By austinrohm ~ W hen I stopped turning a blind eye to all the problems with the Bible and Christianity and started applying the same skepticism that I applied toward other religions, the usual response that I got from Christians was,  “You are under spiritual attack! The devil is whispering in your ear. These doubts are all lies!” Oddly enough, other religions use the devil as an excuse too when members start questioning their religion. It’s also the devil when you start questioning the doctrines of the church you go to. Where do these questions and doubts come from? From a place of honest inquiry and desire to know the truth? Or are spirits and ghosts telling you that your faith and holy book is irrational? You have yet to demonstrate that demons and the devil exist. When people attempt to prove this, they always have stories lined up about “demonic oppression.” When pressed for these stories, they usually come back to the source of Someone had scary dreams or sleep paralysi...

By austinrohm ~ I wrote this article as I was deconverting in my own head: I never talked with anyone about it, but it was a letter I wrote as if I was writing to all the Christians in my life who constantly brought up how morality was the best argument for Christianity. No Christian has read this so far, but it is written from the point of view of a frustrated closeted atheist whose only outlet was organizing his thoughts on the keyboard. A common phrase used with non-Christians is: “Well without God, there isn’t a foundation of morality. If God is not real, then you could go around killing and raping.” There are a few things which must be addressed. 1. Show me objective morality. Define it and show me an example. Different Christians have different moral standards depending on how they interpret the Bible. Often times, they will just find what they believe, then go back into scripture and find a way to validate it. Conversely, many feel a particular action is not ...

By austinrohm ~ This will be my first time posting here. As a matter of fact, this will be my first time in a long time that I will be able to be completely honest with people regarding my true beliefs. I grew up in a particularly zealous denomination of Christianity known as Independent Fundamental Baptists. This denomination is very black and white in its thinking, and demonizes anyone on the "out" group, and people on the "in" group constantly reinforce just how happy they are to have the TRUTH. As anyone else who is brainwashed into this type of cult-like thinking as a child, I fully believed Christianity and the (King James) Bible with all my heart! I was constantly so happy that I just happened to be born into the one, true religion; and was very happy that I was born to parents who went to the "right" denomination of Christian church. But I always had a difficult time with how quiet God seemed to be, and a VERY difficult time with a ...

From Dr. Marlene Winell ~ Announcing our 2022 Religious Recovery Retreat! Join us in-person December 8-11. Pack your bags, we're off to beautiful Nine Mountain Retreat Center in western Massachusetts for a long weekend designed to support recovery from Religious Trauma Syndrome. We're thrilled to offer this in-person opportunity where folks can disconnect from daily pressures, share personal stories, examine the effects of past indoctrination, and learn strategies for recovery. The program will include short presentations, discussion, and structured activities with activities like art, drama, music, and movement. We will also have time to socialize with like-minded people over delicious meals, hiking, or enjoying the hot-tub! Go HERE for more information . After registration, you will get more details and a questionnaire to complete. Space is limited, reserve your spot below!  Register Today The retreat is led by Dr. Marlene Winell, psychologist and author of Leaving The...

By Carl S. ~ O ver the span of my 80+ years on earth, I have read many historical and spiritual accounts of the life of the Apostle, St. Paul. Only recently have I read of discovered ancient writings in regards to his private, as compared to public, missionary life. Two or more writers, including a convert to Christianity himself, mention one particular revelation. Once I discovered their texts, my pre-conceptions of Paul as a noble, spiritual man, also reveal him to be even more like one of us. Paul, after all, did admit to being just another sinner. You may or may not change your image of St. Paul even after finding out he had an ongoing sexual relationship with a girl, beginning when she was twelve years of age. Whether she bore him a child, or had a child by him aborted; a common practice in his day, is unknown. This, of course, would have had to be covered up. Throughout periods of history, a marriage to a twelve year old girl was acceptable. It may also be said the laws ...

By Guncher ~ I have been a believer for over fifty years. During Covid I sat down and looked at what I believed. Once I questioned things, I realised that I had no evidence to stay a Christian. At the moment I border between Agnostic, Atheist & Deist. I have lost trust in the Bible being "inerrant." Confused...

By Carl S ~ L ucky you to see what humans have never seen in the entire history of humanity! The James Webb Space Telescope is gushing out a constant stream of pictures from the farthest reaches of Space-Time. Some day, it might find the beginning of this Universe as a "Go boom!" followed by multiple orgasms ever since. No good or evil relativity involved. Absurd? So what's the point of it all? I don't see the "point" of any or all of it, just like my life or that of any other organism. While the Webb and Hubble are scanning, analyzing, and photographing, are they looking for signs of "Heaven?" "Since "Heaven" is by tradition, a physical place, with "many mansions," where the hell is it? Billions of people have been told "Heaven is for real," so why can't it be found? Millions of people still believe Jesus and others floated up from Earth, unaided by balloons, rockets, etc., through the clouds, to this ...

By Brad N ~ I t is rare when I find someone with a common testimonial for their de-conversion out of religion, mainly Christianity. I hope to find others who have found freedom from a similar starting point as myself. Here is my story. I grew up non-denomination in a healthy loving home. My parents were regular in their church attendance, prayer, bible reading, and were weekly 10% tithers. I admit that nothing was very striking about my childhood and my parents set a relatively good example. No abuse, very little shame, but a lot of worship music led by trendy Christian rock bands (the Christian band Stellar Kart actually originated out of my church) . Eventually, after I got married, my wife and I found ourselves on a more conservative path and soon became Presbyterian, a denomination that many Christians consider a “stricter” sect of the faith, but still very reputable. I enjoyed my time as a Presbyterian; I started questioning many of the basic beliefs of Christianity I was r...

By MTC ~ I n late 2020 I started talking to my sister again after being on non-speaking terms for several months. She had struggled with alcohol and substance addiction (I was on non-speaking terms with her for other reasons though), but then she "found Jesus" at a local church (which I used to attend, ironically). In January of 2021 after I moved back to my home state and started talking to her again, I chatted with her about my past traumas, humiliations, etc. I was upfront and blunt about "God," and she snapped at me. "HEY! This is a Christian home; we don't cross that line! God is kinder to you than you realize. You're breathing air and have food to eat and a roof over your head!" First of all, what a kick in the face to the countless people who are starving, homeless, died at younger ages than I am now, etc. Second of all, her little lecture was exactly like defending an abusive parent, because even though an abusive parent may do...

By Pinkbunion ~ Hello everyone, this is my first time to post on this forum, and I'm quite nervous about it. I am a former Christian, specifically, Roman Catholic, who fell in the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories artound 2010 while looking up my favorite band. That Internet search result linked the band's name with the Illuminati. So, I ended up on vigilantcitizen.com , got intrigued by the articles, and on it went. These beliefs were pretty much maintained until the year 2020. My deconversion all started last September 2020, when I watched a conspiracy theorist video that exposed the evil of the Old Testament (the video creator was not Christian) and the reasons why some crazier conspiracy theories were false. So, first, I am going to relate what happened to my beliefs from 2010-2014, where it remained the same. Second, I'll discuss what I believed during 2014-2020, where there was a shift in my beliefs and I became more committed and certain of it. Finally, I'll st...

By WizenedSage (Galen Rose) ~ T he believer insists that the universe requires a maker, a god. I would ask him, "How do you know there is only one god?" From what we can see and measure in this world, how can we be sure there are not many gods; perhaps 3 or 4, or 5 or 10, or 30 or 40? How could we know? Perhaps one god created the stars, another created the oceans, another the land, another the plants, another the animals, etc. How could we know? Can we be sure this is not the case? Even the Bible suggests there is more than one god. In the Psalms, there are these passages: “There is none like you among the gods, O Lord” (86:8); “For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be revered above all gods” (96:4); “Our Lord is above all gods” (135:5); “He is exalted above all gods” (97:7); “For Yahweh is a great god, and a great king above all gods” (95:3). In Exodus Yahweh predicts that he will execute judgments “on all the gods of Egypt” (12:12). ...