Hello there, a question for the convinced atheist among you: Do you raise your children atheist? If your children ask whether god exists, do you say "No." or "I don't think so."? What are your thoughts on the matter of raising children anti-religious or religious? Rain
I think that even people who follow a particular religion have to make a distinction between generally helpful ethics and specific religious ones. Whereas I believe in teaching children to be compassionate, and not get too angry, one should not impose your "universe-view" on them as that is for them to decide as they grow up. I would advise against telling them that god doesn't exist; but saying that you don't believe in god is perfectly reasonable...
Rain Sasha asked many times about god... Dad said. Read everything you can about it. Talk to people about their beliefs. But never decide. Only do that when you think the time has come to do so. [of course there was much more than this, many hours of talk] The last time she asked. At age 17. Dad said. "After 2 decades of thought. i cannot decide. That is agnosticism..no? Think hard, feel much. I may come to decide tomorrow, or never. As may you" That was 5 years ago In that period of change. Occam can ony say that he sees more direction in reality every day. But nothing conclusive. Occam
Stoner No. Sasha is the 22 year old daughter of occam. Occam appoligises if he requires you to define personal pronouns. Nowhere in english does it say that english is immutable. Occam uses language to express HIS. ideas. He DOES not limmit his ideas to english usage. If there are no terms/rules/words in english to express a concept. Then occam makes his own... Or should he stop thinking about something 'cause he cant find english words/rules to think about it with?' If he did..If he lived 'bound' within an accepted language of thought. Then he condemns himself to ignorance. Occam
I'm not an atheist, but I spoke against organized religion while encouraging my kids to learn of them. Know thy enemy. My old lady had a problem, but I pointed out that I was but a single voice, albeit an influencial one, in a chorus of millions of people and billions of dollars trying to brianwash our kids. At 15 and 16, both my kids are best described as Skeptical Agnostics, or Free Thinkers.
I think this is a tough one and Occam dn Gecko have given me some good starting points. My mother raised me (more or less) in church. She was seeking truth, so we never stayed at a church long and often went long spells without going. However in my teenage years I became more involved, more for social reasons than religious ones. At times I thought I felt God, that he spoke to me, and my church thought something was wrong with me. That was the last time I went to church on my own. After that I had a painful breakup with religion and my family still sends me tools of conversion and cries for my soul to be saved. I wish they would save some trees and stop sending the bullshit. Still... my upbringing made me question. It made me see that there may be more to life than meets the eye. I still feel sorry for those brainwashed into religion, but I also feel sorry for some of my atheist freinds who will never see more in life than a pointless series of moments. Has anyone ever attended a Universalist church? I wonder what that's all about...
pop3 Occam also feels for those conditioned. Conditioned by organised religion. And conditiond by the fact that if they reject religion. They have not been educated to reason..Thus they reject. Theism and Atheism. The middle ground is .... Hopefully..the path ocam walks. A path realised by adaption to what is...Not acceptance of what is desired. Occam proposes that reason. Is the conscious adaption to reality by a method that reality operates on. That method must be the place where 'direction' is applied. If we undersand the method by which reality works, we are one step closer to 'a' possible god. If there is a god. Who said it must be obvious? Religion? Humanity has a far better chance of realising a god through group rational effort. Than any individual epiphany. And each of us IS NOT an individual FIRST. Humanity is first. Each of US are he bits that make up the whole. [pre-emptive...humanity can exist without you. you cannot exist without humanity.] Occam
I was raised neither way; I was raised irreligious. My parents will claim some religion but never saw a reason to preach it or take in the least bit seriously. That's what I will do with my daughter.
Well, my parents aren't religious, and my dad very much non-religious, but they didn't bring me up as an atheist, they just brang me up. I knew about all sorts of religions and all that and respected them, but personally I just saw them as a bunch of nice (though some nasty) fairy tales. When I got to the age that I wanted to talk about that kind of things, I'd already made up my mind of what I believed, and I talked with my parents about my, their and people's beliefs without being told 'this is a fact'. As for raising a child anti-religious or religious, I think that more religious people raise people as anti-religious than atheists, agnostics or those who keep their beliefs away from organised religions as a unique thing to you.
I believe a child should be allowed to choose his own beliefs, or lack thereof, rather than be indoctrinated either way.
My children grow up in a house with one atheist parent, one catholic parent and we live in the Middle East so they are engulfed by Islam and Hindi culture/ religion on a daily basis. There is not such thing as a Christian or Muslim child...... Just children of Christian or Muslim parents. I raise my kids to have a love of science, reading and to have a curious mind / ask lots of questions and let them decide for themselves. All my kids go to church with their mother and are baptized as per their mother's wishes while I stay home and enjoy the quiet time.
Definitely, the latter. I don't believe in putting bugs in children's ears. It's so unnecessary and ultimately, inefficient. All I would do in all areas (atheism being only one), is ask questions about them and answer questions about myself. Atheism is just a thought. The only thing I'd set limits against would be actions. For instance, if I'm paying for your meals, you'd better help out around the house, work toward your independence, show me the same respect I show you, and have a curfew. Otherwise, you're getting time out or your allowance privileges cut off. Other than that, think, say, and feel what you will. You don't have to be the same as daddy. But I'd make myself available to answer all questions about atheism they might have. ------------ Edit: That's pretty much how I was raised, except my parents followed the great tradition of nagging, as opposed to setting clear cut boundaries.
When mine asked me ,I said that I didn't know and that no one else did either,even though many said they did and that they would have to use their own minds to decide the differance between faith and fact. They seem,as adults to discern the differance,not that I have ever asked them. I relayed to them what my gramma told me when I was very young. That is--do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Seemed like perfect advice to me. Still does.
There's a speech in the movie Second Hand Lions, "Just because something isn't true that doesn't mean you can't believe in it". I think it's especially true for innocent children. I think children should believe in magic, and Santa Claus, and God. Fantasies are fine, up until they influence dangerous decisions and impact others.
