Just Curious.. Who here is A) A believer who became atheist VS. B) Atheist who became a believer ?

[masmdu]

I often read accounts of "A". I am in that group myself. But I don't think I've ever encountered anybody in group "B" here. Just out of curiosity I thought I'd ask.

[trumad]

1. How about ---never believed?

That's me.

[Rabblevox]

11. Another vote for never believed. I grew up in a religious family, but even at 10 the dogma made...

no sense to me. I do however describe myself as agnostic rather than atheist.

[trumad]

13. I don't count before 10

because I believed in Santa and the Easter Bunny which goes to show yoou kids will believe in anything.

[Deep13]

29. My wife's in that boat.

I used to be a conservative Christian, then a liberal one, then a non-Christian who believed in some kind of god, then a negative atheist (failure of proof/who cares?), now a positive atheist (no god).

[Rob H.]

30. Same here

My parents decided early on that if my brother and I ever had questions about religion or wanted to go to church, they'd be happy to help us satisfy our curiosity. We never felt a need for any of it, or at least I didn't--I'm not sure whether my late brother ever experienced any curiosity, but he wasn't religious, either. Now I live in the Bible Belt, where people look at you as if you've suddenly sprouted another head when they find out you're not religious. *sigh*

[thereismore]

2. How about atheist -> believer -> atheist? That's me. nt

[no_hypocrisy]

3. I officially became a humanist and an atheist in 1984 in the middle of Yom Kippur services.

I got up and left.

1. I wasn't sorry, not because I'm a sociopath, but because for the past 12 month period, I already apologized to people I hurt and made them right. I wasn't about to feel guilty all over again for stuff I had resolved.

2. While I was mindlessly intoning the prayers in English and Hebrew, I realized that there was no God listening and it was self-gratification or delusion that it would make a difference.

I decided right then and there that synagogues were meant for true believers, not people who hoped religion would do them so good but couldn't articulate what that was supposed to be.

[hfojvt]

4. Now that it has been moved to the bash religion forum

you probably will not get any more B's.

But I was raised in the Presbyterian church and was an atheist for about ten years, before back-sliding.

I still don't like the word "believer" though.

[qb]

5. Hans Kung's "On Being A Christian" converted me to atheism.

I took a class on this in college. Prior to this, I had a casual belief in God and the divinity of Jesus that I kept separate from the real stuff I was learning about science.

What changed this was the attempts to make Christian faith compatible with scientific thinking. My faith just evaporated at that point.

[zazen]

6. formerly arrogant atheist now spiritual, humbled, and human

Now, there can be a lot humble atheists and lots of arrogant people in traditional religion.

But that's how my path has wound itself out for me.

I'm a non-dualist, or aspire to be (every moment tempts us to dualize/compartmentalize, and in most moments I "fail").

[madmom]

7. I don't know where I would be classified here. When I was younger, I

HAD to go to church, mom and kids, dad stayed home for some r&r after working all week. I thought that was kind of fishy itself. Then during jr high my best friend was the middle child, only girl in a very strict catholic family of 7. She was made to adhere to all the religiously held beliefs plus EVERY time billy graham (even though he wasn't catholic) was on tv she had to stop everything and watch and yes there was a test afterward, brothers, not so much. This is what really started my questioning.

But what turned me completely, I think, was another friend, who was also being raised in supposedly a strict christian household. Her parents had parties every weekend, loud boisterous parties and they were the talk of the neighborhood, but they were "ok" because they went to church and confession, so "all was right".

Come to think of it there was also another friend in school who was a mormon and very unhappy all the time because she couldn't do any of the stuff the rest of us did, make-up, short skirts etc. We took her into the cloakroom (yes I'm that old) and taught her how to roll skirts and apply makeup, she was IMO much happier then.

I never made much of being non-religious, until my mother in law started her crusade to turn my husband and all his family members against me, because I was "not a god-fearing person". Today I admit it and have my say, to whoever brings up the topic but otherwise it isn't something I dwell on.

[RZM]

8. It was my idea for our family to go to start going to church when I was in elementary school

I noticed the other kids did it, so I thought that maybe I should too. I was only ever a half-hearted believer and by the time I was about 12, I didn't believe at all.

[Scuba]

9. Raised in church while filled with doubt. Now atheist. n/t

[cleanhippie]

10. EVERYONE started out with a lack of belief in a god.

It's the default position were born in.

[hunkerdowndawg]

15. The Bible agrees with you.

Time and again, the bible says we can't know or understand
God, and in fact we choose to turn away from the evidence in
the world of him.  God is revealed to us instead of us being
born with knowledge or figuring it out on our own.

[cleanhippie]

20. *yawn*

Every time someone uses the bible as the basis for their argument, I know I am dealing with the intellectually challenged.

[hunkerdowndawg]

21. No argument from me, friend.

Just pointing out a topic where you might find some agreement with the scripture. Hope it helps you see where we're coming from!

[cleanhippie]

23. Who is "we" and where ARE you coming from?

Regardless, I give the bible about as much credibility to support ANYONE'S argument or claim that I would give a quote from a Harry Potter book.

And welcome to DU.

[hunkerdowndawg]

24. Sorry. By "we" I mean Christians.

And perhaps that is a little presumptuous of me because we do have all sorts of understandings on the topic of truth and how it is known. I get where you're coming from about not thinking the bible is a credible source, too. That's why I brought up the observation that you and the bible were on the same page regarding belief before we are taught or shown God's love in Jesus. People can't know Jesus in a faithful way until then. Anyway, I'm trying to show you a little common ground. And I hope you'll see one day that there is at least some truth found in the bible that you can testify to as being legitimate by your own experience and wisdom. Does that help you understand where I'm coming from? Let me know if I'm not clear enough or if you meant something else. Thanks!

[cleanhippie]

25. Hey, I really appreciate your candor.

No, I got it. I understand where you are coming from. Hopefully you see where "we" are coming from (we being non-believers) and see that my point coinciding with a bible verse is nothing more than sheer coincidence, as I probably agree with a line or two from Harry Potter as well.

I look forward to your posts here in R&T. Fair warning though, extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and quoting the bible, ignoring reality, or professing the irrational will not do you any favors here.

[hunkerdowndawg]

27. Thanks for the welcome.

I've got thick skin, so feel free to come after me when you think I'm wrong. Just so you know, when I post I plan on referencing the bible because I do believe it to be trustworthy, and I believe that much of that truth can be verified by reason, experience and history. That's what I hope to bring to this discussion board. You certainly don't need my opinion on anything (frankly, my opinions aren't that enlightening!) but you may find some benefit to hearing a view on truth based on biblical principals. I certainly hope to gain insight and wisdom by hearing from you and others on this board.

[cleanhippie]

28. .

:fistbump:

[LiberalFighter]

12. Tried my best to make sense of religion. Realized it was all a scam.

[aka-chmeee]

14. Went through the motions when I was young...

and it WAS a way to get out on Wednesday evening when I was in high school (choir practice), but just could never accept how the christian god was either real or "loving and merciful". Even then I couldn't understand how anyone could seriously believe all that crap. Still can't.

[socialshockwave]

16. Went from believer to agnostic back to believer.

God is where it's at for me. Christian and -proud-, regardless of the militant atheist wing of DU's attempt to bring me down.

[darkstar3]

17. Trying to bring you down?

I think you do a fairly good job of that yourself, with all of the posts you make complaining about how awfully you're treated.

[socialshockwave]

18. I only point out my own observations. n't

[darkstar3]

19. Observations? Not so much.

After all, here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=214x302505#302509
You weren't so much posting an observation as throwing a random complaint about persecution out there, and you were called on it.

As a matter of fact, that whole thread shows that you don't so much post your observations as feed your own persecution complex. Do yourself a favor: Stop assuming that everyone thinks you're stupid so you can avoid creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[trotsky]

22. You have made repeated claims about things that "militant atheist" DUers have said or done...

and yet you've never, not once, provided any evidence.

When will you stop bashing an entire group of DUers based on false reports? Does Jesus approve of that?

[Thats my opinion]

26. you don't need to respond to all the attacks.

I no longer even see many of them. People have a right to question what you say. but sometimes they may not be interested in conversation, just in a put down. So keep at it here and don't get overfly upset by the responses.

[darkstar3]

31. It's very passive aggressive of you to put people on ignore and then assume you know what they say.

[frogmarch]

32. I've been a atheist since I

was around 5. Before that, I didn't know what to make of it all.

[sakabatou]

33. Former Jew, now an atheist.