I remember leaving the Catholic Church at the age of 16. It was way before the sexual abuse and other scandals came out, but I just hated the way the church treated women.
It took another 15 years before I realized (or admitted) that I was an atheist.
Religion is used by Fascists to control, oppress, raise lots of ill-gotten money, and most of all: Religion is a vehicle for fascists to disguise SADISM— Sadism that underlines oppressive legislation or justifies attacks on groups of people like women, LGBTQ, Blacks, Indigenous Americans, Hispanics—YOU NAME IT. Religion is a Sadist’s tool for criminality.
Sorry I'm late, gang ... slept in ... [rubs half a sand dune from his eyes!]
Religion in general and Christianity in particular are anachronisms, buried in the past and mostly incapable of dragging themselves into the ever-changing present. They carry with them the biases and bigotries of millennia ago, along with an insistence on patriarchy and "leadership" based on authority, rather than on actual capability. Religion has managed to maintain its position at least in part by keeping its congregants indoctrinated, ill-informed, and SCARED. Scared of what? OTHERS, and especially the LGBTQ+ community.
It's taken a while, but despite their efforts, a great number of us have managed to wake up (does that make us "WOKE?!? 😁) and recognize the foolishness and failure that religion is and have gotten ourselves shut of it, whether to shrug irrational belief off and become a "none" or declare openly and defiantly, "I am an ATHEIST." More of us either are or know someone in the LGBTQ+ community, and funny thing: we discovered that they aren't that different (if different at all) from us, and that they're not the horrors that preachers and ministers and imams would have us believe they are. Somewhere along that line, we decided, "It does not compute," and we left religion and its irrationality behind.
So, folks are waking up to the heartlessness of religion. At least, the heartlessness of religious leadership.
It is heartening to see that the complete improbability of it all is the leading cause of religious desertion, though. Of course religious folks will continue to claim that we are all just trying to get away with sinning or their favorite excuse, you were hurt by “no true Scotsman” bad people in the church and the religion is still sound. Anything to hide their discomfort from anyone not believing the nonsense.
I always find it amusing when I hear non-religious people claiming to have 'found' god. They never explain where he's been all this time. They never offer evidence of his existence to back up their claim.
My take is that it simply sounds like they were at a low point in their life and were found by a sanctimonious scammer who exploited them and their troubles.
The religious right will deny that religious trauma is real. Here is direct evidence that it is.
Is it good for a young woman's mental health for her religion to tell her that she is only good for pumping out babies for an authoritarian man? No.
Is it good for a teenager's mental health for their religion to tell them their natural sexual curiosity is evil and need to be suppressed? No.
Is it good for a trans child's mental health to be ejected from the only home they know because their religion says that's the proper way to treat who they are? Oh fuck no.
Is religion bad for people's mental health? The answer is an unequivocal yes.
I seem to be getting a lot of mileage out of the following lately:
"We keep on being told that religion, whatever its imperfections, at least instills morality. On every side, there is conclusive evidence that the contrary is the case and that faith causes people to be more mean, more selfish, and perhaps above all, more stupid."
-- Christopher Hitchens, from his book "Letters to a Young Contrarian." Published October 17th, 2001
Call me an optimist, but perhaps humanity if finally, finally starting to shake off its need for childiish fantasies and the empty promises of religion.
"20% said their churches had become too political, and I predict that number will only get larger in the years to come."
As I've said many times, I liked religion a lot more before it became a political party, and I liked the Republicans a lot more before they became a religion. And now that the Republicans seem to be promoting "Christians for the anti-Christ for president", this seems to be even more of the case.
It will be a happy day when all churches—especially Republican churches—run out of money due to the marks wising up on their grift and refusing to disburse. I will most likely be long gone when that happens but, knowing there’s a chance it will, gives me hope.
To the "nones" who have ditched the labels and institutions, yet cling to the belief in the Christian god:
I strongly encourage you to read the bible from Genesis to Revelation. That by itself will demolish any lingering notions you may have toward "the spirit in the sky" and start you on the path to reason, away from any and all superstition.
From what I've read, and snickered about, some religious leaders have determined that doubling down on the hate and misogyny is somehow the way to restore their numbers. What's not to snicker at when they decide the way to go is to do more of what is driving people away?
As encouraging as these figures are, the other thing to consider is the way the churches are being distilled down to the true believers to whom any kind of compromise is unthinkable. These people have convinced themselves their religion entitles them to a say in other people's personal choices. There is a growing tendency in the Christian-nationalism movement to do so by force if they ever get the chance. Reasonable people just can't allow that crowd to win because, although it is ultimately self-defeating, a determined minority can cause no end of problems for the majority.
Protestant pastors who run real estate developments disguised as churches.
Televangelists who grift for money for private jets, air-conditioned doghouses, and to pay off hookers and angry church secretaries they raped/bopped.
Catholic priests who molested children.
Mormon deacons who worship and glorify gaining wealth (and sometimes polygamy).
Muslim imams who tell their flock to go commit suicide bombings, and then watch the action from an air-conditioned and heavily guarded compound in Pakistan.
and
Buddhist monks who say "everything is as it should be."
Many of these “Nones” need to cross over to America’s best home grown religion. The Church of Baseball.
Happy Opening Day to those who celebrate.
I remember leaving the Catholic Church at the age of 16. It was way before the sexual abuse and other scandals came out, but I just hated the way the church treated women.
It took another 15 years before I realized (or admitted) that I was an atheist.
Religion is used by Fascists to control, oppress, raise lots of ill-gotten money, and most of all: Religion is a vehicle for fascists to disguise SADISM— Sadism that underlines oppressive legislation or justifies attacks on groups of people like women, LGBTQ, Blacks, Indigenous Americans, Hispanics—YOU NAME IT. Religion is a Sadist’s tool for criminality.
Sorry I'm late, gang ... slept in ... [rubs half a sand dune from his eyes!]
Religion in general and Christianity in particular are anachronisms, buried in the past and mostly incapable of dragging themselves into the ever-changing present. They carry with them the biases and bigotries of millennia ago, along with an insistence on patriarchy and "leadership" based on authority, rather than on actual capability. Religion has managed to maintain its position at least in part by keeping its congregants indoctrinated, ill-informed, and SCARED. Scared of what? OTHERS, and especially the LGBTQ+ community.
It's taken a while, but despite their efforts, a great number of us have managed to wake up (does that make us "WOKE?!? 😁) and recognize the foolishness and failure that religion is and have gotten ourselves shut of it, whether to shrug irrational belief off and become a "none" or declare openly and defiantly, "I am an ATHEIST." More of us either are or know someone in the LGBTQ+ community, and funny thing: we discovered that they aren't that different (if different at all) from us, and that they're not the horrors that preachers and ministers and imams would have us believe they are. Somewhere along that line, we decided, "It does not compute," and we left religion and its irrationality behind.
And good riddance.
So, folks are waking up to the heartlessness of religion. At least, the heartlessness of religious leadership.
It is heartening to see that the complete improbability of it all is the leading cause of religious desertion, though. Of course religious folks will continue to claim that we are all just trying to get away with sinning or their favorite excuse, you were hurt by “no true Scotsman” bad people in the church and the religion is still sound. Anything to hide their discomfort from anyone not believing the nonsense.
What will they do? What the conservatives are doing now. Trying to seize power and create a taliban style state in America.
I always find it amusing when I hear non-religious people claiming to have 'found' god. They never explain where he's been all this time. They never offer evidence of his existence to back up their claim.
My take is that it simply sounds like they were at a low point in their life and were found by a sanctimonious scammer who exploited them and their troubles.
32% 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑏𝑎𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑡ℎ.
The religious right will deny that religious trauma is real. Here is direct evidence that it is.
Is it good for a young woman's mental health for her religion to tell her that she is only good for pumping out babies for an authoritarian man? No.
Is it good for a teenager's mental health for their religion to tell them their natural sexual curiosity is evil and need to be suppressed? No.
Is it good for a trans child's mental health to be ejected from the only home they know because their religion says that's the proper way to treat who they are? Oh fuck no.
Is religion bad for people's mental health? The answer is an unequivocal yes.
I seem to be getting a lot of mileage out of the following lately:
"We keep on being told that religion, whatever its imperfections, at least instills morality. On every side, there is conclusive evidence that the contrary is the case and that faith causes people to be more mean, more selfish, and perhaps above all, more stupid."
-- Christopher Hitchens, from his book "Letters to a Young Contrarian." Published October 17th, 2001
Call me an optimist, but perhaps humanity if finally, finally starting to shake off its need for childiish fantasies and the empty promises of religion.
"20% said their churches had become too political, and I predict that number will only get larger in the years to come."
As I've said many times, I liked religion a lot more before it became a political party, and I liked the Republicans a lot more before they became a religion. And now that the Republicans seem to be promoting "Christians for the anti-Christ for president", this seems to be even more of the case.
Religions of Peace™ are dwindling because of hate. And their hierarchies don't seem to grok. I guess God needs a new church...
It will be a happy day when all churches—especially Republican churches—run out of money due to the marks wising up on their grift and refusing to disburse. I will most likely be long gone when that happens but, knowing there’s a chance it will, gives me hope.
To the "nones" who have ditched the labels and institutions, yet cling to the belief in the Christian god:
I strongly encourage you to read the bible from Genesis to Revelation. That by itself will demolish any lingering notions you may have toward "the spirit in the sky" and start you on the path to reason, away from any and all superstition.
From what I've read, and snickered about, some religious leaders have determined that doubling down on the hate and misogyny is somehow the way to restore their numbers. What's not to snicker at when they decide the way to go is to do more of what is driving people away?
As encouraging as these figures are, the other thing to consider is the way the churches are being distilled down to the true believers to whom any kind of compromise is unthinkable. These people have convinced themselves their religion entitles them to a say in other people's personal choices. There is a growing tendency in the Christian-nationalism movement to do so by force if they ever get the chance. Reasonable people just can't allow that crowd to win because, although it is ultimately self-defeating, a determined minority can cause no end of problems for the majority.
Of course they are.
We have:
Rabbis who sell body parts.
Protestant pastors who run real estate developments disguised as churches.
Televangelists who grift for money for private jets, air-conditioned doghouses, and to pay off hookers and angry church secretaries they raped/bopped.
Catholic priests who molested children.
Mormon deacons who worship and glorify gaining wealth (and sometimes polygamy).
Muslim imams who tell their flock to go commit suicide bombings, and then watch the action from an air-conditioned and heavily guarded compound in Pakistan.
and
Buddhist monks who say "everything is as it should be."
Right.