By Bore Venal Charlatan ~
I had a long discussion with a proselytizing Christian student at the bus stop, who had made a habit of passing out tracts. He had been around a few times so I decided to ask him about his side, and tell him of my version as well. Turned out to be Baptist (not surprisingly) and brought up all the familiar evangelical tools - man's sin in face of the ten commandments, the parable of the sower, the impending judgment day, and so on and so forth. He seemed surprised when I mentioned I had used the exact same arguments when 'witnessing' when I was still a Christian. Every evangelist uses the exact same old arguments which I have refuted so often and thoroughly they do not cease to withdraw into the classic 'Only God can know' defense. Naturally my friend assumed I had never known Christ to begin with, which is false, especially considering I probably had more experience in evangelism/apologetics than he did. Thankfully our experience did not turn into the heated tirade of invective and ad-hominem attacks that so often results when people discuss such personal and typically emotional matters.
My point is that the redundancy of this man's arguments made me remember how narrow-minded I was taught to be when in the same position. I could not help but laugh at how similar my 'education' had been as a Christian fundamentalist, and yet feel sad at the pathetic set of beliefs I was conned into adopting. Truly it takes a great deal of ignorance to admit that, by a literal interpretation of scripture, the majority of the planet is condemned to eternal, ceaseless torture for the very crime of being human, and yet love God for allowing a few of his precious chosen to escape the same fate. Most contemporary Christians never bring up the issue and are content to hear an inspirational message, but as a young Baptist, I could not ignore the uncertainty and anxiety this caused. After my separation from the church, I came to realize what a twisted, cult-like environment I had been exposed to. There is a movement within the ex-Fundamentalist community to have many of the child-indoctrination techniques labeled as psychological abuse, and considering the effect that so many ministers' painfully detailed descriptions of hell can have on the mind of children, it is not surprising that people raised in this worldview are outraged.
Truly it takes a great deal of ignorance to admit that, by a literal interpretation of scripture, the majority of the planet is condemned to eternal, ceaseless torture for the very crime of being human, and yet love God for allowing a few of his precious chosen to escape the same fate.I want to caution you about keeping [my siblings] in the church. The congregation has many nice, caring people, but the message is atrocious and inexcusable. Furthermore the exposure to apologist literature (notably Ken Ham, Ted Haggard, and many other offenders) is something I cannot stand. It just bothers me that they still attend an institution in which the majority of members still think the earth is only 6,000 years old. I imagine one day they will have the same period of questioning things that I did before I freed my mind, yet with their continued exposure I am worried they will turn into conformist drones like the one I debated with this morning. Truly my only regret is that I did not leave the faith once and for all earlier, instead of wasting so many years trying in vain to persuade people to accept a selfish and arrogant worldview that even I had trouble adopting and biting my fingers over the realization that the God I worshiped was probably the greatest offender of human rights throughout history. I imagine if I had attended a contemporary church instead I would have had a much nicer experience complete with cool music and free doughnuts before and after the scripturally diluted sermon, but then again I never would have read deeply enough into the Bible to see it as the misanthropic collection of deluded ramblings it now appears to be. If you doubt this, I encourage you to take a look at The Awkward Moments Children's Bible
which I have read and re-read countless times, for a truly objective view of scripture, in context, without the regular apologetic cover-ups and distortions that can make books of genocide appear books of love.
Please, at least consider taking a deeper look at any faith other than the one I unfortunately practiced for so many years. And not the evangelists' version of what atheists believe - I estimate about 90% of what I was told about atheism as a Christian was not only completely false but libelous in every sense of the word. If you would like I can bring my copy of The God Delusion when I come down, and if I can manage, the matching documentary was excellent viewing as well. The Nye/Ham debate also shed some light on the topic. Statements by Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, Albert Einstein, Thomas Jefferson, and Neil DeGrasse Tyson are not a bad place to start either.
Excuse my rant for appearing harsh. This has been brewing for a long time. I feel I had been deceived, duped, swindled, conned, bamboozled, and subjected to spiritual highway robbery, and have begun actively warning others about the same threat. I will, from my own published and unpublished writings on the topic, and from that of others, answer any questions you have concerning Christianity, Atheism, Agnosticism, Deism, Evolution, et cetera. I would be more than happy to offer detailed explanations of anything else I was warned against in the past. Like basic logic. And science.
http://nihilisticmisanthropism.wordpress.com/
My point is that the redundancy of this man's arguments made me remember how narrow-minded I was taught to be when in the same position. I could not help but laugh at how similar my 'education' had been as a Christian fundamentalist, and yet feel sad at the pathetic set of beliefs I was conned into adopting. Truly it takes a great deal of ignorance to admit that, by a literal interpretation of scripture, the majority of the planet is condemned to eternal, ceaseless torture for the very crime of being human, and yet love God for allowing a few of his precious chosen to escape the same fate. Most contemporary Christians never bring up the issue and are content to hear an inspirational message, but as a young Baptist, I could not ignore the uncertainty and anxiety this caused. After my separation from the church, I came to realize what a twisted, cult-like environment I had been exposed to. There is a movement within the ex-Fundamentalist community to have many of the child-indoctrination techniques labeled as psychological abuse, and considering the effect that so many ministers' painfully detailed descriptions of hell can have on the mind of children, it is not surprising that people raised in this worldview are outraged.Truly it takes a great deal of ignorance to admit that, by a literal interpretation of scripture, the majority of the planet is condemned to eternal, ceaseless torture for the very crime of being human, and yet love God for allowing a few of his precious chosen to escape the same fate.I want to caution you about keeping [my siblings] in the church. The congregation has many nice, caring people, but the message is atrocious and inexcusable. Furthermore the exposure to apologist literature (notably Ken Ham, Ted Haggard, and many other offenders) is something I cannot stand. It just bothers me that they still attend an institution in which the majority of members still think the earth is only 6,000 years old. I imagine one day they will have the same period of questioning things that I did before I freed my mind, yet with their continued exposure I am worried they will turn into conformist drones like the one I debated with this morning. Truly my only regret is that I did not leave the faith once and for all earlier, instead of wasting so many years trying in vain to persuade people to accept a selfish and arrogant worldview that even I had trouble adopting and biting my fingers over the realization that the God I worshiped was probably the greatest offender of human rights throughout history. I imagine if I had attended a contemporary church instead I would have had a much nicer experience complete with cool music and free doughnuts before and after the scripturally diluted sermon, but then again I never would have read deeply enough into the Bible to see it as the misanthropic collection of deluded ramblings it now appears to be. If you doubt this, I encourage you to take a look at The Awkward Moments Children's Bible
which I have read and re-read countless times, for a truly objective view of scripture, in context, without the regular apologetic cover-ups and distortions that can make books of genocide appear books of love.Please, at least consider taking a deeper look at any faith other than the one I unfortunately practiced for so many years. And not the evangelists' version of what atheists believe - I estimate about 90% of what I was told about atheism as a Christian was not only completely false but libelous in every sense of the word. If you would like I can bring my copy of The God Delusion when I come down, and if I can manage, the matching documentary was excellent viewing as well. The Nye/Ham debate also shed some light on the topic. Statements by Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, Albert Einstein, Thomas Jefferson, and Neil DeGrasse Tyson are not a bad place to start either.
Excuse my rant for appearing harsh. This has been brewing for a long time. I feel I had been deceived, duped, swindled, conned, bamboozled, and subjected to spiritual highway robbery, and have begun actively warning others about the same threat. I will, from my own published and unpublished writings on the topic, and from that of others, answer any questions you have concerning Christianity, Atheism, Agnosticism, Deism, Evolution, et cetera. I would be more than happy to offer detailed explanations of anything else I was warned against in the past. Like basic logic. And science.
http://nihilisticmisanthropism.wordpress.com/
COMMENTS