I Was, But Am No Longer a Christian because . . .

I have to say, I consider myself Christian in the sense that I follow the concepts Jesus gave us. I do not believe Jesus was risen from death. I do believe the man was a genius regarding communication and philosophy. I don't necessarily understand why Jesus HAD to be resurrected to be an amazing being. In other words, why couldn't his concepts be enough? Why did he HAVE to be risen to make a difference?

hi Conrad. I don't know if this applies but might follow your line of inquiry. I am still a Christian though I left the Catholic Church because I couldn't accept many of their teachings, specificly that we should follow the teachings of the church when it conflicted with the Bible and that all other denominations/religions were damned to hell because only Catholocism was the "one true religion"

hope this wasn't too far off topic

Doug

Hi Conrad....

I think I'm still a Christian, altho I do not belong to any organized religion at the moment (and probably won't). Why? It seems that the last two churches I belonged to only cared about MONEY. I know that pastors, priests, churches, etc, need money to keep running, but I felt it was getting out of hand and downright intimidating. I now anonymously donate about $100 a month to an interfaith caregiver.

It is more important to know that you are Christian in your life, then to have others accept you as such just because they see you at church every Sunday. Conrad,s opening sentence about doubt is very appropriate.

one doesn't have to belong to a church to be a christian, Belonging to a church kind of sounds like slavery of the soul, IMO.

hi Conrad fellow Christian here. I don't think anyone that is a true Christian has not had doubts at one time or another. If you look at it in a different light it is not just a lable it is a way of life. Do you see differences in your life such as things you used to participate in before being a christian that now you wouldn't dream of doing now. If you do, then your lifestyle would probably reflect as being a Christian. I know for myself I use to be very selfcentered and selfserving, but now I have a heart for others and their problems and sufferings. Just some food for thought.

Thanks

Brian

Conrad,
I appreciate your candor. I too have challenged my Christian upbringing and my own life experience led to my philosophy Unorthodox Christianity. What I have found in my unorthodoxy is the the closer one gets to following the teachings and example of Jesus in ones own life two passages from the Bible come to mind:
1. Beware of those who come in my name (calling themselves Christian)
2. From Ecclesiasticus in the Apocrypha; My son, when you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal.
One teaching preaches Abundance and commensurate prosperity, Unorthodoxy points out the reality. We are oftentimes ostracized, not accepted, and oftentimes challenged more than rewarded for the excersize of our example and direction to Jesus lifestyle. When reality sets in, doubt arises. My take on this has always been, the tougher it gets, the closer you are to getting to your destination. Our pastors are quick to relish and praise the resurrection, not too quick to point out that Jesus was crucified for exampling Love One Another. How many would willingly spend Sunday listening to 'Been crucified today? Good job." The rewards are totally different than the rewards of prosperity, but we know more and revere Jesus more than the rich young ruler whose name we have never heard. Enjoy your journey and do not get discouraged when modeling Jesus is more challenging than rewarding. Hope springs eternal comes from the Unorthodox Christian, for that is the model that develops the relationship.

dennis

Conrad:

If I seem to come over as a holy then thou I do not mean to. My experience with Christianity goes back a few years. I have dealt with many sects and different views but I have always came back to one and that was the Bible, God's word. I would like to share some of my lifes experiences if I may.

I was dating a young girl and her parents went to church. I myself had very little up bringing and at that point in my life I wanted nothing to do with it. But it was not long I left home at the age of 15 and lived on my own until I joined the service at 17. I was wanting to run away as far as I could and so the military was my choice. I was wanting to go over to Vietnam and fight. Conrad, I never left the States for four years. And it was during my service I was turned my life around and ask Jesus into my life, and I was around 21 then. How I came to know Him was from a young man returning from being over there He began to talk about finding God. I would listen and then while around my friends I would ridiculehim and make fun of his belief. But one night I found myself on duty with him and I gave my life to Jesus and have been living for Jesus now over 35 plus years.

At this time in my life I was dating and I was not driving then so I relied on hitch hiking. I hitchhiked over 68 miles to visit my girl friend and she knew that I have changed and knew what type of Church I was attending. When I knocked on her door and she opened it the first thing she said to me was, Since you don't go to the movies and the church was a Pentecostal she wanted her Dad and Mom to tell me a few things wrong about them. Before she had the time to get another word out I just said bye and I hitched hike back 68 miles never to see her again. I found that I had been changed and there will be no one to change my mind and to tell me differently.

I have been married for now going on 36 years and I have been bankrupt and without work for times not knowing how I was going to get my next rent paid. But Conrad you know God came through when I talked to Him. I believe we must serve him in the good times and the bad. The end for all believers will be better then the end of a sinner and those that do not believe. So what you know and have is your greatest asset. Though I do not know you but God does He is the only one that matters. It is sad when we become judges and yet we are only sinners saved by grace. And as Jesus said one day to those that wanted to stone the woman caught in adultery, He that is without sin cast the first stone.

So Conrad, Believe in God, I know you do. Are you a Christian only you can answer that question. If you would like to know more about him I would be glad to share the word with you. I wouldlike to invite you to my Group called Jesus Name believers if you are interested.

So hang in there for this world is in trouble and it is only our hope in Jesus that will give us the strength to continue. Love him as He has Died to set you free. God bless you.

hi Conrad

I tell you a truth that I have learned over the years. This truth is you haven't arrived till you get there. Walking with the Lord is a ongoing process which at times is very painful but is part of the growing process. Once you get past a situation you realize God really pulled through. What we hear or see may not be what we want but what we need. Serving God is moving forward in that moment not looking back nor looking too far forward in the future. You may have heard this catch phrase "be patient with me God isn't through with me yet" kind of catchy. I can't count how many times God has pulled me out of the fire just in a nick of time. In myself I don't deserve blessings yet God still blesses me. Its the blood on the cross that did the trick.

God bless

Brian

Hi Conrad,

I was raised a Catholic. I loved the mass, hymns, and the beautiful ceremony of communion. The mass itself was a very spiritual event for me.

Now I am not a Catholic, and not a Christian. I am still a very spiritual person but my spirituality is not pinned down to religion or Jesus. Why the break? So many reasons that would take a long time to explain. As for the Bible, I hate it and always have thought it a stupid book. And as for Jesus, if he existed at all, he was probably a remarkable person with a wonderful message. I don't think we need to make a God out of him to keep and cherish the message.

The Divine I realize is found in our hearts and minds and humanity towards life, not in religion.

Conrad,

I was raised Catholic and will be marrying in the Catholic church later this year. My faith on the other hand is not really there. It started with how the church treated my mother when she wanted to leave my father. My dad was a drug addict and mean to us and her. She had every right to want to get out but they fought her about it and then told her she wasn't welcome in the church. Yet they still expected her to give 10% of her income of which they were insistent about for many years until a new priest came.

To me that is not what a church should represent.

When in college one of my majors was Anthropology and I took many classes on different cultures which inevitably means religion of different cultures. It amazed me to see how different cultures had such different views of religion. But it all centered around one thing. There is some type of "God" like entity that promotes fear in one way or another to keep the mass of people in line.

Religion in itself is not bad in principle or in practice. I now go to church again with my fiance and I have learned to not dislike the church like I once did. What I fear from religion is those that take it and use it as an excuse to commit violence against other human beings. It can be abused and has been for many centuries...

I live my life by helping others, being kind, having empathy for not only other human beings but also those animals that can't always help themselves. I hope that by living my life in this manner that when I do pass on then I can know that I left a legacy of kindness and not hatred...

Sorrelen, I agree with your sentiment. One idea on the love/fear relationship as a concept. Drop the fear part and it all makes much more sense. I realized that many years ago and it was of great benefit.

A great question, and one that I have struggled with as well.

I was raised in the Lutheran church, one of the least offensive protestant churches. The only people who dislike Lutherans seem to be those who hate potlucks. I went to church camps during the summer, attended after school programs, and for a time considered becoming a pastor. I use these as examples to show that I was quite faithful when young.

When I was a teenager, however, I began to question my faith. It may have began as part of our confirmation process, when we are first allowed to choose to join the church. At that point, I chose to join my church. I never really considered leaving the church, because of my community and family.

After that, though, I began to question my faith. It began as questioning whether God really existed, then carried into the other arguments against religion. I came to the conclusion that since I couldn't know whether God existed, I couldn't simply accept the church's definition of God. I also became more aware of the hipocracy practiced by parts of the church. In addition, I saw the divisions that the Church created, in saying whom would enter Heaven. I didn't see these divisions as fair, or right, so to support them was unacceptable to me.

At this point, I have no religion, but I still have faith. My arguments against the church are on their purpose and methods, not against God.

The real church is that which is inside of us. Having faith and belief in God, is the only tool needed. With that in mind, the congregating with others of faith in a church service, becomes what it is supposed to be, a mutual sharing of people who share a belief in God. No politics need be involved.

Conrad, you've stepped into the viper's den and are fairing very well. Such a question usually brings out some very negative thoughts and feelings. Your readers are well-mannered and well read.

As for me, I classify myself differently on different days. I say that I consider myself a Christian, but what is it to be a Christian? For some, it is a strict adherence to a literal interpretation of the Bible and a belief that the church is infallable. For others, it is a more liberal interpretation of the Bible, and a personal relationship with Jesus with no particular influence from a church. Still others lie in varying degrees between and outside of those two examples.

I was raised in a Baptist church, but why I have left the church is two-fold:

1) It appeared to me that more and more congregations moved away from the teachings of Jesus, even though they read those teachings aloud during service. They were judgemental of others, to the point of being rude and even nearly violent. Services often became more about "status" than worship. Only the "best" people in the community attended certain churches, while others were looked down upon until they were driven out. Attendees were expected to wear nice new dresses and suits.

It also became very political. By that, I don't necessarily mean city, state, or national politics, but church and community politics. People fought for seats on council or to become a deacon as viciously as politicians fight for governmental office. The message of Jesus was so completely lost, I sometimes felt I was sitting in a house of evil rather than a house of God.

2) The more I studied the history of Christianity and the tenets of other religions, the more I questioned many of the things I was taught. I'll give a couple of examples and try not to keep it too long.

If you look at the Ten Commandments, they're obviously good commandments, but in some cases they made perfect sense for the time in which they were "written". During the earliest parts of the Old Testament, we're looking back into a point in history when civilizations were fairly new. The commandments and many of the teachings seem to be laying the groundwork for a legal system for early communities. The laws weren't necessarily religious or spiritual leadings, but rather a necessity for establishing a foundation for how people should co-exist in a society far removed from the nomadic past they had known.

Also as I learn about the Council of Nicea and the books that were "omitted" from the official Bible, as well as other moves made by the church immediately prior to, and for generations following that time, I see that the religion now known as Christianity was really, just trying to survive. The practitioners were fragmented in their beliefs and understandings of what the religion was all about, and thus they had to come together and come up with a central tenet that all should follow. Had they failed to do so, the religion probably would have been enveloped by any of the multitude of beliefs out there and lost to history. Much of what we study as "truth" was merely the truth of a select few, not necessarily the entirety.

Ultimately, the reason I broke from the church was the insistence that their way was the "only way". I believe whole heartedly in God and especially the Holy Spirit. I believe the teachings of Jesus are a perfect example of how to lead a godly life even with the trappings of the flesh. But I also happen to see a lot of great things in other religions and they tend to be far less judgemental than Christianity has been. Many other forms of religion allow their followers to practice many different religions and it's perfectly fine, so long as the ultimate goal is to do good and be a positive, wise influence in the world. I cannot fathom that God, who is a merciful and just god, would condemn so many wonderful, peaceful, loving, compassionate people to hell simply because they do not hold the name of Jesus as highly as Christians.

Therefore, sometimes I call myself a Christian because I believe in the teachings of Jesus, but at other times I do not, because I no longer subscibe to the dogma of the organized church. I believe everyone's walk with God is a personal walk and the relationship one has with the Creation Force is a personal one; not subject to any particular rules or ceremony.

Conrad,

I 100% believe in a god or a higher power but I have a huge problem with organized religion. I was raised a Christian ,(baptist to be exact) but over the last couple of years or so I have come to realize that I am not Christian at all. Like the poster above me, learning about the council of Nicea really made me think about my religious affiliation. Knowing that the bible that we have today is not the same as the original, made me question everything I had been taught. I now believe that the Bible is just a guide, a book of stories if you will, that some people use to learn how to live their lives. Although I do not believe that you need a "guide" to know what to do, if it can help someone be a better person than that's great.

Another reason why I am not Christian (or a part of any religion for that matter) is howa lot of people use their faith to justify hate or persecution against other individuals. For example, almost all of my Christian relatives are adamantly against gays and gay marriage. So against it that they have taken it upon themselves to kick certain members out of my family just for being gay. To me, this is disgusting and unacceptable. I personally believe in equal rights for all humans whether they are gay, straight, black,white, polka dot, Jew, atheist, christian or whatever you may be.

I also do not like how some Christians throw their faith in your face. Christians seem to believe that it is either their way or no way, and god forbid if you dont agree with them. The whole "god is going to damn you, god hates this or that, your going to hell" bit is crazy to me and if god was really like that I would not want to meet him. god should not be, nor do I think he/she/it is vengeful, spiteful, or full of hate. I believe that whatever higher power does exist does not care whether you believe or not just that you live your life according to what you think is right.

I do not know if this answered your question very well but i hope that i helped! :) I just wish that people would take the time to think about what they believe in and what they are taught, and if something does not make sense say something or do your own research.If your research leads you to be an atheist great, the important thing is that YOU figured out what you believe in or do not believe in. If it leads you to a new religion or no religion at all, good for you for having the courage to find out for yourself.Never follow blindly.

My motto: god gave me a brain and I intend to use it.

Janay

What makes a Christian a Christian? There was a time in my life that I felt to be a Christian a person had to believe the Bible was the actual word of God, along with all those other fundementalist tenents. Now, though, after 25 years in ministry encountering people in the actual process of day to day living, I realize that being Christian is about believing in the things for which the Jesus of the New Testament stood; love, peace, honesty, self-sacrifice, servanthood, goodness, kindness, humility, and so on and so forth. Therefore, a person may not be an "official" Christian by confession, but can be one just because they believe in the principles which Jesus stood for.

Hello, Conrad

I read your article, and was touched by sincerity of it. I did not have time to read articles of others, but I'll get back to them. But I would like to tell you, that out of my own experience, and observation of others, I am of belief that there is a period of time in every believer's journey, in which , when they come to God, they will go through the time of testing, and refining, and it is very important to keep one's eyes( spiritually speaking ) on God, and not on men... This is where satan trips up the people, and the organized church has done great harm, by not displaying the fruits of His Spirit, and His character of God, to be a witness and refuge to seeking and vulnerable souls. Many seeking, and tender souls find themselves alone, even in midst of congregations where they hope to find support, strength and encouragement, but they see apathy, shallowness, a lukewarm kind of hearts in people, and so they just let go of their faith, feeling betrayed, not knowing that's the very thing that the enemy has aimed for! Sad but true. It is in the Word of the Lord, in the Holy Scriptures, and the fellowship with Christ Himself, that the strength is being gained against falling on the wayside. If one can just take hold of this fact, and seek Him, His counsel and the glory of His Presence, they will go through the time of testing, often bruised and roughed up, but will come out shining and refined, their faith strengthened. I myself have gone through rough waters not just once but many times... But it is His Word, His Holly Spirit, and the purifying hope that He will accomplish in us what He has begun, by His Word,by His Spirit, an by His grace alone.... One more thing I will mention: it's that satan, who is the enemy of our souls, after trying everything he can to discourage us, he will use one more, and most dangerous thing: he will throw mud on the carachter of God! He will throw doubt into our minds and hearts about the character of God!!! Because, he knows that if he can convince us that God is not good, that he is not just, righteous and Holy, as well as all the other attributes of Him we know His word and His Spirit testify of Him, then our faith is gone..... And without faith no man can see God., and without faith no man can please God, because those who come to Him must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him...

This is a very good article, and I hope it brings people in to share the deep things of their hearts....