If you were ever a believer, how did you become an atheist and why?
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Actually, every sentient life is an atheist at birth. One may revert to atheism only after deviating from atheism (e.g., by being a theist). So, what I suspect you really meant to ask was "If you were ever a theist, how did you revert to atheism, and why?" which I think is a fair and interesting question to ask.
In response to your question: I've always been an atheist, so I don't have an answer for you.
I was born an atheist just like everyone else in the world.By age 6 I was immune to the mind virus of faith.My BS detector always saw through Santa,Jesus,the Easter bunny,Gods,and the Great pumpkin.Just lucky I guess.
I was born an atheist technically, later Christianity was basically forced down my throat, however, I never accepted christianity but I had to accept the 'fact' that I was a christian due to placement in a christian school. At age 9 I started reading more and understand the world and the evils caused by all forms of religion, christianity just seeming barely more savage than others, and from then on I resented all forms and religion and disbelieved in 'god' as I did not, and do not, see the existence of god to be probable or provable. Between ages 14-16 I became more of a Deist, accepting the 'possible' existence of god, but totally rejecting any and all of the foolishness regarding him send a savior, or selecting chosen people...basically any form of being a religion. All forms of religion, to me, simply lack logic, evidence and all cause social conflicts.
Basically, indoctrination of a single religion was attempted on me from a tender age, but I was able to gain free and rational judgement thanks to the need to find truths.
I once believed in the Roman Catholic Religion. I was a bit faithful to it when I was a child. When I turned 13, I doubted God's presence. When I overreacted about such things, I tried searching for things related to grief, suffering, etc. Then I tried looking for the religion of Satanists (if ever it's classified as a religion). Everything changed when I read the description of the religion. I was confused, and I began asking myself, am I really fighting for something, or was I just fooled that there is really a God? Is Satan the true God and not the so called creator, or is the Roman Catholic right? I don't know what to believe in anymore. I don't want to fake my feelings about following a religion either. When I see what my parents do, then hear them call themselves "very religious", I became more reluctant to come back to being a Catholic. So then I decided I am going to be an atheist, and here I am now. My parents still don't know that, and I'm afraid to tell them. But soon enough, I'll have the courage to, because I have the right to stand and follow what I want to.
My parents were atheists.
I was born an atheist. I was atheist for most of my life.
I was shocked when my teachers told me that most people believe in God during the modern era (right now). Not in mythology. They believed.
I tried to become religious in university. I tried a joke religion, similar to the Jedi Knight religion.
The joke religion asserts that a silly female girl (less than 18 years old) lives on this Earth and controls it as the monothesitic Goddess.
It didn't work. A fundamentalist (or radical) Christian tried to convert me. I got really angry.
He didn't understand me when I talked about Fundamentalists and Radicalists. Maybe because he was one.
I am now a STRONG ATHEIST. I belive no gods exist. At all. I will try to NOT capitalize the word god anymore, even when used in a christian context.
I will also avoid capitalizing the words "Christian" and "Christianity", even if Microsoft Word tells me otherwise, because I think that christian
ideas are about as believable as santa claus and fairies.
The only religions you should ever consider are comedy religions. Comedy religions like Flying Spaghetti Monster or Jedi Knight religion. Otherwise,
I believe Strong Atheism, which I will always try to capitalize from now on, is the only way to go.
I don't hate people who are religious. People who are religious and nice to me? Good. We can co-exist. People who are religious and try to convert
me? Who say I'm a sinner? Garbage. I will get rid of those people or torment them mentally.
That evil guy said that I hated God. Now he can't say anything anymore.
I don't hate God. Because there is nothing to hate in this world. Atheism.
I've Started being an Atheist in my first college days. You don't need someone who doesn't even EXIST to help you in your Exams or even in everyday life. What I need is a strong mind and scientific explanation that can make me alive for the rest of my life.
I have never been a beleiver and my parents accepted that, however my Grandpa (still to this day) is always giving me reasons my my 'mind is polluted.' He is a mormon/christian and has been trying to turn my whole family into religious dim wits for as long as I can remeber. I was always able to live with religion but he just kept persisting causing me to absolutley hate religion. Apart from that, all is well ;)
I was born an atheist, forced to be christian, agnostic since 2001 and recently returned to my roots. After the tragic loss of my father last year, my brother became a strong follower of Billy Crone, now my brother is a brainwashed, zombie, extreme christian, trying to convert everybody. At a time were there should have been family support, my brother is driving a wedge between me and the rest of my family. Living in south africa it also makes it difficult being atheist, as it is still being seen as if you are a very bad person. Luckily my wife is also atheist so I have a lot of support from her. But due to my brother I have grown to hate religion, and how it changes people.
Hi... well my mother is a Christian. Not really sure what she actually believes but I think she just thinks that its the right thing to do. My dad was brought up a Catholic and he really hates organised religion.
I went to Sunday School as a kid but decided pretty quickly that I thought it was all bollocks. Decided pretty quickly that I that all the major religions of the world were just making it up and decided that while I was pretty sure it was untrue, god was (and I suppose is) a valid hypothesis. Just one I don't think will ever be proved correct. So, by the age of about 13 I was pretty much an atheist. I am 32 now :)
In my case it's complicated because in a way i do believe in a force that created everything. I just dont believe in an entity that watched over us. I believe that there is a stronger force that made the universe but it has no conscious need to care for our existence. Things like worry and care are too human for this force to even experience them.
So in a way i am an atheist because i do not believe in god as our saviour and the answer to all our problems. I was raised a catholic and they sure tried to hammer this beliefs deep in my mind. But for some reason i was never able to buy into it.
It didnt really take much for me to realize that there is no god. Kids dying of starvation, people being killed because others want power. Horrible things happening to good people all over the world all the time. I have respect for people that actually use god and religion to make their lives better. But most people use these things in a very shallow and hypocritical way.
I was not in my childhood days, but things took a different turn when I grew up. It's basically the customary and superstitious practices and discrimination that made me change.
Like everybody else here, born an atheist, but aside from that, Christianity was forced on me at an early age. Like sbj1964, I could always see through Santa, the Easter bunny, etc. But I was still a christian, I believed in that, of all things.
Last year I discovered Reddit and soon after r/atheism (www.reddit.com/r/atheism) which is actually the place that brought me here. I browsed r/atheism for a while getting ready to laugh at the stupidity in the subreddit but instead saw some interesting stuff. I looked into it more and realized I never really chose to be christian and that any other religion was greatly frowned upon in my family.
At first it was sort of a rebellion. The rush of knowing I was doing the exact opposite of what my family enforced was thrilling. Eventually though, I started to believe more and more that there was no god. Eventually, I was an atheist, and nothing can bring me back to being christian. It isn't what I wanted to begin with when I think about it. I just did it because it was all I knew.
I never was really a huge believer in God or Jesus. My parents made us go to church when we were little. I don't know, with me it became more like, if I can't see it, I'm pretty sure it doesn't exist. And my best friend is an atheist!
I was born loving and respecting living beings due to my sometimes excessive empathy. I always was an atheist and existentialism has always shaped my existence.
I always was and am passionate with my eyes open and strong enough now to see the reality of infinite life matter and anti-theism (in an optimistic way). I am atheist in respect to my reasoning in this is what is...I am and I'll be... Next? ... It just is. ...
"The best way to become an Atheist is to read the Bible"
I read it cover to cover.... since then, Ive been an Atheist.
@Tidby - same here, I have read almost every prophecy I can have my hands on.......
I was raised catholic, my family is catholic but i always had the doubt of god existence. When i grew older i started to read the bible and couldnt/ wouldnt believe what some verses said, i couldnt believe that a supreme being would be an egomaniac so petty and full of wrath. just witnessing whats going on with the world i can affirm there is no god....
I grew up with Christian roots throughout my childhood and was voluntarily Christian until I was 19 years old. At that point I noticed how ashamed I felt that God was not the first thing on my mind when I woke up in the morning or conducted activities throughout the day. I realized how I was forcing myself to pray and conform my thoughts to the Christian doctrine, and that I felt burdened by God (this humors me since the mantra at church was that God would lift the burden off of me). I questioned why I was straining myself to believe in some being that I could not see or fathom, which eventually led me to become atheist.