What are the things that might have caused her to flip out? Is she prone to flip out and this is just one flip out amongst many?
Does your church preach the "doctrine" that atheists are the enemy? That they destroy all things good in the world. That they are somehow a threat to god?
Does your apostasy mean the death of things important to your mom which may not actually be related to god. Does she morn the absence of you in church and church related activities. Some parents believe that a family must do everything together. Apostasy in this instance is like betraying the family. Does she personally feel betrayed.
Does she feel like a total failure because she couldn't keep you from atheism. Is your Apostasy a sign of her failure?
Is she reacting to your rejection of god as if it were a rejection of her?
Though very wrong, these are the things that can go through a parents mind.
If you seek some understanding perhaps in time (a lot of time, say at least a decade) you might be able to gain some peace.
For example, I remember watching a video of a parent who learned that her son was gay. The first thing that went through her mind was "oh no, this means no grandchildren." She didn't know that gays could adopt children (this was a dated video). It wasn't the homosexuality that was the issue in this case, it was the loss of potential grandchildren. In this case the situation was resolved in the knowledge that her son can still have a life partner (in this case a son in law instead of a daughter in law) and adopt a child.
Does your church preach the "doctrine" that atheists are the enemy? That they destroy all things good in the world. That they are somehow a threat to god?
Does your apostasy mean the death of things important to your mom which may not actually be related to god. Does she morn the absence of you in church and church related activities. Some parents believe that a family must do everything together. Apostasy in this instance is like betraying the family. Does she personally feel betrayed.
Does she feel like a total failure because she couldn't keep you from atheism. Is your Apostasy a sign of her failure?
Is she reacting to your rejection of god as if it were a rejection of her?
Though very wrong, these are the things that can go through a parents mind.
If you seek some understanding perhaps in time (a lot of time, say at least a decade) you might be able to gain some peace.
For example, I remember watching a video of a parent who learned that her son was gay. The first thing that went through her mind was "oh no, this means no grandchildren." She didn't know that gays could adopt children (this was a dated video). It wasn't the homosexuality that was the issue in this case, it was the loss of potential grandchildren. In this case the situation was resolved in the knowledge that her son can still have a life partner (in this case a son in law instead of a daughter in law) and adopt a child.
I have studied the Bible and the theology behind Christianity for many years. I have been to many churches. I have walked the depth and the breadth of the religion and, as a result of this, I have a lot of bullshit to scrape off the bottom of my shoes. ~Ziploc Surprise
