What are your motivations as an Ex-C?

[Purple]

Oh and if Charles Manson is not lying, he is going to heaven because he had a spiritual awakening a few years back. Me though, I am going to Hell because I give blood every year. Heh, perfect.

 

I can't be possitive, but I am pretty sure I am going to hell for not using a spell check.

[spamandham]

I can't be possitive, but I am pretty sure I am going to hell for not using a spell check. 

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For the right "sacrifice", I can assure you an irrevokable ticket to heaven.

 

[nirrti]

1. That Christianity (or a varient of it) took my father and two sisters away from me.

 

2. The same god who took my family away would be my parent, giving me the love he was responsible for making me lose in the first place.

 

3. The notion of god being a replacement for my father was a huge, heart-wrenching lie.

 

4. Christianity made me fight for every morsel of love yet taught god loved unconditionally with no strings attached.

 

There's more but it would take up the whole thread.

[Guest Warlock]

I have actually been physically assaulted by christians for refusing to repent and return to christianity. I never engaged in this kind of behavior when I was a christian, so I was amazed as a non-christian by the animosity and hatred directed at me by christians.

[essence]

I have two main areas right now.

The first is the notion that this is a "Christian nation, founded by Christian men, based on Christian principles."

That makes me insane.  Along with it always goes the prayer in school issue and the motto "In God we Trust"..

They take the motto and jump to the conclusion that "god" in that sentence automatically means "the god of the bible, christian god!"

 

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United States Department of Treasury:

Origin of "In God We Trust"

 

 

Fact Sheets: Currency & Coins

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

History of 'In God We Trust'

The motto IN GOD WE TRUST was placed on United States coins largely because of the increased religious sentiment existing during the Civil War. Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase received many appeals from devout persons throughout the country, urging that the United States recognize the Deity on United States coins. From Treasury Department records, it appears that the first such appeal came in a letter dated November 13, 1861. It was written to Secretary Chase by Rev. M. R. Watkinson, Minister of the Gospel from Ridleyville, Pennsylvania, and read:

 

The rest of the article is pretty long, so I posted the link.

 

Yes, it is probably a well know fact, but people continue to think that the fathers of this country were driven by Christianity.

"In God We Trust" did not appear on money until the fear of death by Civil War was exploited.

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Hi, I'm new to your forum here. What do you see as America's foundation if not Christianity? Another pagan tradition perhaps?

[spamandham]

Hi, I'm new to your forum here. What do you see as America's foundation if not Christianity?  Another pagan tradition perhaps? 

 

No religion was America's foundation, although the US has always been predominantly Christian. The foundation was republican ideals.

[essence]

Hi, I'm new to your forum here. What do you see as America's foundation if not Christianity? Another pagan tradition perhaps?

 

No religion was America's foundation, although the US has always been predominantly Christian. The foundation was republican ideals.

 

 

I would say no other religion than Protestant idealism took hold. The new

republic was bursting at the seems with ideas in its independence from GB.

[Levi]

Hi,

 

Why Christians Leave a religion? Because there lives have been

ruled Legalistically.

 

The NAME 'CHRISTIAN' was first given at Antioc by - Stereotypical critics.

(so really the word/name/label is actually a curse)

 

You can leave Christianity,

 

 

long live the relationship through Jesus Christ.

 

(hint = God is not a religion but a relationship)

 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! (& if you dont celebrate christmas then try staring at the wall

for 10 hours until christmas finishes)...

[Mike D]

Hi,

 

Why Christians Leave a religion? Because there lives have been

ruled Legalistically.

Well this isn't totally true for all former Christians. I left because "god" seems to be missing from the picture when it comes to objective reality. Either that or all he does is sit up in heaven all day eating bon bons while we go about our business of killing each other and blowing each other up on his behalf.

[Karissa]

I would have to say that I have a major problem with Christianity having to be believed in by every individual or that person will burn in hell. The idea that everyone in every culture, other religion, race, and time period could possibly believe in the westernized, corporatized, bullshit America (mainly) calls Christianity, is absurd. I think every person is different and therefore, their "relationship with god" would be personalized for them (if it existed). To say everyone has to believe the SAME WAY is something way too out there, considering Christianity as it exists is a religion in a culture and time that no one today really knows anything about.

 

And that is only ONE of the problems I have found. I was in the church long enough to have read and dissected the entire Bible. When I talk to Christians now and they try to sway me, I already know their arguments and can counter-argue effectively. This leads them to the concluding statement, "well you just have to have faith." Bullshit. Faith=stop thinking for yourself, ignore the facts, go on a gut feeling that we feed you in our sermons. If anyone tries to believe anything, as I have studied in psychology courses, they will succeed. Humans have a need to be right, to be confirmed. This comes naturally. Therefore, if a person just "has faith" in something, they will start to see things that confirm their beliefs whether or not it truly does. They will lose all objectivity. I guess I could say that the whole "faith" thing is another thing about Chrisitianity, and other religions, that bothers me extensively.

[Taphophilia]

Hello Karissa, Welcome aboard!

[Sofia]

Hi,

 

Why Christians Leave a religion? Because there lives have been

ruled Legalistically.

 

The NAME 'CHRISTIAN' was first given at Antioc by - Stereotypical critics.

(so really the word/name/label is actually a curse)

 

You can leave Christianity,

 

 

long live the relationship through Jesus Christ.

 

(hint = God is not a religion but a relationship)

 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! (& if you dont celebrate christmas then try staring at the wall

for 10 hours until christmas finishes)...

 

Now isn't that a sweet post.

[Ouroboros]

Hi,

 

Why Christians Leave a religion? Because there lives have been

ruled Legalistically.

And tell me how you can know that? Do you know anything about anyone on this board? You claim to have some kind of supernatural pansophistic abilities or what?

 

For starters, that wasn't the reason I lost my faith... so one wrong on your side, and one right on mine, so lets go to the next utterly stupid statement from you...

 

The NAME 'CHRISTIAN' was first given at Antioc by - Stereotypical critics.

(so really the word/name/label is actually a curse)

You're kind of right here. "Christian" was invented by the people that didn't like the Christians. But were they "sterotypical" critics? How can you say that? How do you know that? How's "Christian" stereotypical in a time when there were 100-200 different kinds of denominations of Christians. (That's how many they were according to history in the early centuries.)

 

You can leave Christianity,

 

long live the relationship through Jesus Christ.

I understand what your saying here. "Christianity" is not a valid term for your religion, so of course it can be left behind, since a "Christian" is not a true believer of Jesus. So what do you call yourself?

 

(hint = God is not a religion but a relationship)

Hint: atheism is not a religion or satanism. But atheism is when you wake up and smell the coffee.

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! (& if you dont celebrate christmas then try staring at the wall

for 10 hours until christmas finishes)...

Merry Hanukka, Quanza and whatnot, and happy pagan wintersolstice!

 

We're going to celebrate with a tree and gifts and food etc, just like the old pagans did. But we're not going to celebrate the birth of some fake god-son. By the way, more and more of the christian theologians believe that Jesus was born in spring time and not at christmas.

[Taphophilia]

I left Christianity because I discovered that Christianity is untrue. All of my life I had heard only the Christian version of Christian history. What I ultimately discovered is that Christianity is simply a cut and paste of ancient pagan faiths.

[Ouroboros]

About Christmas, I'm going to celebrate Saturnalia instead!

 

http://paganwiccan.about.com/cs/aboutyule/a/paganxmas.htm

 

The Ancient Roman Festival of Saturnalia

Saturnalia is one of the best known ancient celebrations of the Winter Solstice. The name comes from the Roman God Saturn, who ruled over agriculture. He was the main God honoured at this time, after the fall crops had been sown. Saturnalia lasted for several days (typically 7, but various officials changed the length of the festival on a few occassions). Saturnlia was the greatest festival of the Roman year, and was marked with great feasting, gift-giving, dancing, playing, and relaxing. Homes were decorated, work was suspended, and there was general merry-making done by all.

 

I'm going to start a new thread about this, and lets discuss the alternate celebration of Christmas!

[Ouroboros]

Welcome Karissa!

[Guest DaoJones]

Being a logical minded person who appreciates reason it just seemed to me they were full of shit. I also didn't like the way god was depicted. I'm not an atheist but if christianity was all there was I would have to be one. Many of the things noted here by others pisses me off too. Gay bashing, wanting to teach voodoo in biology class, evangelism, and I too feel threatened by the attempt to turn America into a theocracy. But really it's just the over all ignorance that really does it. It's just amazing that people in this day and age buy into such a ludicrous mythology.

[SkepticOfBible]

MERRY CHRISTMAS! (& if you dont celebrate christmas then try staring at the wall

for 10 hours until christmas finishes)...

 

as a christian you should not celebrate christmas, since it is pagan in orgin.

[Dianka]

I had a conversation with this Christian chick in my geometry class today. It turns out she is "trying" to get into nursing school, like me, but she is not trying as hard as most people need to in order to get accepted (her words, not mine). She is with some kid that is going to seminary, and he keeps moving around from state to state while finishing up on his undergrad. She, being the future wifey, moves everywhere he goes, and just barely affords doing this because they don't live together.

 

Made me think of this forum because she has her little bible under her arm, and thinks she is doing God's will. She says that her b/f's career as a pastor is more important than her degree because she doesn't know what she wants to do, and he is going into "the most sacred profession there is." Give me a break! This is how a marrige unravels before the vows are even spoken.

 

The "Christian woman's place" is particularly nausiating to me.

[willybilly30]

i cant rember were the verses are but these disturb me.

1. whoever hates his mother and father cannot be my deciple

2.turn the other cheek

3. forgive those who persecute you.

 

i could never do those things and the old testaments got horrific verses

also too many questions and too few answers.

it makes no sense too me and is an awful book.

[odintim]

What bothers me about Christianity - oi . . . where do I begin? Well, being an ex-minister it is not so much Christianity I have a bone to pick with so much as the more fundamental interpreters of the Old and New Testaments.

 

Coming down to bare bones in the end, it's the anti-separationists and theocrats that outrage me and really burn my skin. I could probably write a book about the separation of church and state, but no one asked me to bore them.

 

I believe it was Thomas Jefferson that said it best from 1781 in Notes on the State of Virginia :

 

"Millions of innocent men, women, and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined, imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity. What has been the effects of coercion? To make one half the world fools, and the other half hypocrites. To support roguery and error all over the earth."

 

OT

[Mad Ethel Rakem]

Hi everyone.

 

I am curious to know what aspect of Christianity infuriates you the most, and what area you tend to read up on the most.

 

Personally, I find the violence most disturbing, and get really upset when Christians talk about the love for humanity and peace they feel with God. If I judge the "love" God has for us through the historical actions of Christians, I can only see him as an abuser.

 

When I left Christianity it wasn't because I didn't believe in God, it was because I wanted to believe in a movement that is not violent. Buddhism sounded like a good fit. But I found out Buddhists have their own history of violence, and couldn't commit to it.

 

I would love to hear from other people on this.

I left because Christianity had me believing that I was incapable of having strength of my own. That I was doomed to a life of horror and meaninglessness but that's how it was. That it was God's Plan for me and, well, gosh darn it, that's what was best for me. I left because it kept me silent, fearful, in a constant state of self-loathing and doubt because I was not perfect.

Screw that noise.

[narcissist]

The endemic systematic hypocricy. Just one example: Watching poor young fellow christians struggle over what Godly things they should spend their small amount of pocket money on whilst the rich family men trade $1.5Million+ houses for $2.0Million+ houses, buy themselves an $80K Toyota Landcruiser, then laugh about it at bible study.

 

The silence of Jesus (except when he laughs at me). He doesn't have to knock, my door's been open for over 15 years.

 

Oh yeah, and Christian versions of things (books, music, gymnasiums, dating quiz shows, suburbs, etc.) It seems they confused "being in the world but not of it" with "being of the world but not in it."

[Lycorth]

My motivations as an ex-Christian are to do what being a Xian ultimately forbade me to do - live my life and love it. I don't have to waste my life fighting for a fairy-tale cause, fussing and fretting about this social thing or that, worrying and working to see "God's will" done and legislated on earth; I can just be a human and live.

 

I can marry my sweetie, build a life with her, start a family, raise my kids, enjoy my future with her, and in other words do as all our ancestors did when they put reality above religion. I am not on a crusade (hehe) to wipe out Xianity, though I will speak out against it when the time and place call for it. I am not on any more holy wars for this high falutin cause or that. I am free to live and let live, and I choose to do so.

 

I am an ex-Christian for a number of reasons, all of which I've laid out in other posts. I have no more desire to waste my time on a degrading, contradictory, cruel, unnatural, unreasonable, illogical doomsday cult that got waaay too big for its breeches a couple of millenia ago. My religious and spiritual opinions shall forever be shaped by reason and truth, and will never be leashed by dead and disproved dogmas. I will not raise my children to blindly crawl and humiliate themselves, and will teach them to use their brains to determine their own way. Above all, my motivation is just to finally rejoice in being human and live.

[Medjool]

I've never been able to understand the centrality of the resurrection. I mean, why is it so important? Why MUST it be true? What does it have to do with me? I just don't get the connection between historical Jesus dying and my life today. I could actually accept the possibility that Jesus resurrected, but even then...what does it matter to my spiritual life, to my understanding and connection to God? I don't know, I guess...I'm too mystically-minded - I'd rather know the mystical Jesus, his spirit, and so I know that through meditation. It doesn't matter to me about the resurrection, but it is just so central to the church.

 

I guess you can tell that I'm not a big Easter fan, heh.