Jump to content
Goodbye Jesus

I'm Doing the Deconversion Thing


Ataraxia

Recommended Posts

Welcome Ataraxia.  Many wonderful folks are members of this forum.  You'll find a variety of opinions, ideas and information.

 

It seems like you have done some excellent work in the intellectual area of deconversion.  The emotional and psychological areas usually follow, with the peer pressure issues bringing up the rear.

 

Just ask away and you'll usually get meaningful responses.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Greetings, and thanks for sharing. Also, welcome to the ranks of the heathens! ;)

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderator

Welcome Ataraxia

 

I think that being at odds with the people you love is one of the hardest parts of deconversion.

 

Now when you hear them talk about non believers, atheists etc, they sometimes forget that you are one and happily chat away about the fate that awaits the ungodly.

 

I hope your family and friends are supportive, but even if not you have us here.

 

LF

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome and good luck on your journey!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Super Moderator

Welcome!

 

The Good News: You'll live through this.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to Ex-C, Ataraxia!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Recently did I see for myself that i'd been deluded on that yearly basis in likeness to you about two months ago. To be a common guest here on days to weeks (though unresponsive) before growth in comfort came were those dueling decisions of finally introducing myself to Ex-C was I able to really grasp my own flaws and accept how tactical it became that I fell prey as well throughout the years. Also just journeying throughout this entire forum did it never require my own input via responsive actions but to simply read another's experience and take in each lesson learned through another's experience. So, very much has it been successfully influencing for me to remain here. Even in the midst of my research was I able to see how fallacious things were while also remembering these overnight shut ins of having to stay in church and pace back and forth between pews and pointlessly pray with strong hopes that changes would someday arrive, give up immense amounts of cash with guilt eating me alive if I didn't give the first week so within was it an instant reminder that I needed to double up on what was given, and the list goes on because of the delusion itself. Very much are you welcomed because well, like us have you awoken and you're able to become whom you truly are without clinging to what is falsified on mental standards which is unfortunate toward today's society. I point this out due to how much of a hindrance it's become for many with how they've never sought to clash with themselves but instead whom they've created themselves being various concepts of what Satan is supposed to be and not at all taking in knowledge that it's instead. .who they are. The point however is that we're all happy that you've walked and you're someone new. Again, welcome and I hope it's a place that further assists in many smiles futuristically for you. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome Ataraxia!

 

As I'm very much a newcomer to the whole 'ex-Christian' thing myself, I'm sure we will have some interesting discussions in the future. Even though I was raised under the Protestant Christian school of thought, I did have a period where I researched Catholicism fairly extensively, so while I may not be an expert on the way things are done from the Vatican, at least I'm not ignorant about it. 

 

One of the things I found most interesting about the Catholic approach to faith was its insistence that the saints continue to intercede for the 'Church Militant' on believers' behalf, this intercession sometimes manifesting as miracles that, at least at that time, seemed to me to be signs that God was still working powerfully in the Catholic Church. At one point I decided to test this out myself and tried talking to Mary a couple of times, along with requesting the assistance of Saint Blaise on one occasion. I probably was doing something wrong from a purely procedural standpoint, but at the time I was definitely sincere. I would read up on stories like the Marian visions at Medjugorje and testimonies of individuals who had converted to Catholicism after receiving their own vision or 'message' from Jesus or Mary, and wonder if perhaps there really was something to Catholics' claims. Let's just say that I wasn't always the most critical thinker back then (I'm still working on it!) Of course now I look back on it all with a fair amount of skepticism, although the miracle claims do make me want to discover what is really going on–as natural an explanation as I can reasonably expect with humanity's limited knowledge, without the extra baggage of bizarre beliefs in the supernatural.

 

Here's hoping your journey from here on is a pleasant one (at least as pleasant as can be expected) and I look forward to seeing you on the forums!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

            Hello all! As I’m new to Ex-C, I thought I would take a moment to introduce myself and give a little background on how I stumbled upon this community.

 

 

 

Greetings. :) Welcome to the site.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

            Hello all! As I’m new to Ex-C, I thought I would take a moment to introduce myself and give a little background on how I stumbled upon this community.

 

 

 

            I grew up as a Roman Catholic in the Bible belt. Ironically, combining my geographical location with my belief system in a way isolated me from the evangelical Christians that inhabit much of the South. Catholics are a minority where I’m from and I would often receive questions such as “Catholics are Christians, right?” or “But, don’t you worship Mary?” This isolation in turn drove me to take refuge in Catholic communities my whole life, which began to determine who most of my friends became. But I digress: this is not a story of being Catholic, but one of becoming a non-believer. I added this anecdotal history merely to show that I am used to the feeling of being isolated when it comes to religion.

 

 

 

            So to begin...fast forward to the end of high school, where I first learned about a branch of thought that seemed terrifying: philosophy. Philosophy was the catalyst for my deconversion by offering me viewpoints differing from my own and forcing me to expand my mind and think critically rather than rely on the thoughts of others. I began to experience doubts about God, and strove towards “proofs” for God to justify my beliefs. Ultimately, all of these proofs failed when I critically examined the arguments they tried to uphold (ontological, cosmological, teleological, moral--I guess). Upon realizing this, the authenticity of the Bible was called into question and I began to recognize its flaws. Then I noticed extreme hypocrisy within the (mostly Catholic) Christians I called my friends; they would glorify teachings of love while doling out hate through much of their wider social discourse. Finally, I began to research the beginnings of religion and started to learn about the psychological tactics religions use to perpetuate indoctrination in order to gain followers.

 

 

 

            With this last point, the veil came away from my eyes and I finally saw truth. The moment of me lifting the veil from my eyes was recent—as in, within the past month, though the journey to this point has been several years. Now, I believe we live in a godless universe. (Most) everyone else I know believes the opposite. I am at odds with most of the people I love and trust and am unsure how to express these feelings. Cue the wonderful thing called the Internet, and my search finding other Christians who have deconverted. That was when I found Ex-C, this wonderful community full of resources and support for anyone who has or currently is undergoing this painful transformation of beliefs and ideals. I am so happy to be here and am willing to learn and listen and grow in my experience!

 

 

 

yup.

That's what done it for this dime-store cowbooy! (the underlined part)

 

Welcome ATA. Hope to see you around here...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you all for the support and welcoming atmosphere! I look forward to many great discussions in the future!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome to the party. This deconversion thing can be a wild ride, but it's worth it. Glad you're out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome from me, too. And I love your screen name. Such an ideal to aim for. But when I first read it, my fading vision thought it read "Akrasia." Bwa ha ha. That shows where my mind is.

 

I hope to hear much more from you.

 

ETA: come on over to the Colosseum and join disillusioned and bornagainathiest and me as we struggle with Aristotle, Thomism, quantum mechanics, and other stuff pertaining to cosmological arguments!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you disillusioned and ficino!

 

 

Welcome from me, too. And I love your screen name. Such an ideal to aim for. But when I first read it, my fading vision thought it read "Akrasia." Bwa ha ha. That shows where my mind is.

 

I hope to hear much more from you.

 

ETA: come on over to the Colosseum and join disillusioned and bornagainathiest and me as we struggle with Aristotle, Thomism, quantum mechanics, and other stuff pertaining to cosmological arguments!

 

And ficino--I"m glad you noticed my screen name! I love the Greeks :)

Coincidentally, I saw the discussion on the cosmological argument and felt entirely overwhelmed! You all have read so much more than me, especially by delving into the science side of things (black holes, quantum mechanics, etc.) I want to contribute but feel I have nothing insightful to add haha but I enjoyed reading the discussion! Would also love book recommendations on the cosmological and similar topics.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Welcome from a repentant member of the Bible Belt. Glad you found this site. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome, welcome. 

You go ahead and do that deconversion thing! ??

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I could not rely on my emotion as I had been a RC for 40 years before I cracked open a bible. Then I spent around 15 years reading history of the Egyptians, Greeks and Rome and all of the ME and other religions.  Finally I ended up reading Atwill's books and studied Josephus as I had read Josephus before a few times, and I noted so many things, so when I got Caesars Messiah that was it for me.  I had to read his books a few times as well. Long process. 

 

I hope you are doing well, for me I was devastated  and to this day, my friends and family do not know. Then again RC do not talk a lot about it, the  converts do though.  I so remember when I was living in the bible belt, how they treated RC's and even  being back in MI, I have some Baptist who come to my door an tell me how I'm not saved.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome @Ataraxia to ExC,

      This site has been most beneficial to me in my deconversion. I know it will be for you also. You'll be glad you came to this conclusion so young ?.

 

DB

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Ata

A suggestion for a book which I found invaluable; In Search Of Schroedingers Cat.

I can't remember the author offhand and it's a few years old but it really lays out the quantum thing in an easy to understand way, insofar as Quantum is easy to understand!

 

Also try Steven Hawkings A Brief History Of Time. Massive bestseller and with good reason.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderator

Welcome to ex- Ata! Thanks for sharing. Looking  forward to hearing  more from you. We understand so keep posting! Glad to have you here!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Guidelines.