I feel trapped between Christianity, Islam, and Atheism.

[vaguelyhumanoid]

Mormons do not believe the unforgivable sin refers to apostasy. I would love to hear about the Mormons' "unusual views on salvation and the afterlife." My guess is that they far more closely resemble the beliefs of first-century Christians than do the beliefs of most Christians today.

I said IIRC for a reason. If I'm wrong about something, I'll freely own up to it.

What I remember reading is that Mormons believe that there are two temporary afterlives and four permanent ones. The temporary afterlives (which still can last millenia until the return of Christ) are the bosom of Abraham (heaven) and spirit prison (hell.). After the Last Judgment souls will mostly be assigned to one of three heavenly kingdoms. The highest is reserved for the best Christians. Everything there is splendid and both the Father and the Son have a physical presence. The second is for good people who weren't quite as righteous or faithful. The Son is physically present but not the Father. The lowest includes the vast majority of people. Neither the Father nor the Son are physically present, but it is still better than Earth. Finally, there is the Outer Darkness, the eternal hell reserved for those who rejected the Holy Spirit after experiencing it personally.

Is this accurate? I'd also like to say that I didn't mean "unusual" as an insult. I meant unusual among Christian denominations, i.e. unique and noticeably differing from the most common interpretation. If anything, it's a compliment, because I really don't like the more common "repent and believe or face eternal hell" version at all.

 

[Muffled]

I've posted a bit about this kind of thing before, so I'll make my introduction quick.

I'm an Atheist who has been deconverted from Catholicism for two years. As a bisexual, I was really turned off (no pun intended) by the way I was treated at my church. Additionally, I started to have massive doubts on the content of the Bible and I was going through a very hard time.

I suffer from depression and anxiety, as well as intrusive thoughts. I cannot shake the idea out of my head that God hates me. I miss the community of my church, and I miss being able to feel truly at peace. Furthermore, I have a massive fear of the Christian and Islamic Hell, and I'm scared that I will someday be persecuted and killed over what I end up believing.

I feel stuck between Christianity, Atheism, and Islam, and I'm not sure which is right. What can I do?

I miss having the presence of God and a Church-like community. But I also fear the possibility of me having incorrect beliefs; for example, I'm worried that I will become a Christian, but Islam will be right and I'll go to Hell. I'm also afraid of being delusional, and I don't want to waste my life believing a false religion. Additionally, I'm concerned that becoming religious will cause me even more stress in the end, especially if I'm once again deconverted and can't build another worldview. I'm even worried that ISIS might have the truest interpretation of Islam, that I'll be killed by Muslims or Christians, or that I'll be discriminated upon if I go to any place of worship.

Furthermore, I'm still worried that, if there's a God, he hates me and is making me suffer intentionally, and wants me to go to an eternal Hell. I'm still just so damn confused and scared.

I believe God loves you. That is why He requires you to repent your sin. Refusal to repent means you are rejecting His love and accepting your judgement.

I believe God will do this to make it more attractive for you to repent to make the suffering go away.

I believe He does not want that but I believe He will send you there for a long time if you do not repent.

I believe people tend to believe the things they want to believe even if they are incorrect. God is the final word on what to believe. Just ask me. I have God in me.

I do not believe this is an either/or. Islam is correct but does not work very well. Christianity is correct and can work quite well.

I believe there is little chance of this if you are willing to listen to God. If you prefer your own thinking then you could be delusional.

I believe this is possible since there is always a war between what we would like and what is right.

I believe you need not worry because it is not so.

One may be killed walking across the street but worrying about it does no good. Churches do not discriminate per se but have the option to not allow sinful behavior into the sanctuary.

I believe bisexuality is a sin.

 

[Muffled]

Yes.

As I said in the post, I love the concept of a loving God, but I don't feel as if the Abrahamic God fulfills that for me.

I believe the kind of God who allows sin is like the drug pusher. He knows he is killing you but he doesn't care as long as you are happy to get your drug.

 

[Kelly of the Phoenix]

I believe God loves you. That is why He requires you to repent your sin. Refusal to repent means you are rejecting His love and accepting your judgement.

At what point was mental illness his fault?

I believe God will do this to make it more attractive for you to repent to make the suffering go away.

Do you agree with Job's "friends", then? IIRC, God called them morons for teaching such evil things.

I believe people tend to believe the things they want to believe even if they are incorrect. God is the final word on what to believe. Just ask me. I have God in me.

So thought Job's "friends".

I do not believe this is an either/or. Islam is correct but does not work very well. Christianity is correct and can work quite well.

How so?

One may be killed walking across the street but worrying about it does no good. Churches do not discriminate per se but have the option to not allow sinful behavior into the sanctuary.

If everyone is a sinner, all churches would then be empty, yes?

I believe bisexuality is a sin.

Interestingly enough, while men can't lie with men like a woman (which is anatomically impossible, actually), God said nothing of lesbians, so ...

 

[Muffled]

At what point was mental illness his fault?


Do you agree with Job's "friends", then? IIRC, God called them morons for teaching such evil things.


So thought Job's "friends".


How so?


If everyone is a sinner, all churches would then be empty, yes?


Interestingly enough, while men can't lie with men like a woman (which is anatomically impossible, actually), God said nothing of lesbians, so ...

I believe I never said that it was but I wouldn't rule it out as punishment for things done in a previous life.

I believe I should thank you for the back handed compliment. Suffering is not always caused by God but it certainly can be. I have seen it happen. Certainly there is enough evil in this world that likes to produce suffering.

I believe it depends on the severity. I am sure that if a person entered the church and set an idol on the altar he and the idol would be escorted out of the church. However if a person gossips (a fairly common sin in churches) then the Pastor would probably just counsel the person.

I suppose one could speak of the severity of the sin but I believe it is still sin.

Christianity has the Paraclete and Islam does not.

 

[jonathan180iq]

I feel stuck between Christianity, Atheism, and Islam, and I'm not sure which is right. What can I do?

Ask yourself what you actually believe. Admit to yourself when you don't believe something. And question why you assume that someone else has the right answer for you.

You're not going to be able to figure any of this stuff out until you have decided internally what it is that you actually feel and believe about all of this... Priests and Immans and people on the internet don't know you better than you do. Figure out who you are, and then worry about the rest.

 

[The Emperor of Mankind]

Ask yourself what you actually believe. Admit to yourself when you don't believe something. And question why you assume that someone else has the right answer for you.

You're not going to be able to figure any of this stuff out until you have decided internally what it is that you actually feel and believe about all of this... Priests and Immans and people on the internet don't know you better than you do. Figure out who you are, and then worry about the rest.

Cannot like this more than once. That makes me sad.

 

[vaguelyhumanoid]

I believe God loves you. That is why He requires you to repent your sin. Refusal to repent means you are rejecting His love and accepting your judgement.

I believe God will do this to make it more attractive for you to repent to make the suffering go away.

I believe He does not want that but I believe He will send you there for a long time if you do not repent.

I believe people tend to believe the things they want to believe even if they are incorrect. God is the final word on what to believe. Just ask me. I have God in me.

I do not believe this is an either/or. Islam is correct but does not work very well. Christianity is correct and can work quite well.

I believe there is little chance of this if you are willing to listen to God. If you prefer your own thinking then you could be delusional.

I believe this is possible since there is always a war between what we would like and what is right.

I believe you need not worry because it is not so.

One may be killed walking across the street but worrying about it does no good. Churches do not discriminate per se but have the option to not allow sinful behavior into the sanctuary.

I believe bisexuality is a sin.

Please do not exacerbate his illness. I don't think you understand depression or OCD at all if you think statements like many of the ones you made here are a good idea.

 

[Muffled]

Please do not exacerbate his illness. I don't think you understand depression or OCD at all if you think statements like many of the ones you made here are a good idea.

I believe it is difficult to be depressed if one is joyful. It isn't depressing because there are no solutions but it is depressing because the person does not want the solution. For instance it would be impossible for me to get depressed over drinking too much because I don't drink too much.

 

[Kelly of the Phoenix]

JeremK,
I don't know if you've been on since the OP much, but there are those who think of you, whether we suffer from depression like you or not. I hope you are feeling better.

 

[vaguelyhumanoid]

I believe it is difficult to be depressed if one is joyful. It isn't depressing because there are no solutions but it is depressing because the person does not want the solution. For instance it would be impossible for me to get depressed over drinking too much because I don't drink too much.

You're a quack. The things you are saying about mental illness are obnoxious at best and psychologically dangerous at worst.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

I believe it is difficult to be depressed if one is joyful. It isn't depressing because there are no solutions but it is depressing because the person does not want the solution. For instance it would be impossible for me to get depressed over drinking too much because I don't drink too much.

That's not how depression works. Someone suffering from clinic depression cannot just "snap out of it," "will it away," or become immune from it by being joyful (which can be extremely difficult to achieve while depressed). Generally, people with clinical depression do not get depressed over things like drinking too much, although the depression can be bad enough to drive them to drinking (or abuse other drugs), which exacerbates the problem and makes depression worse. Typically there are things like physical and/or psychological abuse as a child, genetic predispositions, or a number of other disorders that make it more likely someone will have clinical depression. And it can't just be prayed away, as no matter your approach life style changes, usually in several areas, are needed to make progress. Therapy and drugs can help, but they can't fix it unless the person suffering from it makes the effort to help themselves (which can be extremely difficult when you are experiencing something like hypersomnia and don't even feel like moving a muscle because your depression is so bad). And considering JeremK has started a thread stating he feels traumatized by his religious experiences, and judging by this thread, religion may not improve his situation, but rather it may make it worse. It's generally not a good idea to have someone who has been traumatized to confront such things until they are ready to do so.

 

[The Emperor of Mankind]

I believe God loves you. That is why He requires you to repent your sin. Refusal to repent means you are rejecting His love and accepting your judgement.

I believe God will do this to make it more attractive for you to repent to make the suffering go away.

I believe He does not want that but I believe He will send you there for a long time if you do not repent.

I believe people tend to believe the things they want to believe even if they are incorrect. God is the final word on what to believe. Just ask me. I have God in me.

I do not believe this is an either/or. Islam is correct but does not work very well. Christianity is correct and can work quite well.

I believe there is little chance of this if you are willing to listen to God. If you prefer your own thinking then you could be delusional.

I believe this is possible since there is always a war between what we would like and what is right.

I believe you need not worry because it is not so.

One may be killed walking across the street but worrying about it does no good. Churches do not discriminate per se but have the option to not allow sinful behavior into the sanctuary.

I believe bisexuality is a sin.

Picking a person's most vulnerable moment to try and convert them. Truly classy. And you have the nerve to condemn @JeremK for who he is while you're doing it. You come across as quite heartless.

 

[Desert Snake]

Picking a person's most vulnerable moment to try and convert them. Truly classy. And you have the nerve to condemn @JeremK for who he is while you're doing it. You come across as quite heartless.

And your an angel? hahahaha

 

[The Emperor of Mankind]

And your an angel? hahahaha

No, I'm not. What's your point?

 

[Desert Snake]

No, I'm not. What's your point?

What's yours?

 

[The Emperor of Mankind]

What's yours?

... not really sure what reversing my question without answering it achieves. It's not clever. Either way, I'm not going to feed you any further. Bye bye.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

What's yours?

Probably along the lines of how it takes a vulture to show god to someone who is in a very low mood as a solution that won't help, and a brute to kick them while they're at it.

 

[Desert Snake]

Probably along the lines of how it takes a vulture to show god to someone who is in a very low mood as a solution that won't help, and a brute to kick them while they're at it.

If that is true, then the OP should not have mentioned ''Christianity'', or probably Islam either. Ie it seems that neither, being theistic, would be welcome in the dialogue.

So it's hardly anyone's fault for bringing up G-d in a thread that references deific religious ideas.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

So it's hardly anyone's fault for bringing up G-d in a thread that references deific religious ideas.

When the person who makes the OP also makes a thread stating they feel traumatized by previous religious experiences, it is someone's fault for bringing it up.