Those are some questions to the ones who never believed in a God. Did your parents or guardians tell you anything about religion? How were your relationships with other kids (or grown-ups for that matter)?

My family told me all sorts of things about all sorts of religions.  Got along just fine with other kids and adults.

(July 17, 2017 at 10:13 am)Khemikal Wrote: My family told me all sorts of things about all sorts of religions.  Got along just fine with other kids and adults.

Did others know that you were an atheist?

My family never read the bible, but we went to church sometimes even though I always hated it. Everything they told me either didn't make sense or could easily be determined to be an outright lie. I was so young that whatever god concept I had was so underdeveloped it was indistinguishable from a stranger on the other side of the world. It was so insignificant I was able to abandon it pretty easily, especially when my uncle proved beyond a doubt that what they were feeding me about this god was just fundamentally incompatible with their actual idea of it. The rest of the time was spent being teased and bullied for being a "bitched" (which I just heard about recently on here) and suffering in silence whenever we happened to go to church.

From that point, pretty much anything adults did scared the fuck out of me. Speaking in tongues, even just bowing their heads in prayer, or speaking in such a way that had such real conviction, to thin air, it was all awful. I had no patience for it, it was truly agonizing to sit through even something as relatively minor as a prayer. When you see grown adults acting less rationally and maturely than a prepubescent child, you know, deeply, that something is terribly, terribly wrong with the world.

My parents thought meal and bedtime prayers plus church were enough. They weren't. Stopped working around the same time as belief in other fantasies.

(July 17, 2017 at 10:14 am)Die Atheistin Wrote: Did others know that you were an atheist?

I don't think that small children give it much thought, but sure, by the time I was in high school it was pretty apparent. Keep in mind, where I grew up, it's mostly catholics and jews....so....being irreligious was kindof normal. Not really a vector for ridicule. The other place I spent my childhood at was deciddly more rural, judgy and baptist...but I happened to be the only white male in my grade.........so I got a pass. Better that their daughters dated an atheist than Something Worse™.

(July 17, 2017 at 10:21 am)Astonished Wrote: My family never read the bible, but we went to church sometimes even though I always hated it. Everything they told me either didn't make sense or could easily be determined to be an outright lie. I was so young that whatever god concept I had was so underdeveloped it was indistinguishable from a stranger on the other side of the world. It was so insignificant I was able to abandon it pretty easily, especially when my uncle proved beyond a doubt that what they were feeding me about this god was just fundamentally incompatible with their actual idea of it. The rest of the time was spent being teased and bullied for being a "bitched" (which I just heard about recently on here) and suffering in silence whenever we happened to go to church.

From that point, pretty much anything adults did scared the fuck out of me. Speaking in tongues, even just bowing their heads in prayer, or speaking in such a way that had such real conviction, to thin air, it was all awful. I had no patience for it, it was truly agonizing to sit through even something as relatively minor as a prayer. When you see grown adults acting less rationally and maturely than a prepubescent child, you know, deeply, that something is terribly, terribly wrong with the world.

I know how it feels. My parents force me to go to church with them (we don't go very often, but still). I've told my mom that I'm agnostic (wich is true, I'm an agnostic atheist), and she was ok with it. She told me that we may never know if there's a God or not, but imaginig that He exist gives us positive energy. I find this argument ridiculous, but I appreciate that she let's me question the religion. I think she would accept if I would tell her that I'm an atheist. My dad on the other hand isn't so permissive. He's in betwee a fundamentalist and a moderate. He doesn't believe in Hell and doesn't hate other Religions. He also doesn't see atheists as evil and doesn't complain about the LGBT. But he thinks that prayer is the most important thing and he praises the Lord often.

Blessed are they who weren't indoctrinated to believe in God in the first place.

I am uncertain what I can offer to this thread since I was not raised into atheism as the OP requires of its commentators. I removied the debilitating chains of religion in my early twenties.

(July 17, 2017 at 10:38 am)Die Atheistin Wrote:

(July 17, 2017 at 10:21 am)Astonished Wrote: My family never read the bible, but we went to church sometimes even though I always hated it. Everything they told me either didn't make sense or could easily be determined to be an outright lie. I was so young that whatever god concept I had was so underdeveloped it was indistinguishable from a stranger on the other side of the world. It was so insignificant I was able to abandon it pretty easily, especially when my uncle proved beyond a doubt that what they were feeding me about this god was just fundamentally incompatible with their actual idea of it. The rest of the time was spent being teased and bullied for being a "bitched" (which I just heard about recently on here) and suffering in silence whenever we happened to go to church.

From that point, pretty much anything adults did scared the fuck out of me. Speaking in tongues, even just bowing their heads in prayer, or speaking in such a way that had such real conviction, to thin air, it was all awful. I had no patience for it, it was truly agonizing to sit through even something as relatively minor as a prayer. When you see grown adults acting less rationally and maturely than a prepubescent child, you know, deeply, that something is terribly, terribly wrong with the world.

I know how it feels. My parents force me to go to church with them (we don't go very often, but still). I've told my mom that I'm agnostic (wich is true, I'm an agnostic atheist), and she was ok with it. She told me that we may never know if there's a God or not, but imaginig that He exist gives us positive energy. I find this argument ridiculous, but I appreciate that she let's me question the religion. I think she would accept if I would tell her that I'm an atheist. My dad on the other hand isn't so permissive. He's in betwee a fundamentalist and a moderate. He doesn't believe in Hell and doesn't hate other Religions. He also doesn't see atheists as evil and doesn't complain about the LGBT. But he thinks that prayer is the most important thing and he praises the Lord often.

Did you ever try pointing out that you could replace god with anything else to draw positive energy from, since it's all just coming from your mind and your own feelings? I just hate how people are convinced their religion has a monopoly on giving them tinglies.

(July 17, 2017 at 10:49 am)Mister Agenda Wrote: Blessed are they who weren't indoctrinated to believe in God in the first place.

I'm fortunate that my parent's ineptitude extended to their efforts to indoctrinate me. Half-assed and backwards as everything else, it was inadvertently the only good thing about growing up in that house.