You're Kidding Me... Right?

[Ravenstar]

Wait a second.. didn't the christian say he/she was interested in why people leave the church?  Could it be.. just maybe, because of this proof thing?

 

just sayin'  

[directionless]

Hope you all have a nice day and thanks for the stimulating conversation.

I hope you decide to continue to participate. Your experiences sound very interesting. Just my two cents.

[mymistake]

Yes, I know you think I'm crazy, but I am not here to prove these things are real, you asked. I am

only here to read testimony on why people leave the faith.

 

 

I find your attitude to be very refreshing.  Welcome to the forum!  I'm sorry if there was some hostility.  I like to toy with Christians in chat but it's just meant for fun.  If I was the one who offended you then I apologize.

 

 

To answer your question I left Christianity shortly after the Haiti Earthquake in 2010.  I was ashamed and embarrassed by the way Christian leaders responded to the tragedy and that was the last straw.  From that day forward I could not identify myself with that religion.  It was just one point on my long journey from a devout fundamentalist Christian to a hard atheist.  After leaving Christianity I continued to have faith for a while which slowly dwindled away into a form of deism near the end.

 

 

As for Christians INO vs. true Christians I'm afraid your beliefs have mislead you regarding the meaning of "true Christian".  Christianity is too big to be owned just by your particular flavor of it.  So in reality those you see as being "in name only" are just as Christian as you are.  I expect you will not agree and that is fine with me.

[RipVanWinkle]

"Have you ever seen a million dollars? Just because you haven't, does that mean it doesn't exist."

 

 

angelus5370: Do you want to know why this statement draws an illogical conclusion? If you don't, why don't you ask for an explanation?

If you do know, why did you make the statement? Your statement is similar to those made by christians all the time and they never are interested in knowing why they are fallacious. Does that suggest anything to you?  As to your claimed observations of miracles, do you believe that anyone should take your word for it and give their whole life to christ based on it? Do you think god could, with all his knowledge and power figure out a better way to communicate his miracles to those who don't think it is reasonable to accept the word of mere humans?   bill

[midniterider]

Great speech, although I hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't come here to SAVE nor CONVERT anyone. It would be a

waste of my precious time and energy. The members on this site are aware of the Bible, been Christians, and decided to walk away, you have made the choice, so what is it to me? I only came here to read the forums and obtain information for myself. I started in the chat room the first night I was approved and met with such hostility it was down right funny. I never said anything about saving nor converting, but this member cursed me and called me a liar. Yes, I believe almost all of the things you mentioned, but I have seen with my own eyes many supernatural occurrences and have strong faith. I didn't come here to mock nor judge, I came here to educate myself. Do you know there are more Christians in name only and have a lack of faith, then true Christians? I am only looking for heartfelt conversation with the members here as to what was the turning point for them to leave Christianity. Thank you.

Debbie

 

Turning point was feeling like I was in a mind prison. See (Matthew 5:27-30). Thought crime is absurd. I told God goodbye when I was tired of feeling bad about thoughts that are normal and natural.

[angelus5370]

 

"Have you ever seen a million dollars? Just because you haven't, does that mean it doesn't exist."

 

 

angelus5370: Do you want to know why this statement draws an illogical conclusion? If you don't, why don't you ask for an explanation?

If you do know, why did you make the statement? Your statement is similar to those made by christians all the time and they never are interested in knowing why they are fallacious. Does that suggest anything to you?  As to your claimed observations of miracles, do you believe that anyone should take your word for it and give their whole life to christ based on it? Do you think god could, with all his knowledge and power figure out a better way to communicate his miracles to those who don't think it is reasonable to accept the word of mere humans?   bill

 

I don't expect anyone to believe me about the supernatural things I have seen, I was just answering his question and I certainly don't need anyone to believe me, because I don't care if anyone does.

[mymistake]

 

 

I don't expect anyone to believe me about the supernatural things I have seen, I was just answering his question and I certainly don't need anyone to believe me, because I don't care if anyone does.

 

 

 

Wonderful!  As long and you don't harm anybody else you can believe any religion your heart desires.

[angelus5370]

 

Yes, I know you think I'm crazy, but I am not here to prove these things are real, you asked. I am

only here to read testimony on why people leave the faith.

 

 

I find your attitude to be very refreshing.  Welcome to the forum!  I'm sorry if there was some hostility.  I like to toy with Christians in chat but it's just meant for fun.  If I was the one who offended you then I apologize.

 

 

To answer your question I left Christianity shortly after the Haiti Earthquake in 2010.  I was ashamed and embarrassed by the way Christian leaders responded to the tragedy and that was the last straw.  From that day forward I could not identify myself with that religion.  It was just one point on my long journey from a devout fundamentalist Christian to a hard atheist.  After leaving Christianity I continued to have faith for a while which slowly dwindled away into a form of deism near the end.

 

 

As for Christians INO vs. true Christians I'm afraid your beliefs have mislead you regarding the meaning of "true Christian".  Christianity is too big to be owned just by your particular flavor of it.  So in reality those you see as being "in name only" are just as Christian as you are.  I expect you will not agree and that is fine with me.

 

Thank you for answering me directly about why you left. These Christian leaders must have acted very badly for you to feel ashamed and embarrassed. I was in the same position in Africa and was very upset that the missionaries were pushing the Bible down the Muslims throats. If they say no, it means no but they kept pushing until the man took the Bible, at his wife's insistence, and he threw it at his wife. It upset me because I knew his wife would receive ill treatment because of it.

[Ralet]

Great speech, although I hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't come here to SAVE nor CONVERT anyone. It would be a

waste of my precious time and energy. The members on this site are aware of the Bible, been Christians,  and decided to walk away,  you have made the choice, so what is it to me? I only came here to read the forums and obtain information for myself. I started in the chat room the first night I was approved and met with such hostility it was down right funny. I never said anything about saving nor converting, but this member cursed me and called me a liar. Yes, I believe almost all of the things you mentioned, but I have seen with my own eyes many supernatural occurrences and have strong faith. I didn't come here to mock nor judge, I came here to educate myself. Do you know there are more Christians in name only and have a lack of faith, then true Christians? I am only looking for heartfelt conversation with the members here as to what was the turning point for them to leave Christianity. Thank you.

Debbie

Welcome, Debbie. I like your attitude, most christian come here to "save" us and forget that we alreadys know most of the arguements that they are going to use.

I dont like that you think that decoverting is always an active choice. Not everybody wanted to "rebell against god" or just decided to not believe. Some of us wanted to believe, wanted to find answers to our questions, answers that are in line with our faith and not destroy it, but at one point ended up with the idea "what if it all doesn't make sense, because it isn't real".

You can read some posts on this topic here: http://www.ex-christian.net/topic/57910-the-idea-that-we-choose-not-to-believe/

 

If you are interested in deconversion stories, you should watch the one by evid3nc3:http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA0C3C1D163BE880A

[Deva]

Great speech, although I hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't come here to SAVE nor CONVERT anyone. It would be a

waste of my precious time and energy.

Thank you for realizing that Debbie.  I wish more Christians had that realization.

 

The basic reason I left Christianity was that I was raised with a form of Christianity that denied the proven facts of science. There was a basic contradiction between what was taught in church and what has been long known and discovered by science.

 

It is hard to say what would have happened if I had been raised with a more liberal form of Christianity.

[directionless]

I have seen Christ at 23 years old, a demon at 36 years old, and now anoint houses with

demonic oppression. A door sail across the room off the hinges and no one there. These

are but a few things and no I have no proof, other than I witnessed these things first hand.

I speak for myself when I say these things showed me there are two sides of a coin.

I'm curious about the door. Did it return to normal at the end of the experience? Did anybody else see it and do they still remember it? You can actually hallucinate other people as witnesses of these events. Of course accepting that these experiences were hallucinations does not mean they aren't spiritual. Maybe God and demons talk to us through hallucinations?

 

I gave up Christianity twice. The first time I was seeking evidence of the Holy Spirit to counter my doubts, and I never got that evidence. The second time (20 years later) I started experiencing things like that door that flew off the hinges. So I thought I had evidence that Christianity was true after all. But my experiences were confusing theologically. I had a growing feeling that something was seriously wrong. So after 2 years I quit going to church and started reading about other possible explanations. Finally I happened to mention these things to a therapist and she told me I probably was having psychosis. So far that is the best explanation although I'm not entirely convinced.

[angelus5370]

 

Great speech, although I hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't come here to SAVE nor CONVERT anyone. It would be a

waste of my precious time and energy. The members on this site are aware of the Bible, been Christians,  and decided to walk away,  you have made the choice, so what is it to me? I only came here to read the forums and obtain information for myself. I started in the chat room the first night I was approved and met with such hostility it was down right funny. I never said anything about saving nor converting, but this member cursed me and called me a liar. Yes, I believe almost all of the things you mentioned, but I have seen with my own eyes many supernatural occurrences and have strong faith. I didn't come here to mock nor judge, I came here to educate myself. Do you know there are more Christians in name only and have a lack of faith, then true Christians? I am only looking for heartfelt conversation with the members here as to what was the turning point for them to leave Christianity. Thank you.

Debbie

Welcome, Debbie. I like your attitude, most christian come here to "save" us and forget that we alreadys know most of the arguements that they are going to use.

I dont like that you think that decoverting is always an active choice. Not everybody wanted to "rebell against god" or just decided to not believe. Some of us wanted to believe, wanted to find answers to our questions, answers that are in line with our faith and not destroy it, but at one point ended up with the idea "what if it all doesn't make sense, because it isn't real".

You can read some posts on this topic here: http://www.ex-christian.net/topic/57910-the-idea-that-we-choose-not-to-believe/

 

If you are interested in deconversion stories, you should watch the one by evid3nc3:http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA0C3C1D163BE880A

 

I thank you for seeing the point I was trying to make. Witnessing is for people who don't know Jesus Christ, not ex-Christians who are well aware of what a Christian walk is like, been there, and done that. Thank you also for links to posts I can read for more de-conversion stories and for your insight re-guarding the subject on faith.. I hope I get to talk to you again.

Debbie

[angelus5370]

 

Great speech, although I hate to burst your bubble, but I didn't come here to SAVE nor CONVERT anyone. It would be a

waste of my precious time and energy.

Thank you for realizing that Debbie.  I wish more Christians had that realization.

 

The basic reason I left Christianity was that I was raised with a form of Christianity that denied the proven facts of science. There was a basic contradiction between what was taught in church and what has been long known and discovered by science.

 

It is hard to say what would have happened if I had been raised with a more liberal form of Christianity.

 

I have always tried to live my life with showing respect to others thoughts and feelings. Being a nurse, I studied all forms of religion so that I could be respectful to their religious traditions while they were under my care. I have always been respected by my peers and have had meaningful discussions on all forms of religion without getting into a nasty debate about who is right or wrong. I thank you for your understanding and insight.

Debbie

[angelus5370]

 

I have seen Christ at 23 years old, a demon at 36 years old, and now anoint houses with

demonic oppression. A door sail across the room off the hinges and no one there. These

are but a few things and no I have no proof, other than I witnessed these things first hand.

I speak for myself when I say these things showed me there are two sides of a coin.

I'm curious about the door. Did it return to normal at the end of the experience? Did anybody else see it and do they still remember it? You can actually hallucinate other people as witnesses of these events. Of course accepting that these experiences were hallucinations does not mean they aren't spiritual. Maybe God and demons talk to us through hallucinations?

 

I gave up Christianity twice. The first time I was seeking evidence of the Holy Spirit to counter my doubts, and I never got that evidence. The second time (20 years later) I started experiencing things like that door that flew off the hinges. So I thought I had evidence that Christianity was true after all. But my experiences were confusing theologically. I had a growing feeling that something was seriously wrong. So after 2 years I quit going to church and started reading about other possible explanations. Finally I happened to mention these things to a therapist and she told me I probably was having psychosis. So far that is the best explanation although I'm not entirely convinced.

 

Hi Directionless,

Why is it every time you tell someone about supernatural experiences they want to label it as some sort of mental problem? Every thing in this world does not fit into a cozy little text book description. It's either black or white, there are no grey areas. Some people do not believe in the supernatural, I however do because I have witnessed it. The funny part about that door was my son and I could not get that door open, even with a crow bar, until it blew off the hinges and landed across the room. I put it back on the hinges while I anointed the house, but there was far more activity in the house besides the door. My son and daughter-in-law also witnessed these things and they are die hard skeptics, but it scared them enough to want the house blessed. I knew of some activity, but wanted my family to witness it before I would anoint the house because telling them would not be enough.

[bornagainathiest]

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

 

 

[angelus5370]

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

[Ralet]

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

that is an interesting question. it is the same phenomenon with near-death-experiences.reports of people that claim to have had one have similar details like light/darkness  deep contentment/ fear but depending on their religion they interpreted them differently.

you say you saw christ, but how do you know it wasn't Mohamed, a ghost or something else?

[angelus5370]

 

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

that is an interesting question. it is the same phenomenon with near-death-experiences.reports of people that claim to have had one have similar details like light/darkness  deep contentment/ fear but depending on their religion they interpreted them differently.

you say you saw christ, but how do you know it wasn't Mohamed, a ghost or something else?

 

I know

[bornagainathiest]

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

 

It's a hypothetical question, Debbie.

 

It asks you to hypothetically suppose the following...

 

1.  That you were born in Saudi Arabia and not America.

2.  That you were raised a Muslim and believe in Allah and not Jesus, in the prophet Mohammed and in the Quran, not the Bible.

3.  That you believe in the invisible, evil spirits (djinn) described in the Quran.

 

Taking these three points into account, I'm asking if you would therefore attribute your supernatural experiences (e.g., the door) to the work of the djinn.  (Yes or No)

 

Please remember when answering, that your frame of reference for understanding this supernatural event is a purely Muslim one.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

 

 

p.s.

Btw, if your answer is in the negative I'd be interested to know why that is.

[angelus5370]

 

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

 

It's a hypothetical question, Debbie.

 

It asks you to hypothetically suppose the following...

 

1.  That you were born in Saudi Arabia and not America.

2.  That you were raised a Muslim and believe in Allah and not Jesus, in the prophet Mohammed and in the Quran, not the Bible.

3.  That you believe in the invisible, evil spirits (djinn) described in the Quran.

 

Taking these three points into account, I'm asking if you would therefore attribute your supernatural experiences (e.g., the door) to the work of the djinn.  (Yes or No)

 

Please remember when answering, that your frame of reference for understanding this supernatural event is a purely Muslim one.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

 

 

p.s.

Btw, if your answer is in the negative I'd be interested to know why that is.

 

Hypothetically if I were raised Muslim and a woman, I do not know if I would have access to read the Quran to be knowledgeable about anything in the book. Any information contained in the Quran would have to come from my male relatives, which I assume would only be the core beliefs of the Islam faith.  Since the djinn is either a good or bad spirit and believed to be able to possess humans, I would think Muslim women would be aware of him and yes, would therefore believe in this genie and attribute supernatural experiences to him.

Now, please tell me what this has to do with my situation, because it certainly was not a genie in a bottle?

[bornagainathiest]

 

 

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

 

It's a hypothetical question, Debbie.

 

It asks you to hypothetically suppose the following...

 

1.  That you were born in Saudi Arabia and not America.

2.  That you were raised a Muslim and believe in Allah and not Jesus, in the prophet Mohammed and in the Quran, not the Bible.

3.  That you believe in the invisible, evil spirits (djinn) described in the Quran.

 

Taking these three points into account, I'm asking if you would therefore attribute your supernatural experiences (e.g., the door) to the work of the djinn.  (Yes or No)

 

Please remember when answering, that your frame of reference for understanding this supernatural event is a purely Muslim one.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

 

 

p.s.

Btw, if your answer is in the negative I'd be interested to know why that is.

 

Hypothetically if I were raised Muslim and a woman, I do not know if I would have access to read the Quran to be knowledgeable about anything in the book. Any information contained in the Quran would have to come from my male relatives, which I assume would only be the core beliefs of the Islam faith.  Since the djinn is either a good or bad spirit and believed to be able to possess humans, I would think Muslim women would be aware of him and yes, would therefore believe in this genie and attribute supernatural experiences to him.

Now, please tell me what this has to do with my situation, because it certainly was not a genie in a bottle?

 

 

What has my question to do with your situation?

 

This, Debbie.

 

I contend that the culture we are raised in and our religious beliefs profoundly influence the conclusions we arrive at when trying to understand something beyond our normal experiences, i.e., the supernatural. Because your background is a Christian one this predisposes you to interpret such events in terms of Christianity.  Since the Bible speaks of and warns against demons - you therefore see demons.   You readily attribute these supernatural events to their activity because your mind operates exculsively within a Christian frame of reference. 

 

If you were a Muslim you'd interpret things thru a Quranic lens and attest to having seen an evil Djinn.  If you were a Hindu your mind would work within that particular frame of reference and you'd say that you saw a Rakshasa (an unrighteous spirit). Conversely, I think it highly unlikely that a Muslim would think outside their own particular Quranic 'box' and conclude they'd seen a Hindu spirit, as described in the Ramayana. Nor would a Hindu be very likely to think in Christian terms and conclude that they'd seen one of Satan's demons.

 

Now I note that you appear to agree with my contention - that each of us interprets our experiences according to the reference points of our respective cultures and beliefs.  That being so, this prompts me to ask you another question.  You say that you know it wasn't a djinn (genie).

.

.

.

How do you know this?.

.

.

.

Thanks,

 

BAA.

[angelus5370]

 

 

 

 

Hello Debbie.

 

I've read thru your posts and would like to ask a hypothetical question.

 

If this weren't the US, but Saudi Arabia and you were a devout Muslim, believing in Allah and his prophet, Mohammed, wouldn't you be attributing these supernatural experiences to the work of Iblis, the evil djinn of the Quran? 

 

If not, I'd be interested to hear why think that wouldn't be so.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA

???????????????????????

 

 

It's a hypothetical question, Debbie.

 

It asks you to hypothetically suppose the following...

 

1.  That you were born in Saudi Arabia and not America.

2.  That you were raised a Muslim and believe in Allah and not Jesus, in the prophet Mohammed and in the Quran, not the Bible.

3.  That you believe in the invisible, evil spirits (djinn) described in the Quran.

 

Taking these three points into account, I'm asking if you would therefore attribute your supernatural experiences (e.g., the door) to the work of the djinn.  (Yes or No)

 

Please remember when answering, that your frame of reference for understanding this supernatural event is a purely Muslim one.

 

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

 

 

p.s.

Btw, if your answer is in the negative I'd be interested to know why that is.

 

Hypothetically if I were raised Muslim and a woman, I do not know if I would have access to read the Quran to be knowledgeable about anything in the book. Any information contained in the Quran would have to come from my male relatives, which I assume would only be the core beliefs of the Islam faith.  Since the djinn is either a good or bad spirit and believed to be able to possess humans, I would think Muslim women would be aware of him and yes, would therefore believe in this genie and attribute supernatural experiences to him.

Now, please tell me what this has to do with my situation, because it certainly was not a genie in a bottle?

 

 

What has my question to do with your situation?

 

This, Debbie.

 

I contend that the culture we are raised in and our religious beliefs profoundly influence the conclusions we arrive at when trying to understand something beyond our normal experiences, i.e., the supernatural. Because your background is a Christian one this predisposes you to interpret such events in terms of Christianity.  Since the Bible speaks of and warns against demons - you therefore see demons.   You readily attribute these supernatural events to their activity because your mind operates exculsively within a Christian frame of reference. 

 

If you were a Muslim you'd interpret things thru a Quranic lens and attest to having seen an evil Djinn.  If you were a Hindu your mind would work within that particular frame of reference and you'd say that you saw a Rakshasa (an unrighteous spirit). Conversely, I think it highly unlikely that a Muslim would think outside their own particular Quranic 'box' and conclude they'd seen a Hindu spirit, as described in the Ramayana. Nor would a Hindu be very likely to think in Christian terms and conclude that they'd seen one of Satan's demons.

 

Now I note that you appear to agree with my contention - that each of us interprets our experiences according to the reference points of our respective cultures and beliefs.  That being so, this prompts me to ask you another question.  You say that you know it wasn't a djinn (genie).

.

.

.

How do you know this?.

.

.

.

Thanks,

 

BAA.

 

A blacked cloaked figure with red eyes does not sound nor look like a djinn. Being of the Christian faith..........demon.

[midniterider]

 

Hi Directionless,

Why is it every time you tell someone about supernatural experiences they want to label it as some sort of mental problem? Every thing in this world does not fit into a cozy little text book description. It's either black or white, there are no grey areas. Some people do not believe in the supernatural, I however do because I have witnessed it. The funny part about that door was my son and I could not get that door open, even with a crow bar, until it blew off the hinges and landed across the room. I put it back on the hinges while I anointed the house, but there was far more activity in the house besides the door. My son and daughter-in-law also witnessed these things and they are die hard skeptics, but it scared them enough to want the house blessed. I knew of some activity, but wanted my family to witness it before I would anoint the house because telling them would not be enough.

 

 

 

Truth is an agreement as to which hallucination is the correct one. Whichever one gets the most votes wins.

[ExCBooster]

"Black cloaked figure with red eyes" could also be a hungry ghost, a strigoi, or a whole slew of other such supernatural critters (kitsune can appear as almost any form they want). How do you know nine-tail foxes weren't messing with your head? I think the kicker here is "being of the Christian faith... demon." Yes. A demon, because of what you believe. If you were in another culture, or believed something differently, you'd have interpreted your experiences differently.

[angelus5370]

"Black cloaked figure with red eyes" could also be a hungry ghost, a strigoi, or a whole slew of other such supernatural critters (kitsune can appear as almost any form they want). How do you know nine-tail foxes weren't messing with your head? I think the kicker here is "being of the Christian faith... demon." Yes. A demon, because of what you believe. If you were in another culture, or believed something differently, you'd have interpreted your experiences differently.

Yep, you are totally correct.