Guest cameron_ Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 My name is Cameron. I am 18 years old and from Los Angeles, CA. From a young age I considered myself an atheist when I realized religion (namely Christianity) seemed nothing more than a mental program used to scare gullible, uneducated people into submisssion. Sins were excuses to keep people in shackles for their human nature and ultimately feel guilty. Satan, Hell, demons, and all the other nonsense OF COURSE influenced people to behave over the last few thousand years. As much as I thought I had figured out the belief system was all about, for the last year and a half or so I have been questioning religion, life, death, morality, and other related issues. After a certain impacting experience, I thought to myself, "what if Hell IS real?". This thought lead me into a painful cycle of wondering whether or not I am living up to God's (whether or not this being exists) standards, if all of my family, friends, and most of the world were in fact "Hellbound", if demons really exist, so on and so on. I was also fortunate enough (please note the sarcasm) to be blessed with OCD, anxiety, and depression disorders which have made my spiritual/religious/existential questions all the more intrusive and troublesome. I've lost countless hours of sleep over these thoughts. My time with family and friends as well as my priorities involving school and work have suffered greatly. Aren't I living supposed to be living the best years of my life? Why am I so concerned with how to live and what happens when I die? I suppose being a young adult out of high school and having to be responsible for my much of my life has a lot to do with it. Living in the USA in a time when religion is largely influencing factor behind politics also causes some of the feelings i've been having. Luckily, coming across a website with the stories of people who once believed in the Christian religion has been a very eye-opening experience. I have been lurking this site for several months and feel you guys are exactly the kind of people I can talk to. Most of my friends and family know nothing about religion and rarely think of it. I hope to partake in some active discussions and get to know my way around this place. Sorry if this introduction seems a bit rushed. I'm pretty tired, heh. Take care and peace out! cameron_ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Checkmate Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 ...... Luckily, coming across a website with the stories of people who once believed in the Christian religion has been a very eye-opening experience. I have been lurking this site for several months and feel you guys are exactly the kind of people I can talk to. Most of my friends and family know nothing about religion and rarely think of it. I hope to partake in some active discussions and get to know my way around this place. Sorry if this introduction seems a bit rushed. I'm pretty tired, heh. Take care and peace out! cameron_ Thank you, Cameron and a hearty WELCOME to the forums! Like you, we've all found Ex-C a safe haven of anti-religious expression. It is very liberating. (All praise the :webmaster:!) No need for any apologies, either. You unwind and express yourself any way you need too. We'll understand. I'm glad you made it out of the cult at such a young age. Many of us wasted DECADES before we got free. Here's to hoping you can remain cult free for the rest of your life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reach Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 Here's another hearty welcome to Ex-C! Cameron, you are among friends. Some call us family. Along with Mr. Grinch, I celebrate that you made your escape from The Life Waster of Christianity. Yes, many of us have wasted decades either in the cult or oppressed by the cult and its psychological programming, namely guilt trips and a fear of hell due to the hell doctrine being force-fed down our throats, especially when we were quite young and impressionable. I hope you will find this place to be a safe haven where you are free to express yourself in anyway you see fit. While not all of us have struggled with the same things you do, I think you will be surprised to find that many members of this community have been "blessed with OCD, anxiety, and depression disorders which have made [our] spiritual/religious/existential questions all the more intrusive and troublesome." While some of our experiences (many of which are heartbreaking) will be different, I think you will find that here, you will be understood. And accepted. Just like you are. No blood required. Peace to you, -Reach Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lycorth Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 Welcome, Cameron! You'll find this a wonderful and very engaging discussion board and you're sure to learn much here. There are many wise folks here, and lots of interesting viewpoints to learn from, so jump in and as has been said, you're among friends. So welcome again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnosis of Disbelief Posted March 7, 2006 Share Posted March 7, 2006 Welcome aboard, cameron! Aren't I living supposed to be living the best years of my life? Why am I so concerned with how to live and what happens when I die? I suppose being a young adult out of high school and having to be responsible for my much of my life has a lot to do with it. Those are normal questions that all human beings ask, and contrary to what christians would have us believe, there is no one "right" answer to them. If there were, then we would have a single religion or worldview, not the many religions and worldviews that we see in the world today (and have always seen). I asked those questions a lot when I was just a little bit younger than you are now, which led me to christianity, and let me tell you....whatever the answers are to those questions you've been asking, christianity isn't one bit a part of them! Anyway, welcome again, and keep up the non-faith! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 After a certain impacting experience, I thought to myself, "what if Hell IS real?". This thought lead me into a painful cycle of wondering whether or not I am living up to God's (whether or not this being exists) standards, if all of my family, friends, and most of the world were in fact "Hellbound", if demons really exist, so on and so on. Welcome! It's very human to ask those types of questions. Cults prey on people who do, so you were wise to not join them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All Gods Fail Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 Hey Cameron! A big howdy to y'all. Listen, I wasted the best years of my life on that stupid religion before I started to wake up. Be grateful you're coming around relatively early! If I could undo anything it would be to get all that lost time back from the @#&! church. Anyway, glad to see you've de-cloaked. Hang around, ask questions, give opinions, and enjoy the freedom! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gliph Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I was also fortunate enough (please note the sarcasm) to be blessed with OCD, anxiety, and depression disorders which have made my spiritual/religious/existential questions all the more intrusive and troublesome. I've lost countless hours of sleep over these thoughts. Welcome Cameron! First of all, you'll find so many people here "blessed" with the same types of issues (myself included ) Honestly, I think it really is helpful in finding your own path and finding you way out of the xtian culture. Instead of your head letting you follow like a sheep, it ran circles around everything going on around you. Granted, it isn't the best all the time, but if it helps you to free yourself of the xtian lies, it can't be all bad, right?!? Thanks for sharing, and read as much of this as you can... you'll find tons of information, links to other resources, and a group of people here that honestly are glad to have you, no strings attached. -Gliph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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