How do you view a person who decides to give up on any type of religion?

Question

(Assume that this person was once a believer but decides to renounce all of that.)

Answer 1

Okay, Val V...I'm going to give this my best shot, from an open minded perspective.

Here goes.....

What most have already mentioned is that anyone who gives up on a religion is intelligent.

I will argue that it depends on the religion.

Religion is basically where people associate with one another and assemble together. It is in many ways like a labor union, in that people gain recognition and feel bonded through a belief in God and the many themes connected to any particular religion.

When one gives up, as they would with a labor union, it's because something happening within their religion doesn't agree with them.

As more and more "give up", we find that the world becomes more alienated and bitter.

Many people on Yahoo Answers find this web site to be what religion once was. They tend to be sometimes silly or downright disrespectful toward their fellow man, and sometimes outright antagonistic or condemning, in a subtle way.

Now, if you examine some religions, they tend to grow stronger while others grow weaker. This is due primarily to the fact that some religions were recently hit with extreme abuses. i.e. the Catholic religion had it's pervert priests and the muslims have their terrorist sects.

Other groups are doing very well. Some are gaining converts, while newer cults are being created that offer watered down and simplistic ceremonies. Someone seeking a better religion might be tempted to join the newer cults, believing they will get what they've always desired out of religion. Many will be duped.

Certain religions have become power houses for their followers, meaning they have enough clout to get them places to live in, places to worship in, even to the extent of taking over entire communities. One example of this would be the Hasidic Jewish people who virtually own most of some sections of New York City. They build beautiful temples or Synogogues, and congregate usually during the Sabath.

When I visited my relatives on Christmas Eve, I noticed they were mostly not seen, and everything was quiet and dark, while other sections of New York City were bright with Christmas lights on.

This divisiveness is something that haunts my mind in that if you are "blessed' to be with the right religious group, you grow in stature and purpose.

Therefore, I have to conclude that only certain religions do good for their people, while other religions do damage.

Having given my synopsis, I would conclude that anyone who "gives up" obviously didn't find what they were looking for, or had a rude awakening.

Doesn't necessarily mean they were intelligent, just feel lost or not fulfilled.

Answer 2

Renouncing religion is, of course, fully permitted in America, and this is what "freedom" is all about. Hopefully one can do this without being judged. Practically speaking, it is best if one renounces one thing because he/she has found a better thing to take its place. Out nature is to seek out and to strive to achieve some type of perfection. In the area of Spirituality, ones religion is used for this purpose. If it is not working for one, then one is well advised to seek further. The freedom to pursue without fear is the ideal.... and sometimes one who seeks beyond what is customary is criticized. But I personally view such a person as an adventurer, a discoverer, and even a seeker after Truth.

It is not unusual for such a person to initially mistake oneself as an atheist, then upon further discovery proclaim oneself an agnostic, and finally awaken to the concept of pursuing pure Spirituality. In the East this process is known as "enlightenment".

Peace

Answer 3

I do not know. How do you view me? I am a person who chooses not to belong to an organized religion and I suppose you could call me "once a believer" because I was born a Catholic, married a Mormon and investigated every Christian, Buddhist, Jewish etc. etc. religion there is!

I follow the teachings of Jesus and Buddha and other great teachers and I choose a peaceful, non-judgemental, non-prejudice, non-fearing existence that does no harm to anyone and gives love out to all peoples of the world.

I would be interested to know, NO, sorry, of course I know what your view would be. However, you and others have the right to judge if you want to, to fear if you want to, and to blame if you want to. That is what free will is all about, and that is what Jesus' teachings were all about. So you see as long as I know that i am making the right choices for myself, then it does not worry me what others think of me. Oh yes, that is what Jesus thought as well, right?

Answer 4

A person who has been let down by religion, per se. I'd assume that they have given it much thought before coming to that conclusion.

However, I think it is very sad when once-believers get so burned by all the hypocrisy in churches today that they close the door on all contact with their creator.

Answer 5

Does it matter? Everyone has his of her own point of view, own feelings, own beliefs, own likes own dislikes. As long as this person didn't treat me in an unfair way because I choose to 'believe' in whatever it is I choose to believe in, then I don't see why I should treat or think of this person as anything different then just another human being...

If this person once believed in whatever, but has now changed beliefs to nothing, then that is his or her own decision. However, depending on the reasons, I would actually try to talk him or her into going back to his or her beliefs. Regardless of my views on it. There's no reason why because of one little thing, like say... 'God' not being there for this person, that he or she should give up all hope or or faith in this 'God'. And there's certainly no reason to give up all hope, faith, or belief in any religion or anything like that.

I wouldn't view this person any different though. Even if he or she views or treats me different. There's no reason I should return that kind of 'favor', eh?

Answer 6

As one of these people, I view someone who renounces all religion to be empowered, intelligent, and enlightened. I am happy for them.

Most of all: THEY ARE FREE.

John Lennon sings of a world in "Imagine" where there would be no religion. I completely agree and wish this were true.

Answer 7

I believe that the reason a person gives up on religion is because they can't find God in religion. That's the problem with religion, it claims to be something that it's not. Meaning, Christian. The world really would be a lot better off without religion.

Remove the catholic church and islam and you'll have removed 50% of the world problems.

Christianity and religion have nothing in common.

Answer 8

Such a person is very lucky, he found the truth.

He was a believer by chance (by being born as such), but changed the religion by conviction.

Isn't he lucky? He is satisfied with himself and the surroundings. He is no more a hypocrite.

Search and ye shall find the truth. HE searched and fond it

Answer 9

But why did he giveup religion? It depends on why he gave up all religions?

Is it because he read these religions and come to a conclusion that these religions are silly and contradicts itself and were easily be seen as men made up inventions?

If this is the case then this Guy is a true human being with intelligence. If he gaveup because he just gave up then this guy is a failure. I called him a BUM.

Answer 10

There could be a number of ways to view such a person. If they had been a Christian, the first thing that comes to my mind is that they probably were raised by Christian parents and taken to church but God had not yet called them into His family by giving them his Holy Spirit along with the gift of faith.

John 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."

John 6:43 "Stop grumbling among yourselves," Jesus answered. 44 "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.

Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faithand this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

I would guess that they had been "looking into" whether there was anything to this "religious stuff" or not and that they had been disappointed because they had been looking to people instead of being called by God. Maybe the church that person went to was a "dead" church where people went through the rituals but the Spirit of God was not at work there because most of the people there were not called and saved either.

I would invite them to come to my church http://www.alcf.net where God IS at work and where people are getting saved every week and coming to faith by the power of God in our midst. http://web.express56.com/~bromar/