of them changed my mindset forever because it said "There are over 100,000 organised religions in the world.
MajorSamsquamch 3 weeks ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@MajorSamsquamch Cont'd... I rememberd thinking to myself "Well, how can they all be right at the same time?". From that point on up until I finally accepted my disbelief in God at age 11, I was looking into what other religions had to offer besides Catholicism (Which my whole family was and still is, apart from myself of course). It was an easy transition for me from an agnostic viewpoint to atheism.
MajorSamsquamch 3 weeks ago
though I was never raise religious I can attest to the fact that many of my friends that I've tried to convert down from religion have had a hard time doing so not only because of the fact that they believe in no God in their family around them believes in God but because of the whole reason why religion was built to begin with which was the control people on opinions that made them controlable which really related to money and it's not surprising that a large number of the Republicans who are
hiitsnate 3 weeks ago
@superdave3408 Perhaps you can give me some specific suggestions, instead of an unhelpful general disagreement.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago 2
I like your stuff. What I would like to see you comment on is atheists who become theists. A dear relative of mine has been "saved". Please help me.
ricksterZ 3 weeks ago
@ricksterZ Hm, I think the one where I addressed that issue most directly was a video titled something like "All The Other Woods Of Puns Were Taken".
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
on a side note- in the world we live it, i feel like it's still deemed unacceptable to be athiest. it seems like the majority of americans have some sort of religious belief. it would also seem that anybody that DISAGREES with these beliefs is -almost- looked down upon. it becomes an issue of social standing vs personal belief, and this kind of thing shows up EVERYWHERE no matter how you try to avoid it. (these are the only people i can relate this to, feel free to clarify for other countries)
MrFishAssassin 3 weeks ago
@MrFishAssassin Actually, that is very regional though. Definitely in the Bible Belt it's like that, but in the northeast, a lot of places that would be considered no big deal. Also, interestingly, you'll find that labels make a big difference, even if they are meant in the same way. It's like declaring yourself a "non-believer" or an "agnostic" even though the latter isn't really even the same as being an atheist, will get you a very different reaction.
Zaunstar 3 weeks ago
@Zaunstar hmm.. that is interesting. for the record, i am in highschool yet, so some people that i'm exposed to are... lets just say "less than creative" lol. but the reactions that i get from people when they find out that i'm atheist are silly. it's been everything from "oh, okay" to "so wait.. you worship satan then?!" like you said, it seems to be regional, but around chicagoland, things are a bit ridiculous if you ask me.
MrFishAssassin 3 weeks ago
my deconversion (from christianity) didnt really seem all that challenging. it was about a year or two ago that i finally decided once and for all that the notion of some ancient fellow floating in the sky was silly, but my trust in the religious system of beliefs had been declining for a while. Things just didn't seem to make sense (for obvious reasons). I had always had to struggle with myself to understand why things were just "not acceptable" ex: gay people, athiests etc. but this is better.
MrFishAssassin 3 weeks ago
Even for those of us who were never raised religious, or me, had only limited religious upbringing with little long lasting effects, it's still a very good idea to make a habit of regularly examining your beliefs and trying to throw out any dogma you might find.
Macrochenia 4 weeks ago 12
@Macrochenia That should have been "Even for those of us who were never raised religiously or, like me, had only a limited religious upbringing..."
Macrochenia 4 weeks ago
perhaps the proper name for that group would more be "group therapy for ex-theists" ?
i know, hardly important, but i'm a "never-theist" (as i read in your tags :) and hence my ignorance of "being theist" kind of makes me write that alternative "name" ... i think i know it was just a video title, but i just wanted to write something in the comment section of this nice video :D
mindwis3 4 weeks ago
@mindwis3 I take some poetic license with my titles sometimes. If I added caveats to everything I said, it would lose impact. Just like when I refer to Christians as a whole, it's usually "some Christians", and so on. I make distinctions when I feel like it's important to make them. Thanks!
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
I'm in a similar boat to @zaunstar, having grown up in a nominally Christian household. Even so, my full-blown atheism only blossomed in the last couple of years. Ideas about human society can still be subtly influenced by former religious traditions and beliefs. Because I never felt strongly about religion, I have to consciously make the effort to think about what it means to be an atheist and take a fresh view of things. Most of the time I don't give it much thought.
LsBaba 4 weeks ago
@LsBaba I grew up in a secular household actually. Yes, it's always good to give your beliefs a checkup from time to time, no matter what your views on religion.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
I went on a seven year long panic-attack when I lost my faith. It was pretty horrible. I was absolutely terrified at the prospect of an eternal nothingness. Once I figured out WHY I was afraid to die, it became easier to articulate that particular fear as an irrational one, that was out of my control - and things got easier and easier as time passed. Nowadays, I feel so LUCKY that I can think about eternal death, and not be afraid of it.
Mualkoth 4 weeks ago
@Mualkoth That can't be a pleasant feeling. *:-( I can understand that fear too, but I guess I'm used to the reality of it and it doesn't seem shocking. So what was it you figured out about WHAT it was, if you don't mind sharing?
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
@Zaunstar I was afraid of the certainty of death. I was afraid of something I couldn't control nor change. I was afraid of the fleeting nature of time, and how fast death would happen. I often thought about how fast time had passed between childhood or something and the present. If you really think about it, life happened in a BLINK. I was afraid that was what death would be like. Once I learned how to appreciate the moment for what it was, everything changed. The book Hagakure helped a lot.
Mualkoth 4 weeks ago
@Zaunstar Religion, God, the later, weirder superstitions and the promises therein, somehow took the sting out of that looming certainty. But you know how it goes. Some of us just can't help but acknowledge the demonstrable, categorical certainty of truth - at least as much of a truth that we could possibly know at the moment.
Mualkoth 4 weeks ago
@Zaunstar The conflict was not necessarily knowing anything, but learning the contradictions in my beliefs, and reconciling those contradictions with my fear of death. I apologize if I'm not articulating this right, but I don't know how else to explain it. I hope that answers your question.
Mualkoth 4 weeks ago
@Mualkoth It does, thank you. No apology necessary. I appreciate your sharing it. Maybe others can get something out of it too. That's what this is all about.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
For like 2 weeks after I became an atheist I felt like somebody just died and it was really hard for me to be honest with myself. To be honest the only reason I became an atheist is because being an intellectual coward/intellectually dishonest is something I found even worse than not having that blanket.
ForYeensSake 4 weeks ago
@ForYeensSake I can understand how that would be difficult. Feels better now though, right? How long ago was it?
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
Hi, New viewer of yours. Like the content so far.
Simple question, why do you call the audience croc-o-dock army?
SkeetYaOnFace9 4 weeks ago
@SkeetYaOnFace9 It just kind of... evolved... sometime in the first few months of when I started making videos regularly. I think there is a little explanation on my channel page too.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
I'm not sure which type of atheist I am. My parents wanted me to be confirmed in the Lutheran church, but after that they didn't really care what I decided to believe in. I consider myself lucky that religion has never been very big in my family; none of my grandparents are/were outspoken about god or Jesus, and most of my relatives haven't been to church in years. And to be honest, Lutheranism is a very wishy-washy brand of Christianity; it's more of a social activity than a religion.
cyanmanta 4 weeks ago
@cyanmanta I actually have some Lutheran ministers in my lineage supposedly on the Swedish side. Yeah, they don't tend to be very hard core, though I think it varies a lot.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
@Zaunstar Sweden, I think, is very much like Norway. The christians don´t judge others as much and many of them just say they believe there is "something there".
ailasin 4 weeks ago
My deconversion was a very long process spanning over several years and there was never really a point where I just suddenly realized I didn't believe in god anymore; it just sort of happened and then later on I figured out I was an atheist through watching clips of the Atheist Experience on YouTube and eventually watching full episodes of their show on their website. The biggest hurdle I had to overcome was my fear of hell. Once I realized hell wasn't real, I broke my ties easily.
Derpalon 4 weeks ago 9
@Derpalon I would expect that's a common theme too. Hell is that last fear that keeps people "in line".
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
Unexamined assumptions... Am I a spirit in a sinful body? If I am a spirit, what do I do while my body is asleep? Do I have a conscience? Are these my opinions? Who's opinions are they? Who gave them to me and why do I have to pay him for the privilege? Does giving blind faith to someone create a conflict of interest? If we are evil, how can we tell good from evil? What does blaarg gokkl Help! I can't think any more.
RakaTheTenacious 4 weeks ago
You are so right and were brave to bring up your wife ;) For me for some reason it was automatic: as soon as I was able to see clearly that my particular religion was false, it took less than 24 hours for me to question whether the Jesus story was also false. This was in my mid-twenties. I'm not totally sure why I quickly questioned everything else, I have a pretty logical brain like that but I was also in college. I appreciate your videos and encouragement, keep up the good work.
soulure 4 weeks ago
@soulure Heh, she said it was OK for me to mention that. College is when a lot of people ditch religion, because they no longer have that constant reinforcement of their family hammering the stories home.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
In my psych classes it hammered that you MUST grab a child's mind from the womb to age 7. (For some reason the schooling "authorities" say it has to do with neurological connecters.) I guess the fascists knew this in the 1840s when the Rothschilds paid Marx to write the COMMUNIST MANIFESTO.
The elite bloodlines have lived long enough to rue the day when their ancestors pushed religion in order to manage (rule) their human farms.
It is now a conundrum! How to get rid of the religion??????
t4705mb6 4 weeks ago
Atheists can be just as bigoted as any religious person. I think its unfortunately natural. The biggest difference between an atheist and a theist is that a theist will use his/her religion to justify their world views. I don't ever remember being religious but I do remember a time when I was homophobic. I've out grown it but it took time. Its a cultural thing. Kids start calling other kids they don't like "faggots" before they even understand what the word really means.
melowar78 4 weeks ago
I've found since becoming an atheist my poltical views and over all world view continues to veer farther and farther to the left where as before I was total misanthrope (as a teen) and felt Hitler had the right idea (to quote my dad, "kill em all, let god sort em out".) Then life sudden had far more meaning and value when I realize there's probably no tyrants in the sky. I'm still uncomfortable around people and stupid irritates me, but I'm not full of hate against "heathens" anymore.
Nagneto 4 weeks ago
@Nagneto SOOOO since then things have being going really well. :)
Nagneto 4 weeks ago
@Nagneto Funny, because my Atheism had actually led me to fall entirely out of the political spectrum. I want abortion and gay rights to improve, but I also want gun rights to be preserved, with no government control whatsoever. Minimum wage? The hell with that.
tetleydidley 4 weeks ago
@tetleydidley libertarian?
CammyWhite499 4 weeks ago
@tetleydidley I was born and raised in poverty and continue to work to eek out rent to pay for my apartment and shitty car. So it's in my immediate interest to make sure I regulation allows me the same oppertunites as everyone else. Since higher education is by all account privatized, and debt is a death sentence in this country, I'm not applying for any loans.
Nagneto 4 weeks ago
@tetleydidley : pardon the grammar, I'm writing this at work. @_@
Nagneto 4 weeks ago
yes i'm having some problems. my deconversion started about a year ago. i live in MS and have nobody to talk to about anything.. i mean NOBODY! if i say anything i might get lynched and hung up on a limb somewhere..HELP!
bill51891 4 weeks ago
@bill51891 That's what youtube is for! Subscribe, talk to people, make some videos that you will NOT share with the "locals". You are far from alone, even if in MS it might feel like it. I have met tons of atheists just randomly, but then again, I don't live in MS. Hang in there. You're among friends.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
one of your better ones Eric, some really great responses here
cjeffers101 4 weeks ago
@cjeffers101 Thanks CJeff! The story about the guy who said I was lucky I didn't have to go through that was you, by the way, but you knew that, right? Hehheh.
I'm glad you thought it was one of my better ones. I didn't think it was one of my better ones at all, but I'm not always a good judge of what will be well-received.
Zaunstar 4 weeks ago
@Zaunstar Others had a rough time too, I wasn't certain. Judging the responses easily many people. panic attacks, depression, guilt...I am reading Michael Shermer's The Believing Brain. In it he quotes Einstein as saying (paraphrasing) he never needed to be Anti-theist as one who has freed himself from the bondage of belief, which only reminded me of Harriet Tubman "I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves." It rocks & changes you.
cjeffers101 4 weeks ago
zaunstar, you look a little pale, maybe your coloring in our camera is a little off. but anyway awesome video keep it up.
johauHAU 1 month ago
@johauHAU Yeah, it is. It flips between looking kind of pale and looking kind of yellow. I don't know quite how to fix it and haven't been able to put in the time to figure it out yet.
Zaunstar 1 month ago
@Zaunstar oh, it isnt really bad, just wondering.
johauHAU 4 weeks ago
My deconversion began around 2000. My family was not strongly religious, but the idea of atheism all the same was scandalous. You are quite right about the safety blanket effect. I'm a joyful happy atheist who revels in my new intellectual and social freedom but I still hold this mild superstitious fear of priests (embarrassing to admit) and am still occasionally struck cold late at night by reflecting on the death of my god.
rldickie 1 month ago
@rldickie That is a recurring them. Many ex-theists retain some "in the back of my head" sorts of reflexes. Many are embarrassed by them, but I don't think you have any reason to be! Thank you for sharing, and I'm glad you are joyful.
Zaunstar 1 month ago
I think calling religiously indoctrinating a child insidious is false because the indoctrinator believes what he is indoctrinating, in most circumstances. While I agree it is their new reality, to call that THE reality is not necessary true as if one looks objecivily at the facts either atheism or one of many religions could be correct. Saddled? Well since you have never been “saddled” with religion you might be unaware of this but, for most religions one is not “saddled” with it.
LinkMEP 1 month ago
@LinkMEP I never said that the saddle wasn't comfortable for many people. Some people revel in it. As for reality, I could make lots of caveats to many things I say, but it would make what I say endlessly cluttered with if/then statements and such. Feel free to make a video response if you disagree with me, and explain why. Which religions do you think could be real based on objectively looking at facts as you suggest? Responses are open, as always.
Zaunstar 1 month ago
My school was very religious, but my parents... not so much. I heard the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah's Flood, Jonah and the Whale and Baby Jesus in the Manger but as a kid they were as real as the stories of King Arthur, or Persephone or the Monkey King. And THEY were as real as He-Man or the Ewoks, EVERYTHING was real when I was 6.
Beelzeboogie 1 month ago
When I watch your videos, I feel powerful lol I'm just happy to know there's way more Atheists in the world then I thought. I was beginning to think I was the only one with my head screwed on right.
Jrock1naParty 1 month ago
@Jrock1naParty Not by a LONG shot, my friend. It's a large and rapidly growing number. Check out the stats on it. It is accelerating. *:-)
Zaunstar 1 month ago
Grew up in a house with not practicing deist. I personally never understood religion and didn't get how people could believe what was said in the bible.
sfm073 1 month ago
Aww. I miss that Reaper show. :(
kitsunegames 1 month ago
I am very fortunate to have never been under a religious delusion.
I do think that it makes it difficult for me to empathize with believers about their sickness, however.
judoyodan 1 month ago
The only hang up I can think of that took me a while to let go of was the sex taboos, particularly those around homosexuality and transsexuals (inc. cross-dressing).
Then I actually started reading up on how the mind works -- at a high level, mind you -- and it gradually dawned on me that none of these behaviours was anything like what was described.
firefly4f4 1 month ago
@firefly4f4 ... by my former religious teachers.
firefly4f4 1 month ago
Doing mine right now. In rendering process. It is 2 vids because YT killed my 15min limit
IzzySpeaks 1 month ago
I used to be a devoted Russian orthodox until about 4 years ago. From then on I have been slowly (though unintentionally) deconverted by friend of mine who's very into science. He kept introducing me to more and more fascinating ideas in biology and astronomy until I woke up one day and said "Wow, how come I never realized it before?" But it was difficult to just let go, as my family is still very religious. However they have accepted my choice and I feel very comfortable with my "new" life.
katinkagirlie 1 month ago
Great vid! It speaks from the what I'm experiencing as a person who's recently de-converted, as of last years. I'm realizing its a process that not only takes time but learning and assistance. Though I still retain some indoctrinated beliefs (the whole "wrath of God" thingy) embedded by my family etc., its slowly diminishing after realizing only I have the power to take control of me destiny. I think thats the next step of this process, though I still have a ways to go. hope that understandable
Stylah3001 1 month ago
Oh hey, I just used a clip of "those kids from Jesus Camp" in my reply to VenomFangX. While pulling that video up to download, I saw another video in the side bar that would have depressed me if I had felt even the least bit surprised, which was about the main young boy from Jesus Camp, Levi, and interviewing him like 5 years after the movie. If you're interested, /watch?v=SFGK6Qa4VsY
MrTomfooligans 1 month ago
@MrTomfooligans Interesting! Man, that kid needs to lose the facial hair until he can grow it more convincingly though! Yeah, that's kind of how I expect most of those kids to grow up. Kind of hard when that's all you know, though some are able to break free in spite of it.
Zaunstar 1 month ago
As a newer atheist coming from a theist tradition. Believe wise I still hold true to an after life, angles, and souls. Although, I think I still keep them only because my father died two years before I became an atheist and I have kept the hope of seeing him one day.
thatOfTheGiven 1 month ago
@thatOfTheGiven I know someone that lost his father before he could ever form a memory of him that believes in those "basics" of Christianity for that same reason.
Zaunstar 1 month ago
thats the same as an experience I had. I knew an atheist who was a homophobe and when I asked why they disliked gays they said "its wrong, it says so in the bible", I pointed out the obvious flaws in this line of thinking and now they aren't homophobic to my knowledge, they realised that they were just parroting what they had grown up hearing without giving much thought. So there is hope.
SatiricalStewie 1 month ago
From a family of southern baptists, we have two deists and a pantheist (me). Yay, for sexed up atheism!
nerdlass 1 month ago
@nerdlass Heh, well, deism isn't atheism, but it's at least pretty innocuous to me. Pantheism seems to have different meanings to different people. I should read up on it. Glad you were able to escape the southern Baptist life!
Zaunstar 1 month ago
Ex-Xtian myself. My struggle is mostly internal. The reactions from still believing family scared me but it was not as bad as I thought it would be. I assumed I would forever be uncomfortable around them. Instead, they seem uncomfortable around me...Untill they realize I am somewhat the same person. I think they even notice that I am a better, more confident person.My non-belief is not talked about by them. I do still have the habit of sending up silent prayers whenever I see an ambulance.
NonProphetess 1 month ago 3
The more intelligent the de-converted one is, the faster this journey occurs. Things fall into place very quickly.
ChipArgyle 1 month ago
I became in atheist in actual belief around grade 5 (still in a private christian school) and accepted the term atheist for myself around 1-2 years later, so for me it was young enough and in an environment that constantly made me question things... so for me I have no... "clingings" that I know of, strange as my friend who was brought up in a christian house and school but was Never religious at any point still does =/
ciaus237 1 month ago
Good vid. Can't contibute anything, since I never did believe in God in the first place.
WarChicken78 1 month ago
I'm an ex-christian and I was angry for along time thinking I was lied to. Then I thought "is it still a lie if my parents believed it whole heartedly, because some preacher lied to them?" It's a cycle of ignorance going around and around. I feel sorry for my father and step mother now. I almost hate challenging they're beliefs cause they're ignorant to the facts science and reality. I'm happier now in life then I was as a christian, no big brother watching my every move, and the fact that my
CtrlAltWtf1 1 month ago
@CtrlAltWtf1 Sadly, yes, it's still a lie. If you don't bother to independently verify something you've heard, and then spread it around without knowing the veracity of what you're saying, you're lying.
That's why there should be a law that says anytime you want to pontificate about your religion, you must begin each sentence with the words, "I believe..." That removes the lie and sets up anything said as suspect.
ChipArgyle 1 month ago
Im an ex-christian, though not an athiest. The thing I still have the most problem with is fear of hell, even though my new belief system does not have a hell in it. I tell myself that even IF the bible is true, do I want to worship a being that condones torture and genocide? I, frankly, can't answer that question yet, if worship would keep me from being tortured. Yes, I know, I have fallen for pascals wager... but I was heavily indoctrinated.
muta4thefail 1 month ago
Recovering from religion was very difficult. I never went full-fledged atheist although I've been close. I still consider myself agnostic--I'm 38 and I got out of religion in my late teens and early 20s. The issue I struggle the most with is what happens when you die--I have a hard time facing the idea of not existing.
kizzume 1 month ago
took two wars for me to realize that gods don't exist just because people think they do. i held a pagan belief before than and thought that any god that had influence in the world was at least real enough to effect the world. but later i realized that any idea can do that, and that god is alive in the exact same manner that the pursuit of justice is alive. god was a useful idea once upon a time, but its too dangerous of an idea in the modern world.
greycloud24 1 month ago
...Then I realized everyone I loved lied to me my entire life, I felt manipulated, angry, and stupid. After that though things began to look up, I enjoyed educating myself on subjects I was afraid to look into before. Enjoyed life more because it is so short. The best part was I could feel like my mind was freed, and gained the intellectual courage to ask tough questions.
jackbuttking4 1 month ago
Well, I'll forever be a christian. I'm not theist actually. I have had doubts about all the "God" theory almost from when I was born, but there is another reason why I accept Christianity.
For most nations, religion did terrible things and still does. But if religion didn't exist, or wasn't accepted enough where I live, probably my country (Macedonia) wouldn't exist. So I appreciate Christianity as a tradition. I have to cover a lot of history to explain this, so I won't cover any details.
1MAKEDONEC1 1 month ago
As an ex-christian I felt the hardest part was the disenchantment. Since I was raised in the church at a young age I accepted the beliefs as you would accept the law of gravity. As evidence began to pile against Christianity as I aged I began to go through mental stress and attempted to shield myself from it through ignorance. What the truth made me face was death. I would not live forever, I remember laying in my bed at night immediately after my deconversion and realized I would die...
jackbuttking4 1 month ago 4
As far as i know there have been no religious people in my larger family for 2 generations. I admit, it is hard to emphasize with converted atheists.
On a more funnier note, i have always thought that there should be a 2 weeks holiday package for unsuspecting and ignorant europeans like myself, living with a family in the heart of the bible belt. I would love to go.
Uhmu45 1 month ago
As someone who's been Atheist since early childhood this video was quite enlightening for me. I never really thought of the fact that just because you abandon one part of your belief doesn't mean you abandon the rest. I guess I just subconsciously figured that if you get rid of the cause you also get rid of the effect.
Rimmer7 1 month ago
The same happened to me. It took a good couple of years to accept evolution after my deconversion. It just didn't occur to me that I could have been so lied to about it.
enilenif 1 month ago
After my awakening, I spent the next 11 years pissed off at how I was lied to, by my catholic family. I still have a lot of anger over a great many things, and I don't think I'll ever get over it. My mother is still alive, still believes and is in deep denial of my atheism. She just doesn't want to hear it. I'm still speaking with her, she's still in my life. Though sometimes I wonder why?
santora1957 1 month ago
The thought processes developed during indoctrination is nearly impossible to truly break, it's insidious in both form and function. It really sucks because I catch myself in that mode all the time.
TheRedneckAtheist 1 month ago
Great video! When I realized that I was turning into an agnostic atheist, it took several years to challenge my beliefs. There are so many that are just ingrained in our society (and in ourselves).
PlutoPowered 1 month ago
when i was 4 my family was Russian Orthodox. it was a scarring experience and i was publicly humiliated by being spanked by a priest for a crime disproportionate with the punishment. growing up it was brought up alot and caused me emotional distress. as a result i began to resent christians and hate them and blame them. the problem i had to overcome was learning that i cant hold all christians responsible for the actions of a few of them. even if the evils of religion arent exaggerated.
MetallenVikingr 1 month ago
I used to be a theist.
Then I turned 12.
SpelignErrir 1 month ago
Good video. I am an ex-Southern Baptist who deserted the church over 40 years ago. I have not regretted it, and the longer the span of time, the more I see what evil organized religion has done to this country. Fear is what motivates people in religion, and fear is used to control the people. Sad. These crooked politicians use religion to hide behind when they get caught. You can get away with anything in this country if you say you are saved and have repented of yours sins!
MrMusiclover41 1 month ago 9
@MrMusiclover41 Yes, it's like that scene from "Oh Brother, Where Art Though?" where the one convict gets re-born in the river and he says with pride, "All my sins is warshed away!"
Zaunstar 1 month ago
I did it the other way round. I did not stop believing in god and then question the other issues that were affected by my dogma, I questioned the other issues first, realized that the cause of my confusion was god, questioned him, found no answers and set myself free. I don't think it matters in what order it is done, but at some point non-believers need to explore all the issues that could have been potentially influenced by their religion. Work through each issue one at a time, ... (cont 1)
SpaceFrawg 1 month ago
@SpaceFrawg (cont from 1)... one at a time, applying critical thinking to each one, question assumptions, decide whether a claim is true, false; sometimes true, or partly true. When you do this honestly, you find yourself agreeing with many other non belivers on a wide variety of issues besides whether or not there is a god. Theists will often point to this and call it group think or just another religion, but it is very interesting ...(cont 2)
SpaceFrawg 1 month ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@SpaceFrawg (cont from 2) ...but it is very interesting that many people, freed from the bonds of religion, are able to come together and be on the same page on a number of different subjects
SpaceFrawg 1 month ago
I've been atheist for a couple of years now and I was raised in a Southern Baptist family. They encouraged me to learn and think on my own. I was religious for a few years in my mid teens, but I saw that the Pastor was always asking for tithes and offerings. What really opened my eyes was when I was lead in the Salvation Prayer/ritual. The gentleman who lead me in prayer told me that the Holy Spirit moves like a wind, he asked me how do you know that the wind is blowing?
MrWill7980 1 month ago
@MrWill7980 Me being the science geek that I was and am, looked at him slightly puzzled and say that you hear it. He says" No, you feel it." You can hear the wind blowing through the trees and your surroundings long before you feel it. Then to re-enforce my misgivings, my parents would watch a televangelist whose sign off was Remember: We walk by faith, not by sight. Close your eyes and try that, I think you know what will happen.
MrWill7980 1 month ago
@MrWill7980 but it is hard for me to sit through a service or a Christian oriented event because when they start preaching they use almost like a Jedi mind trick and I almost want to start believing again. You are lucky, Zaunstar, because you never had that shit implanted in to your mind. It's like an addiction. You have been off of crack 4 10 years, then you snort a line at a party and think that you'll b ok, then you are hooked all over again. Christianity is the exact same way.
MrWill7980 1 month ago
Honestly, I've seen no troubles deconverting. I was something of a skeptic even while I believed, and so I was always for gay rights, abortion, science, etc. I honestly think that god was always second to my internal morality and common sense. Then one day, I saw a few atheist YouTube videos, and I found myself agnostic in about a week. Since then I've been educating myself on the whole idea, and now I find myself to be more an atheist. I don't think I had any problems, so I guess I'm lucky.
TheErotemeSays 1 month ago
Comment removed
shabido1 1 month ago
Give me a child until he is seven and I will have him forever. ~ Old Jesuit Motto /
Give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man. ~ Old Jesuit Motto
ReligiousJezta 1 month ago 5
@ReligiousJezta Ever watch the "Seven Up" series of documentaries? Google them.
Zaunstar 1 month ago 5
@Zaunstar Will do.
ReligiousJezta 1 month ago
I was a non denominational Christian. I was always open minded though. I believed in pro-choice and gay rights, etc. I guess my open mindedness eventually lead me to see what really does seem to be the truth of what reality really is. The questions were always there; 'If God is good, then why are most religious people so mean' etc. It did pain me for a long while dealing with it. Still really not comforted about death being the end but that's a side effect of blind faith.
ChameleonLost88 1 month ago