How many agnostics or Atheists were forced as children or teens to go to Church by their parents?

Question

Its really a yes or no, and if so, what went wrong, and if not, when did you start claiming to be agnostic or athiest?

Sorry, I left off my personal experience with a friend. He has always been brought up as a Mormon, and has always resented going. Now that we are old enough to choose for ourselves, he has chosen to become agnostic. I was just wondering if anyone else could relate.

Sorry I didn't say 'claim' to be rude, just poor diction.

Wow, I am really touched by all of your answers, and even more that I haven't received one sarcastic or rude comment yet. Thanks.

Well, these are all answers to my question, so I can't pick a best one. I'll leave it up to the people to choose the best answer.

Answer 1

I was. I mean, when I was a Christian I usually went willingly but when I told them I didn't believe in God, they took me anyway. It took about 3 Sundays for them to realize that they just shouldn't bother.

Answer 2

I never was. I attended church, prayed before bed, attended sunday school and to be honest, it never really felt 'right'. Some of it did - the parts about sharing love with others and treating them with respect, doing the right thing etc. but a lot of the stories felt like fiction and the rules of church are too over the top for me, not to mention the arrogant judgement of others. My folks still believe in it and they never forced me to be involved. I was free to make my own choice and I give my kids the same respect.

Your question made me think about which of the above I might be and so I looked it up and this is what I found...

"An atheist is one who denies the existence of a deity or of divine beings. An agnostic is one who believes it impossible to know anything about God or about the creation of the universe and refrains from commitment to any religious doctrine. Infidel means an unbeliever, especially a nonbeliever in Islam or Christianity. A skeptic doubts and is critical of all accepted doctrines and creeds."

I would not say any of these really describe my beliefs, but probably agnostic is closest. Although I respect the right of others to have their views and never question their beliefs as I know they suit them.

To answer your question on when I felt it wasn't right for me...I can remember at the age of 4 or 5 feeling that the information that was being shared with me was not 'right'.

I hope this helps with your enquiry.

Answer 3

Yes what went wrong was I started asking questions. In third grade I asked my preacher if god made everything then who made god. I kept being a strong Christian after that though. I was never taught science when I was younger. And thought the only plausible reason was a god. Then in ninth grade I started learning about evolution and astronomy. And started caring about gays and people that were hurt by religion. I started seeing all the bigotry and ignorance most people of faith had. Then I started reading the bible and a few other texts such as the Quran and the book of morman. And then also studied past religions. And after all this education. I knew evolution was fact but still held onto god. Then I started reading Douglass Adams books they made me start thinking differently about things then I read Richard Dawkins books and right before I read Dawkins I was a closeted atheist. Afterwards I became the outspoken bastard you see before you. And it was not because im retarded or I was sexually abused or im a work of the devil. It was because I became an educated man.

Answer 4

I was never forced to go to church or Sunday school. The attitude in my family was that you had the option to go or stay home. I opted to go. I became an atheist at 50. Nothing went wrong. At 40 I began reading Biblical scholars, history, anthropology, philosophy, science and mythology at great length. One afternoon I was sitting in the living room by the window and I realized that I no longer could continue to believe. I went back looking at the historicity of the Bible and the historicity of Christ to see if I was perhaps wrong. I am still doing it. But to tell you the truth, further study is only reinforcing my original rejection of the concept of a God. It has been six years now. I still maintain a great interest in reading what Bible scholars have to say, in reading the Bible, and in reading the history and beliefs of the major religions of the world. I find it absolutely fascinating.

Answer 5

I'm agnostic. I wasn't forced to go to church by my parents, but my grandmother did heavily encourage it.

Nothing went wrong for me. My parents simply wanted me to make my own decisions in life without pressure from them. When I started learning about Christianity from my grandmother and my friends, I didn't like the way it made me feel, and I found that I just couldn't devote myself to it.

I discovered that I was agnostic after dating an atheist for three and a half years. I didn't understand atheism, and he taught me a lot. But I knew I couldn't embrace atheism either because I didn't understand how anyone could claim that they absolutely knew one way or another.

I respect both sides of the fence that I'm sitting on, and I'm so comfortable on this fence that I've installed a recliner. I live my life like an atheist (in that god doesn't have an impact on what I do on a daily basis), but I also live it as a true Christian (loving my fellow (hu)man.)

Good question!

Answer 6

Yes, I was forced into the Catholic religion as a child. I became a Christian at 17, but never got into religious debates with my mom just because I prefer to respect her. After several years of reading and studying various religions, I came to the realisation that all religions are flawed and man-made. I am now an agnostic who believes in a creator.

Answer 7

My loss of perception has no longer something in any know to do with how uninteresting/exciting any particular church is. i've got not at all been a christian, and that i've got not at all attended a church (christian or different). even while i replaced into very youthful and my Mum asked me if i desired to pass to church I knew it wasn't best, so i did no longer go. when you consider that then i've got grown up plenty, and that i nonetheless see easily no information there's a god. i do no longer decide for faith, as its no longer a hazard for me to have faith something I see no information for. it may be resembling me having faith that there is an elephant stood next to me best now, i merely can no longer have faith that. So till I ever are available the time of a few information a god exists i will proceed to be an atheist and thoroughly lack perception. which will consistently proceed to be thoroughly self sufficient of what is going on interior a church.

Answer 8

I am an atheist. I was never forced to attend church as a child or teen, but I know many who were. I have doubted the existance of any god for as long as I can remember (childhood), but only seriously started calling myself an atheist after becoming more educated on what an atheist actually is. The word atheist has many negative connotations in our society, but actually just means "one who is free of religion". And I believe that is actually something positive.

Answer 9

I was! But I'm not an Agnostic because of that, I'm an Agnostic because I love thinking more than I love dogma. Eternal pursuit of enlightenment is more fun than making myself believe that I already have it. Just part of who I am.

EDIT: I still am, I should say. The tribulations of teenage life! But my mother claims she is Deist (she is not, really, she just has a friend who is and wants to tag along) and my father claims nothing at all, and yet we still go to Christian churches. That's the power of early indoctrination for you.

Answer 10

Yes, I was forced to go to weekly mass until I was 15.

Nothing went wrong, nothing at all. I just couldn't believe in a God that let children die in third world countries and allows his believers to oppress people because of their SEXUAL ORIENTATION of all things. Also, I was bullied a lot in the name of God. So I just didn't like him.

I started claiming to be atheist around 15, purely out of spite for my parents. Years later, I'm an undecided agnostic.

Answer 11

Raises hand. I was an agnostic by the age of 6 and by 15 I became an atheist.