I believe ...
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that people should think for themselves. If you need some book or some priest to tell you that you're living correctly or incorrectly, then you're not thinking for yourself.
My most powerful moment of belief was ...
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I've never had a true moment of belief in God or any other deity. When I was young, I was always merely unsure about the existence. Those who attempted to convert me or explain their religion to me only served to further my conviction that they are being disillusioned.
My greatest moment of doubt was ...
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My change from being unsure to being sure that there was no God, heaven, or hell most likely stemmed from my consistent feeling of guilt that I wasn't "doing enough". I would make my own little 'covenants' with God that if he kept me out of trouble, I would never do ________ again. Of course, this never worked, and I realized that some'one' that was supposed to be so inherently good and benevolant would not be so selfish or vain in his need for worship and praise.
The biggest misconception about my faith/belief system is ...
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The biggest question I hear is: "how do you account for morality without God?". This question absolutely disgusts me. It demonstrates ignorance and misinterpretation. In fact, when someone asks me this, I usually respond with, "Do you even know what morality IS?" And generally, they do not. Morality is the effort to guide one's conduct by REASON, while paying respect to those affected by each decision or judgement. Morality is not so simple that any one being can account for all of it at once. People think that Atheists are horrible, horrible people because they have nothing to motivate them to do good or to lead good lives. I think that integrity and a desire to see society succeed should drive people, not fear of eternal damnation.
The tenet/practice/teaching I appreciate most about my faith is ...
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Atheism does not have teachings or doctrines to adhere to because it is not a religion. Atheist is simply a label given to someone who does not believe in God or any other deity. However, I do believe in the teachings of various philosophers, such as Immanuel Kant, John Stuart Mill, and James Rachels; who advocated various ways of living independent of the poisons of religion.
As a child I believed ...
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Many would say that I am still a child; I'm only nineteen. When I was five, my parents divorced. My father is an extreme Baptist, and after her divorce, my mother became a believer in Karma, but only in the sense that 'what goes around, comes around'. When they were married, my father was extremely oppressive of my mother, forcing her to attend church. I lived with my mother when I was younger, but when I visited my father he always dragged me to church with him. He's an extreme hippocrite, and his religion gives him an excuse for his 'holier-than-thou' attitude.
