Atheists were burned?

[Hobot]

My story is very similar to Slartibartfast's and Durandal's. I was raised a Catholic and went to Catholic school from kindergarten all the way to grade 13 (which I've just completed). I was always really into science and because my parents were fairly religious I would try my best to fit my understanding of Christianity into science. Despite my attempts to unify my two beliefs, there were still times when doubt would set in. I tried asking my mother difficult questions, but she was not happy about that at all and would refuse to talk with me about it. It was no use going to my father, he didn't seem to mention religion at all, he just took us all to church every Sunday.

Once I got into high school, I had a resurgence of faith and began praying more than I ever did before. I totally ignored the questions I had and assumed that there was a good explanation for them. I was doing very well in school and I attributed it to God. As time went on, I became more and more religious, but I never really investigated all the rules and guidelines of Catholicism. I was very liberal then and was as almost as tolerant as I am now (I was really big homophobe back then).

Grade 11 changed all of that. The religion course I took in that year was about morality, at the same time I was sinking into depression (over what I'm not sure, it was probably hormonal) and this affected my grades. In class I learned more and more about the Catholic Church and I was surprised and dissapointed to see how intolerant it really was. I prayed a heck of a lot for help from God so that I could recover from my depression and do well in school again, but it only got worse. In my darkest hour I began to re-examine my faith and concluded that I was deluding myself. I found that I attributed all the good things in my life to God and all the bad things to misfortune. That's when I lost all faith and stopped going to church altogether.

For a long time I completely ignored faith and relgion. But not long ago I realized that despite it's teachings and supposed good intentions, the church is doing a lot of damage (specifically the Pope condeming the use of condoms in Africa). I began to research and try to justify my own morality, in the process I found Mike's site which has really helped me to shape my new code of ethics and morality.

I really feel liberated and I'm very happy that by abandoning religion I have become more tolerant and understanding of other people.

[Stormin]

Nobody in my family cared what anyone believed so nobody was pressured into anything. Really the only reason I have to go to any church is when someone I know dies and they hold a funeral there.

[Enola Straight]

To me, God is like a Quasar...Undoubtedly old, certainly powerful, but so utterly distant from me personally that its just about irrelevant.

What does that make me?

[StarshipTitanic]

To me, God is like a Quasar...Undoubtedly old, certainly powerful, but so utterly distant from me personally that its just about irrelevant.

What does that make me?

Deist.