Dealing with Religious Family

[robvalue]

I have been lucky enough that this wasn't a problem for me as just about everyone I've known is atheist (whether they classify themselves that way or not). But I've listened to hundreds of hours of the atheist experience, and spent a few months on this forum now, and it is a very common problem.

In my opinion, it comes down to parents associating themselves so much with their religion to the point where they can't distinguish it from themselves. So leaving the faith is to somehow insult them. The advice I always give is to try to make clear it's the personal beliefs that have changed, not the person, and that you are not rejecting them as a person either, just not agreeing with their beliefs. I find it shocking that so many parents expect their kids to just think the way they do, and get upset when they don't. Especially when it comes to fairy stories.

But it sounds like you have a middle ground case, they didn't take it great, but they didn't go totally mental. In extreme cases people are forced into church and relentlessly bullied until they "believe" again, or even disowned by families.