Religious Views: Seek Advice Here or Help Others!

[rev1175]

I'm definitely not a religious person. I was raised in what you could call a Christian household; went to church every Sunday, prayed before dinner, all of that stuff pretty much! My family was pretty active in church activities with dinners and Sunday schools and all. But at the same time, my parents definitely weren't what you'd think of big scripture-type people (we knew a gay couple who were kind of family friends I think). Of course being younger and in a household more loose on religion, it was never really that huge of a focus for me. If someone ever asked about my beliefs, I'd easily tell them I was a Christian and carry on with my business.

It was around 14 years old when I really started to question all of it. I was very curious about other beliefs and the truth in my own. Basically a new chapter in life when I was trying to figure out what's true. For a brief period of time, I considered myself Agnostic, being open to really any possibilities, but after some time, the idea of a God just seemed more and more unlikely to me, which lead me to calling myself an Agnostic Atheist (I don't believe in God, but I still acknowledge the fact that there's no way to know for sure.)

It was a very quick transition for me - just a few months actually! I don't have any problems with religion of course, and I do think that there can be truth found in just about every one. Some more than others, IMO. It is a bit difficult telling people, though. I live in Tennessee, so just about everyone I know is a Christian, and I just don't know how to tell them I'm not a believer. So I just keep silent, really, because it's not that important anyways.

TL;DR: I'm an Atheist, but if you're religious, that's cool too!

 

[Astro Cake]

I wonder how long this thread has to live.

Anyway, I'm not religious. My parents only took me to church once or twice when I was very little and we never went again after that. I went to a Catholic school for two years of middle school and didn't particularly enjoy any of the religious aspect of it. For a while after that I called myself and atheist, but later on I just sort of stopped caring altogether. I wouldn't call myself an atheist today, more like I'm impassive on having any religious belief or lack thereof.

 

[KainAronoele]

I'm not sure what he means by 'you leaving your family'. If it's a problem, just buy them a house near the house of you and your BF? sorry im stupid

If you mean that your BF is a different religion from you and your dad doesn't approve of it, don't try to change his mind. You've already put so much effort into trying to explain to him that this is what you want and it's clear that he doesn't want to change his mind.

Remember that marriages between people of different religions are a very new thing, and there's a lot of mixed opinions about it. Your dad was probably born into a family as strict about religion as he is, but the people around him probably taught him to be less open-minded as kids these days are. He probably is trying to wrap his head around "why his daughter wants to marry that ______ religion guy"

Anyway, I wish the best of luck for both you and your BF!

No, it's not about my bf's religion. Honestly, my bf's kinda in between due to how he was raised and also coming out of a bad place, but I think his son is helping him grow to realize his path. He's also open to talking about it with me, which is good as well.
The problem is a lot of factors for my dad. How we met, how old he is, that he has a kid, that he lives so far away, that supposedly everything he hears about my bf is 'suspicious', etc.

I'm going to keep it brief since I don't even know how long this thread will remain open, but I consider myself a pantheist. In other words, I believe the universe is "god", and believe we are only governed by natural laws (thermodynamics, conservation of energy, etc.). I was raised Christian.

I think it's a parent's job to educate their child, help them mature into a capable adult who can take care of themselves, set a good example for them. I don't think it's up to parent's to judge their children. I learned growing up that God is the only one who can judge anyone, and even if I don't follow the Christian faith anymore, I still take that lesson to heart. I also follow the Golden Rule: Treat others as you would like to be treated. My philosophy works out well for me. I lead a happy and successful life. I don't really need anything else in the mix to complicate what I have.

I've never heard of that religion before :0

My dad brings up that rule a lot too, but only to my brother now really.
It sucks because my mother understands that, but then my dad manipulates her to think otherwise.

here's my thing with religion okay I'm not religious at all, but I can't stand it when people bash others for what they believe in and for what they don't believe in, just because someone believes in God shouldn't give you the right to treat them like they are dumb for believing in something that gives them comfort, and just because someone doesn't believe in God doesn't give you the right to try to shove your views onto them and tell them that they are sinners, seriously just respect each other is it that hard?

oh right because people hate other people having opinions that are different from theirs how silly of me :I

but seriously, you can believe or not believe just don't be a jerk​

- - - Post Merge - - -

also guess I should mention that I'm an apatheist

an apatheist is someone who considers the question of the existence of gods as neither meaningful nor relevant to their life. Some apatheists hold that if it were possible to prove that God does or does not exist, their behavior would not change.
​

I've never heard of this religion either o .o
So many I don't know about lol.

Spoiler: Weird stuff

So whenever I went to church (I used to most Sundays) during worship my thoughts got really weird and like, sexual, so that's part of the reason I stopped going. It made me uncomfortable and it felt wrong and I got guilty.

Spoiler

Honestly, and quite shamefully, I sometimes do the same thing. Then I'm like wtf man, you're in church!! Clear that out..
It's really disturbing sometimes... D:

As for your predicament, Kain, here's my viewpoint: I believe it's right if you're still legally a child: after all, it's your parents' duty to teach you right from wrong. But you're not a child. You're legally an adult, which means that you're entitled to make your own decisions, and your parents cannot force you to do anything. So, in this situation: it's wrong. It's not right for your father to guilt trip you into staying around. Besides, it's a fact of life: all children leave home someday. And he seems to forget that you can still communicate with them. If you really didn't love your family, you'd be more likely to break all ties with them.

He has a knack for guilt tripping. He also once told me that the reason they didn't get me a car for my 18th bday is cuz they thought I'd take it and run away to be with him, without saying anything to them.
I get I'm kind of a reserved person, but to accuse me of that really hurt.. That despite everything I do for them and others, that they still think inside that's who I really am. Someone who doesn't care for my family and would just get up and leave without saying a word.
I never thought I'd be able to do anything to have someone think that I was that heartless...

I'm a Christian Muslim and whenever I am struggling I listen to these songs:

Love the 1st one ^^ Used to hear it a lot when I was younger.
She made some good songs ~

 

[radical6]

i dont trust Christianity anymore coz of past traumatic experiences whoops

 

[MissiNy]

I have a feeling this thread won't end well.

I personally believe religion is one of the most awful things to ever originate on this planet. Now, I have absolutely nothing against religious people (provided they aren't bigots) as I am a very spiritual person myself and understand how awful it is when your personal beliefs are attacked like that, but religion itself is something I hate. I hate the way it tears families apart, can contribute to LGBT+ suicides, and can even turn deadly (Islamic State being only one example). The only religion (if it even counts as a religion) I can really respect is Buddhism, because they don't do anything malicious. They're respectful to all walks of life and preach love, something a lot of religious people tend to forget about completely.

I classify as an atheist, but I'm very spiritual and I believe in life after death. I just think that we don't know as much as we think we do, and I personally just want to search for myself. I don't like the idea of reading something that tells me things about life. I want to experience them myself and have any religious entity speak to me, if they are existent. I'm on a constant spiritual journey and religion is just not part of that. I'm free.

My feelings as well.. This is how we are raising our daughter as well.. My husband had his beliefs forced on him, like most parents do, at a young age. How then is someone supposed to decide what they believe? We are raising my daughter to keep an open mind.. If she wants to become a Christian, or Buddhist, thats fine by me, We want her to make that choice.. I remember my best friend growing up, her family was OVERLY involved in the catholic church. She would always come to me confused, crying because she had questions about the things she was being taught , disbeliefs and she was deathly afraid to tell her parents, knowing how they would react.. I couldn't imagine my child being afraid to tell me anything. We as parents should want our children to come to us when they have a question about anything.. How can one expect their child to go down the path of self discovery properly when they are forced to believe is anything.. Beliefs should come from within, not because someone tells you that you should..

 

[Nay]

Oh.. well.. I do think God exists, but not in the conventional form that a lot of organized religions say, like the theory that God is a man or woman or taking care of humanity. I think it's more like a force of nature .. I believe Deism is the correct term for it. I don't pray or go to any religious institution tho .. While I can respect the people that do so, it often feels too empty for me to pray for something that may or may not happen.

Spoiler: personal experiences

I went to Christian church frequently as a kid, and ultimately I felt like they were forgiving me for something I hadn't even done wrong .. Not their fault, perhaps I was too sensitive, but I can't tolerate being with people who lowkey judge others, especially under the guise of religion or positivity.

 

[KainAronoele]

My feelings as well.. This is how we are raising our daughter as well.. My husband had his beliefs forced on him, like most parents do, at a young age. How then is someone supposed to decide what they believe? We are raising my daughter to keep an open mind.. If she wants to become a Christian, or Buddhist, thats fine by me, We want her to make that choice.. I remember my best friend growing up, her family was OVERLY involved in the catholic church. She would always come to me confused, crying because she had questions about the things she was being taught , disbeliefs and she was deathly afraid to tell her parents, knowing how they would react.. I couldn't imagine my child being afraid to tell me anything. We as parents should want our children to come to us when they have a question about anything.. How can one expect their child to go down the path of self discovery properly when they are forced to believe is anything.. Beliefs should come from within, not because someone tells you that you should..

Reading this, it kinda hit me hard.
We're not Catholic, but my dad supposedly being a "big believer" and on top of that being strict as hell, when my brother told me he was gay, seriously I started crying.. For a few reasons. Due to my belief I really don't know what would happen to him, but the possibility of him not going to Heaven as we would (or hope we would) really scared me, as I'd hate my bro to eternally be in pain over his choice. I cried and hugged him, and I prayed. I didn't pray for him to decide not to be gay, but I prayed that he'd end up being ok. I was also scared about how my parents would react and what they might say or do to him.
When it was finally known to them my dad pretty much wanted to disown my brother, and said that he wasn't his son, cuz his son would know better.
I think one of the problems with Christianity and why so many run away from it is because of everyone shoving it in our faces, and if we do something wrong, instead of calmly explaining to us why it's wrong, or help us to read the Bible and understand it, they just yell at us that it's wrong and that if you do this we don't want to hear it or we don't care or it's wrong so fix it or whatever. Why would ppl want to be a part of that, why would we want to stay and have it shoved into us again and again and feel like it's such a hostile atmosphere. Really I don't think that's what God was intending for it to be like. Everything was calmness or persuasion back then, now it's do this right or we yell at you, lecture you and force you into this.

Kind of became a small rant, sorry about that > .<

 

[Yukari Yakumo]

It was a very quick transition for me - just a few months actually! I don't have any problems with religion of course, and I do think that there can be truth found in just about every one. Some more than others, IMO. It is a bit difficult telling people, though. I live in Tennessee, so just about everyone I know is a Christian, and I just don't know how to tell them I'm not a believer. So I just keep silent, really, because it's not that important anyways.

TL;DR: I'm an Atheist, but if you're religious, that's cool too!

Regarding coming out as atheist, I would say be aware and careful.
You could make the case it's like being non-heterosexual; some have good, supportive, tolerant people around them, others are surrounded by the most sick individuals.

He has a knack for guilt tripping. He also once told me that the reason they didn't get me a car for my 18th bday is cuz they thought I'd take it and run away to be with him, without saying anything to them.
I get I'm kind of a reserved person, but to accuse me of that really hurt.. That despite everything I do for them and others, that they still think inside that's who I really am. Someone who doesn't care for my family and would just get up and leave without saying a word.
I never thought I'd be able to do anything to have someone think that I was that heartless...

That's just being manipulative. I don't think his problem has anything to do with religion at that point. Sorry if this sounds cruel to say about your dad, but it may be that he's simply an intolerant and cruel person(I kinda know how that feels since I'm not my dad's biggest fan either).

Reading this, it kinda hit me hard.
We're not Catholic, but my dad supposedly being a "big believer" and on top of that being strict as hell, when my brother told me he was gay, seriously I started crying.. For a few reasons. Due to my belief I really don't know what would happen to him, but the possibility of him not going to Heaven as we would (or hope we would) really scared me, as I'd hate my bro to eternally be in pain over his choice. I cried and hugged him, and I prayed. I didn't pray for him to decide not to be gay, but I prayed that he'd end up being ok. I was also scared about how my parents would react and what they might say or do to him.
When it was finally known to them my dad pretty much wanted to disown my brother, and said that he wasn't his son, cuz his son would know better.

I'd mention to you a story I heard on a podcast once.
This man had converted to atheism, and his family still went to church. One day his young daughter came home crying after hearing/being told(not sure) that they would not be together in Heaven as he would go to Hell since he was an atheist. He comforted his daughter by saying that God was a loving parent to everyone, just like he was to his daughter. He(the dad) would never let anything bad happen to his daughter, even if it was something she was doing(i.e. he wouldn't allow her to bring herself to harm). If God is just like that to everyone, then Hell can't exist because God would never allow that to happen to or do something like that to someone he loved(i.e. everyone).

 

[Le Ham]

Spoiler: my long, winding story of how I became Christian

I'm being raised in a secular household. My dad was raised Catholic, but had it easier for him to leave it because he was the youngest of 8. Now he's an atheist, and when the topic of religion comes up, he often cites his disliking for the fighting that goes on within and between religions. I would be atheist like him if I hadn't found God the way I did.
My mom was raised a type of Christian, and though she believes in God and Jesus, she doesn't actively pray or go anywhere or do anything, she doesn't really revere the Bible that much... basically, the most you can safely say about her beliefs is that she claims to be a Christian.
I have an older brother, but he has somewhat low-functioning autism and I'm not sure he has a well-developed concept of who God even is. He probably doesn't think about things like that, and if he did it would likely be hard for him.
The reason I know of God is because of the schools I was enrolled at. My parents paid for me to go to Christian private schools, because in Florida that's usually the most prominent type of private school around, especially Catholic schools. They put me there purely for the academic/educational benefit, and the religion I suppose was just a bonus they didn't care about and that they didn't think I'd catch on to.
Near the end of 6th grade, I told my teacher I didn't believe in God. She said she'd pray for me. At the time, I started catching on to the presence of a thing called Illuminati. I read about it, watched videos/documentaries about it, and it interested me how the entertainment industry was run by them... it still does. Naturally, I couldn't get my parents to believe me; my dad thought I was joking when I brought it up. This was actually the start of my faith, this part where I learned of "the powers that be" and kept my belief in its existence despite the differing ideas of my parents, and this might've been the reason God took me as far as He did.
As I studied deeper, I found the connection between the Illuminati and everything surrounding it: Satan. My thought process was probably different back then, but logical thought would have led me to think "If there is a Satan and people worship him and there are witches that use his power, then by all means there must be a God." I began to believe again, and it turned out that my brief period of atheism was as much a phase as I'll bet my dad wants to think that my Christianity is a phase.
Anyway, over the course of my middle school years, which were spent in a Catholic school that had much more religious influence than the place I went for 6th and below, I began to get depressed over a different matter that I was constantly being taught about, which I struggled with up until freshman year. During this period, I began to find websites talking about the bad practices of the Catholic religion. It began to show to me in class, how their doctrines began to make less sense and seemed more like a system of corruption. I began my search on what it means to be a true Christian, and I am still on this search today, all the while praying and reading and researching. I notice that whenever I seek, I find, often a lot more than I'm asking to know. I see the connections between Bible verses and daily life. I see the lies behind secular and religious systems, the media and the government's "plans." With no human help besides what I've been given in Catholic religion classes and a church I got up the courage to ask my mum to take me to (and eventually found something in it to disagree with), I'm seeking the truth, that which I've only found in God and what He's given to me. He changed my life around, and you can say that's stupid, but even if I die wrong about His existence, I'd rather live ignorant of that fact because otherwise we're all pieces of meat with no actual reason for being here, and no reason for being able to think the way we do; life would be a trap we're stuck in pointlessly until it ends. And really, I think that's the stupid idea to live on.

Personally, I think people err on all sides of the equation. Like KainAronoele said above, the way people shove the stuff down your throat is not Christ-like at all. Believing is a choice that has to be made by the individual, not the parents or anyone else with authority over them. If I had a family, I would teach my kids what Christianity is, take them to a good church that teaches the good stuff, but if they reject God's Word, that's not my problem, and that's not my fault as a parent. I've done what I can; I've given them the information. The best I can do at that point is to sit back and watch how they react to it. It's their choice that lands them where they're going to end up, and I want them to know that and understand that. I will still pray for them if that's what it comes to, but in the end it's still their choice what they do with their life and their beliefs.

I think the whole idea of finding "evidence" for God's existence is absolutely absurd. I posted it on the "Do you believe in miracles" thread and I ended up killing the thread. You want to find my reasons, there they are... now that I've checked, the thread's on the second page of the board.

 

[MissiNy]

Reading this, it kinda hit me hard.
We're not Catholic, but my dad supposedly being a "big believer" and on top of that being strict as hell, when my brother told me he was gay, seriously I started crying.. For a few reasons. Due to my belief I really don't know what would happen to him, but the possibility of him not going to Heaven as we would (or hope we would) really scared me, as I'd hate my bro to eternally be in pain over his choice. I cried and hugged him, and I prayed. I didn't pray for him to decide not to be gay, but I prayed that he'd end up being ok. I was also scared about how my parents would react and what they might say or do to him.
When it was finally known to them my dad pretty much wanted to disown my brother, and said that he wasn't his son, cuz his son would know better.
I think one of the problems with Christianity and why so many run away from it is because of everyone shoving it in our faces, and if we do something wrong, instead of calmly explaining to us why it's wrong, or help us to read the Bible and understand it, they just yell at us that it's wrong and that if you do this we don't want to hear it or we don't care or it's wrong so fix it or whatever. Why would ppl want to be a part of that, why would we want to stay and have it shoved into us again and again and feel like it's such a hostile atmosphere. Really I don't think that's what God was intending for it to be like. Everything was calmness or persuasion back then, now it's do this right or we yell at you, lecture you and force you into this.

Kind of became a small rant, sorry about that > .<

I'm sorry that was so tough on you. But you did deal with it the right way for YOU. It is a shame that you had to worry for your brother, but so it is with MANY young adults.. Not just over being Homosexual, or bisexual, but smaller things too.. I agree that if it wasnt so shoved at people, and they were to discover any religion on their own that more people would embrace the idea.. Unfortunately this is not the world we live in... The very first chance my friend got to break free she did, and being repressed for so many years, she went nuts and almost got herself killed.. Beliefs should be made out of love not fear. stated.. I have no issue with what anyone wants to believe... It is your choice. Just like i have a choice, everyone should have a choice.. Its taking away someones choice that breeds resentment.

 

[KaydeeKrunk]

I am honestly not a huge fan of religion, but at the same time think Faith in ones self is exceptionally important. I am very spiritual person, and I know things that I believe in aren't popular so I do have respect for people so fervent in their beliefs because I think having strong beliefs in very important. I consider myself a Secular Witch, and I get openly mocked for my religion so much that I don't talk about it very much. I don't really consider being a witch so much a religion as it is my mentality, if that makes any sense? I believe religion has more to do if you believe in a god or gods, or follow a certain path set fourth by rules and such. Mine is more of a spiritual thing than anything.

The only thing that really bothers me about people who are religious is when they have the whole "I'm right, and you need to believe in what I believe" mentality. Or the "shoving it down your throat" kind of thing. All my life I have known these people and it sucks because if anything has any microscopic connection to religion that's all they can talk about, and it's not much of talking as it is yelling and arguing even if you're not arguing back. I've cut those people out of my life now and keep myself as far from them as possible. As a child though sadly I was forced into relationships with lots of those people, as I was deemed "Christian" by my family and made to go to Church, Church Camp, Awanas, and even a Day Care held at a Church all summer long, where they literally read us scripture and made us watch religious movies. I also got drafted into a young girls sector of the Freemasons, that's right, the damn Illuminati you guys. But to be honest I believed in God on and off until I was like 10 because that's really all I ever knew. It was amazing to finally be free of it though, being able to have my own beliefs. and I know that when I have children they will be free to believe in whatever they want. I just don't think it's fair to force someone to believe in anything they don't.

I have plenty of religious friends and I don't think of them any less, they're entitled to believe what they want, and I mean all religions are based around the same sort of main principle, and it's that you're putting out belief to achieve something, and basically my spell work and what have you are no more than prayers just done a little differently, and without a deity to answer them.

tldr; I'm a witch, I grew up Christian, I don't mind other religions as long as they aren't shoving it down anyone's throat.

 

[Yukari Yakumo]

Some food for thought:

I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.
Susan B. Anthony

If I were not an atheist, I would believe in a God who would choose to save people on the basis of the totality of their lives and not the pattern of their words. I think he would prefer an honest and righteous atheist to a TV preacher whose every word is God, God, God, and whose every deed is foul, foul, foul.
Isaac Asimov

Ekam Sath Viprah Bahudha Vadanti
There is but one Truth, but sages call it by different Names
The Rigveda

 

[Le Ham]

Can I just say that not everyone who claims to be a Christian, acts the way a Christian should (at least by Biblical standards)...

Like many Christians are judgmental, swear like sailors, are seriously not very nice people, "draw to [Him] nigh with their lips but their hearts are far from [Him]" like some TV preachers like mentioned above, some say God hates certain people when it's not the person we're supposed to be hating, it's the sin... and by that logic God would therefore hate everyone, because everyone sins. I sin, I can be mean, perverted, or other bad things, but I'm at least trying to do something about it and I work on bettering myself as a person with God's help, knowing I still can't be perfect anyway. "All sin and fall short of the glory of God" so why should God love some over others based on sinfulness? He's merciful and will forgive based on the situation.

That doesn't necessarily mean, at least Biblically, that He will save everyone; I believe He will save those who truly want to be saved, those who put in the commitment and effort required in a relationship with God to be saved. Cradle Christians who just go through the motions because they're being made to by their family or school, never try to learn anything about God, and act like hypocrites all the time without caring, and see God as just a tool? I don't think God would save that kind of person. "Many are called, but few are chosen," as the verse goes.

Some atheists don't understand, because as an outsider looking in, they only see the "ugly" side of Christianity, and they begin think we're all like that. I feel kind of sorry for them in that regard, but when they base our validity on "oh, Hitler said he was Christian so God must've saved him and let Jews die" just no. Any Christian in their right mind and with a right understanding of the book they follow doesn't go about deceiving people into thinking there is a "master race" or murdering millions because of race, orientation, or anything else. Though I try to see it their way, it seems like sometimes the kind of atheists that bring those things up are trying to make us look bad.

 

[Yukari Yakumo]

Can I just say that not everyone who claims to be a Christian, acts the way a Christian should (at least by Biblical standards)...

Like many Christians are judgmental, swear like sailors, are seriously not very nice people, "draw to [Him] nigh with their lips but their hearts are far from [Him]" like some TV preachers like mentioned above, some say God hates certain people when it's not the person we're supposed to be hating, it's the sin... and by that logic God would therefore hate everyone, because everyone sins. I sin, I can be mean, perverted, or other bad things, but I'm at least trying to do something about it and I work on bettering myself as a person with God's help, knowing I still can't be perfect anyway. "All sin and fall short of the glory of God" so why should God love some over others based on sinfulness? He's merciful and will forgive based on the situation.

That doesn't necessarily mean, at least Biblically, that He will save everyone; I believe He will save those who truly want to be saved, those who put in the commitment and effort required in a relationship with God to be saved. Cradle Christians who just go through the motions because they're being made to by their family or school, never try to learn anything about God, and act like hypocrites all the time without caring, and see God as just a tool? I don't think God would save that kind of person. "Many are called, but few are chosen," as the verse goes.

Some atheists don't understand, because as an outsider looking in, they only see the "ugly" side of Christianity, and they begin think we're all like that. I feel kind of sorry for them in that regard, but when they base our validity on "oh, Hitler said he was Christian so God must've saved him and let Jews die" just no. Any Christian in their right mind and with a right understanding of the book they follow doesn't go about deceiving people into thinking there is a "master race" or murdering millions because of race, orientation, or anything else. Though I try to see it their way, it seems like sometimes the kind of atheists that bring those things up are trying to make us look bad.

Sadly, while the unpleasants do not define the group, they can't be fully removed from it either.
There's a reason "No True Scotsman" is a fallacy.
Also, "understanding" and "accepting" are two different things. An atheist may look at the good and the bad and come to the conclusion that the bad outweighs the good.

I'm always skeptical when a person claims that someone else doesn't understand. Whenever I hear those words I remember the immortal words of Homer J Simpson:

[SPOILER="No True Scotsman" Explained]

[/SPOILER]

 

[Spongebob]

I don't believe there's a gosh

 

[Yukari Yakumo]

I don't believe there's a gosh

I also doubt there are gosh's.

 

[Stalfos]

People can't handle religion. That's what I believe.

 

[Angelmarina]

Currently I am an agnostic atheist. One thing I hate is when people judge you for your beliefs, I have ran into that a lot in my life. My birth mother is Catholic and my adopted mother is Christian. I struggled a lot with religion when I was younger because my adopted mother forced her religion on me when it was clearly something that I didn't want, and in turn I ended up growing bitter towards it. Eventually I gave up all together, I 'tried' other religions but they just weren't for me, believing in god just never logically clicked in my brain. I guess the reason why I'm agnostic is because I am very spiritual and I believe that if any gods were to exist it would be the ones in greek mythology. Now, I'm not saying I go out and make people feel bad about their religion because I don't. I have many religious friends, but I just get so annoyed when people try to force their religion on me. Like I guess its okay to talk about but respect what I choose to believe. I feel like atheists sort of, in a manner of speaking, get spit on for their beliefs or lack of because they are not widely accepted. Especially in the US from what I experienced. ^^

Spoiler: KainAronoele

If you're a parent, is it your "job" to judge your children on what they do and choose in life, even if you're now an adult? As far as I was aware of, you're not supposed to judge anyone as it is not our place. So how can it be their JOB to do so?

From growing up in a very Christian oriented household I can tell you that this is not something based purely on religion. Sometimes parents raise their children a certain way because they want them to grow up to be like them or be what they couldn't be. It also can be that maybe your dad worries about you and wants to make sure you have the best life that you can possibly have.

I do not think that it is a parents job to judge their children at all not matter how old they are, it leads to very unhealthy problems. But regardless, to your parent you will always be their child, and thats not going to change even when you are 30 or even older. As far as religion goes, no we should not judge others it isn't our place, not if you are Christian, you are suppose to love everyone for who they are. But like I said before this seems like something outside of religion, if this is something that greatly bothers you it may be best to talk to your dad. I had a similar situation like this happen with my adopted mom and talking to her is impossible so it turned into a very long and strongly worded text message conversation (I'm in college so seeing her in person is rare.) Sometimes you just need to communicate with your parents and let them know that they have raised you well, reassure them, but that they have to trust you to make the right decisions now. It's your life and you have to be the one to live it and you want to be happy and if that means that you date a boy they don't like or go into a career they don't approve of, they have to accept that you as their child will do the right thing for you and make them proud in a way that they wouldn't expect. No matter how stubborn they are or how much they are against it they are your parents. Hope this helped!

 

[kayleee]

Frankly I cannot understand how people do believe in an Almighty Creator this day in age, because I don't really understand how it's possible to deny science and logic but at the end of the day if you're a theist and you do you and you let me do me then who really cares if you're a "believer" or not. But if you're a believer and an ultra ****ty person (I'm looking at you Westboro baptist church) I hope bad things happen to you

 

[Pharaoh]

Every group or belief has this section of nutter extremists, so I don't like belonging to large sects with lots of rules, they're all self-imposed and a way to control others. I've become a very bitter and cynical person recently so I have no idea what my own ideas are, I usually don't think about them because I don't mind dying either way, in fact I sort of welcome it, so it doesn't much matter to me in the present what happens or if there's anything out there. I really hate large drawn out discussions from religious people or atheists though, don't you have anything else to obsessively talk about in a hostile manner, like the newest episode of Chopped on Food Network like damn, you have to discuss the meaning of the Universe 24/7? Have some doritos and calm down.