IronChariots.org

[wjennings1977]

I was born and have spent most of my life in North Carolina. I was brought up in a Christian household, and blindly followed with faith for the first half (16 years) of my life. It wasn't some tragic event which turned me away as most religious people would have you believe. In my junior year in high school I developed this attraction to reading, and since religious books were the top suggestions of my parents I constantly found myself with one in my hand. Being these are the same books that they read I can only wonder why they drew such different conclusions.

This is the entire issue that I have with religion. This seperatist ideaology which forms so many groups is all a certain interpretation of the same thing. How can I not be free to choose my path if I have this ability to reason, and decide what is best for me? How can I follow the preached ideals that I'm supposed to blindly submit to if I was given the inclination to look at things logically? Why didn't he just make us sheep? When I look at things in the manner in which they (the religious) would have me I can't help but to believe that their God is playing some kind of sick joke on me.

I feel that religion is the bane of human society which causes self-righteous sentiment, promotes human judgements and even causes actions which is in blatent contradiction with their own laws. I feel that teaching that we are unworthy of knowledge or unable to understand is what keeps us restricted and prevents us from the progression of mental growth and flourishing as an individual person. I'm not saying that a 'god' does not exist. I'm simply saying that if a 'god' does exist, and created me, then I know I was 'created' to flourish and to grow. To be what I was meant to be.

Thanks for the opportunity to meet and congregate with a group of like-minded people! See you on the forums.

Bill
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"We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further. "

-Richard Dawkins