Why I lost my faith -Part 2

On Wed, Mar 25, 2009 at 9:59 AM, Jan Gunsterwrote:
Hey Nate.

Thanks for such a lengthy reply! It was a good and honest read and I really enjoyed it. Its good to hear back from an actual has-been christians. Those are hard to find where I am from, let me rephrase; christians are hard to find. Although it may sound weird, I don't know a single person that is 'openly' christian. That includes my fellow students, friends, family, everyone. Maybe some people but don't tell anyone, scared of ridicule. So its nice to chat with someone thats actually been a christian.

I so have many more questions for you but these few have been aching in the back of my head for the last 10-or-so hours.

How do other christians around you see yourself?

I have yet to see a Christian walk up to me and call me anything other than Nate. This is not because they are nice 'Christians' but simply because they are nice people, regardless of their belief.

Do they dispise or pity you for loosing faith?

Again, I have yet to be confronted by unkind words relating directly to my belief. One of the many problem I have with religious people in general is that they believe that I will burn in a fiery pit for all eternity simply because I don't believe in what they believe.

I was born and raised in a Christian family therefore I once worshiped a Christian God.

If I were born in India I would be worshiping a Hindu God.

If I were raised in ancient Greece I would be worshiping Zeus.

If I were raised in Denmark during the times of the Vikings I would be worshiping Thor.

If I were raised in ancient Egypt I would be worshiping Ra.

I so happen to be born in the United States where Christianity is the biggest religion in this country. Does this mean, because of where and when I was born, that everyone who does not worship the god that I was raised to believe in should perish in Hell?

"When you understand why you do not believe in other gods, then you will understand why I don't believe in yours." -- Stephen F. Roberts

Have you made other christians curious in losing their faith aswell?

Sixteen percent of the United States is either atheist or agnostic, it may be a minority, but it is a BIG minority. I do believe that many people call themselves Christians because they were raised into believing that. A great number of these people haven't prayed, worshiped, or gone to church in years, nor have they ever read the Bible. These people simply just believed what they were told, no questions. I personally believe that it is impossible to convert someone other then myself. They are ultimately at the helm, they must steer their own ship.

Another thing thats been bugging me for a very long time is; why doesn't the christian community drop the old testament alltogether? They'd say: "okay sure, creation is silly and the old god (the really nasty one) we don't like. We're christians so we believe in the teaching of christ, and not some old collection of myths." Most of the old testament is tossed aside anyway (leviticus law, to name one). I don't understand why they need the old testament, it doesnt really add anything but ignorance. All the 'moral lessons' and Jesus' teachings are in the new testament anyway. So before making this the longest question ever; I should rephrase: why do christians need the old testament?

To be honest I have not read the Old Testament, however I know of it. The Old Testament was written during the Bronze age when people believed the Earth was a flat plane, the Sun revolved around the Earth, and that it was alright to stone someone to death for committing certain sins. Leviticus law, in particular, talked about sacrificing animals so that God could forgive their sins. The Old Testament talked about a merciful God that would send one straight to hell for merely questioning his existence. The new testament talks about a loving and caring God that loved all of his 'children'. Both testaments show that God is a very jealous god and that he does not want you to even acknowledge another divine presence other then himself. If he is so mighty and powerful, then why does he have such petty human behavior?

So thanks for reading, again. And I hope to hear from you soon!

Again, thank you for these thought provoking questions, I hope to hear from you soon.


Jan Gunster