pso@utastro.UUCP (P Samuel Odoms) (04/12/84)
This is sort of a reply to the Ex-Atheist: I used to be a confirmed hard-core christian. Was fairly active in witnessing, working on and in christian plays and musicals and was a member of a college ministry group in my freshman year which did a lot of traveling. I am now a confirmed hard-core atheist. Why the change? I attributed the christianity part to peer/family pressure while growing up. After going off to college, I continued because I didn't know anything else. But by the second year (I had also changed colleges then because I was changing my major and the first college didn't have a good enough corricula) the peer/family pressure was gone and I started to question my beliefs in new lights. I found that I could not believe in the possible existence of a super-being any longer. I am and have been since about 14 years of age a homosexual. I thought that the god I had believed in at that time would not care. But after getting out in the world (and out of my closet), I found that the christian religions (all of them) would not and could not condone homosexuality because god was against it. That I could not understand - I have a very high moral standard am a caring, helping, loving person. I could not stop my homosexual tendencies (and I did try). I could not believe that a god would just write me off because of my inclinations. That's all I have to say for now. Don't try to preach and witness to me about re-converting or whatever. I accept any discussion on why religion in general does not/can not condone homosexuality. I have spent many years in analyizing myself and my religion and world around me and I know that I can never go back to a belief in a god. Thanks to everyone out there who make the net an interesting place to be (?). Well, you know what I mean. Sam