Do we have any former atheists or people who've lost faith here? How did you find yourself back into the faith?
Former Atheists/People Who've Lost Faith
William Nguyen
Jaxon Thomas
Raised Catholic, became agnostic as a teen because muh church so conformist. Had a sneaking suspicion in a higher power but could not put words to it. Kind of half-heartedly knew about God on paper but didn't have any faith. Really started to truly believe when the Holy Spirit started showing me certain improbable synchronicities and bizarre "random chance" things that helped me out of a pit of ruin I had fell into. Asked for help in desperation and met a super Christian girl that rejected me hardcore. Started to truly believe and started to try to tune into and submit into where I was being guided. Began to pray directly to God. Began reading the Bible. Major misconceptions I had about Jesus unraveled themselves from all angles. Life has never been better. I continue to sin and seek grace through Jesus Christ. Feels like there's still a long ways to go but I'm trying to plant seeds as I've been shown so when Jesus returns he might find a garden instead of a smoldering pit.
Julian Campbell
Realised that Dawkins and his gang say a lot of nonsense that sounds smart, but has no real content and is logically fallacious. Then I've found out that Wittgenstein, one of the bigest logical autists out there, was a Christian, which sounded quite odd to me. So I started researching, and decided that there are enough rational reasons to believe in God, and that the resurrection of Christ happened.
End of transmission
Brody Cook
I'm somewhat suspicious of people who slowly come to the faith. I still welcome them, but when I was hit by the truth, it hit me like a train. it didn't slowly creep into my consciousness.
no offense man, but it doesn't sound like you've met Jesus yet. "there are enough rational reasons to believe in God" seems to me a justification for Agnosticism, not as if you've completely accepted His forgiveness.
Aaron James
I'm suspicious of you, too.
Gavin Torres
source for this? i have heard otherwise.
Jack Bennett
You shouldn't be, friend.
Evan Martin
I read a paper by Rodney Stark who wrote the excellent "The Triumph of Christianity." The paper said the reason the early Church grew so fast is that Greek pagan culture was horrid to women: not allowed to leave the house, or to own property. Infant girls were much more likely to be left to die than boys. So pagans had more men than women. But Christians had more women than men: women converted to Christianity because they would be treated better (and not be left to die as infants). So there were more Christian women than men. Pagan men who couldn't find a wife + Christian women who couldn't find a husband. They married and the pagan (who didn't feel very strongly about his Greek gods) converted to Christianity.
For some reason I find this story to be more compelling proof that Christianity is real than the miracles. Girls thrive because they're not left to die. She finds someone to love and brings him into the fold.
The pagans' brutality was used against them.
Ethan Watson
It's pretty interesting reading about European culture before Christianity. Fedora tippers like to pretend that Christian morality is somehow self evident but the ancients had no concept of Christian ideas like humans being intrinsically valuable regardless of social status.
Robert Bailey
I don't believe that. All these old mystery cults praise equality and fraternity. The goyim meme seemed like a rather recent invention of judaism. But even Christianity has a subhuman archetype. We just call them the wicked. (But I would argue's Christianity is more just in that it depends on the individual's actions.)
"but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."
Matthew 18:6
Andrew Morales
Was a fedora tipper for my whole life, I realised that Atheism despite claiming that science is the only thing that can be used to objectively measure reality is in fact disputed by the very science it touts as its god, that and my main gripe with religion was people blinding believing what they've heard, which instead of pastors atheists do it with scientists.
After growing up more and noticing that morality is objective and the current state of the western world without faith, I slowly started reading the Bible.
After realising that the Bible knows an awful lot about what is healthy and whatnot (masturbation, pre-marital sex .ect) I prayed for one of the first times in my life and asked for guidance.
Pretty standard from out here, completely un-explainable coincidences relating somehow to Christ, finalising when I asked God for strength during a time of emotional distress and received the sudden strength to hold myself together, something just days ago I couldn't do.
Austin Thomas
Sadly, I think you're right, but then again it was only half a year ago that I started going to Church. I try imitating Christ, being to my neighbor as he was to us, and hopefully one day God will make my faith stronger by giving me a gift of faith. To be honest, faith and hope are the only things I have left, my atheist friend debunked my arguments for rational belief, but I don't care anymore. Any advice on how I can accept God's forgiveness?
Hunter Sullivan
>jrbenjamin.com
Also read his biography by Ray Monk
Kevin Myers
I was raised catholic, got away from the church for a while in my teens, and found my way back to God around a year ago at the age of 19. During the time I never really stopped believing in God, I guess I just didn't know what to believe and didn't think about it enough to have a belief. It's kinda like how I viewed politics before I started going to Zig Forums, I knew that I liked the republican party more than the democrats but didn't know anything more than that nor did I care to find out. I don't know exactly why I started exploring my faith more, or why at the time I did, but looking back I'd say it was the holy spirit whispering in my ear. I started going to church again at the small chapel on my college campus, it's kinda novus ordo but it's a good environment amidst the cultural Marxism of my university and it has the sacraments. Over the past year I've been slowly progressing through pic related, I'm around level 3 now. It's been one of the most positive things to enter (back) into my life, I thank God every day for all He's done.
Nathan Roberts
Ah, and yet Christ associated with the harlots and tax collectors. True, people who lead others into sin are cursed, but isn't Christ's message that even they can always repent of what they've done?
Wyatt Robinson
is there a Christian version of this chart?
Dylan Morris
*non-denominational or other denominational
Kayden Wood
Not any that I've found, sorry.
Alexander Hill
Dating a feminist muslim turned me back to God.
Being around such a truly cancerous and destructive person showed me that sin and satan are not abstractions.
Levi Parker
Raised Evangelical. Grew disenchanted with that church, went to college and basically became agnostic, but still had my Christian morals.
Things happened over the last 10 years that led to my own personal revelation, that Christ was using me as his tool to drag people out of thier bad situations, and He introduced me to a woman who claimed to be of the Faith, but was like the other pagans and nonbelievers in her heart.
It taught me the hard lesson that people want to feel good rather than BE good.
I am grateful for those bad experiences because they brought me back to God, and I pray that He uses me to bring others back to Him, and that He heals my heart, and of others in my life.
Christopher Parker
(USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST)
Carson Parker
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Blake Smith
Former lapsed Catholic/fedora here. For me it was Skippy podesta and the spirit cooking scandal during the election. I had been becoming more sympathetic to Christianity for a while, and looking up what spirit cooking was, I was instantly filled with a guttural sense of evil. That's when I knew for certain that evil (and hence good) were objectively real.
Hudson Smith
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Easton Reed
Daniel Richardson
My step-father was an atheist his entire life yet when I reviewed the books in his library, there were several books on UFOs and extraterrestrial abductions. I was surprised.
People have a deep-seated need to believe there is something out there, something benevolent that's looking out for us.
Adam Sullivan
That's exactly what a suspicious person would say
Owen Wilson
I'm sorry your suffering has lead you to where you are. There's non-destructive ways to receive attention you know. I wish you well and hope you find light to lead you out of your dark place. Deep down there is some shread of a redeemable soul in you if you had the guts to come to this board and read this thread. Your next step might be to try speaking to God. Ask him for something and see what happens.
Lincoln Wood
Also, to further clarify, she rejected me becaude I did everything wrong I could do to try to impress a Christian woman. I've had it pretty easy picking up athiest girls; move fast, out-cool them, out-brave them, show them my tattoos, easy one night stands. This had no effect on this woman. It's like every thing that came out of my mout was completely wrong and had zero effect. She was completely impervious to my cool guy charm. Her virtue made me gain considerable respect for the faith.
Lucas Reed
I was raised by a Southern Baptist Mom who wasn't really even an Easter-Christmas Christian. The last time I remembered going to church before rejoining the faithful was when I was 6. Well around 8th Grade I became an Atheist, and unlike many atheists I took it to its logical conclusion. It really did a number on my life, and in retrospect I can't believe how much of an dick I was to people. During that time I listened to all the major atheist youtubers and was a center leftist. I eventually stopped being such a leftist especially when the whole SJW craze and Gamergate came around. It was around this time that I got into the "religion is a good tool for social control and is important for society to function" phase. Well during my senior year I had essentially became a Deist and even got into some wacky fairly dangerous occult stuff. I listened to Styx and some other more occult people, but also during this time I had asked one of my friends if their dad could help me become a Mason. I did and was in the Masons for about a year and a half. I never decided to go into the York Rite or Scottish rite, but I was in my lodge hierarchy. Plus due to lodge politics I was gonna be bumped up to being the Junior Warden. Which meant that I was going to be the WM in two years time.
During this time though I had began reading more about early church history beginning to attempt to find out which denomination was the right one. I knew straight off the bat that I couldn't be a Protestant due to biases I held during my atheists days and still hold now, so it was a choice between being a Catholic or Orthodox.
At that point I knew that I would be giving up Masonry either way so I set about doing it. While I loved and still do love the brothers I met in there I had already had long standing issues with the philosophy of Masonry mainly due to its perennialism and belief in a separation of church and state. After demitting from the lodge I had decided on Catholicism and am currently enrolled in RCIA. I want to thank any of you that helped me on my path here. You all really saved me from a bad spot, and I am eternally grateful.
Tyler Lee
3 or 4 weeks ago I prayed for the first time in a very long time, mind you.
It was early in the evening, I turned off all the lights.
Got on my knees in the middle of the kitchen carpet.
I shared all my metaphysical burdens with God for 10 minutes before
I shared my greatest burden at the time [in swedish]
Yahuwa Eloheim, I've never felt so far removed from you.
I cried for almost 10 minutes.
Thinking the holy spirit would depart from me before I departed from him.
Before I felt his embrace.
Like to my shirt was being soaked in the blood of the Lam.
Like Jesus hugged me with his warm linen robe.