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Atheist
First of all, if you get offended when someone doesn't believe in god just stop reading now, not because I'll bash your religion (I would never do that) but because I don't want to press my religion onto you. I'm only a 14 year old girl, so I know that a lot of you will tell me that I'm too old to pick my religion and that I should just do what I'm told, right? Please just hear me out. It could be due to the fact that God was never pressed on me because I only went to church long enough to get first holy communion or it could be due to the fact that I'm creative and like to test the boundaries and question things, but I don't believe in God or religion. I'm bisexual and I've only told a few people because my parents would say I'm going to hell (they're very, very catholic) and I really don't find it logical that there's an invisible man in the sky who created the world and will send you to the fiery underworld if you break his rules but that he loves you. I want to be a scientist, and science and religion clash no matter what way you put it, and there's just so much more evidence contributing to the Big Bang and natural selection and things like that. And it sounds to me like the bible was written by a bunch of homophobic, violent, sexist, sexually frustrated men. I just don't believe it, but I would be shunned if I ever said anything bad about god so I can't tell my parents. I worry about what happens after death though. I kinda believe that there might be some sort of god, but not a magical person, just somewhere we go after death. Do I sound like I'll stay atheist or don you think that this is just a phase? Am I making the right choice for when I'm older and my religion might matter as far as my family life goes?
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The bible is around 2,000 years-old give or take with my math but you'll still see my point. It has been translated into a multitude of languages and the stories in it from person to person until written down and interpreted in a multitude of ways.
What I'm saying is a lot of these people your parents included may call themselves Christians but sure don't act like it. They're no closer to God than anybody else. In fact, perhaps removed far from it.
Anybody who says you're going to go to hell or a fiery underworld for not believing their version of the bible is well, wrong and daft. But you can't convince a zealot of that. People can believe what they would like when it comes to religion unless they are hurting other people or forcing their belief on others.
You can't change nor choose your sexuality and if they judged on that it's on them and not you. Be who you are no matter what your sexuality or you'll be miserable.
When it comes to the Bible and Genesis for that matter there are two accounts. In one God looked at everything and creation as good and creation reflecting him. The second account is of Adam and Eve and disaster and man as mortal and all the fiery stuff you mentioned. But which interpretation is right? There's also a verse about the kingdom of heaven being here and now.
I'm just driving home it's all in interpretation and that if there's a God and he's loving than... Same thing with death. Your beliefs aren't going to land you in hell.
The thing is people use this kind of thing to control people who don't accept their ideology. I wouldn't worry about it. Just be concerned with being a good person no matter what you believe. You're closer if there is a God to the fact that he's not a magical entity that will either sanctify or roast you based on adherence to any belief system others force on people.
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I would like to talk about you being bisexual before we talk about you being an atheist. I will say this I find nothing wrong with how you feel about god and religion. Personally I do not believe in organized religion though I do believe in god. This makes me an agnostic.
For someone your age, and I'm old enough to be your grandfather, I do not like putting labels on sexuality. It is quite normal for someone your age, boy or girl, to experiment sexually with someone of the same sex. The biggest reason for this is it is safer. Parents never question two children of the same sex being in a room together alone or having a sleep over.
This does not mean you are gay, lesbian or bisexual. By putting a label on yourself at this age you are actually endangering yourself as many of your peers will not understand even though they two may be experimenting with people of the same sex. Most if not all of us have done so in our life time.
I know some girls in college you would have sworn were lesbians for you rarely if ever saw them with a man. Fact is they were taking the easiest and safest way to sexual relief there was. Since male population outnumbered the female population sexual relief for many women was either through lesbian sex or masturbation.
Today most of those women who turns to lesbian or bisexuality for sexual relief will not admit to it. Why mostly because being bisexual at that time has a big stigma attached to it that is not attached to adults today.
For right now I ask you not label yourself sexually. That for now you just enjoy learning about who you are sexually and your sexuality. Then later when you are say 18 and an adult if you feel you need to put a label on yourself go ahead.
As for being an Atheist. As I said to begin with; there is nothing wrong with what you believe. Your parents have their religion and now that you have moved into the young adult years you have questions about religion and probably other things.
Are you being rebellious by renouncing your parents’ religion? Probably not though when your parent find out they will be hurt maybe even angry. I'm sorry if they feel that way for this is the time, your teenage years, that you should be questioning things and we should be encouraging you to do so. Instead both in school and at home we are trying to stifle this type of thinking and turn our teenagers into automatons.
Your teenage years are the years you mold yourself as to who you will be as an adult. While I do not wish to go against your parents’ wishes for you. I will suggest that you continue to question that which you do not understand or believe. It is hard to believe in things you cannot see, feel or taste this is called faith be it religious faith or any other type of faith. Sometimes in doing things we make leaps of faith for we have no other reasons for doing so. When we do we sometimes make great discoveries and other times we fail. What is important is we tried.
As long as you don't try to convince others that you are right and they are wrong based strictly on faith, meaning not having factual evidence. This is what you said when you wrote “I don’t want to press my religion onto you." Then I can support you 100% and I encourage you to continue questioning what you don't agree with.
As to your final question: Your mind will change on many things as you continue to question and search for answers. Maybe you will and maybe you won't change your mind as far as religion goes. One thing is for sure you will have fun and a lot of interesting adventures as you seek answers to your questions.
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