I couldn’t help it. I could relate with my friends who had been pushed away from religion. I empathize with them. Feel their anger, their pain. Some became witches or atheists. They have the right to be angry. Then later on in life, I got severely and badly hurt by so called Christians. I’ve learned something new that I wished I could share with my non believing friends-- The so called Christians, who were supposed to be their friends, brothers in God’s eyes… they didn’t die on the cross for them or me, they can’t take away my sins, they’re not God, not perfect. I have every right to be mad and abandon my faith. I relieved that God didn’t hurt me, they did. So I’m still a Christian. Yet I had my moments of weakness and doubt. I’m kinda glad it did happen to me. I was given a choice, to turn to God… or away from him like my friends and many others.
What happened had strengthened my faith. It also made me relate more to my atheist and witch friends. I wish I could tell them, their relationship with Jesus is more important than those so called Christian friends who hurt them.
Why? What objective evidence can you demonstrate that any deity or deities exist?
Relate? How?
No no, you seem to be under the misconception that Atheists deny Jesus. It’s not that simple. I don’t have a relationship with a deity because I don’t believe deities exist. You don’t believe in the existence of the other gods. We just disbelieve in the existence of one more than you do.
What is Atheism? - American Atheists.
Are you under the impression that we’ve rejected religion because of some deep-seated emotional trauma?
People can reject religion for idealistic reasons . . . not out of bitterness or anger.
If God (or Gods) exist, then I can’t believe that the Creator of the Universe would approve of how we treat each other and the natural world with the justification of religion to validate our utter nastiness.
Is this one category or two?
You, the “so called Christians” who do severe hurting, your friends and many others - all created sick by an imaginary father figure and commanded to be well by the same. What a way to live! 
A relationship with Jesus isn’t terribly important. More like a perpetuation of wishful thinking.
Pushed away? You would have to demonstrate that. Keeping congregations is making money. The congregation is the customer and it puts food on the table and buys jet airplanes. How do you get pushed away from a religion without already becoming a Wiccan, Atheist, or non-believer of sorts? I suppose you could be a pedophile and engage in groping the little boys, no wait, that would not work either. How do you get pushed away from religion? Even if you don’t fit in at a specific church, there is another up the street willing to take money from you and allow you to sit in a pew on Sunday. I’m really having trouble with the idea of 'being pushed away from religion." I seriously doubt that it happens.
The insane ramblings of a mad man lost in the delusional throws of an indoctrinated existence. I am sorry for you.
Um… Anyone around here been hurt by Christian friends? Wait, Tin Man, Skriten and Old Man, are in the room. Anyone around her been undeservedly hurt by Christian friends?
Should be “one more than you do”.
I am a Christian robot who posts and goes away.
In JUNE 
. Didn’t respond.
Most likely “prepared” by an organization-church and parroted here. JWs do this too.
Warning issued.
See you in six months, punk!
Well that is at least one thing we can agree one: I don’t think your invisible friend hurt you either.
Good evening, Reddas. It sounds as if you are in pain about some things that happened between several people you care about. Possibly some crisis of faith on your part or that of friends is involved. I would offer as a salve that the pain a crisis of faith causes is merely wisdom entering your sphere of understanding. I hope you can eventually find some peace about it.
That’s giving you the benefit of doubt about your motives in posting here. 
Only by their refusal to look a history…but no, no problems my long time business party was a “born again”. Only time we had a sort of argument was when he didn’t charge his church the hiring fees for our equipment.
It sounds like you haven’t got a fucking clue how to read people or even start an interaction. It’s a damn shame what religion has done to your mind. So alienated from the world that you have to come onto an atheist site looking for love, acceptance, and attention. I am sorry for you. Perhaps if you tried the Foreign Legion. I’ve heard they are very accepting. (Preaching bullshit. It’s already time to say bye bye.)
You’ve got a lot of nerve making that remark, Mister! I have you know that if I had ever been hurt, I absolutely deserved it!.. (reading post again)… Oh, wait. Disregard. That’s what you were saying. My bad. Carry on…
Wow! So many targets in one paragraph. It’s difficult to know where to start. Decisions decisions… 
(Edit for fish ‘n’ chips.)
I’m sorry you feel that way.
It’s true that I did try Christianity for several years. But not before delving into Buddhism (Nichiren Shoshu, Tibetan, and even Hindu, where Gautama is treated as a deity), Unitarian, Wicca, and a host of other little made up junk belief systems. I was raised in the 60’s and 70’s with no familial-imposed belief system, but ridiculously with the idea that the transcendent was a real and worthy endeavor.
But honestly, I haven’t believed in anything outside the material ever since 12 February 2011. That was the day of my most deadly interaction with Talaban forces in Kandahar. That was the day I learned what it was like to take another person’s life for the stupidest of political and religious reasons.
So, I understood that the OP was a troll, baiting the members here for their own personal and likely nefarious reasons. But I will never presuppose someone’s veracity in reaching out for help, even if they have been untrustworthy in the past. And so I will offer any words of encouragement and comfort I can when I hear someone in need. Even if they turn out to be disingenuous, I know that I’ve done what I require of myself in the situation.
Yes, I freely admit that I have come to this site looking for attention. I have just moved back to the USA after spending the majority of 22 years overseas. The environment here in Florida is so saturated with vanilla pudding Christian banality, that I have to seek mental stimulation where I can get it.
Contrary to your assumptions, I am not anything even remotely similar to a Christian. By definition I am an Atheist–but I don’t even think that should be a designation of a “belief system”. Atheism is the default position of any conscious entity until it is corrupted by its society or environment.
But since you seem to be the spokesperson for this venue, and have decided it’s time for me to leave, then I suppose I will respect your declaration and move on. Unless, of course, you are simply full of shit.
He is… and now you’ve likely put into his head the idea for an aggressive Fling Session. Great.
Sorry. [Hanging head in shame]. I should have known and I will eschew further interactions.
I’m sorry, did you mean I should actually join the French Foreign Legion?
Or is it enough that I had my ears blown out by IEDs and that I now know what it feels like to watch another human being disappear in a red mist when I fire at them in an adjacent building through my ACOG?
Is my VA disability for traumatic brain injury and hearing loss not enough for you? Are you really such an ineffectual little piece of shit? I invite you to meet me in any venue of your choice, anywhere in the world. Don’t worry, I can afford it. We can discuss it in person, cool?
Oh fuck another Buddhist!
How did you decide these were made up and Buddhism wasn’t. My understanding is that Siddhartha sat under a tree and just pulled shit out of his ass. But of course that is only the myth and not the history.
Well we can agree on that much ---- Transcendent what? I have never see anything transcendent or any form of evidence for anything transcendent.
And without substantial corroborating evidence, we call that kind of behavior, "Enabling.’ You are the perfect target for every con man on the planet. I’m betting that you get stepped on a lot. Each time someone takes advantage of you, it is their misfortune for you have done all you can to be moral and right. LOL… Please send me a million dollars. I need it to medically change my hair color. Without it I could die.
Even when someone claims to be suicidal we make inquiries to see if they are telling the truth, have a plan and the means. Accepting shit at face value is gullibility.
I’m on my 26th year in Korea. Talking to the Buddhists over here is like talking to the Christians’ at home. (Don’t get me wrong - I love the stories and philosophy, But not the religion. You can take reincarnation and Karma and … )
I am not the spokesperson for this venture. As it happens I happen to be at my computer and I merely responded to your post. That is how things work. There is a slight edge of intelligence to this post that was seriously lacking from the previous post so I am looking forward to what comes next. It appears that you do have an ability to be self aware. That is a plus in my book, not that you should give a shit about anything in my book.
Hey. I’ve got a bridge in San Fransisco, The hub of California Spiritualism, that I can sell you cheap.