What Would You Do If You Inherited Your Parents' Religious Items?

[Non-Redneck]

Lately my parents have been taking to me about their will and death planning (not the most cheerful subject). It should hopefully be at least 30 years before I will actually need to do something with these, but my mom has a lot of religious trinkets, statues, books (mostly Christian, but not all). Assuming I inherit them, I'm not sure what to do with them. I certainly won't want them. So my options are give them away, sell them, or throw them away.

 

I don't want to throw them away, because some of them are actually worth something and I could get some cash for them. But I don't want to give them away or sell them because I don't want to encourage religion. Any thoughts on which is the better choice?

[Oddity]

I'd say, if you don't want to encourage religion, find someone with a strictly academic interest in Christianity and see if they'd like some of the stuff. That's about the only solution I can think of at the moment - if I think of any other suggestions I'll come back to this thread.

[Shyone]

Lately my parents have been taking to me about their will and death planning (not the most cheerful subject). It should hopefully be at least 30 years before I will actually need to do something with these, but my mom has a lot of religious trinkets, statues, books (mostly Christian, but not all). Assuming I inherit them, I'm not sure what to do with them. I certainly won't want them. So my options are give them away, sell them, or throw them away.

 

I don't want to throw them away, because some of them are actually worth something and I could get some cash for them. But I don't want to give them away or sell them because I don't want to encourage religion. Any thoughts on which is the better choice?

Tough question. In 30 years, there may not be any religion, so those trinkets could be worth quite a bit of money as artifacts of a curious cultural epoch.

 

There will be some that have meaning for you and relate to your parents. My mother used to write in the margins of the Great Books (including Origin of Species, Thomas Aquinas, etc.) and even though she was religious, something from her hand means a great deal to me. I wish I had more, even religious trinkets; something that she touched, or that meant a great deal to her.

 

Lots of stuff may really be junk. I can just imagine. But regardless of how tacky they may be, other relatives may be interested in them for similar reasons (or more financially motivated reasons). In the end, it all works out somehow.

 

I guess you'll have to think about it as time goes by. I still get stuff from my father (courtesy of my step-mother) and lots of it is pure junk. But it reminds me of him, at least for a moment.

[OpheliaGinger]

The majority of my parents religious items are books, some of which belonged to my deceased paternal grandfather. I have an attachment to books, so I would just add them to my library, but as for trinkets, I would just bubble wrap them and place them in storage.

[Mongo]

Lately my parents have been taking to me about their will and death planning (not the most cheerful subject). It should hopefully be at least 30 years before I will actually need to do something with these, but my mom has a lot of religious trinkets, statues, books (mostly Christian, but not all). Assuming I inherit them, I'm not sure what to do with them. I certainly won't want them. So my options are give them away, sell them, or throw them away.

 

I don't want to throw them away, because some of them are actually worth something and I could get some cash for them. But I don't want to give them away or sell them because I don't want to encourage religion. Any thoughts on which is the better choice?

 

Forget about it. Deal with it when the time comes, you have more important things to consider than your mom and dad's death.

 

If they talk to you about it, smile and say thanks or if you are a bit cheeky, "Aw maw, I don't care about trinkets and earthly things, I'm just glad to spend time with you."

 

If you suspect they are planning to hand these things to you in hopes that you will reconvert... again... smile and say, "I love you mom".

 

I will never again try to speak to my mother about religion and if she brings it up... well, she is too old to irritate her and she does not need an argument from me.

 

I do not have a personal need to receive her blessing on my apostatedness (I just made up a word... he he). She will expire expecting to meet Peter at the gates of heaven. I don't care that it is a delusion. I don't need her approval and I don't have the right to upset her.

 

Forget it and when the day comes, if I'm still on this thread... ha ha ha, post your dilema and I'll dream up some of the most bizaire stuff you can do with your "bounty".

 

Mongo

[mwc]

I don't want to throw them away, because some of them are actually worth something and I could get some cash for them. But I don't want to give them away or sell them because I don't want to encourage religion. Any thoughts on which is the better choice?

Put them in a box marked "Voodoo sex toys" and let someone else deal with them after you die.

 

mwc

[RankStranger]

Do you have other relatives to whom these religious thingys might mean something? Might be best to hand the stuff over to them.

 

I've never really considered the question, myself- my parents should be around for at least another 20-30 years, hopefully. But all us boys are infidels. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Personally, I would probably hold on to certain things like the family bible- just for sentimental/family/cultural reasons.

[Non-Redneck]

I plan to keep one Bible as a family heirloom (it contains some genealogical records, so for that reason alone it's worth keeping). OpheliaGinger did make me think a bit. I might keep one rosary of my mom to remember her by.

 

As for giving the stuff to somebody who studies religion, I could do that with some of the items. I could also give all the books to a local library or a university library. Since I don't like to censor things anymore; books, anti-Xtian or Xtian should be available for all to read. Let the reader make up his own mind as to what's BS and what's not.

 

Though ultimately it will depend on what the world is like then.

[TheYoYo]

I'm wondering that just about what to do with my own stuff, to be honest.

 

I wasn't a Christian for long, but I have a few books, a DVD (Rob Bell, Everything is Spiritual) which my cousin gave me around the time I started to lose faith, and also a pretty necklace with a cross on it. I don't want them, but they're all newish and in good condition, and someone might want them. I kind of want to see if any of my old friends want them, and give them away/sell them. But then I don't want to encourage them!

[Deva]

Give any relatives a shot at them. If no one wants them, and you don't, you could hire an estate liquidator business to get rid of them and all the other junk your parents own for you. They will give you something for it but probably not much. If you think they have any value, you should have them appraised.

 

The ones not made of silver, gold or precious gems you could just throw in the dumpster along with the old furniture, papers, worn out clothes and other stuff.

 

In many cases it would not be encouraging religion to give the stuff away. If family members want it, it could be sentimental value or just for decorative value. There is no accounting for taste.

 

It is actually good your folks are talking about a will, they should have one, and they need to let someone else know where it is and who the Executor is. The Executor is who they appoint in the will to have legal authority to carry out the provisions in the will. If any item is really valuable, it should be mentioned specifically in the will as to who gets it. But, you don't need to think about it too much, it is too far in the future.

 

I speak as a Paralegal with 20 years of experience in this area.

[Jedah]

Ebay

[DirtbagDan]

Dig a pit. Burn it all.

 

That's what i'm going to do (except for the expensive stuff I may be able to sell for a small fortune).

[HRDWarrior]

I agree that if someone wants something, or you can get something (money) for it, go for it. If someone's willing to pay for an item of their own free will, then what's to stop you from collecting. Ebay is great, heck maybe even a garage sale.

 

Keep a couple trinkets from your parents (doesn't need to be religous if they have other things as well that define them) and if there's anything with familial value (old Bibles with geneologies, etc), and then get rid of the rest in your chosen method at that time.

 

Until then, don't worry about it much...

[dB-Paradox]

Lately my parents have been taking to me about their will and death planning (not the most cheerful subject). It should hopefully be at least 30 years before I will actually need to do something with these, but my mom has a lot of religious trinkets, statues, books (mostly Christian, but not all). Assuming I inherit them, I'm not sure what to do with them. I certainly won't want them. So my options are give them away, sell them, or throw them away.

 

I don't want to throw them away, because some of them are actually worth something and I could get some cash for them. But I don't want to give them away or sell them because I don't want to encourage religion. Any thoughts on which is the better choice?

Why not keep them? You don't have to be religious to treasure your parents' things. After all, when your parents are gone, it's those material things they leave behind that will spark fond memories of them. I got a coffee cup from my grandmother. And now that she's passed away, it's a nice reminder of her. I'm guessing when you look at those "religious trinkets" and such, you'll think of your mom, not of Jesus.

[chefranden]

My father-in-law was a wood carver, and we inherited quite a bit of his work including a very well done crucifix. It hangs proudly on the wall. Things your parents owned can have a different significance for your than they had for your parents.

 

I say that if the item holds good or significant memories for you keep them, if not dispose of them however you choose. I doubt that selling them or giving them away will ad significant support to religion.

 

However, if there are any James Dobson materials in there, FOR GOD'S SAKE BURN THEM!

[Vixentrox]

I can't think of anything I would keep but then I have not been to my parents house in a number of years so don't recall what they still have. Unless it was a verifiable antique, made of valuable metals/jewels or something like the family bible, I'd trash it.

[Guest]

The moment my mother is gone I am burning everything related to xtianity the family owns; including a few Mason bibles of my grandfather's, and esp.. all my baptismal records, documents, photos. I doubt my father will still be here, but if he is, he won't notice or care, and my sister will probably be standing next to me warming herself by the flames too...

[DirtbagDan]

Why not keep them? You don't have to be religious to treasure your parents' things. After all, when your parents are gone, it's those material things they leave behind that will spark fond memories of them. I got a coffee cup from my grandmother. And now that she's passed away, it's a nice reminder of her. I'm guessing when you look at those "religious trinkets" and such, you'll think of your mom, not of Jesus.

 

That's an interesting notion, but that wouldn't work for me. All of that crap would just serve to remind me how much of an emotionally abusive asshole my father was to me and how he would use the guise of 'Jesus' and religion to force me into doing things and toeing in line with what he wants. I can't stand him in life, so why would I want to keep anything that would remind me of him in death?

 

I think this goes for many other people here as well who are in similar situations as me.

[Raul]

My parents have none.

[RabbleRabble]

Donate them to an heathen artist who works with found objects!

[ShallowByThyGame]

Hmm, tough one. I have three siblings so I might be able to pawn the problem off on someone else. If it was not an heirloom I'd probably trash it(Dad's seminary notebooks for example...), if it seemed important I might keep it in a memory chest(stuff we bought in Jerusalem), or maybe even bury them with it.

 

If there was jewelery I didn't want I'd probably sell it and donate the money to charity in their honor.

[Guest Davka]

I fervently hope to inherit my father's religious symbols. He has some very cool Pacific Islander fertility carvings, and a Tibetan carving of some weird multi-headed deity, and a couple of nice Buddha statues. He also has a great collection of native masks from all over the world, but I don't know if they have any religious significance.

 

It's a wonder I ever got assimilated into the Borg, considering my upbringing.

[Shyone]

Donate them to an heathen artist who works with found objects!

My step mother took my father's masonic stuff and had it converted into a pendant. Pretty cool, but doesn't really look "masonic" any more.

[RabbleRabble]

Donate them to an heathen artist who works with found objects!

My step mother took my father's masonic stuff and had it converted into a pendant. Pretty cool, but doesn't really look "masonic" any more.

 

Hah! That's great. I'm a big fan of re-purposing. Rids you of the guilt that comes with throwing out ugly and unwanted gifts, inherited items, etc.