Atheists: How many of you were religious at one time? Can you describe what changed your mind?

Answer 1

Please forgive me for answering your question. I am not Atheist. However, I believe few people truly are. However, I was Agnostic (one with out knowlege). More truthfully, I worshipped myself and my thought process. It didnt work.

Answer 2

I'm agnostic, which is pretty close to being an atheist.

I was brought up by catholic parents. I soon realized that I was spoonfed an illogical belief system that contradicted reality. So, I gave it much thought and came to the conclusion that there is no possible way of determining the existence of god or a creator of all, at this time. I felt that I would be lying to myself if I told myself that I believe in something that cannot be truly determined.

The concept of all things must be created by something is circle logic. If that's the case, who created the creator? This seems highly illogical. The concept having no starting point is also illogical, at least it doesn't flow with anything else that we know.

Therefore, it is impossible for us to know, at this time, if a creator exists or how this all started. So, you see, it's pointless for me to say that I'm religious when I don't believe in the teachings of any religion.

Answer 3

Yes. I was raised Jewish.

First, it was a lack of any positive feelings during religious services.

Second, it was the absurity of many of the bible stories - Adam and Eve, Noah's Ark and Exodus are crazy IMHO.

Third, the concept that anything that happens - good, bad, or indifferent - is always proof of god. A person could pray for something and no matter what happened they felt like god was there.

Bottom line - nothing about it made any sense.

But I should also say - that may religious people that I know are good, kind, decent people who are trying their best ot lead good lives. I respect that. I just don't respect the religious part of it.

Answer 4

I was religious till I was 8. But I had the habit of reading. I came to know about abiogenesis, evoltuion and Big Bang. I tried to fit them with all myths I had been brainwashed to believe. But it as diificult. So I choose the most logical thing and I started believing what science says. I think I was a freethinker when I was young itself. I never believed anything blindly and used to question things. That would be another reason

Answer 5

I was raised devout from infancy, my mom had me in church every Sunday from the age of 3 weeks. Practiced and studied for thirty some years, even attended seminary in pursuit of ordination.

The more I learned, the more I realised that it was just an attempt to make sense out of natural chaos. And that the chaos was just as powerful and fascinating and mysterious and wonderful as anything I called 'spiritual'.

And it doesn't give rise to judgementalness or hatred anywhere near so often.

Answer 6

It happened my soph year of bible college while I was in Hermeneutics class translating I John out of koine greek. The "small holes" in english, I THOUGHT, would be perfectly explained when I studied the original language. Instead they became huge gaping holes you could drive a truck through.

The harder I studied, the more holes I found. I tried to just "will" myself to believe and stop thinking, but that didn't work either. Eventually, an education at an acredited university cleared that god delusion right up.

Answer 7

I was a believer at one time, but after having read the Bible cover-to-cover, I walked away from it forever. The more I read, the more absurd it became. Spending a lot of time around Christians, who rationalize their hatred and bigotry with religion, helped as well. I didn't have one epiphanic moment; it was a gradual process.

Quite honestly, I consider myself as someone who would *like* to believe, but has been given no valid reason to. When believers say things like, "Look around you, how can you not believe there's a God", I respond with "BECAUSE of the things I see around me".

I'd venture that if every living Christian would read their bibles cover-to-cover, that their numbers would be sliced in half.

Answer 8

i was as a child it was forced on me. take a step back and look at the churches. ok lets go 1 they rape children in the churches. they make millions and the preachers and pastors fathers etc live like kings. look at the most recent the guy from denver he had gay lovers and used drugs. the churches are there to make money and thats it its all tax free. i lived in europe for 6 years the churches there had the fathers liveing there in the church. here they live in million doll or homes drive 50.000 dollor cars. i know that most small town preachers pastors etc have second jobs and really live what they preach.but we have muti million dollor churches and people are sleeping in the streets they say they wanna help people but they dont simple as that. during the holidays they love to help but after that they are done till next year

Answer 9

I was raised a high anglican but never truly believed it, especially with all the Old Testament readings being so violent and immoral... I also always had my own views on things like homosexuality. I didn't want to be a part of something that was happy to condemn people who'd done, in my opinion, no wrong.

Answer 10

I'm not an atheist, just anti -religion. I was active in a couple different 'Christian' churches. But they all claimed to believe in the bible and teach the bible, and always ended up contradicting themselves.

Answer 11

I more I researched religion the more unbelievable I found it. I found no God to be loving or rational.

I was taught in a Catholic school that anyone not Catholic was going to Hell. Luckily, I grew very large and wasn't subject to physical intimidation as I got older.