Fun with family

After an exchange of email with a fundy relative this is an answer that I got:

I know you are an atheist as we have had several email exchanges about our different beliefs. I certainly respect your beliefs and am grateful that you respect mine. You are family and I will always love you even when we disagree!

This really creeped me out so I wrote this reply:

Thanks for your kind words. I have family here in TX that will no longer speak to me because of how I think. First thing is I don't have "beliefs." I base my worldview on facts. I don't believe in a personal god or savior because the world operates by natural laws which don't require a supernatural power. So I have a naturalistic worldview based on provable facts which many, many different fields of science provide. I don't have "faith" or "comfort in eternal life" to get thru the day. Facts, not beliefs, guide my life.

What I respect is your right to believe whatever you want based on the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the Constitution of the US, but I don't respect your beliefs. In fact, with what I know about Christianity, I find it hard to believe anyone buys into it in this modern day and age. Sorry, but the OT reads like a bad horror novel (Jewish myths designed to keep the people somewhat civil to each other thousands of years ago) and the NT is a revised version of old pagan savior myths (also designed to keep people civil to each other hundreds of years ago).

That is only part of what bothered me about Christianity. There is so much more that I cannot put it down in a simple email. You wouldn't believe me anyway. Your religion tells you that I'm wrong on so many levels that you will never understand what I'm talking about. I understand that and am grateful I was never so indoctrinated. I do have to say that I cared so much that what I was taught as a child was the truth that I searched and searched but only found that it wasn't the truth. I cared so much that it took years to convince me and was very sad when I finally had to let go of my superstitions. Now I'm free to love or stay away from people based on their qualities, not what some ancient document tells me I have to do. I can use my own intellect to research and base my judgement on actual facts instead of taking the default position of the bible or what my pastor tells me. It's hard work and it's not fool proof, but it has served me much better than blindly believing in ancient dogma.

Now you see how I think and why.

Hugs,
Summer

I blind forwarded this exchange to my freethinking cousin and this was his reply:

You are so confrontational. And that is said with a smile on my face. (One of the problems with email conversation is that there is no facial or tonal inflections possible. Just words.)

You gotta love this guy!

Anyway, I'm enjoying my new-found freedom and will continue to update my blog with the exchanges I have with my relatives.