Quote:I know what it is all caused by: religion. My life used to have meaning, I used to matter...but now I don't.
oops, this escaped me... and I was thinking what the actual problem is that you feel that way : ) )
Because I might have a different understanding of what "religion" is, I'll talk about this:
- I don't think that leaving a "religion" in the meaning of official/established/organized religion causes such thing. On the other hand, it causes a feeling of guilt as if you've betrayed them or "shouldn't have done that!" and perhaps a feeling of releasing the chains that were holding you.
- Ceasing to believe in God causes anxiety and insecurity. But this is a different subject than the first.
Anyway, my suggestion as a heretic would be not to join any official/organized religion. There are many problems with this, like brainwashing, manipulation, getting to believe what they believe without noticing (and without having arguments for what you've come to believe), etc. On the other hand, if you believe in God or not, or what philosophy you believe is your personal choice. You have your entire life at your disposal to think about that. And, if you're interested in religions & beliefs & philosophies, you can study about them - the subject is large.
