Admin webmdave Posted September 25, 2006 Admin Share Posted September 25, 2006 An ex-Christian writes a letter to his Christian mom. http://exchristian.net/exchristian/2006/09/dear-mom.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgnosticBob AtheistPants Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Wow...I just about cried with him. I'll never understand how christians can be so heartless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taphophilia Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 All of his videos are very powerful and very moving. They convey exactly what he wants them to say and how he wants them to say it. Anger, pain, rage at Christianity for everything it has stolen from him are all there. I cannot help but identify with them. Before he posted this one, I wrote to him and asked him to come to Ex-C. He said he'd check it out. When I saw his vids, I got the feeling he is exactly the kind of person Dave created this site for. Taph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgnosticBob AtheistPants Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 All of his videos are very powerful and very moving. They convey exactly what he wants them to say and how he wants them to say it. Anger, pain, rage at Christianity for everything it has stolen from him are all there. I cannot help but identify with them. Before he posted this one, I wrote to him and asked him to come to Ex-C. He said he'd check it out. When I saw his vids, I got the feeling he is exactly the kind of person Dave created this site for. Taph I'm going to have to look into this YouTube thing more deeply. I just don't like doing it at work (Big Brother is watching) and when I'm home, I want to play and forget about the worries of the day. What can I say? I'm just a big kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Los Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 Wow, I can't believe a mother could not accept the way he's son is, that's really sad. =/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pandora Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 While my husband's mother still speaks to him, she does remind him every chance she gets that he's going to hell, what pain this causes her, and that he's possessed by demons, it's not his fault, he just needs faith, he'll come back someday, etc... ad nauseum. I really feel for him, and for the guy who made that video. It tears my husband apart, and he really has considered faking it for her sake, and he has tried so many times to make the topic taboo, but she keeps mailing him books and giving him cards and giving him sermon videos, and she gets so offended if he doesn't discuss it with her. It's insane... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taphophilia Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 My mom tells me that I'm mad at god. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Los Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 My mom tells me that I'm mad at god. Yeah, my mom tells me the same. She's like "You'll see that when the water's on your neck, you'll be asking God for forgiveness" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizard Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 How sad..I'd like to slap the mother..poor guy..I could NOT do that to any of my children.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taphophilia Posted September 25, 2006 Share Posted September 25, 2006 He says that he was a Southern Baptist minister. He was raised Christian. He personally baptised three of his four kids. Prayed for sinners, taught his children to pray, and argued with atheists. His search for truth has led to a divorce, estrangement from family and friends, a relocation, and of course, he's had to find other employment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R. S. Martin Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 He says that he was a Southern Baptist minister. He was raised Christian. He personally baptised three of his four kids. Prayed for sinners, taught his children to pray, and argued with atheists. His search for truth has led to a divorce, estrangement from family and friends, a relocation, and of course, he's had to find other employment. Is this the person who goes by the name ridiot? I listened to a few of his videos and also contacted him. He says in one video that he could have been a rock star. I think that is what he would have liked in his deepest heart of hearts. He is now using this vendue as an outlet for his talent. That is how I see it. I really like his voice. I think he has talent. I also think that it is not too late in life to start over and I believe he will eventually do so. He just needs to "find his feet." How can a mother do this to her child? Maybe I am not qualified to speak but I think there are worse ways to treat your children. He at least knows where the line is. My mother pretends to love me and if I happen not to enjoy the hatred that is called love, then it is up to me to set boundaries. And I have set boundaries. Pandora, you talk about the horrible ways your mother-in-law treats your husband, her son. It's his choice but I would not put up with it. I told my family "no more letters and phone calls like this." They know if they want any relationship with me at all they have to comply. I guess this works only if he doesn't really want a relationship, which is how I felt. The relationship had been abusive all my life. It must be much different for people who come from loving families. I just wish there were a way to end this painful treatment and all I know is what I said here. I don't know if that works for anyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Variable Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 It was absolutely beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgnosticBob AtheistPants Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 It was absolutely beautiful. I agree. It was extremely moving. I was a bit pissed off to read some of the comments posted under the video on the Ex-C site. Where do people get off calling him melodramatic? FUCK them. This guy has got some serious PAIN in his life due to his decision to leave Christianity. Having your mother essentially DISOWN you and tell you she is now only your BIRTH MOTHER based solely on the fact that you can no longer believe in a fairy tale has got to be a devastating experience. I sent the video to my mom (who is Christian) and thanked her for not doing to me what ridiot's mother has done to him. My mom knows where I stand with regard to Christianity and she accepts that fact. She doesn't proselytize and she loves me just the same. I am one of the lucky one's in that respect I guess. I can somewhat relate to ridiot's experience. I may not have been QUITE as involved as he was, but I thought about becoming a minister. I never actually went through with it though. I'm not much on public speaking so I wouldn't have been very good at it. My family and friends didn't disown me (well, at least not the friends that were MY friends and not my ex-wife's). However, my deconversion has led to a divorce, a relocation and separation from my children. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Variable Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 I was a bit pissed off to read some of the comments posted under the video on the Ex-C site. Where do people get off calling him melodramatic? FUCK them Diddo. I hate to add fuel to the, "you were never a Christian in the first place argument", but when I see THOSE people making comments like that, I seriously doubt they were ever devout believers. A person who TRULY believed what Christianity teaches and then comes to know it as a farce will feel pain they didn't know existed. And that is without all the "family baggage". That primary purpose of ex-c is not to bash Christianity, though that may be a sub-purpose, but to provide support and comfort to those escaping. Some people coming on to this website are suicidal. It's not a joke. Agnosticatheistpants= I was looking at your profile. I am also an ex-pentecostal. Hail, bro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taphophilia Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Diddo. I hate to add fuel to the, "you were never a Christian in the first place argument", *Snipped to help conserve bandwidth* I was thinking the same exact thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R. S. Martin Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 I was a bit pissed off to read some of the comments posted under the video on the Ex-C site. Where do people get off calling him melodramatic? FUCK them Diddo. I hate to add fuel to the, "you were never a Christian in the first place argument", but when I see THOSE people making comments like that, I seriously doubt they were ever devout believers. A person who TRULY believed what Christianity teaches and then comes to know it as a farce will feel pain they didn't know existed. And that is without all the "family baggage". That primary purpose of ex-c is not to bash Christianity, though that may be a sub-purpose, but to provide support and comfort to those escaping. Some people coming on to this website are suicidal. It's not a joke. Agnosticatheistpants= I was looking at your profile. I am also an ex-pentecostal. Hail, bro! Thank you for understanding and explaining. Thngs happened to me on the physical level that I didn't understand. It was back in 1999 and I'm only beginning to feel able to look at it. Your explanation about THOSE people is also helpful. I didn't think I was a real Chrisitan because I always had deep doubts/questions. But I was sincere about the faith I had and trusted I would find the answers someday. I know how people feel about those who leave. It seems totally justified to feel that way while one is inside and secure. But I don't understand ex-christians who bash a person like ridiot. Are they just acting tough because they can't face their own pain? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piprus Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Watching the video made me feel thankful that I was never in this young man's situation. I cannot imagine being rejected to the point of being reduced to a non-entity in the eyes of one's mother. But what shocked me more were some of the bloggers' derisive comments...I didn't expect that from a site devoted to encouraging those who have left christianity. What if that person happens on this site and reads those comments? How would he feel then about joining in with a group he thought could be supportive? What if he had posted his testimony live? Would those same people have responded in the same way? Some of the testimonies posted here have been at least as heart-wrenching, yet responders always hold out a hand of welcome. Why did this video evoke such derisiveness? Those people should be ashamed of themselves. Even if that's the impression one gets, sometimes there are things best left unsaid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taphophilia Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Do you think it has anyting to do with how emotion and crying are viewed by society especially when men convey them? What if ridiot were a woman, do you think those responses would have been different? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piprus Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Do you think it has anyting to do with how emotion and crying are viewed by society especially when men convey them? What if ridiot were a woman, do you think those responses would have been different? Sadly, Taph, I think so. There is still that perception that men should just swallow their emotions, and especially in such a very public forum. What if it were me? I probably would not have posted it to the public. But that's me. I just feel that if a man is negatively impressed by another's emotional expression, there's no good purpose served by invalidating him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wade Posted September 27, 2006 Share Posted September 27, 2006 I was also suprised by the comments. I thought he represented the exact reason for this website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhia Posted September 28, 2006 Share Posted September 28, 2006 I haven't cried so hard at a youtube video ever. I feel so horrible for him. Why does it seem that the religious are the ones who claim WE don't have morals- that they raise their children "right", and love them, etc, etc- are willing to throw in the towel and be so cruel- but the general concensus here would rather chew off their arms than do that to their children? Where the hell is the justice here? He deserves more in life than what is going on right now- that's his mother! She's supposed to be a comforting aspect in his life! Whatever happened to the concept of "I love you forever"? (Children book) Grrrr! That makes me so angry that he even HAS to put up the video to express his love for his mother, and that some of the others reading it had little to no compassion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KT45 Posted September 30, 2006 Share Posted September 30, 2006 This video is extremely hard to watch and hits very close to home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KT45 Posted October 1, 2006 Share Posted October 1, 2006 I just got into some stupid debate with my father about if the guy on the video was acting or not. He said he is "suspect to acting" because a mother's love is too strong to not talk to her son. I tried to tell him he has no real basis for disbelieving the information presented in the video and that many mothers that do in fact hate their kids...... Funny thing is that if it was a Muslim mom rejecting her christian son he wouldn't question its validity at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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