My Rise and Fall from Grace, by Paul Manocchio
"...My well intentioned, grandmother's premeditation worked as predicted. A charismatic radio personality asserting himself, to be a spiritual healer... I was only twelve years old and significantly skeptical. My brother was seven years old, sitting beside me, wearing a mask of protective fear, to hide a deeper fear for what the so-called healer was about to do to me. "
Bill's Story, by Bill Henderson
"...Among other things, why in the commandments, god says he will punish people three or four generations down the line for the sins of their grandparents and great grandparents. Not very rational, even to an eight year old."
Streamside Myth, by Scott G.
"...For whatever reason, I stayed. Likely, I was in silent hope that I'd finally found a skeptic, willing to swim upstream, willing to say he doubted, didn't know, or maybe even, really stretching the realm of probability, admit to "no belief". I wasn't wrong to hope, but it was short lived."
Why I am a humanist, by Harold Fletcher
"I was brought up the Episcopalian church in Scotland. I was required to go to church or help do the dusting..."
George's Story, by George C.
"Like many atheists, I went to church as a youth, but stopped when I was about 13 years of age. The reason: One hot summer day, I got bored and I read the bible front cover to back cover. "
Barbara's Story, by Barbara McNeill
"I was brought up in the Catholic faith, and once I learned about its gory history, ...rejected it with deep disgust. ... But for years after that I studied religion - EVERY religion - with devouring curiosity, and, of course, the hope that there was such a thing as "Truth" or a philosophy that would give my life some meaning. Strangely - it was during a trip around India when my awakening occurred."
Untitled, by Ephemerides
"I've always kidded myself about being monotheistic. Throughout my childhood I had to make the decision of God or the naturalness of the universe. These problems really weren't for a 6-7 year old to worry about. I guess I was just a prodigy in philosophy. I had no bonds to either way. I lived in a modern world without a bond to religion or atheism..."
Leaving the Fold by Vincent S
"Once upon a time, it was so simple. I was a Christian and thought that the only religion on the planet that could make me a decent person was Christianity. Catholics, lukewarm Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and especially atheists and agnostics were doomed to eternal hellfire, while I would go to Heaven and be with God... But today I am an atheist..."
Why I Am An Agnostic, chapter XI
(taken from Robert G. Ingersoll's "Why I Am An Agnostic")
"When I became convinced that the Universe is natural -- that all the ghosts and gods are myths, there entered into my brain,
into my soul, into every drop of my blood, the sense, the feeling, the joy of freedom. The walls of my prison crumbled and fell, the dungeon was flooded with light and all the bolts, and bars, and manacles became dust. I was no longer a servant, a serf or a slave..."
ABOUT AWAKENINGS
The journey from religion to freethought is much like the transition from sleep to wakefulness. For some the sleep was deep, for others only a slumber. For all, the endpoint is a triumph, a self actualization, as the myths of religion evaporate, like the dreams of the night, upon awakening.
Awakenings is a place to share your own journey out of the dreamworld of religion while exploring the experiences of others who have made similar journeys. The world wide web affords us a unique experience to share that feeling of wonder which inevitably follows when we first open our eyes and see the universe as it truly is.
If you'd like to share your own experiences, or your ruminations on your emergence from the torpor of religious conditioning, please send your text along with your name, and city, state and country, to our Awakenings Editor,
No anonymous submissions will be accepted, although attribution can be withheld at the author's request.
Questions or Comments? Whether you want to get involved, or you found a broken link, write to:
