I am not ashamed of being an atheist nor am I proud. It is just who I am.
I have been an atheist since I was seventeen years old when I refused to confirm my baptism. I am not trying to be different, I simply do not believe in the existence of God.
I don’t mean any disrespect nor do I reject religious beliefs. My wife and our three children are practicing Catholic, say their graces before each meal, go to church. I respect their faith and they respect my beliefs and today we celebrate Easter.
Please do not be offended that I write on Easter Sunday but I thought it would be a good time to bring up the fact that some people believe in something different. As an atheist I believe in life, I believe that there isn’t anything after death. Our energy returns to the Cosmic Forces that rule the universe. These Forces are extremely strong to hold our universe together and affect us. I can use the example of a full moon affecting people’s mood or sleep. We are energy and energy is never lost but transferred.
I always welcome conversations about religion as long as people respect me as an atheist and refrain from trying to convert me to their faith. I already have my own and it isn’t linked to the devil (strong stigma).
To be an atheist and bipolar mean that I have two loads of stigmas attached to me. A classic double whammy. I will not go through the ones linked to bipolarity but I will give you some that come with atheism; we are creatures from the devil, we believe in nothing, we are indecent people because of our lack of faith in God, to stay away from us as bad things will happen to you, to name the most common ones.
All my life it has been an uphill battle as an atheist, work, marriage, baptisms.It is okay to look down and badmouth an atheist but we can’t defend ourselves, I would definitely not recommend doing so. I tried and it doesn’t work, to say the least. I don’t claim to be right, unlike all religions claim to be. I don’t have the arrogance to know what happens to you after you die and where you’re going to end up. Nobody ever came back to inform us on such matter.
Logically, if we have one God as each major religion pretends to, why do we have so many religions. I do hope that there is a God and that I am incorrect but I have not been able to believe in it.
Why do people hate and disrespect us some much? Making us all feel like we’re having two black wings attached to our backs. What have we done that is so bad? Not believing in God makes us evil.? As far as I know, nobody ever died in the name atheism.
I wish you all a happy Easter.
Peace and serenity
Lawrence
Being bipolar. 
Such courage to write this. My beliefs are in paganism (the broad term often used). I was once told my C-PTSD would go away if i went to church. I don’t judge people for how they believe or not. It’s what’s best for them. Proud of you for posting. 😊
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Thank you so much for your support.
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💜
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I’m not religious, but I’ve found it interesting reading blog posts by people who are. It seems like religion can be a source of strength and hope for people, but on a broader scale all too often it is used as an excuse for prejudice, bigotry, and hatred. In my little corner of Canada atheism is fairly common and so doesn’t have a lot of stigma attached to it, but I can see how that would be quite different in places like France.
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Thank you so much for your always meaningful comments and for taking the time to read my post It is not only in rural France The rest of the Latin part of Europe is the same if not worse
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Religion was created to stop us all going mad in my eyes. A belief system set in place to make our lives worthwhile. To make it seem as though we are all going back towards something as we go through life. So we do not just think that we live, and by the end of it all we look and around to see that we have achieved nothing. The only thing religion achieves is pain and suffering. All wars and conflicts have deep roots starting with religion. I have no problem with people’s belief systems in fact i was bought up in a catholic household. People have every right to believe what they like. I just do not buy it all……………….More trouble than its worth.
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Precisely my point my dear friend. Thanks for your comment.
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Lawrence, nobody should judge you for what you do or do not choose to believe. I can well understand those who feel the way you do.Your beliefs are your business.
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Thank you for taking the time to read my post and your comments. I agree with you, but people can refrain themselves from judging.
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