to exchristians turned atheist: Do you recall what prompted your change?

Question

As a youth i was a full of religious zeal. And i recall to this day reading the bible constantly and voraciously.

I would read and read and hope to understand more of gods will and then one little thing hit me.

Giants.

I started trying to understand this idea that giants (people that exceeded 15 feet in height) existed and i came to the conclusion that it was probably a exaggeration.

And then it all hit me like a ton of bricks, i started paying attention to the contradictions and that i had seen before and stopped ignoring them. Instead of trying to get a better understanding of god, i think i tried to get a better understanding of the bible itself.

I do sometimes miss the idea of a god type figure, but you gotta grow up sometimes i suppose.

My advice to any christian that wants to remain one.. DO NOT READ THE BIBLE, if you are a logical person your fall from grace is all but assured.

Answer 1

That's the beauty of it all, though. Most are not logical, and they will never come to such a realization.

My own change? I came to terms with my mortality on my own, and so I no longer needed religion. I don't happen to be an espeically needy person either, so I don't require the false comfort it offers.

Answer 2

Okay, I know this question isn't directed to me, but I must answer.

Contradictions in the Bible... I once was scared to touch the subject. I mean, errors in the Word of God? Unthinkable! But I understand more now.

I'll try to break this down...

I believe that the original text of the Bible was inspired by God.

But there are different translations of the Bible. You didn't say which you used, but given the fact that the King James Version is probably still the dominant version, let's start there. It is not without flaws. There are things in it that reflect the culture of those who translated it. There's other translations... many of them. Some are pretty far from the original languages; others are word-for-word translations.

Moving on to the issue of contradictions... by comparing and contrasting two translations of the Bible (for example, the ASV and the NIV), you will find that there are very few differences between them. Why is this important? Well, it proves that there is consistency between translations and lets you know that there is a common source that they are derived from.

The more I study and learn about the Bible, the more it makes sense. Although there are periods of doubt and questioning, I am always brought back to faith and knowledge. My faith is stronger than it was in those days when I first considered the idea that the Bible might not be trustworthy.

I don't want to give too long of an answer, but there is much more to be said. If you will, check out the following websites.

http://www.christian-thinktank.com/
http://www.ovrlnd.com/
http://net-burst.net/search.htm

God bless.

Answer 3

I started my life as a Southern Baptist. While I was young I questioned all the bible stories...would argue with Sunday School teachers about whether the stoires were true or not. My favorite story to argue about was the one where Jesus fed the thousands on a few loaves of bread and a few fish. Even my 7 year old mind could not comprehend that as being true. As I got older and started trying to live a christian life I would pray and actively seek out the holy spirit. I went to different churches trying to find a place to fit in. After several years of struggling with my ever growing disbelief and feeling of hopelessness...I finally came to the conclusion that I was an atheist. At first I identified myself as an agnostic, but after a short time I realized that I didn't question the existance of a god, I just didn't believe.

Answer 4

The bible sunk my faith to - in a way. I turned atheist before I returned to a type of theism. Very different then Christianity.

I started having problems with Paul. Then I started reading the Old Testament - and not understanding how Christians got the prophecies they got. Well, I could understand how, but logically it didn't make sense. It was like trying to prove something you already believe. So of course you would look for anything confirming this.

Then everything sort of fell in on top of itself.

Fortunately the real God - not the picture we like to believe - whacked me over the head. Otherwise I don't know if I ever would have gotten over the betrayal I felt.

Answer 5

I never really converted to Christianity but I tried very hard at one point. The main thing that stopped me was thinking about all the thousands of other religions in this world. It made more sense to me that they're ALL wrong; it seemed pretty absurd that there's only one narrow path to heaven and the other 9,999 paths (billions and billions of people) are all going to the fire. I mean, if the God of Christianity exists, why do we even HAVE things like Islam, or Hinduism, or Buddhism, or Zoroastrianism? It just doesn't add up.

Answer 6

My apostasy was a journey, not a revelation. It took me several years of study, research, self-doubt and reflection before I came to where I am. That was over 30 years ago, and I never looked back, and I have never regretted it.
BTW, I was raised a Catholic. To tell the truth, I was always doubtful about it, even when I was a kid. I could never understand why those nuns were always so angry, if they were truly happy with their lives. That was where the real questions started.

Answer 7

I remeber it quite well, it was a little bok called "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life'.

Answer 8

when I became a WWII buff and learned that the Vatican took money to hide some of the most horrific criminals in Argentina I knew the God had failed. It's all about money, or young boys. My eighteen years of Irish Catholic upbringing went out the window in a split second. It was easy. There is noone that ever came back to prove what the church had to promise was true. I remain,

a happy Pagan

Answer 9

Inequality and injustice. Man's inhumanity to man, and animal. The loyalty and compassion of animals, and what makes us better than them. As a catholic child, I questioned why an all knowing God needed me to confess my sins through an intercessor. Religion is man made. Spirituality is what some people believe as a force, power, etc.

Answer 10

It was my scary stallker pastor trying to actually get me to read the Bible. After I read it, I was so scared by all the blood, gore, contradictions and just silliness in the Bible.