Ex-Church of Christ Support Board

...and in a dose of magic mushrooms.

This is kind of a ramble I guess.

This was during the time that I was planning on leaving: one day, I came back to my apartment. (I was in college). I had just had the last class before the final, and I was 110% ready. It was sunny and nice outside, just an all-around nice day and it was the first day I had felt ok in a while.

As soon as I stepped into the apartment, my roommate meets me at the door with the biggest grin. "I have mushrooms" he says. I had never done mushrooms, so hell, why not. I was not expecting what I got. I had this purely spiritual experience. I learned a lot that had I not gone outside of my mind, I wouldn't have learned. And it made me realize if I ever wanted to be spiritually healthy, I needed to leave. and that spirituality IS important. Even atheists have a certain sense of spirituality, and it's part of being human.

So I left.

I went through the pain that comes with leaving the only thing you've ever known (I was born and raised COC), but as I've aged, although as damaged as I am mentally, my faith in God has been renewed and it's stronger than ever.

I'm not sitting here saying that my faith in the COC God is renewed, I'm talking about the universe and whatever force out there that is bigger than myself. God, Gods plural, whatever it is. Because I realized that it's not really for anyone to know, and no one can know for sure. And the faith comes in the form of not knowing, but knowing there's something. Even if this world is just a simulation of life. If we're in the Matrix, whatever it is. But I do believe in a soul, or something that's left behind. Most stars we see at night are dead. You still see the light because of the distance it takes for the light to travel. You're literally looking at thousands of lightyears into the past of something that only used to be physically there. (That's the mushroom trip talking).

Anyway there's that.
Anyone else kind of get a "push" from a substance?
Guess there's a reason so many cultures do psychedelics during religious ceremonies...

I was a Christian for 47 years. After years of studying and researching the origins and evolution of both the Bible and the Christian faith I came to the informed conclusion all religions and their sacred text are manmade. I mentally left religion several years before I officially pulled the plug.

I’ve found life without religion far more enjoyable. I can’t imagine ever going back to that life again.

Cootie Brown wrote:I was a Christian for 47 years. After years of studying and researching the origins and evolution of both the Bible and the Christian faith I came to the informed conclusion all religions and their sacred text are manmade. I mentally left religion several years before I officially pulled the plug.

I’ve found life without religion far more enjoyable. I can’t imagine ever going back to that life again.

Absolutely. There's no way I can do organized religion again. I feel like a much more whole and evolved person without it. Spirituality is a whole other species it seems like. In the church, I realize that I never really believed in God, had a true faith, or was worshipping. It's all about going through the motions and "appearing" to be all put together. I've come to realize that the church doesn't teach about spirituality at all!

I'm glad you're happier without it. And yes, everything is man-made. I used to be obsessed with philosophy, but that was a good 12 years ago that I was taking classes and reading about it non-stop. There's actually this question "If man made it, is it real?" It's a very interesting question. "Is it real" in a literal sense? no. "Is it real" as in does it exist because humans thought it up? yes. Religion and God exists in the way that people put the concept into existence, but otherwise no.

Idk that's a bit of a ramble and probably doesn't make any damn sense

Again, glad you're much better without organized religion. I'm getting there too

I agree that religion and God exist in the way humans created those concepts. When humans literalize myth they create God, and or Gods, in their minds image. That is why humans see and understand the concept of God so differently.

That is also why there is an estimated 42,000+ versions of Christians with a 1,000+ different denominations. If believers were not blinded by faith they would easily see their beliefs are riddled with contradictions, inconsistencies, and a belief in Biblical stories that could not possibly be true.

I can’t blame them though because I believed every word of the Bible was true for 47 years. I have come to realize that is a testament to just how effective religious indoctrination is.

Cootie Brown wrote:I agree that religion and God exist in the way humans created those concepts. When humans literalize myth they create God, and or Gods, in their minds image. That is why humans see and understand the concept of God so differently.

That is also why there is an estimated 42,000+ versions of Christians with a 1,000+ different denominations. If believers were not blinded by faith they would easily see their beliefs are riddled with contradictions, inconsistencies, and a belief in Biblical stories that could not possibly be true.

I can’t blame them though because I believed every word of the Bible was true for 47 years. I have come to realize that is a testament to just how effective religious indoctrination is.

Oh yeah, indoctrination is such a complex, strange thing. It's weird because I always thought when I'd hear of a cult "How does someone get sucked into that bullshit if they aren't born into it?"
WELL....even though I was born into it, guess I wasn't looking at myself