Former theists compared to never theists

[aitm]

ex-smokers v never smoked
ex-drinkers v never drank
ex-religious v never religious

I would suggest that certain behaviors and attitudes would be similar. Especially the obnoxious part.

[Hijiri Byakuren]

I was never a theist, but I did used to believe in Santa Claus. So I can kind of see where theists are coming from. I definitely have a harder time seeing the other side than former theists do. The trade-off is that while I still think religion is stupid, I tend to have more patience to discuss it than I've seen in most former theists.

[Hydra009]

All I can say with certainty is that ex-theists are more likely to ardent opponents of whatever religious beliefs they formerly had and more familiar with how those religions work because of their firsthand experience.

[stromboli]

When I left Mormonism I was ardently against it, really felt burned and angry towards it. After Christianity, not the same; just mostly disappointed in the whole thing. My attitude now is one of trying to be informative about aspects of religion on here and to others. I think ex theists are more inclined to wind up "hard" atheists in the end, but that's just my particular experience.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

I'm an ex-smoker, nearly 25 years without a coffin nail. I don't preach at people who smoke, but I don't let them smoke in my house or car either.

Well, not tobacco, anyway.  :-$  8-)

[Solitary]

I've always been an atheist since I was six years old, and all my friends were Catholic and used to say the dumbest things like, "Drink lemonade and your blood will turn to water," or other ridiculous things to scare me. They were really afraid of things that didn't even bother me. I now know from a group of atheist I belong to that the former theist are more hostile towards religion and more active in the movement. All social changes have involved being angry, so it makes sense. Solitary

[Colanth]

This I can agree with. I see all religions regardless of cultural background as being equally bizarre and lacking in logic.

Etc.

Aside from the poorly educated religious extended family part (I come from a well-educated non-religious background), +10.

[WitchSabrina]

All I can say with certainty is that ex-theists are more likely to ardent opponents of whatever religious beliefs they formerly had and more familiar with how those religions work because of their firsthand experience.

...because there's just nothing better than learning you've been lied to.  :shock:  
Granted sometimes people aren't lying on purpose - aka they *believe* what they're spouting.   But at the end of the day - a lie is a lie is a lie.  And being lied to can piss you off no matter how intelligent, educated, etc you are or.............  not.

[SGOS]

I don't believe I was lied to.  The people around me sincerely believed what they were telling me, and I think they had my best interests at heart.  But I'm very angry at the illogical stupidity of those that trained me.  I have this desire to scream at theists (of all kinds) and tell them how stupid they are.  That's pretty angry, and I'm amazed at the restraint of the atheist community.  I don't know if my hidden anger is a result of being a former Christian or not.  I think all religions are equally stupid.

And to be clear, I do not use the word 'stupid' lightly when talking about theism.  In this context, it is not a word I use to create an exaggerated sense of some occasional intellectual miscalculation that anyone can make, the kind we light heartedly refer to as a 'stupid mistake'.  I mean stupid, as in blatant self imposed stupidity, whether it be  based on willful arrogant pride of ignorance, or clinging to a morbid fear of demons, Hellfire, and creepy monsters under the bed at night.

Yet, I myself have been there, and I understand how easy it is to be stupid in an insane world of religion.  There really should be no need to slap the shit out of these people to wake them from their intellectual fog, but I often do feel like I'd like to scream at them.  I don't know if never theists don't feel that to the extent that I do or not.  Maybe they don't.

[ApostateLois]

I don't know the answer to this question, but I've wondered about it at times.  You would think Ex theists might be in a position to better understand the dynamics of an unsupported belief, since they had once been that way.  Not that this is helpful.  You could understand that dynamic like a psychological Stephen Hawking, but still be utterly unable to help others see the problems with unsupported belief.

People pretty much have to figure out, for themselves, that the things they believe in are mostly superstitions combined with man-made church doctrines. I do not know what it is that enables some people (like me) to leave their religion, and others to stick to it even with mounds of evidence against it. I know what it's like to be fervently religious, and what it's like to slowly give that up as my mind simply can't believe the lies anymore; but I can't convince others to do the same. All I can do is explain why I stopped believing, and leave them to their own lives. As long as they aren't hurting others or imposing their beliefs on everyone around them, I guess I don't care very much.