I wouldn't raise them to be bound to a religion.
Both of my adult children are atheist. I let their friends take them to church when they were young, and they'd come back and we'd talk about it. They could see right through the stage performance.
Hi, I noticed your from indiana. I live here in Terre Haute. Or Terrible Haute as we say. I'm new to this site and finding it a little difficult to get around. How do you like it so far and have you met anyone else from indiana on here.
Hey, bwright...obviously, I'm not any better at navigating this site, either. Sorry I missed your comment. :/
I'm 70 and raised my kids a long time ago. Unfortunately, I raised them with the Christian doctrine because I was fearful of raising them as atheists and how they might be ostracized or worse. We didn't take them to church though so their experience was limited. If I could do it over, I would raise them as atheists and teach them logic and reasoning and science.
Perhaps you were in “mama bear protective mode.” Were you a Christian or atheist while you were raising them?
I was raised a Christian but considered myself an atheist at age 22--before I had my kids. I wish I had had the courage to raise them as atheists but I didn't. I wasn't even out of the closet until a few years ago when I was forced into retirement. The climate back in the mid-sixties was nothing like it is now. It was easier to go with the flow. I picked my battles as a feminist and I've been "fighting" that battle for 50 years. Now I've added a whole bunch of humanist causes in addition to atheist rights. I am now a force to be reckoned with. I am woman hear me roar. LOL
I see no reason to teach anybody about a default position. I imagine that if a child is brought up without the concept of god drilled into their heads that they will find such a concept to be as absurd as I do
I understand your point, but I don’t mean as “default” position.
I already do! My 24 yo son is more outspoken than me and my 12 yo daughter is following behind. I'm so proud, lol.
Hopefully their actions are primarily influenced by their individual desire for truth, rather than the adoration and respect that they have for you. Respectfully, l believe that sometimes young people will blindly follow others (parents included), and not understand the implications of their actions.
I just taught my kids that whatever they wanted to believe was fine with me. I mean that, too. Trying to shove atheism down their throats is no different than their mother trying to force evangelicalism on them.