Atheists & Agnostics
In reply to the discussion: Does anyone remember when you became an unbeliever? [View all]The Genealogist
(4,736 posts)When I was 12 or so, I was quite a little Christian. The summer before I turned 13, I went to Boy Scout camp. I went to Vespers every night, and sort of befriended an older guy who also went. We discussed Christianity a lot, and we got to the question of who would be "saved." Keeping in mind that he was older than I, I looked up to him. He told me only those who accepted Jesus as their savior would avoid hell. Period. I asked about people who had been alive before Jesus, or people who had simply never heard of Jesus. Sorry, they're all doomed to hell, along with everyone who had not accepted Jesus as their savior. No matter how exemplary their lives, no matter how virtuous or generous, they are doomed to eternal damnation. And I wondered what kind of deity would be so cruel. Then I began questioning religion and God about other things. It didn't take long before I no longer believed in God at all.