By WP ~ I have been a Christian my whole life but the past two years have completely broken the mind fuck spell I was placed under. Growing up my mom would take me to baptist church in Louisiana. I always hated that because I remember being a 5 year old kid and being screamed at that I was going to suffer for eternity because I was trying to nap during service. Fast forward to high school and a different state and a different church and my story takes a turn. We started going to a church in Las Vegas and it was all the rage. They had the best worship, the best lighting and the best indoctrination program I have ever witnessed. I bought the “truth” hook line and sinker and I fervently dedicated my teenage life to being the best Christian I could be. I was on the worship team and I went to every camp imaginable. My junior year of high school I found out that I suffered from severe depression with some especially bad bouts of suicidal thoughts. At one point I actually tried to

By Tim Sledge ~ I cannot pinpoint the exact moment when I stopped believing in the faith that shaped my life. I would compare it to living with a persistent, unrelenting ache, and then one day, suddenly realizing the ache is gone. The disintegration of my faith often felt more like something that was happening to me than something I was doing, and frequently I was startled when I heard myself expressing some new belief that I could not remember consciously thinking about. It would usually occur when I was involved in a conversation about religion, I would express my view on the issue being discussed, and later I would think, “Did I say that? Yes, I did. Is that what I believe? Yes, that’s what I believe now.” I was the one ruminating and contemplating, but as I changed one belief, related topics would reshuffle, and sometimes I was surprised when I heard myself making a statement that represented the results of this quickly evolving process. My brain was realigning what I viewed

By John Draper ~ T hings were getting dicey. You know me—push, push, push. “So what you’re telling me,” I said to the well-scrubbed missionaries, “is that you can become a God.” “Yes, that’s true,” the thinner of the two missionaries said. “It’s in the Bible.” “Really?” I could see the beefier of the two missionaries looking at my bookcase filled with “anti-Mormon” books and videos. Anything written about Mormonism by non-Mormons is by default anti-Mormon and to be avoided as a product of—for all practical purposes—Satan Himself, prolific trickster. The beefier missionary narrowed his eyes. “Yes,” the thinner of the two missionaries said, pulling his mega-scriptures from his backpack—not just the Book of Mormon but the Pearl of Great Price and Doctrine and Covenants. All three Standard Works. And the King James Version of the Old and New testaments, included because the authorities back in Salt Lake knew the missionaries would encounter  gentiles  like me. It looked mo

By Michael Runyan ~ I f you were to travel to some parallel universe where Christianity is true, this is what you would find: The Bible contains a lot of scientific facts and explanations that were unknown at the time it was written, but were later confirmed by scientific discovery. Science would have confirmed that the universe and life was created and did not evolve over time. The Gospel books are in agreement on all details of Jesus’s life and ministry. There are numerous accounts of Jesus written by contemporary historians that confirm his existence, miracles, and message. In addition to the gospel books, there are a good number of eyewitness accounts of Jesus’s miracles. Jesus, himself, wrote a creed that was passed on and preserved, and this creed is consistent with the gospel books. The Jewish people, en masse, became followers of Jesus, that is, there is no separation between Judaism and Christianity. Original documents of Jesus’s history were preserved and avail

By Michael Runyan ~ M any scientifically-literate Christians hold on to their faith while admitting to the truth of biological evolution. This is actually an untenable position. The New Testament scriptures reveal that Christianity is dependent on the Adam and Eve story, not biological evolution, being the literal truth. In Luke 3:38, Jesus’s genealogy is traced back to Adam. If evolution is true, then Adam would have had a father as well. In Matthew 19:4-6, Jesus is alleged to have made the following statement: “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” In this verse, Jesus is showing that he believed in the initial creation story, including the first man, Adam, as a literal historical figu

By John Draper ~ I belong to a Facebook group called Recovering Ex-Christians. I join in the conversations, even though I don’t think I’m  recovering . Truth is, I  enjoyed  being a Christian. In particular, I enjoyed  fellowshipping  with fellow believers. My last church, for example, was full of love and laughter. The church met in a grange, a two-story box of a building that smelled of scuff marks and Murphy’s Oil Soap. After service, we’d pull the creaky chairs around folding tables and chat and poke fun at one another over coffee and cake. I also enjoyed worshipping God. I felt it. I’d raise my hands and close my eyes and pour forth my adoration. During the confession of sin, I’d go to my knees and place my forehead on the hardwood floor. I was so grateful He saved a wretch like me. I also enjoyed serving God. The church was small enough that the midweek Bible study comprised basically the entire congregation. Together, we’d search the scriptures to learn how we coul

By ex-Pastor Dan ~ I originally wrote this rant back in November, 2017, after the horrible massacre took place in a Texas Church ( http://www.foxnews.com/us/ 2017/11/05/mass-shooting- reported-at-texas-sutherland- springs-church.html ). I was unable to post it here at Ex-Christian.Net at that time due to technical difficulties, so I sent it to a few of my Atheist friends. Now that I am able to access Ex-Christian.Net once again, and since there has recently been a big shake-up at that church, involving the use (or misuse) of donated funds (  http://www.miamiherald.com/ article208913494.html ), I have decided to post it now. November 7th, 2017 - responding to the lunacy that I just read in the local paper! T his week's latest horror is a double edged tragedy. Not only have we seen another, senseless, mass shooting, but many of the victims were innocent, little children. And, where this insanity took place should give any thinking person pause. It happened in a place

By Carl S ~ T he “spiritual” history of civilization can be a mirror of one's personal experiences: a journey, an undercurrent, even a merry-go-round going nowhere. The spiritual, or “transcendental” (something to do with teeth improvement?), can be quite attractive to an individual or population disappointed or bored by self or everyday living and looking for “explanations.” The siren call of other-reality can be pursued until it morphs into an addiction to delusional thinking, fantasy, a retreat from reality. For those who are very religious, fantasy is an ever-expanding retreat. It appears even liberal Christians don't care what religious addiction one ascribes to, just so long as it remains an addiction. Progressing scientific knowledge, on the other hand, is a process of growing up. So, learn and grow up. A book from many years ago reminded me of our present times. Gore Vidal's historical novel, “Julian,” is based on the writings of that Roman Emperor. Julian wro

By Carl S ~ M illions watched one morning after the tragic school shooting in Florida. The words of the policeman were displayed beneath him: “Student survived by the grace of God.” He should have added that seventeen students didn't survive by the grace of God. Come to think of it, the media reports on those survivors who thank God their prayers were answered, but they never report from those who prayed and perished. In the spirit of unbiased fairness, they ought to report all the experiences they have time for in their available 7 days, 24 hours per day. We might even hear from survivors who said no prayers at all. The name of God doesn't have to enter into tragic news, since God isn't present when tragedy strikes. No witness reports seeing God preventing harm or doing anything, saying anything, to those who are suffering and dying. Neither are there reports of bullets bouncing off the invisible hands of God, thus shielding the students, nor of bullets being removed