How about waiting until you have the time to answer as opposed to just responding with "Thanks!" �It does come off as condescending and like you're actually not looking for any intelligent conversation.
As for my beliefs- I was raised in it, my father has been a preacher for most of my life and is one of the most accepting, loving, respectful people I know and he accepts, loves and respects me as his son who doesn't have a belief system. �I didn't stop believing, I just realized when I was old enough to know, that I never really did believe. �My beliefs were only more cemented when I moved to places where religion was not just the norm, but the law. �People kill each other over these ideas. �They kill/hate/disown people for thinking/being different. �And at the end of the day, religion has become, by and large, a business. �What Would Jesus Do about those extravagant mega churches? �The only time Jesus ever showed anger in the bible was when people set up shop in the church. �It's funny how people of all religions pick and choose which parts to follow. �
I believe in science and the strength of self and a support network of friends and family and it hasn't let me down yet.
Like you Hate I was raised as a christian. I didn't actually start questioning it properly until my early teens and since then i've just slowly distanced myself from it. There's too much to even list why I no longer believe, from its stance on women and homosexuality to the sheer ignorance and hypocrisy of it all, it just seems logical to not believe. It's strange because my Dad is incredibly intelligent, i've always wondered why he chose to be a christian, I should probably ask.
It does do a lot of good though, not sure what my parents would do without it, and a lot of the churches round here do a lot of good especially for the poor in the community. Religion has a hell of a lot of downsides but you can't discount a lot of the good work it does, half of all charities aimed at getting aid into Africa, Asia and South America are christian, and while they may just be trying to sell a message, it's doing a lot of good for third world countries.
I have a question i'm interested to here answers on, who was Jesus if he was not the son of God? I mean it's been proven that he almost certainly existed, so local politician? con man?