Do you attend religious rituals for your family?

[Thor]

We have a nephew getting confirmed this weekend and I'm not going. We will be attending the party afterwards, but it frosts me to give the kid a gift when all he's done is attend religious indoctrination classes and participate in a superstitious ritual. Yeah, a real accomplishment there!

I'm curious what other atheists do when a family member is having a baptism, first communion, confirmation, etc...

Do you go to the ceremony? Send a gift? Ignore the whole thing?

[Disinter]

Well at the moment I'm still young and therefore have no choice. However, in the future I presume I'll just ignore the whole thing. I don't want to support or condone the behavior, but I'm not going to blow the party up either.

[Ace Otana]

Well almost my entire family are atheists. My home town is loaded with atheists. Religion is very weak here.
But if I was invited to a religious thing I would turn up but will refuse to sing any shit. I'll stand up but don't expect me to touch or sing anything I consider BS.
The last time I witnessed delusion was at a funeral. My nan is religious and arranged a priesty to have religious singing involved. I just stood there and made a few funny faces to make my little sis laugh. Took a quick blimps of some kind of book that was filled with shite and dropped it on the floor. I didn't think it was worthy to be anywhere else (apart from the bin).
Just entertaining my self by mocking religion.

[Thor]

I don't want to support or condone the behavior, but I'm not going to blow the party up either.

This is pretty much my attitude.

[Minimalist]

Never.

[fr0d0]

I'd have to say never too. As an atheist I think I'd be insulted if I felt my known stance was being compromised. Of course religious people use the guilt trip for positive efect (in their eyes). That still doesn't make it ok or reason for you not to take offence or retaliate as you see fit.

[leo-rcc]

I do attend weddings, religious or secular, if I am friends with at least one of them or if it is a family member getting married. I just let the religious part slide mostly. I make sure I don't disrupt the ceremony and wait for the cake.

I don't attend baptisms, communions, or confirmations.

[tavarish]

I'll do it if there's free food at the end.

Ain't nothing better than a free lunch.

[Thor]

Well almost my entire family are atheists. My home town is loaded with atheists. Religion is very weak here.

Sounds like you live in paradise!

But if I was invited to a religious thing I would turn up but will refuse to sing any shit. I'll stand up but don't expect me to touch or sing anything I consider BS.
The last time I witnessed delusion was at a funeral. My nan is religious and arranged a priesty to have religious singing involved. I just stood there and made a few funny faces to make my little sis laugh. Took a quick blimps of some kind of book that was filled with shite and dropped it on the floor. I didn't think it was worthy to be anywhere else (apart from the bin).
Just entertaining my self by mocking religion.

I know what you mean. I've been to several funerals that were held in a church and mass was conducted as part of the ceremony. I can't stand the constant stand... sit... stand... sit.... etc... I'll stand and sit (although I always make it a point to be THE LAST person to stand) but I absolutely refuse to kneel. Nor do I participate when the sheep go up to get their cracker.

One funeral I attended had the priest telling us some bullshit about how we had to pray for the deceased because "God" would hear the prayers and this would help the deceased to get into heaven! Oh, did I have to bite my tongue! I wanted to ask this dipshit how he could possibly know something like this for a FACT. And speaking of dipshits.... another time I was at a wedding that included a mass as part of the service. At one point, the priest tells us that this mass "doesn't count" toward the weekly worship obligation. He then said, "So I expect to see all of you here tomorrow!" I wanted to yell out, "Ya won't be seeing me, asshole!" I wondered why the mass at the wedding "didn't count" for the weekly worship obligation, until I realized that you can't pass the plate at a wedding! It's all about money, isn't it?

[Rev. Rye]

They drag me there sometimes, but this Easter, they overslept, and chose not to.