As a Christian, I was taught that we, as human beings, are morally depraved and the scum of the earth in comparison to God, and that we deserve his wrath and are deserving of hell because we sin against him. It's a belief that was drilled into my mind throughout my life. This belief stems from Isaiah 64:6, which states, "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like leaves, and like the wind, our sins sweep us away." I grew up in an abusive home, and as an abused child, I was raised to believe that I was a useless waste of space, and I was treated as such at home and at school. Despite my circumstances at home and school, I still genuinely believed in God and was taught that God is loving and merciful, that I, like the rest of humanity, was unworthy of his love and mercy, and that I (like the rest of humanity) deserved his wrath and would go to hell because we commit sin against him. So, in addition to having an emotional hangup about being a useless waste of space at home and school, I also felt like the scum of the earth in comparison to the God I believed in. I couldn't win for losing, and I grew up deeply depressed and feeling worthless, and these sad feelings haunted me throughout my life until I finally renounced my Christian faith and freed myself from its emotional crutch two years ago. I can honestly say that renouncing my faith and belief in God was the best decision that I've ever made for my mental health and emotional well-being.
