Oh, the irony...
Do you still follow the religion you were raised with?
- Thread starter Daneel
- Start date
Oh, the irony...
My story is unsurprisingly similar to many others here. Raised Catholic (like 95% of population in Italy) but my family is not really devout. My father believes in God but dislike the Church, and my mother practices that brand of folk Catholicism that is more similar to paganism than actual Christianity (devotions to the saints and all that stuff).
I had the whole sacramental thing done (baptism, first communion, confirmation), and I even went to a Catholic grade school with nuns as teachers, but never really believed it after, say, 6 or 7 years old. Turned to materialist atheism around high school: no big discovery or epiphany, just a slow realization of my real feelings on the whole religion thing.
I never looked back, and now I'm happy and very comfortable in my (lack of) faith. Sometimes I though about formally separate myself from the Church (erasing my name from baptismal registries), but can't really be arsed.
I had the whole sacramental thing done (baptism, first communion, confirmation), and I even went to a Catholic grade school with nuns as teachers, but never really believed it after, say, 6 or 7 years old. Turned to materialist atheism around high school: no big discovery or epiphany, just a slow realization of my real feelings on the whole religion thing.
I never looked back, and now I'm happy and very comfortable in my (lack of) faith. Sometimes I though about formally separate myself from the Church (erasing my name from baptismal registries), but can't really be arsed.
TheLonelySquire
Vice Admiral
Please elaborate.
wow you wrote my post for me! Thanks!
I was raised in a Baptist church, my parents and grandparents being Baptist. I loved going to church (still do) but when I was old enough to think for myself I realized that all the legalism and separatist teachings were really moronic. That particular church's view of missions was 'Come be like us!' instead of 'Come to know Jesus Christ!'
They said the latter and meant the former . . . and it was all about numbers . . . '5 more people got saved this week! Good job on making your quota!' (an exaggeration but it felt like that at times)
John 17 mentions being in the world but not of it, which they somehow took to apply their strict conservative views and say that dancing is bad, secular music is bad, only see G and PG movies . . .
not to mention the divide that nearly split the church apart . . . I'm talking about Calvinism vs Armenianism
so anyway . . . I stopped going there when I was 19 or so, and didn't go to any church for about 2 years, and tried to go back to that same church but I just didn't feel welcome there
the church I'm at now is like a family.
I like how Brent said it:
so I voted 'Yes.' Even though I went from being a Baptist Christian to just being a follower of Jesus, so I suppose it still counts since I'm still technically 'Christian'
but yeah, labels are dumb
I was raised a Catholic. Both my parents are -very- devout, and all of their families as well. I guess I am the black sheep since I have become an atheist.
On my peaceful days I'll say I'm agnostic, because I don't want to sound too arrogant and I reckon that I in fact do not know whether there is a god (of any denomination) or not.
If you catch me on a particularly bad day however I can express my atheism in completely uncensored ways.
In any case, and on -any- day, I always show respect to people of Faith, such as my mother and my SO for example. On the other hand I don't quite care for religious people, you know, like the classic ones that go to Mass every Sunday and then go home and beat their children to within an inch of their life, or some such.
On my peaceful days I'll say I'm agnostic, because I don't want to sound too arrogant and I reckon that I in fact do not know whether there is a god (of any denomination) or not.
If you catch me on a particularly bad day however I can express my atheism in completely uncensored ways.
In any case, and on -any- day, I always show respect to people of Faith, such as my mother and my SO for example. On the other hand I don't quite care for religious people, you know, like the classic ones that go to Mass every Sunday and then go home and beat their children to within an inch of their life, or some such.
I was meant to be Catholic but back when I was born since my mum wasn't Catholic the church in the country I lived in wouldn't baptise me. Went to Catholic church though when I was young, then I went to an Anglican school for primary then moved to an non-faith based school for high-school. So I was raised a Christian and had a sample of the two churches my parents belonged to but other then the school stuff never really pushed into or towards religion. However, I'm not an atheist, I'm whatever it is that kind of believes in God but doesn't really support any particular faith...if that is called anything it would probably be lazy or apathetic I guess.
I've always thought atheism = a-theism = without religious belief, which is what some are calling agnosticism. Agnosticism I always thought was form of christian belief built upon the impossibility of knowing god.
I didn't think there was a word that describes a belief that god does not exist, although atheism is often used that way I'm not sure it is correct.
I think these two terms: atheism and agnosticism have multiple definitions.
I didn't think there was a word that describes a belief that god does not exist, although atheism is often used that way I'm not sure it is correct.
I think these two terms: atheism and agnosticism have multiple definitions.
I voted "still follow the religion I was raised with," but I'm another "sort of." I was raised kind of non-denominationally Protestant Christian (my dad was agnostic, and my mother, who was raised Episcopalian, is now just generally Christian) because my parents both worked Sundays but thought us kids should go to Sunday school, so we went to a variety of different Sunday schools. But in my late teens, I walked into the denomination I attend now (Presbyterian) and you know? It felt right. And I've been Presbyterian ever since. If only other major life choices could be so easy!
I always thought that way about atheism too. The way I see it there is no active component in it, so there is no actual belief in anything, it's lack of belief rather than actively disbelieving... if that make sense?
I was raised Baptist, became a Christian at an early age, and have remained a fairly devout believer ever since. I've spent a chunk of time in the Pentecostal tradition, and now I'm back in the Baptist church (more of a "Bapticostal" now). I've been open my whole life to experiencing all kinds of traditions, so I'm less concerned with form than substance, as long as they are faithful to the fundamental tenets.
If you have to ask, you'll never know.
No,I don't follow a religion and never have.
I'm an atheist.I heve never believed in any kind of god.
I'm an atheist.I heve never believed in any kind of god.
Well, all-in-all they are just labels that faith based people put on the rest of us.
Not necessarily.
A lot of people make a distinction between "hard" and "soft" versions of both agnosticism and atheism.
Soft atheists have no belief in God. Soft agnostics have no knowledge of God's existence.
Soft agnosticism is actually compatible with theism. In fact, there are Christian agnostics who argue that, for Christianity to be true, we must have no knowledge of God's existence. If we could know that God exists, then there would be no place for faith. This position is known as "fideism".
By comparison, hard atheists argue that God definitely does not exist--that the problems of evil or unbelief, for example, make it impossible for God to exist, at least as advertised. And hard agnostics argue that it's impossible to know, one way or another.
The hard varieties of both agnosticism and atheism are minority positions. But I would describe myself as a hard atheist: I find the arguments from evil and unbelief completely convincing. Furthermore, I'm not convinced that words like 'God' actually mean anything. That's called "theological noncognitivism," which is another kettle of fish entirely.
What's more, I'm not convinced that what is generally known as agnosticism is really a valid position. The crucial point, it seems to me, is not what we know, but what we believe. Knowledge is generally defined as justified true belief--and obviously, theistic beliefs have always lacked the sort of empirical or logical justification needed to qualify as knowledge. So agnostics (as generally defined) are moving the goalposts.
That said--I would also draw a distinction between theism/atheism and religiousness/irreligiousness. It is possible to be religious, without believing in a god or gods. Buddhism would be the most obvious example of a religion that does not require theistic belief. New religious movements like LaVeyan Satanism and Scientific Pantheism would be additional examples.
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While I'm still here...
I just finished reading an interesting book by a British philosopher, Simon Critchley, entitled The Book of Dead Philosophers.
It revolves around what might be called the "problem of death": namely, whether or not it is possible to live a good life, despite the inevitability of our own deaths, and the deaths of those we love.
Philosophers have offered a variety of solutions for this problem, and the book is about "how philosophers have died and what we can learn from philosophy about the appropriate attitude toward death and dying." To this end, it provides about 190 case studies of the way philosophers have met their deaths.
Critchley includes a number of Christian saints and Christian philosophers among his examples: his treatment thereof is quite sympathetic, and he includes a very thought-provoking paragraph about Christianity in his conclusion, that I would like to bounce off both believers and non-believers.
"Christianity," he says, "is about nothing other than getting ready to die."
As a way of keeping this thread on track, let me ask: has the problem of death affected anyone's beliefs? Has it played a factor in your decisions to adopt or abandon your religious beliefs?
It has definitely played a factor in my own development--not so much the certainty of my own death, or the deaths of loved ones--I have been very fortunate so far, in that department.
Rather, it was the hecatomb of history that helped change my mind. For me, the problem of death is an aspect of the problem of evil. As Primo Levi put it so concisely: "There is Auschwitz, and so there cannot be God."
Sorry if this is a derailment. Feel free to ignore me, if you wish.
I just finished reading an interesting book by a British philosopher, Simon Critchley, entitled The Book of Dead Philosophers.
It revolves around what might be called the "problem of death": namely, whether or not it is possible to live a good life, despite the inevitability of our own deaths, and the deaths of those we love.
Philosophers have offered a variety of solutions for this problem, and the book is about "how philosophers have died and what we can learn from philosophy about the appropriate attitude toward death and dying." To this end, it provides about 190 case studies of the way philosophers have met their deaths.
Critchley includes a number of Christian saints and Christian philosophers among his examples: his treatment thereof is quite sympathetic, and he includes a very thought-provoking paragraph about Christianity in his conclusion, that I would like to bounce off both believers and non-believers.
"Christianity," he says, "is about nothing other than getting ready to die."
As a way of keeping this thread on track, let me ask: has the problem of death affected anyone's beliefs? Has it played a factor in your decisions to adopt or abandon your religious beliefs?
It has definitely played a factor in my own development--not so much the certainty of my own death, or the deaths of loved ones--I have been very fortunate so far, in that department.
Rather, it was the hecatomb of history that helped change my mind. For me, the problem of death is an aspect of the problem of evil. As Primo Levi put it so concisely: "There is Auschwitz, and so there cannot be God."
Sorry if this is a derailment. Feel free to ignore me, if you wish.
A
Amaris
Guest
It has played a role in my own beliefs, but not as a fear motivator. I am simply curious as to why death is even necessary. I can find no ruling or edict in any religion that explains it consistently and adequately. My faith would essentially state that upon death, we become a part of the universe and we live again, but are free of the physical bonds we once held. It's not some type of punishment or reward, just a new state of being.
I see so many traditions and people going through the motions, and I wonder if they're really ready for what may be at the end of that tunnel, when the last breath escapes. So many questions, and yet so many spend that time conducting ceremonies, spending time in a place they don't like solely to have a ticket to the next life covered in the bill, that the payment is enough. There are people who spend their whole lives preparing for death, and Christianity as much as I am a part of it and as much as it pertains to the majority, is a culture of death. "When we die", "Jesus died for us", "dying in sin", "Are you ready?", "Jesus calling you home", and so on. So many disregard the beautiful thing we have because they believe there are far greater, more beautiful things ahead, after this.
I would like to clarify at this point that I'm not belittling or mocking any faith or belief system, it's just that as a Christian myself, I find this so very fascinating. These beliefs bring people comfort and solace in times of hardship and death, and I would not try to revoke such beliefs from anyone. I could be right, I could be wrong. Something Jim Casey said in the book The Grapes of Wrath, "maybe there ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue, there's just what people does."
J.
I must confess I alway had an interest in LaVey's Satanism, and actually I agree with (and coincidentally live by) some of its philosophical tenets as for interacting with other people. But I have little patience for symbolism and buffoonery, with unfortunately even philosophical versions of satanism seems very in love with.
I will have to look a bit more into naturalistic pantheism, since it sound a lot like my favourite parts of "minbarism": We are the universe made manifest, trying to figure itself out".
So is Bushido, and it's way cooler.
Another raised Catholic turned Atheist here. There seem to be a lot of us.
Not really. While it's comforting to think there may be some sort of life after death, the fact of the matter is nobody knows, and cannot know until they experience it for themselves. The promise of "eternal life" is just another (what I consider to be) means of extortion perpetuated by religious organizations preying on humanity's fear of the unknown.
I pretty much agree with J. For me, Christianity is more about how to live than getting ready to die. But then, I'm not all that old, I'm pretty healthy, and I have a good life. It might be different if my situation were different. I certainly wouldn't blame anybody for looking ahead to the afterlife, particularly if their current life leaves a lot to be desired. But for me...it's all about getting closer to God, and I've got to work on that right now, not later and not when it's too late or almost too late. (I'm actually not 100 percent sure it's ever really "too late," but I don't know, of course.)
I don't personally think fear works that well as a motivator, which means that I am not a fan of those "Avoid Hell - Find Jesus" and similar signs that you see here and there, nor am I a fan of hellfire sermons. I just don't think they are helpful or useful, partly because they sound so smug (even when they aren't meant that way) and partly because they just aren't constructive. It brings something very complicated down to a bumper sticker. Everybody's got to do what he thinks is right, but all I can say is, that's not the central message of my faith.
