My Reintroduction

[PipeBox]

This isn't really an introduction, but I was handling my life for the last month or more and never got around to posting some more.  A lot has happened in this time and, well, I want to write some of it down in an environment where someone might actually read it and not react by lighting torches, sharpening knives, or any of that other stuff.  So consider this a reintroduction and please accept my apologies for posting in this subforum.  I'll try to come by with much greater frequency in the future so that this sort of thing doesn't happen again.  

A hurricane hit, and I lost power for eight days.  In the southern US, losing AC and refrigeration is not cool (no pun intended).  Losing contact with the rest of the world when you have nothing to do but watch the outside air for a couple days is at times, wracking.  Trying to pick up where you left off after such a pause in the infinite march of the universe is a bit awkward, too, even for those people that don't get it bad.  I got out just fine, as it happens.  My house, my family, my friends are all fine.   Insurance covered everything in the freezers, so I'm pretty good to go now.

Beyond that, I've officially come out to two Christian friends, because both evidently considered me "at a crossroads," rather than being out of the faith, one admits he has his own doubts and is attempting to assess the information and the other I've been holding discussions with just about every night.  They don't start off with the intent of discussing world view but they always seem to end up there.  I think he understands a bit more now.  About me, about evolution, maybe even a few of the perceived problems with the faith.  And really I only want him to drop the fundamentalism, literallist, 6000 years old, noah's ark view.  Those views directly promote ignorance and conflict with reality, and a little more rational thinking would do the world good.  I don't want his faith, though I'd not mind knowing another freethinker in person, but I do want him to use the mind his God blessed him with.   Still have to tell one guy.  He's a Jew, I think, and it may piss him off because of the bad stigma connected with atheism in the circles he travels, but it's a passing thing, convincing people you don't eat babies.

Family, well, my brother knows.  He, in fact, came to the same conclusions about the same time independently of me.   My parents, I think it better they die believing I'm a good Christian man.   They're old, stubborn, and I'm pretty sure that no amount of information or evidence would make them think good of any atheist.   The church and the republican party have just had too much time to hammer it into their cores, in my opinion.  I'd just rather not put them through it, even if I have every right to be pissed that I need to "put them through it."  I'm angry that worldviews are now supposed to be something you're born with, that's expected to remain static until you die and that people invest emotionally against you keeping said worldview.  But that pretty much wraps up family.

Anyway, that's pretty up-to-date.   Now I think I'll go to bed and tomorrow I can get involved in a few of the other subforums.  Peace.

[dodgecity]

Nice to meet you, PipeBox.

I liked your story.

[Whitney]

Welcome back PipeBox!

[curiosityandthecat]

Torches, and pitchforks, and knives, oh, my!

Welcome back.

[SteveS]

Hey Pipebox - thanks for sharing all that, I very much enjoyed reading it.

In this bit, and what followed,

My jaw was on the floor. Let me explain how I heard that:

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.  I think I would have heard it the same way.

In the southern US, losing AC and refrigeration is not cool (no pun intended).

but after a certain point all the creationist arguments really do look implausibly stupid, fundamentalists really do appear to not apply their critical thinking, reason and logic to their faith, and the biblical account of events becomes laughable.

I had a somewhat similar experience.  I wasn't really active talking/thinking about atheism until a couple years ago when two Jehovah's Witnesses came to my door.  I had many discussions with them over the next several weeks, usually on Saturday mornings.  They kept hitting me with all the infamous "Watchtower" books and magazines which spent an inordinate amount of time arguing that evolution was false.  Well - I wasn't educated in biologoy, didn't read alot about biology, and only really knew specifically about evolution what I had been taught in my high school biology class back in 1986.  Which, in all fairness, wasn't a whole lot.  So, I took it upon myself to do some learning about evolution, and I honestly became upset that some of the best evidence of the theory, some amazingly compelling observations, were completely unknown to me.  Not only is evolution clearly valid as a theory, it is also clearly compelling as a theory.

Anyway, just saying, I think I can relate a bit to how you felt here.

Cheers, and glad to meet you,
Steve

[myleviathan]

My parents, I think it better they die believing I'm a good Christian man. They're old, stubborn, and I'm pretty sure that no amount of information or evidence would make them think good of any atheist. The church and the republican party have just had too much time to hammer it into their cores, in my opinion. I'd just rather not put them through it, even if I have every right to be pissed that I need to "put them through it." I'm angry that worldviews are now supposed to be something you're born with, that's expected to remain static until you die and that people invest emotionally against you keeping said worldview. But that pretty much wraps up family.

That's rough, Pipebox. My mom is a hardcore Southern Baptist and always has been. How I feel about faith came out pretty naturally with her over conversation. I couldn't keep how I felt inside, even though I knew she wouldn't be okay with it. But everything is okay now. She knows how I feel and even though she doesn't agree, she's still my mom and we have a pretty good relationship. You may want to start introducing your lack of belief slowly to your parents. It would be really sad if they died and didn't know who you were. But you know them best. Do what you feel is right.

[PipeBox]

Thanks for the replies, everyone!  I need to go welcome some others myself, help warm up the community, but first let me say that my folks aren't even religious, they just have this 'loyalty' about them that's unopen to argument.  It's a blind loyalty, but not a church brain-washing.  In example, it doesn't matter what evidence there is, or what thought experiments we can do, we have a duty as human beings to be Republican Christians.  It pains me, and though I remind them that God isn't looking to give people optimal parking spaces or help the US in its war (which my father will actually debate), their never going to take that as disbelief, because I always speak to them from a frame of reference in which God exists (oh, by the way, I will always capitalize God when speaking of the Christian God.  If it's more generic, then it's lowercase, but if it's used as a name it needs capitalization.  Just getting that out of the way for anyone wondering about that).  I'll tell my parents if and when it becomes necessary.  They may die thinking I'm someone else, but there are worse things for them.  And much like I won't eat tacos, no matter how much I love them, during a road trip with friends, it's a concession to the comfort of others.  I realize the difference of magnitude, but I'm OK with it.  I'm willing to do this, for now.

Evolution, well, there's so many arguments for it and against creationism I can't believe they were taught side-by-side in school.  I can't believe in some places creationism alone is probably still taught, against the law.  But I'll save the proper rant for the proper forum.

Now, on with the welcoming!  

[McQ]

Welcome back. You've been really busy! As I was reading your post, I thought, "Wow! What an exciting time in your life, right now!" I mean that in a way that simply says you're really living life right now. It's not just something that is happening to you, but something that you are continuing to shape. Very cool. Thanks for catching us up on things.