Atheists, what made you free yourself from the shackles of manmade religion and dogma ?

Question

Was it a sudden thing or a gradual process ?

Answer 1

AHAHA Good Question.

Ive never called myself one but I guess i might be one.

I talked my Agnostic GF into attending a Christian church with me, it was cool but I wanted more so we went to Bible study.
That was bad. All we got was a guy preaching about end times.

From there, after we moved in together she started working at this independent bookstore and that exposed me to different philosophies and my first few Atheism books.

I arranged a bible study with some different denominations to get all the different angles and they were all pretty much unthinking tools.
I had to "believe' first and then i would see.
I tried it and all it got me was more religious books and more 'authority' over me, and not a single prayer answered in a way that a human being can recognize an answer being given.

I kept reading the Bible, Tom Paine, George H. Smith...etc etc ...on my own until somehow a light came on that except for its use as a tool to organize the masses, religion was all nonsense.

Answer 2

1. I didn't grow up with Religion, so I was able to see it from an unbiased stance.
2. When my parents first introduced me into Religion.. I was already used to knowing the logical and senscal explaination behind everything(how milk is made, why the sky is blue, what makes grass green) and knowing that everything has an origin.
3. When I first began reading the Bible, to compare, contrast and get a different view point, I highlighted several contradictions or things that would never have happened.
4. I realzied that the Bible was written by Man, not a higher diety. I also realized these are the same people who thought the world was flat.

I've pretty much always been an Athiest.. so I guess it was sudden.

Answer 3

It was sort of gradual for me. I grew up in Catholic school, and then transferred to Christian school. I remember sitting in class, and questioning the bible. I asked why Genesis 32:30 contradicted John 1:18, and apparently they didn't have an answer, so they made me sit out in the hall. It was then that I realized that religion shouldn't questioned, because there's no answers. It's all based on belief, with no facts supporting it.

I didn't believe anymore, if I ever did in the first place. I was brainwashed at a young age, and believed everything I was told, because those were the only adult role models around me, so I took it as fact. As soon as I was old enough to actually think for myself, is when I came to the conclusion that I was an atheist.

Religion has caused nothing but problems in my life, since I'm also gay. That was another reason why I knew the bible was a big crock. I specifically remember being attracted to other boys at as young as 4/5 years old, and this BOOK is trying to tell me that homosexuality is a conscious choice, and a sin? Give me a break.

As I strive to recall what I learned about science, I realize that it was stripped from my education completely, and any time something came up concerning the subject of science, they would incorporate it into creationism, or god. A bias education, indeed.

I discovered that god doesn't exist, the bible was written by man to control society, and organized religion is out for control, recruitment, brainwashing, and profit. If they truly cared about the welfare and education of young christian kids, they wouldn't charge a $4,000 tuition fee. If these pastors did truly care about the welfare of society, they wouldn't be on television selling their books, and audio cassettes for profit. People need to wake up, and take a good look at what's right under their noses.

Answer 4

I was once an atheist. Getting there was a gradual process. Unfortunately the answers I thought I found at that time were not answers but half-truths & half-formed thoughts mixed with well-meaning lies. My rebellion - my unwillingness to admit that I didn't have all the answers available through the priests of science and sociology. The shackles you refer to were never as strong as when I was held down by the lack of God and I ended up diving face-first into "the bottom". That's when I had no choice but to live my life on its own terms and learned how to view God instead viewing my idea of God through the man-made goggles of misperception I had worn before. I was then freed from the shackles of my own incorrect idea & freed to live according to the will of Almighty God instead of frail & feeble humanity.

Answer 5

It was both. The gradual understanding of the scinece and the gradual realizations of the absurdities of religion (especially Judeo-Christian) was whitling away at my faith. But I still couldn't disconnect myself from the conditioning of my upbringing. That and the stigma of atheism held me back.

Then one day we were at lunch at work and discussing religion and one of my co-workers, when asked, simply said, "I'm an athiest." I was amazed. Most of the rest of the table was disgusted with him for his beliefs, but I admired his courage and unapologetic sincerity. I had been raised to think that atheists were evil, but here was one of the most honest and genuinely kind people I'd ever met and he was an athiest. I looked around the table at the Christians and saw 1 wife beater, 2 adulterers, 1 drunk and mean dude. (I find it ironic that so many athiests are good, honest people, often more so than most of the Christians I meet.) His simple statement made me realize that I was an atheist too.

I liken it to gays coming out of the closet. Deep down I always knew that I was different, but just tried to hide it. But when I saw someone else who was unashamed of their atheism, it gave me the courage to admit my own to myself. Now, when asked, I freely say, "I am an atheist." I don't go out of my way to gbring it up, and I don't push it on anyone else (I'll leave the shameless prosletizing to the Christians - Do they think that their god is Amway? Is he a pyramid scheme? Do they get a percentage of the salvation of everyone they convert and a percentage of everyone of their conversions' conversions? Too bad that their god doesn't stress manners and respect ahead of prosletization.)

So know I freely admit that I am an athiest. And you'd be surprised how many people say, "You can't be an athiest - you're too nice!"

Answer 6

Gradual for me. I was baptized as a baby, but my parents never made me go to church, it was always a choice . so for awhile i went ever Sunday and as i got older i went less and less and started questioning religion more and figuring out my own beliefs, for awhile i even considered converting to Judaism, but i really don't believe in god so it was kinda pointless. I believe(like my parents do) that religion is a very personal choice and no-matter what u choose it is right for u, i was raised to respect religion, although sometimes i lose my temper at their ridiculous questions, but i can never believe there is a god.

Answer 7

The process took about thirty-five years -- twenty years of going to church because my family did, followed by some fifteen years of living on my own and not missing church at all.

The actual realization that at some point I had ceased to believe (or perhaps never really believed) involved a re-reading of the bible, followed by a couple of hours of deep thought and three fingers of single-malt whiskey.

I highly recommend it.

Answer 8

I wasn't raised in a religious context, and was always taught to think for myself, and analyze everything. I thus grew up free of dogma and religion.

I don't believe in deities or afterlife; I'm a happy atheist and Satanist, who tries to make the world a little better.

Answer 9

It was a gradual process of the realization that what I was being told was too fantastic to be true. When I began to study more rational explanations it all fell apart.

Answer 10

It was sudden. I was reading the Bible and it struck me that it was all nonsense.

I actually always saw something wrong with the ritual and dogma, but growing up you accept it because you don't know any better especially when you haven't read it for yourself. I actually started reading the Bible so that I could better understand "God", but I ended up back at sentence 2.