Just curious. If you were raised in a religious environment, and you don't practice that religion, pipe up. Even better, say why you moved away from the religion you were raised as.

I was....I was even an altar server. But, just watching how they church reacted to money was disgraceful. That and I grew up and realized that what I believe shouldn't be based off of a book that knew nothing of the current world affairs. Not to say that you can't take some morals from it. In the end its just not for me.

Raised catholic.
Left it because of conflicts with my new religion at that time..born again christian. Yup, czar here was a born again. Thank god sex tore me away from it!

I was raised in a nonreligious environment until age 10, then my family began going to a Methodist church, and I was baptized and later confirmed, and then when my pastor left, I did too, and I began following my own rulebook.

Mark's bible wants to chime in....


2 Thessalonians 2

Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

the great "falling away" from the faith immediately precedes the rise of the European dictator, who will seduce the world by his preaching of "tolerance" and "peace"

welcome to 2007 and beyond...

Ah good times

I was raised Baptist, but left b/c I never really participated in or believed it. It just never seemed to answer the questions for me, and I never had any proof or feeling that it was the truth.

I suppose I don't count because I haven't left my religion, but I've switched around from baptist to non-denominational churches searching for a body with contemporary worship and a teaching pastor who's done his homework.

A guy like Tofu should have a pretty interesting story.

Raised in a Methodist church. My parents go occasionally, my brother hasn't been in at least half a decade. My sister goes religiously and is always talking about that Jesus shit every time I go by. :rolleyes:

I have religious beliefs, but i've strayed far away from Christianity. I just can't justify believing in it any longer. Every time I went to chuch it was the same cookie cutter shit.

Songs, annoucements, bible verses, sermon, and the pastor trying to swindle you into joining so he can get 10% of your yearly salary. Ain't happenin' chief.

Until the chuch starts investing back into the communities, teaching family values, financial stability, promoting education, and other lessons you need to SURVIVE in TODAY'S society, I will not step foot into another church. What you hear in chuch today isn't anything you can't read for yourself in the bible. So why waste 2 hours going when I can be at home watching ESPN or playing video games on a beautiful Sunday morning?

Why spend so much time talking about what MAY happen on the other side of life when you have people who can barely manage day to day life here and now?

A guy like Tofu should have a pretty interesting story.

Pshh, I don't think I'm allowed to post in this thread ;)

my mom got converted when we were 3, more or less. I disctinctly remember throwing the bible across the room when i was 3 because it didnt make sense, and just brainlessly reciting passages no one understood got me mad, like why the eff are we doing this? Later on the church cult was no more impressive and i just zoned out and drew pictures. Late teens, I really started sorting out through all the brainwashing, conflictions and poor interpretations made by over-confident, egocentric preachers. Now I'm totally against that kind of mentally arresting BS cultist behaviour. The bible's got some great guidance in it, when you can ACTUALLY understand it (unlike 92% of Christians) not to mention, it's no worse/better than almost any other tampered religious book out there.

I disctinctly remember throwing the bible across the room when i was 3 because it didnt make sense, and just brainlessly reciting passages no one understood got me mad, like why the eff are we doing this?

Wow! You were reading the Bible when you were 3?!?! You must have been sooooo smart!!!

What happened to you?

I was....I was even an altar server. But, just watching how they church reacted to money was disgraceful. That and I grew up and realized that what I believe shouldn't be based off of a book that knew nothing of the current world affairs. Not to say that you can't take some morals from it. In the end its just not for me.

This is pretty much me. Born Catholic, I was an altar server for a couple of years, and when I see my old pastor I'll say hi and have a chat with him, but I only go to church when my family forces me to. Essentially, it's Christmas, Easter, and Mother's Day. I've become so disillusioned with the church's teachings on so many things that I don't feel good supporting it. If I do ever become religious again, I'll probably be Methodist. I attended one of their masses once and it just seemed like they were a lot more easy-going, a lot more inclusive.

Wow! You were reading the Bible when you were 3?!?! You must have been sooooo smart!!!

What happened to you?


lol i wasnt sitting there quietly reading it by myself, it was a prayer group effort or something

I can remember some things from when I was 3 as well. I wasn't throwing bibles though :)

I was....I was even an altar server. But, just watching how they church reacted to money was disgraceful. That and I grew up and realized that what I believe shouldn't be based off of a book that knew nothing of the current world affairs. Not to say that you can't take some morals from it. In the end its just not for me.
:werd:

My mother used to make me go to church. I finally realized what I believed was the exact opposite of what they taught at the curch, not to mention how hungry for money they were. I went once this last year with my girlfriend and its still the same as it was 8 years ago when I stopped going.

You guys went to some pretty crap churches.

But it's the norm these days, because The Church is a massive money making scheme. Major profit for everyone. The Church gets some massive amount of money, the preists get their honor before men, and the weak-minded populance gets to think they're "on the path."

So, comon, it's a win for everyone!

Except for the people, that aren't part of the "herd"

You guys went to some pretty crap churches.

But it's the norm these days, because The Church is a massive money making scheme.


and the industry's never been better! just imagine raking in 3-5mil PER NIGHT, PER CRUSADE! I'd be addicted to drugs and hookers too! Church industry pays!! You can turn around and build an 8 mil mansion with 2 bentleys parked out front to drive when youre not travelling to exotic places "spreading the word". And the people who gave you the money to do all that will simply tell themselves "theyre doing God's work, they deserve it!". :bowdown:

Just curious. If you were raised in a religious environment, and you don't practice that religion, pipe up. Even better, say why you moved away from the religion you were raised as.

I was raised in the Christian church. It just didn't stick with me, the logic just seemed flawed even when I was a kid.

and the industry's never been better! just imagine raking in 3-5mil PER NIGHT, PER CRUSADE! I'd be addicted to drugs and hookers too! Church industry pays!! You can turn around and build an 8 mil mansion with 2 bentleys parked out front to drive when youre not travelling to exotic places "spreading the word". And the people who gave you the money to do all that will simply tell themselves "theyre doing God's work, they deserve it!". :bowdown:

Such is life. Everyday people tell themselves such things so that their actions jive with their morals. For instance, a person who likes to exaggerate about the money that a given church receives to justify not being a part of it.

For instance, a person who likes to exaggerate about the money that a given church receives to justify not being a part of it.

And i have to think up all kinds of reasons why I don't drive a GM, why i dont hide all my money in my mailbox and why I'm not gay... wow my life is now suddenly overburdened with the desparate need validate my psyche. anyone got a stupid concept they wanna sell me to take my mind off all this worry?

And i have to think up all kinds of reasons why I don't drive a GM, why i dont hide all my money in my mailbox and why I'm not gay...

If such things conflict with your morality, then yes.

wow my life is now suddenly overburdened with the desparate need validate my psyche.

I doubt it's so sudden.

anyone got a stupid concept they wanna sell me to take my mind off all this worry?

Just tell yourself: "I'm too dense to worry about such things."

and the industry's never been better! just imagine raking in 3-5mil PER NIGHT, PER CRUSADE! I'd be addicted to drugs and hookers too! Church industry pays!! You can turn around and build an 8 mil mansion with 2 bentleys parked out front to drive when youre not travelling to exotic places "spreading the word". And the people who gave you the money to do all that will simply tell themselves "theyre doing God's work, they deserve it!". :bowdown:

It's stuff like that, that causes people to have trouble believing that the church I go to doesn't even take up a collection. ^_^

I hear Jehovah's Witness don't collect money. That is what they say. I wonder how they do it?

I hear Jehovah's Witness don't collect money. That is what they say. I wonder how they do it?

I have heard the very opposite.

:werd:

My mother used to make me go to church. I finally realized what I believed was the exact opposite of what they taught at the curch, not to mention how hungry for money they were. I went once this last year with my girlfriend and its still the same as it was 8 years ago when I stopped going.

Tell your pastor to check out 1 Timothy chapter 6, starting around v5 or so to about v10.

Yay money.

I hear Jehovah's Witness don't collect money. That is what they say. I wonder how they do it?


Jehovah's witness is like the mafia, once youre in , youre not getting out alive. Having said that, I'm sure they don't ask people for money until theyre part of "the family" in which, they have no choice. None whatsoever.

It's stuff like that, that causes people to have trouble believing that the church I go to doesn't even take up a collection. ^_^

I've been going to 2 different churches lately and 1 of them has the same practice, or non-practice of omitting the offering. Instead there's a box outside of the sanctuary labeled "Offerring". Doing this frees up more time for worship.

Yeh, thats basically what we do.

I guess the exception is once a year or so a missionary that we've been funding will pop his/her head in and show a little slideshow or movie of where they are and what they're doing.

It's stuff like that, that causes people to have trouble believing...

Nah, people like to use that as an excuse so as to make their departure seem dignified. Truth is, their faith was never a factor in their lives and they'd prefer to sleep in on Sundays. Not saying that this pertains to anyone in this thread, but odds are it does.

Nah, people like to use that as an excuse so as to make their departure seem dignified. Truth is, their faith was never a factor in their lives and they'd prefer to sleep in on Sundays. Not saying that this pertains to anyone in this thread, but odds are it does.
Pertains to me. I love sleeping in. Thats why I work late....or maybe I like to work late which makes me sleep late??? Hmmm....lemme go ponder this.
Anyway, who needs a church? I don't, they just take up space and money that could be better used for things like drag strips and road courses.


well said, as usual
Sounds like you guys like the buttsechs with each other.

I love sleeping in.

Me too. Unfortunately I work 6 days a week.

Sounds like you guys like the buttsechs with each other.

Ummm.... no.

^^25, 26 Aug. 5th....whatcha gonna get me? Already have a bible so don't need one of those.

Officially a Baptist by baptism, raised in Catholic schools for the most part, and I don't consider myself to be either. I just don't feel that I have to be part of an official religion to consider myself saved or in God's favor. :dunno:

you have to believe what God declares is true,


Now how are you able to tell the difference between "what God declares is true" and what some jackass Texan pastor says is what God declares as true? How about bible alterations that cause total and complete contradiction, how do you justify to your subconscious why those things contradict? This i gotta see! You would think that with something as influential and fundamental (no pun) as what you believe GOD says, that people would be a bit more careful in honing their skills on what to believe. When someone comes across something that is universally true, or a low of nature, there is no :belief: mechanism at work. When you know something, there is no room for "belief". You either know it, or your don't. It's all this "belief" shit that people shoot themselves in the nuts and destroy their chances of truly understanding.

Now how are you able to tell the difference between "what God declares is true" and what some jackass Texan pastor says is what God declares as true? How about bible alterations that cause total and complete contradiction, how do you justify to your subconscious why those things contradict? This i gotta see! You would think that with something as influential and fundamental (no pun) as what you believe GOD says, that people would be a bit more careful in honing their skills on what to believe. When someone comes across something that is universally true, or a low of nature, there is no :belief: mechanism at work. When you know something, there is no room for "belief". You either know it, or your don't. It's all this "belief" shit that people shoot themselves in the nuts and destroy their chances of truly understanding.

Whadda ya know, the bottom of the barrel does have an echo.

life isnt that easy, Mark. Over 2000 years, to think that such an influential book of revelations WOULDNT be altered is just blatently naive. It's not about talking in King James English or saying thou, hath, thus and amen, there are CRUCIAL natural laws within the bible, the problem is it's mixed in with a lot of the authors' OWN conjecture and redaction so that they don't get hung by the masses for heresy and have a chance of getting their book included in the bible..

life isnt that easy, Mark. Over 2000 years, to think that such an influential book of revelations WOULDNT be altered is just blatently naive. It's not about talking in King James English or saying thou, hath, thus and amen, there are CRUCIAL natural laws within the bible, the problem is it's mixed in with a lot of the authors' OWN conjecture and redaction so that they don't get hung by the masses for heresy and have a chance of getting their book included in the bible..

This is a good point. However, if you believe that the Bible is the written word of God then it is not unreasonable to believe that it was preserved by His divine will. The whole situation sort of begs the question but that's getting kind of complex.