I never saw this coming.

[Lesa Plunkett]

I raised my kids as atheists, but out of nowhere, they are open to the idea of a god. I’m dumbfounded.

[Strega]

How old are they?

[Lesa Plunkett]

18 & 20

[Strega]

At that age we like to do the exact opposite of what our parents would like. If they weren’t indoctrinated as children, they’re probably just exploring. I suspect the less you show it bothers you, the sooner the novelty will wear off.

[pam]

Lesa, I had a similar experience with my daughter. Some fundies got hold of her and it was difficult for me to watch. BUT..I told her that I’d always raised her to be an independent thinker and hoped she’d explore whatever she needed to do.

About 5 years later….no more Jesus!

Best of luck to all of you!

[SteveInCO]

I was raised atheist myself, but what I was exposed to was a crude stereotype of Christianity. Not that some Christians don’t talk exactly like the stereotype, but others do not, and they can sound quite reasonable.

My brother got sucked in for various reasons, and it took him thirty years to find his way back out again, after suffering enormous damage from it.

[Lesa Plunkett]

Strega, good point. They were definitely not indoctrinated as children. I do suspect there is a small part of them that is enjoying watching me try to get my head around how this could’ve happened.

Pam, their reasoning for keeping an open mind about the existence of a god is because I raised them to be independent thinkers, they actually told me this. It is true, I raised them to be independent, and have an open mind, but I never in a million years imagined them being open to the idea of a god.

Steve, I have told my kids the stories of my awful experiences in that religious environment, and they have found first hand, that not all religious people are like that. Not that I ever meant they were, and not that I didn’t want them to find out that there were really good religious people… it’s just that I didn’t want them to get sucked into it. and wow, thirty years, so long, I’m glad he is out finally.

[Reg the Fronkey Farmer]

I have found that a good way to prevent any indoctrination from “sticking” in the early days is to take them on a short break to somewhere they enjoy going to…say a weekend away or a visit to a relative. The longer the better but even a few days can be enough to allow them time to think more critically about what they are now experiencing.

[pam]

I’m glad, too, Lesa! (I was forced to attend church as a child and can still remember the manipulative way they put pressure on children to ”accept Jesus” with choir music, pleading from the pulpit, etc. I didn’t recognize it then as the choreographed indoctrination it was…but I certainly do now!)

[Strega]

My atheist mother sent me to Sunday School when I was 11 years old. I was astonished. On the first Sunday, I got into the philosophical message of the prodigal son. I’ve never agreed with the message and it appeared that the teacher wasn’t able to explain it either. Giving some thought to WHY my mother actually sent me, I came to the conclusion it was to give herself some time off from kids. So I asked if I could go horse riding instead and help out all day at the stables. She said yes, and I never looked back.

I do remember years later, reading children’s answers to tests that were amusing, and seeing the following Q & A.

Q. Who was upset when the prodigal son came home?
A. The fatted calf.

I found that absolutely spot-on 🙂

[Unseen]

Both her mother and father (that being me) are atheists, but our daughter is a Christian now and is raising our grandkids in one of those “Christian” no-particular-demonination churches. They’re more New Age Christian than fundamentalist Christian, so it could be (a little bit) worse.

[pam]

Strega….better HONEST poop from horses than from DOGMA.

[Author]

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