Do Christian Parents Abuse their Children?

[Bow Before Zeus]

Not my assertion but Richard Dawkins believes that bringing children up to believe that their parents religion is true is tantamount to child abuse. The argument is that by doing so the child is ill equipped to make their own way in the world when they go out on their own.

I have a personal story about this. My oldest daughter went to a catholic primary school for the first 2 years of her schooling. The intention was to enrol my younger daughter in the catholic school as well when she was old enough. One day my older daughter came home from school and started talking to me about the 14 stations of the cross. Anyone know what that is? I didn't at the time so I googled it. What I found shook me to the core. These intellectually handicapped adults were brainwashing my child to become as intellectually handicapped as them - in short, child abuse!

I had to think quickly here. I couldn't tell my daughter that this is a load of crap because that would push here even further away from me and closer to a demented mentality. So I taught her critical thinking. Firstly, I defined ethics as any thought, word or action that causes harm or death to any living being (I have to thank the Buddhist texts for that definition). Then I asked her to show me some of the other xtian texts that they taught at school and sat with her to analyse whether the thoughts, words or actions described in those texts was ethical. Lo and behold, she identified a number of unethical actions and I could see the light bulb literally switching on in her head. I won! I had just grabbed my child from the clutches of these demented people!

At the end of that year, she was out of the school and out of the catholic system. The bizarre thing is, when we told the school, they were shocked that we were taking her to a non catholic school and asked us if we had considered taking her to one of the other catholic schools. They wanted to keep her in the lunatic asylum called catholicism!

After my experience, nearly losing my child to this demented mentally abusive system, I understood what Richard Dawkins meant when he said that teaching religion to children is child abuse.

Anyone have similar experiences?

Anyone think that it's ok for xtians and muslims to teach their religion to their children and that it's not child abuse?

Administrator Notice
The subject of this thread has been edited to make it more in-line with the post and the rules.

[Der/die AtheistIn]

I've had a similar sitiuatin like your daughter. I live in Romania, here is obligatory for every child to take religion classes, no matter what they believe. I too was indoctrinated with bullshit. My parents are moderates, but when they found out, they didn't examine me very close. I wish that my parents were more like you.
I don't think that is obligatory any more for a student to take religious classes, but you have to ask permission from the principal for that.

[SteveII]

Not my assertion but Richard Dawkins believes that bringing children up to believe that their parents religion is true is tantamount to child abuse. The argument is that by doing so the child is ill equipped to make their own way in the world when they go out on their own.

I have a personal story about this. My oldest daughter went to a catholic primary school for the first 2 years of her schooling. The intention was to enrol my younger daughter in the catholic school as well when she was old enough. One day my older daughter came home from school and started talking to me about the 14 stations of the cross. Anyone know what that is? I didn't at the time so I googled it. What I found shook me to the core. These intellectually handicapped adults were brainwashing my child to become as intellectually handicapped as them - in short, child abuse!

I had to think quickly here. I couldn't tell my daughter that this is a load of crap because that would push here even further away from me and closer to a demented mentality. So I taught her critical thinking. Firstly, I defined ethics as any thought, word or action that causes harm or death to any living being (I have to thank the Buddhist texts for that definition). Then I asked her to show me some of the other xtian texts that they taught at school and sat with her to analyse whether the thoughts, words or actions described in those texts was ethical. Lo and behold, she identified a number of unethical actions and I could see the light bulb literally switching on in her head. I won! I had just grabbed my child from the clutches of these demented people!

At the end of that year, she was out of the school and out of the catholic system. The bizarre thing is, when we told the school, they were shocked that we were taking her to a non catholic school and asked us if we had considered taking her to one of the other catholic schools. They wanted to keep her in the lunatic asylum called catholicism!

After my experience, nearly losing my child to this demented mentally abusive system, I understood what Richard Dawkins meant when he said that teaching religion to children is child abuse.

Anyone have similar experiences?

Anyone think that it's ok for xtians and muslims to teach their religion to their children and that it's not child abuse?

Wow, you will fit in here! An obnoxious and inflammatory title that is not in any way supported by the post!

1. Your shock at a Catholic school teaching NT stories is, well, shocking.
2. You never connected how The Stations of the Cross (a series of purported historical events) was "in short, child abuse" or could lead to "mentally handicapped". You simply asserted your opinion in an effort to support your conclusion.  
3. With your deep background in theology, you examined the "xtian texts". You found "unethical actions" based on your ethical theory. Okay, even if I grant you that, you have in no way supported your conclusion: "Christian Parents Abuse Their Children". 
4. By your own shitty logic, you, being ultimately responsible for your child, were abusing your child by sending her to that school. Congrats. 

In an effort to salvage your post from breaking the forum rules, do you have any actual arguments to support your post title. In case you need the reminder:

ar·gu·ment
ˈärɡyəmənt/
noun
plural noun: arguments

[*]2.
a reason or set of reasons given with the aim of persuading others that an action or idea is right or wrong.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

The argument is that by doing so the child is ill equipped to make their own way in the world when they go out on their own.

This is such a monumentally stupid argument that it's hard to know where to begin.  If it were true, then atheists would have to be more successful than believers, with a concomitant issue of believers having more of a struggle to 'get ahead'.  Since neither of these are evidentially true, Dawkins should get his head out of his arse at least long enough to look about and see things as they are.

Maybe that stroke affected him more than we thought.

Boru

[Catholic_Lady]

I'm going to report this. At least for the title.

---

Also, Dawkins is an effing prick

[Succubus]

Well if it isn’t Catholic Lady trying to brew up a shit storm. Quell surprise.

[ErGingerbreadMandude]

You know, I'm a Christian, seems like you're implying I'll be a abusive parent. So go fuck yourself?

[brewer]

Apparently you did zero research prior to enrolling your daughter in a catholic school. Even my dumb ass would have known what was coming. As far as I can tell you have no one to blame but yourself.

Who are you really angry with?

[Catholic_Lady]

Well if it isn’t Catholic Lady trying to brew up a shit storm. Quell surprise.

Haha, yeah that's me. I'm the provocative one around here always trying to stir up trouble.

[Aoi Magi]

There are loads of ways parents abuse their children like relying on prayer alone instead of getting the necessary medical aid. But parents simply trying to pass on their knowledge they feel would be beneficial to the child is not child abuse.

Though if you call it child abuse, then you too are a child abuser for enrolling your daughters in a catholic school knowing full well what that entailed.