Recent transplant to IL from CO via 25 yrs in NY. Thrilled find a place of reason like this - I have found religious beliefs be a barrier for me in the dating/LTR world...so many believers think of us as evil, and I'm actually a pretty darn good person! I'm all about honesty, including intellectual honesty. (And be forewarned: ENTJ, lol)
I was raised atheist, but married a catholic and converted in 2000 after 7 years of marriage. After reallllly trying embrace it (I served on parish council several years), I just couldn't continue accept the hypocrisy and mutually exclusive tenets. I returned my personal beliefs (Humanist/Freethinker), and it became a huge friction point in my marriage. I separated from him in 2015, and finalized it May 2018.
I won't make that concession again. This is who I am, and although I'm open other's beliefs, I am not open being guilted into something that doesn't feel right for me. Live your truth, but don't force it on me, y'know?
Edit: Speaking of truth (and to save both of us time and frustration), if you are pro-Trump or anti-vax, it's unlikely we'll have a lasting bond. I won't be purposefully rude or try to minimize you, and if you say something funny or deep, I'll respond appropriately. I've just gone through too much self-analysis and observation of what's happening around us to be soft on these two boundaries. Although I'm curious why, even now, you'd take these positions, we'd quickly find ourselves out of topics to discuss. And I love to discuss things, really; I just also need to know we share a common understanding of reality. My reality is one of loving humanity (not just the rich, white, or straight ones) and trusting the scientific process.
I'm here to find like-minded people who celebrate logic, science, and who enjoy discussion about all kinds of life topics.