For all religions-when did you know???

Question

When did you know, become a believer, a Christian, a Pagan, an Atheist, a Muslim, etc,etc, etc? What made you gain "faith?" When did you find "religion" or your philosophy or your way of life? What brought you to your path?

Answer 1

I spent most of my young life absolutely and completely convinced of Jesus of Nazareth's divinity, and was in the process of getting into seminary to study for the priesthood.

Along the way, it just stopped making any sort of sense. I was big on learning and understanding, and the more I read of other holy books, the more I realized that the Bible was nothing special, and that everything in the universe was following the same rules -- scientific rules, not divine rules.

The time between having complete faith in Jesus and coming to reject theism was an extremely unpleasant time. I would often go before the tabernacle in private and let my anger flow - Jesus was human after all, and he wanted me as I was, and at those times, I was angry, so I screamed my head off alternating between demanding answers and proof, and begging for it, placing my complete trust in him despite my growing doubts.

Proof never came, despite clinging desperately to the last shreds of faith I had left.

Strangely enough, the moment I finally found genuine peace again, like I had before the questioning, was when I finally let go of the last thread. Everything made sense again. I found the same peace in atheism than I did in my complete faith in Jesus before the questioning, only, it's deeper, more settling, more RIGHT to me. It feels good, like I'm not running away from anything any more, like being a believer always did.

Answer 2

I grew up polytheistic--believing in various deities, spirits, and animal energies. When I was 10, I read a book about Macro Philosophy and it made sense to me. It explained the things and concepts that I believed in and how it all fit together. Macro is a philosophy rather than a religion so I just added my religious practices to it. In my late thirties I found a religious path that fits what I do and the philosophy that I believe in. It took a while, but I had no problem with practicing an un-named religion in the meantime while I was searching--and I learned a lot about other paths.

The thing that brought me to my path was when I started to do serious research into the history, archaeology and mythology of my deities. I learned that there were others who were also drawn to worship these deities in that same way that I do. I felt that I had finally "come home".

Answer 3

I lost faith in faith. I was a Southern Baptist Christian for more than half of my life. Then i started taking religion seriously. I read the Bible and studied it extensively and realized it wasn't based in any facts. This led me on a path to atheism.

I realized that all religions require faith and if faith is what it takes to make something true, then all religions are true.

"Faith is a cop-out. It is intellectual bankruptcy. If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits." - Dan Barker (former preacher)

Answer 4

I was raised a Christian and basically left the church at around the age of 11. My parents had divorced and my father married a very devout woman who sang in a Gospel band and had ministers all through the family. My favorite stepbrother has a congregation in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Anyway, with so many ministers in the family, everything soon became church oriented. Every aspect of my life changed drastically, and I started to question everything.

The more I questioned the more I doubted, and eventually I stopped believing in a creator, an afterlife, etc.

Answer 5

I was invited to church by a lady I had met at a tupperware party. I told her that I wanted to start to go to a church since we had just recently moved to town. I heard the preaching and saw the joy in the people that were there and I knew I wanted that for myself and wasn't exactly sure how. I had picked up a magazine from the church called Pentecostal Evangel and it had some information in it about how to be saved. I asked Jesus into my heart that night. I started attending the church every time the doors were open and grew in the Lord from there. That was 14 years ago and I have never been the same since then and I would never change that day because it was the best decision of my life.

Answer 6

When I asked Jesus Christ into my life, I was very unhappy with the way my life was going, displeased in how I was living, and I knew I could no longer walk it alone, I had an addiction for over 16 years, and could not stop, when I asked Christ into my life, and asked The Lord for forgiveness of my sins, my life changed completely, the old self is gone, and I am a New Person in the Lord, my taste for my addiction is completely gone, and I am now leading a productive life, and hoping to help people who are facing the same battle and do not know yet, we already have the gift, we just have to accept it and invite The Lord into our lives, I encourage anyone that thinks they are not good enough or have messed up too much, to come to The Lord, because God has a plan for your life, and has sent Jesus Christ as a sacrifice for your sins, because God loves each and every one of us the same, when we invite The Lord in.

Answer 7

Always I knew, but for a short time I looked around for something else. It was a pride thing and then I studied and came back to the Catholic faith. It makes the most sense and seems to have the deepest meaning.

Answer 8

I was in bible study for a couple of years. I was coming to know how perfect and right His word is. My mom died really suddenly, with no warning. She was taken to the hospital one Friday night and died the next day. I remember sitting in a chair in my apartment, it was like, I was empty. I could feel nothing, I was thinking nothing, I was in total shock.

All of a sudden, this verse came before me, "for God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whomsoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life". My mother was a believer. I knew she was with Jesus, as the promise of God had been fulfilled. It was at that moment, I knew, if that promise was true, then all of them were true.

How my life changed in those moments, forever.

Answer 9

I grew up in religion (legalistic doctrine). I left the church when I was 17. When I was thirty, I realized I was not a Christian. I felt the drawing of the Holy Spirit and gave my heart to Christ. I have been serving Him since!

Answer 10

As an Atheist,I lost all religion back in high school. I found there
is too much evil in the world for a good god to be controlling it all.