Hello all,
I’ve visited this forum very often for the past years but never really dared to join in as I never thought I had much to offer to the majority of its members. Although I am technically a Christian apostate, I’ve never even gone remotely trough what many in this forum have.
I live in a majority Catholic country that underwent a fascist dictatorship for decades following a bloody civil war. When the dictator died many young people (my parents’ generation) where so fed up with both the fascist and religious doctrine, that the broke up with everything that meant strict rules, authoritarianism, etc. I grew up during the transition time with a feeling of insecurity, like you had to be careful with what you said and who you talked to (I was 7 years old when there was a failed coup), especially with the so called civil guard (a branch of the army).
My grandparents were very religious and because of their pushing I got baptised at three months old, against my parents’ wishes. However, my parents never talked to me about god o religion. And so, my grandmother decided that it was her duty to bring me to god, and at the age of 6 she took me to mass a couple of times. I remember hating it. And then she taught me how to do the night prayers (kneel down by the bed, put the palms of the hands together and ask god to protect your loved ones). I couldn’t do it more than once, because I didn’t believe there was anyone listening.
Some years later, when it was time to take the communion, I decided I wouldn’t go through. I didn’t even know what an agnostic was; I would learn both the word and its meaning some years later.
I knew about Islam because it is part of the history of my country, but always saw it as another religion. It wasn’t until 9/11 and hearing the perpetrators quote verses of the Koran as an excuse to attack other people, that I became interested in it and decided to learn more about it. At that time, the only information available was far right extremists, both muslims and non- muslims (cough-BNP, cough-Anjem Choudary) and that didn’t help at all. Nor did the following terrorist attacks in Europe and other places.
Fortunatelly I came across other people, like Maryam Namazie, Maajid Nawaz and other memebers of the Quilliam Foundation, Irshad Manji, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Nazir Afzal, just to name a few. Although I don’t agree 100% with all that they say, I am confident that there are people out there calling it like it is and confronting the islamist spiel.
Yeah, I think I might have written too much...
Topic: New here