Leaving christianity, a bit of my story

[robvalue]

What I would hope parents would do is:

1) Leave religion alone completely when the children are young, and concentrate on teaching them how to think rather than telling them what to think, as far as possible. They don't need to know about it this early. Jamming religious stuff into their head this young is an abuse of power, and an admission that it requires the child being unable to reason in order to believe it.

2) Once they've reached the age of reason, present your religious beliefs, owned as your beliefs. Not presented as fact that it is simply true. Explain why you think it is true, and then leave them to decide for themselves.

3) Explain that there are many other belief systems, that people believe for their own reasons. Tell them you will love them whether they join your belief system, join another or don't join any at all.

This kind of process works really well for things that are actually true. They don't need slotting into an impressionable young mind, because they can be demonstrated, explained and evidenced.

Yes, there are some things children have to accept as true ahead of time, for their own safety. Religion is not one of these things, unless God is so vindictive as to be grading the actions of an infant. And such crucial things can be explained later, unlike religion.