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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 10:16 am
(October 1, 2014 at 2:44 am)Blackrook Wrote: I've been reading the forums for a few days and I've come to appreciate that it is a very difficult thing for an atheist to "come out" to his or her Christian family?
Do you believe this "coming out" process to be as difficult and stressful as coming out as a homosexual?
And if so, how about this:
If you are both an atheist and homosexual, would it be better to "come out" to your parents on both issues at the same time to save on grief and surprise?
Having come out both as transgender and as atheist, I'd say coming out as trans is far more difficult. I have to imagine that's something completely different from coming out as gay, though, seeing as how my being trans isn't exactly something you can ignore.
I don't think I ever really officially came out as atheist, but back in the late 90's, when I was living with my parents, we had a shared computer and I was never especially good at clearing my browsing history, so they knew then. Dad tried to talk about it here and there and he was a little uncomfortable, but our household was still fairly secular and reasonable about religious matters.
As far as coming out as both at the same time, well, I didn't even really realize I was trans back then. I wish I had, though; it would have made a lot of things since then a whole lot easier.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 10:28 am
Like DBP says, there's no such thing as 'coming out' as an atheist in England so my answer to the OP is 'No, it's much harder to be homosexual than atheistic'. That said, there is a lunatic religious fringe in the UK, too so I imagine that any atheists in that environment may well liken the publication of their religious beliefs to the publication of their sexuality.
If I was superstitious, I might thank my lucky stars for the accident of birth which granted me such fortune. As it is, the best I can do is try to make up for my privilege by fighting for a world in which it's the norm.
Sum ergo sum
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 10:37 am
I wouldn't know. I mostly just go around apologizing for enjoying white, male and straight privilege.
I don't wear my godlessness on my sleeve and I don't go there unless the person I'm in conversation with does. But I'm not 'out' as an atheist with my students. Doing that would trigger some pretty tough barriers to go up for many of the students who I really need to connect with if they're to be successful.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 10:43 am
It might be equally hard to come out either gay or atheist in some families. I think it depends of the family. Mine just conveniently forgets I'm atheist, so they can be hurt all over again. It's a once every three or four year cycle.
If there is a god, I want to believe that there is a god. If there is not a god, I want to believe that there is no god.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 10:47 am
That really depends on the situation. If I was still a die hard christian, but came out as gay, I would argue that you can still be a gay christian. Jesus said that anyone who breaks the least of these laws will be called least in heaven, but you still get into heaven. So according to Jesus, I can still get into heaven even if I'm in love with a man.
So with being gay at least there's something in the bible that can help. Being atheist I think would be harder, unless your community is more moderate or liberal. My parents aren't christian, so I didn't get ostracized when I came out.
I'd just say it depends.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 11:20 am
(This post was last modified: October 1, 2014 at 11:21 am by Anomalocaris.)
(October 1, 2014 at 2:44 am)Blackrook Wrote: I've been reading the forums for a few days and I've come to appreciate that it is a very difficult thing for an atheist to "come out" to his or her Christian family?
Do you believe this "coming out" process to be as difficult and stressful as coming out as a homosexual?
And if so, how about this:
If you are both an atheist and homosexual, would it be better to "come out" to your parents on both issues at the same time to save on grief and surprise?
Neither would be attended with any degree of difficulty if you hang out with educated, intelligent, enlightened people.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 1, 2014 at 11:44 am
Even at a gay 12 Steppers meeting I am not going to go too far out as an atheist.
In other arenas, I really like arguing from the other side, in other words, posing questions from a viewpoint of Literalism and Inerrancy, not Atheism. Highlighting cherry picking and liberal slacking (for lack of a better term) seems more fun, and catching grief from a 'True Believer' perspective can be a cage rattler.
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 3, 2014 at 4:43 am
(October 1, 2014 at 3:53 am)Bad Wolf Wrote: What do you mean by sexual digression?
Well any sexual tendency aside from being straight is digression. For me..
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 3, 2014 at 6:55 am
So you're slightly homophobic? Is that what you are saying?
'The more I learn about people the more I like my dog'- Mark Twain
'You can have all the faith you want in spirits, and the afterlife, and heaven and hell, but when it comes to this world, don't be an idiot. Cause you can tell me you put your faith in God to put you through the day, but when it comes time to cross the road, I know you look both ways.' - Dr House
“Young earth creationism is essentially the position that all of modern science, 90% of living scientists and 98% of living biologists, all major university biology departments, every major science journal, the American Academy of Sciences, and every major science organization in the world, are all wrong regarding the origins and development of life….but one particular tribe of uneducated, bronze aged, goat herders got it exactly right.” - Chuck Easttom
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RE: Question for Atheists: Is coming out as an atheist as hard as coming out as gay?
October 3, 2014 at 9:59 am
Well I have never (and can never as I am not) come out as gay I do feel in certain situations it can be equal. In plenty of situations it is worse to come out as gay it can be comparable in "tolerate" areas of North US, Canada and Europe as those are areas of acceptance that still have prejudices. It is still tough to admit, particularly in hardcore catholic french canadian families like I grew up in.
“Religion was invented when the first con man met the first fool.”
― Mark Twain
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