Post here if Creationism turns you off to Christianity

Great Debates
41

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Of course there are. But the interesting thing about OMMP on Belief-L is that it’s a kind of meta-fundamentalism, under which Christians, Wiccans, Deists, Muslims, etc. can all band together and be intolerant to anyone who doesn’t agree with their shared worldview.

I would disagree on the “all.” For example, plenty of people are looking for a way to feel smug, or to get out of hell for free, or to let them do whatever they please and feel assured that Jesus already paid the bill.

The thing I found most problematic about OMMP is that first of all, it was very narrowly defined, compared to your definition. (And I agree with your definition, to the extent that what I would say that “legitimate” religions are about answering the question, “what’s going on here?”) The second problem was the arrogance of it, by which no one could be permitted to disagree: fundamentalist Christians who felt that by definition Jesus was not the same as Allah would be told “no, you idiot, you worship Allah just like the Wiccans do, and you just haven’t figured it out yet.” This would be especially galling when, having pedantically lectured people on the true will of God, they’d further lecture the fundies on the “hubris” of saying that they, as Christians, would go to heaven when they die. After all, it takes real hubris to claim you know God’s plans for you, right?

-Ben

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What killed Christianity for me was right after I became “Born Again” (although I’d been raised under Christian beliefs all my life, I didn’t make the “commitment to Christ” until I was in college) when I was talking with three separate, non-denominational mentors who all had different interpretations of what was supposedly “The Truth”, to the point of saying that the other mentor’s interpretations were going to land them in hell.

The final nail in the coffin was the theory that God created old-looking dinosaur bones, carbon dating technology, etc. specifically as a temptation for people to think that evolution might be true. I simply can’t put faith in a supposedly loving God that INTENTIONALLY DECEIVES his “children”. A God like that is a Devil!

Creationism didn’t really hit it big until long after I’d switched to atheism, so it wasn’t a major influence in turning me off to religion, although it is one of the big factors that make me point my finger and laugh a lot.

J.E.T.

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Or Preparation H, for that matter?

44

No, I understand that not all Christians are Creationists, so why should I be turned off to an idea because some of it’s supporters are stupid? Christianity is not one of my favorite religions, but it has it’s good points.