Atheists, are your children atheist?

Question

Aren't you guilty then of indoctrinating your kiddies just like Christians? Let the children think!

Answer 1

Oh, I'm with you on that one!

I'm an atheist, my son was certainly born as one too - as we all are.

But I plan to teach him that there are people who believe in God, to present the concept of religion to him, to give him acess to religious books. Then he can make up his mind.

But I also plan to supply him with loads of science books as well and to make it known that Mommy believes there is no God.

Answer 2

well while I am not an Atheist my fiance is. We have discussed this topic about when we have children. I am a pagan and we had to decide how we were going to raise our children. We easily settled on raising them to have religious tolerance towards every religion. To understand that religion is personal and does not necessarily involve any specific name or group. We have decided that when our kids are old enough to we will ensure that they have access to any religious book they wish and they can also ask either of us any question they wish regarding our own beliefs. Then they can choose to be whatever they wish to be. This is how I was raised and how my fiance was raised. and what a surprise we both turned out to be decent people who do not discriminate against anyone regardless of race, gender, religion, sexuality, etc. When Christians start preaching love towards ALL humans not just the ones that are exactly like them then perhaps there will no longer be arguments between Christians and everyone else.

Answer 3

Teaching children to develop sound opinions based on the information at hand is something all families should do. It is not indoctrination.

The thing about atheist families is that they do not insist that their children belief as they do. They leave that up to their children. If their kids are atheists, it's because they chose to be or they have not yet made up their minds about spirituality (more agnostic, then).

I think it's ridiculous to think a child (0-16 years) can truly decide what spiritual philosophies make the most sense to them anyway. The atheists just give their kids room to explore.

Answer 4

There was an old Jeiwsh saying "Ask a child of 8 days about G-d, and that child will know more than the scholar.

I always watch how children differ much from the parents, almost as aid to the parents. As the Children can see the problems of the elders and help them overcome them silently.

Answer 5

I cant bring my child up outside of my own viewpoint on any subject - religious or not. We are all guilty of indoctrinating our children in one way or another, it's impossible not to.

But I will respect his right to choose what he believes for himself when he is old enough to do so. And in the meantime I'll answer any questions he might have as fairly as I can.

Answer 6

Pretty hilarious that "kids are born atheist"! Is it any more impossible to be born with a set of atheistic beliefs (and they are beliefs, just as much as the hated Christianity is) than Christian ones? Isn't this a totally unscientific approach to life -- I can't experience something, so it must not exist? Atheism is anti-intellectual -- agnosticism is an honest position to take.

Wow, such "freethinkers"!

Answer 7

im an atheist and my parents are atheist too
there is no problem with being an atheist
we just simply dont belive in god religion cause wars and none of you religious freaks have any proof of god's existance the bible is a book written by HUMANS (the romans)

Answer 8

My daughter's current theology is: "I'm not sure if there's a god. But I believe in him anyway."

She goes to Catholic school, so she hears a lot of god-talk every day. She only hears about atheism when she asks me specific questions, which she does on occasion.

She loves to hear stories about mythology -- Greek, Egyptian, Norse, etc. Occasionally she makes the connection that the stories I tell and the stories the teachers tell are not intrinsically different. I just smile.

Answer 9

Two of my children are Atheists the other believes in god. All three went to church with their father when they were younger. They were given the choice to opt out of church at 15.

Investigating the various belief systems is by far more an Atheist thing than it is Christian.

Answer 10

She is four. The only time I have ever discussed it with her was when she asked me what a church was for. I told her people go there to worship their god. She thought about it and asked if god was real. I said some people think so, but I don't. She then said that was silly.

See...we don't have to indoctrinate our kids. If you don't bring it up at all they are atheists.

Answer 11

Children are born without belief; thus, atheists. There's no indoctrination required, unlike Christianity.