How did you become an atheist?

[Excited Penguin]

So, can you tell us about how you became an atheist? Was it a process or an instance when you dropped your god belief? Did someone help you along, or influence you? Or maybe you were always an atheist? Please share your story.

Also, if you could address whether or not you discovered since you became an atheist that you had other irrational beliefs besides the belief in a God, and what you did about those.

Feel free to answer however you like. These are just guidelines. But I'm basically asking about your atheism(and maybe about your skepticism), so to speak.

[Alex K]

I found the idea of god belief increasingly repulsive, and by the time I was 14, I was quite certain that the feeling was justified.

[Edwardo Piet]

This is probably like the 100th thread about this. Possibly a bit less but possibly a lot more!

Why am I an atheist? Because I have never believed in a god. How did I become an atheist? By being born.

[zebo-the-fat]

Never had a god belief to drop, never seen any evidence of any gods, demons, goblins or pixies

[Simon Moon]

I was always a skeptic.

I require demonstrable evidence and reasoned argument to accept the claims that I believe.

It hit me, when I was in my mid 20's, that I was not applying the same level of skeptical scrutiny to my god beliefs as I was for other beliefs.

In the quest to be intellectually honest, I was compelled to examine my god beliefs. It did not take long for them to just fall away.

It is my opinion, that atheism is the natural outcome of correctly applying skepticism to god beliefs.

[brewer]

Been there, done that. Look in past threads.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Much like Evie and zebo, I honestly can't recall a time when I believed in God. Even though I was required to attend Mass and Sunday school, learned the catechism by rote, and was confirmed, I always felt it was all a bit contrived. If I had to pick a single moment when I knew (rather than strongly suspected) that is was all nonsense, it would be the time when, at about 6 or 7 years old, I dropped my 10p into the collection plate then whispered to my mother, 'Mam, what do they do with all that money?' and she whispered back, 'They give it to God.'

The folk superstitions I grew up with had a much stronger grip on me than did religion: two funerals in the same cemetery on the same day will bring disaster; when someone in the family dies, the youngest child able to do so has to bring the news to the cows and (in season) the bees, or the faeries will give the departed no rest; if you don't give a pleasant hullo to a solitary magpie, you'll have bad cess ('luck') for a year; never pick up a comb you see lying on the ground - it belongs to the banshee; lots more. I can't truthfully say that I'm shut of all of these yet - to this day, I have a sneaking suspicion that putting shoes on a table (any table) is just asking for trouble.

Boru

[CapnAwesome]

This is probably like the 100th thread about this. Possibly a bit less but possibly a lot more!

Why am I an atheist? Because I have never believed in a god. How did I become an atheist? By being born.

Isn't there like, a whole sub-forum for it?

[Chad32]

It was a process. A collection of things. It mostly happened because I gained a better feeling of right and wrong as I grew up. There are a number of things that are quite different about the culture surrounding the bible, and modern western culture. Even this country of USA, which some people think was founded on christian principles.

First you have this deity who is expected to rule over you. In a world of monarchies and dictatorships, this makes sense. the greater peasant populous serves the whims of those in power. However in this country the ones in power are there because we elected them to serve our needs. One of the founding principles of this country is no taxation without representation, which is why we're not the United Colonies of Britain right now. We pay money to the government in exchange for them listening to us. Now it runs more like an oligarchy than a representative republic, but that's because of corruption in politics. They are supposed to be public servants. Not the ruling elite.

Another thing about the bible is the idea of killing some innocent creature to wipe away the wrongdoings of the guilty. There is no modern justice system where it's ok to do that. Sometimes it gets done, but it's not on paper as acceptable practice. We don't jail children for the crimes of their parents. Human sacrifice nd scapegoating just aren't done anymore, so why should I accept the idea of someone dying in my place? Then you get into the idea of eternal punishment. Why is it eternal? Most likely so a responsible person won't just choose to take their punishment like a respectable adult should. If the punishment is fair and proportional, then I shouldn't let someone take my place. That would be wrong.

So on moral grounds the bible fails in this, and more. Aside from that, there's the fact that prophesies, creator gods, and people who are born of virgins and come back from the dead are not unique or original to judaism and christianity. So there's nothing that makes the bible special. Why pick it over other older religions? Why pick the older religions just because they are older?

That's what made me an atheist. I could probably go on, but I believe I've made my point.

[Gawdzilla]

So, can you tell us about how you became an atheist? Was it a process or an instance when you dropped your god belief? Did someone help you along, or influence you? Or maybe you were always an atheist? Please share your story. 

Never been anything else. Expelled from Sunday School on my second visit, age 7, for asking awkward questions about Noah's fArk. 

I told a young lady recently that I was an atheist and she seemed shocked. After a moment of contemplation she said, "Well, it happens*, people get abused..."

I told her I was never religious so that didn't apply. She grew more confused then. "But how?"

"I wasn't indoctrinated in any religion."

"I wasn't either!"

"You parents were..."

"Catholic."

"And you are..."

"Catholic. But that's because it makes sense!"

"Catholics are the ones that eat their savior?"

"Now you're trying to start a fight!" 







*You know, like hurricanes hitting Mexico or something.