How do I tell my mom that I want to change my religion?

Question

Over the past couple of years I've become dissatisified with the Christian religion. Don't get me wrong, I love the teachings of Jesus (forgiveness and love for others, turning the other cheek, not judging) and I love the view he paints of God (our loving, just, heavenly father). But I don't agree with most of the churches teachings reguarding angels, demons, the trinity, heaven and hell, original sin, substitutional atonement, and divine biblical inerrancy. After learning about what my religion teaches, and after years of vainly trying to reconcile my conflicting beliefs, I've decided to find a new one. The problem is that my mom is a very devout Christian and my parents raised me to be a Christian myself. She's always telling me that I need to go to church more, and when I told her why I disliked certain parts of the Christian religion she hinted that I might be heading down the wrong road in life. How do I convince her that I can be a non christian and still be a good person?

Answer 1

Depending on your age, she should accept this as a normal part of your development. There's no easy way to tell her - she's not going to like it and if she's like most people I know in the church she is going to do everything she can think of to talk you out of it, use guilt, cry, call others in the church to do some sort of intervention - I don't think there is much you can do to prevent this. So just say it. Tell her you want to search and study and find things out yourself, so that your faith will truly be your own. God does not respect a faith that is forced or coerced. Remind her that this is a normal part of growing up, and that it is possible you will find your way back to Christianity, but that the bottom line is, you will still be YOU.
Good luck and happy hunting. :)

Answer 2

I dont know how old you are but, I have a 15 year old daughter and she has already caught on to the fact that things are not always what they seem. The feelings that you are having in regards to this question are absolutely normal, you are not alone. Like most Christians your mother will rationalize ideas, teachings and concepts which are quite frankly, flat out lies. There is a definition for these kinds of manipulations, it's called "brainwashing". If you are told one thing (or more than one) for long enough, you will start to interpret everything that comes in contact with you(life, people, ideas, ways of being) according to those manipulations. The feelings of doubt and insecurity that you are feeling towards what you are being taught is not the "wrong path" its not "the devil", its not"sinful". It's your very own unique brain telling you that something is wrong, that what you are experiancing is harmful to you and that you should do something to keep it from happening again. If you stub your toe on a rock for instance or accidentaly cut yourself slicing potatoes or whatever, the "pain" you feel is real, your body telling your brain that something very wrong just happened and that you should pay attention to it , confront it, deal with it. Such is religious brainwashing. Ask yourself these questions: Why would a "God" need a place to live?, Why would a God be a Him and not a Her?Does that mean "God" has a wife?Why would a perfect being feel the need to create something beyond itself like a universe and people in order to subject them to some grand plan?.Why would a "perfect God" feel at all? never stop asking "WHY". all of religion , christianity, islam,or any religion requires that you stop asking yourself "why" and start believing blindly in a book or a spoken word or a cleric or a priest or preacher. You feel like this is wrong because it is wrong. Religion is brainwashing pure and simple. Free yourself from it. ask "Why".You wont be able to do this overnight. Just like a wound to the body, brainwashing takes time to heal.
A cut or a stubbed toe wont go away overnight and niether will religious brainwashing, you must give it time and you must ask why. I sincerely hope that you can find piece of mind in yourself but you can only do that by asking "why" and understanding that you can be free from the lie that is all religion.

Answer 3

You just say you are not satisfied with the lessons you have been taught and you want to explore a different way in your life.

(I can tell you that only God can fill the hole you are searching to fill)

Your mom probably knows you can be a non-christian and good person. She will be concerned about your eternal life and that she did not do a good discipling job to her own child. At least that is the way I would feel if you were my child. But she will realize you have free will and that she cannot make you choices for you and will continue to pray you will change you mind for the rest of her life. Did you read and study the bible on your own and come up with this reasoning or is someone else changing your mind?

Answer 4

You don't have to become a non Christian. You can finally become a real Christian now that you see the truth. Unfortunately you probably won't be able to find a church to attend where people believe as you do. I realized a long time ago that our churches (mostly) are teaching traditions and the beliefs of men, not God's word.

Answer 5

I recently had to come out of the broom closet with my dad who is not only a devout Christian, but he's a minister. I simply told him that the Christian religion, while a beautiful religion, didn't give me the spiritual fulfillment I needed. I told him that I am now a Pagan and have been for the past two years. He had noticed that also for the past two years I have been calmer and happier. I told him it was because of my religion. He asked a few questions about it and I answered. I kept an open mind and I think he did his best to do the same.

Explain that you need fulfillment in your soul, and that Christianity isn't giving it to you, so you intend to try other things. The best of luck to you.

Blessed be.

Answer 6

Many people do not know tha God did not create any religion.If religion was so very impornt , God would not have been foolish enough to have left it to men to create it while he has been creating evewn worms and grass and all trash. Men created Gods and religions in order to ensure peace ans sfey in the society. So religons should work towrsa peace and amity among the people in the society, Most of the religions were created by men who sis not know much about what is wha as thier knowledge about the naure of the unverse was really very poor and there were really ignorant of many things . men can live happily without religion if they are essentially good and behave well in society . so it was considered necessay to have some religion and create some belief in God to ensure tha all men behave well . But till many persons are committing things that are considered as sins . even he preiests have been behaving in immorally in the church premises hemselves and have been , sexual ofenders ,molesters and phedophiles .So religions alone will not help one to be good .Bu , yo have no better machanism to make ensure tha mos of the people in the society behave well and live in peace and amity. In many cases the very religions themselves have created rouble among he people .
If evey one follows the principle that he should not do to others anything which might cause pain to himself if done to himself by others . Thre is no better philosophy than this simple one to ensue peace in the society . The sinnerand the saint , both meet the same fate . One who beliees in '/god does not aain immorality . Change is the order of he uniersres and God himself would change and subject to this change and time will ensure this .ime is hemost powerful being of non being tha would change even the Gods.! This whole unverse is is a maic and visioin that would change with the time . It is only a question of time .We may not be there to witness he change . but the change will occur since he world , he univrse is alive and anything alive must be subject to change. Things go to sleep at the dusk of the day of the creator and sleep for housands of eons to re-emege on the day brealk of he creator aer of housands of eons and remain there for the day till the dusk to fall into sleep again.to re-emerge again . Jus like he day and nigh alernate , he life and death of he planets , and stars also alternate . This is the Game of nature! When all the planets and lives go innto sleep een the Gods tat ate knkown to this man kind would ceade to go innto oblivianand new Gods might be created by the men of he new world - perhaps ater seveal billion years .There won't be any trace of the present Gods in the new world that might emerge fom the black hole or the white giant .These Gods created by men won't be able to so anything to stop the course of nature .

Answer 7

For one, don't base your faith on how you feel about the teachings of the Church you have been going to. There are so many different Churches out there, catering to different types of people.
Bottom line, read your Bible. That's the source.

Out there, somewhere is a Church for you. I belong to a nondenomiational Church. Totally Bible based.

You are searching for some answers. Pray about it, and ask God to show you the path to go.

You can express to your parents that you have some questions regarding your faith, but for them not to worry, because you are asking God for the answers, and He will be there with you.

Your parents are just worried about you. They love you, and like parents are, they want to protect you. Be gentle with them, let them know that you are seeking God for the answers.

Then, get out your Bible. It is the living Word of God. Find several translations....... I have currently four, and compare. Heaven and Hell is real, angels are real, demons are real and the trinity is definitely real.

I believe that with all my heart.

Answer 8

I would say something like:

Mom I respect you and I respect your belief. I have come to a point in my life where I have to choose my own path. I am not yet sure what path I will walk but I ask that you respect my wish to search for the path to God that speaks to my soul.

Who knows, I may decide that Christianity is the right path for me, however I will not know without having looked and I don't want to live my life continually wondering what if.

You know that you raised me to be a good person, I'm asking you to trust who you have raised to make decisions that are right for me.

Answer 9

It seems, based on what you wrote here that you are becoming a non-denominational Christian. Personally, I tend to feel the same. (BAH! I never discuss my beliefs publicly!!) Show her what you wrote here, is she demanding you attend a certain church? Can she be happy with your study of just the Bible? You might just sit down with her and calmly put it to her as you did here. Seems very well thought out and reasonable when I read your question. I believe Jesus would have encouraged asking questions and being open to variations. Organized religion seems more and more to be big business and many it seems have lost sight of what their true goal was. I wish you luck.

Answer 10

Before being so drastic I would try finding a nondenominational christian church, or studying christianity independently. While it's good to have a fellowship, church isn't necessary for a relationship with God.

And not all christian chruches are like that.