Ex-Clergy realizing there is no god

[Anonymous]

I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Clergy are fallible human beings, just like the rest of them. And yet Satan targets them all the more just b/c he knows it will be a huge "get" if he can get a pastor to fall away from his flock. That is why we all need to pray for our clergy. They certainly need our prayers, just as much as we need theirs.

And you know this how? Or perhaps this is simply a strongly held belief that requires no background knowledge or evidence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

Well, unfortunately no one will realize anything after they die since their consciousness will be just as it was in the millenia before they were born - not extant. Which means no one will be able to say to anyone else, "I told you there was no god/afterlife."

This is actually why I don't care whether people are believers or not. It just doesn't matter in the end. If it makes people feel happier to believe in an afterlife, then more power to them.

Feeling better is OK, telling others they have to be believers in order to avoid an eternity in hell is not OK. Unfortunately, that's what a lot of religions do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

And you, sir/madam, are a indiscriminate name caller.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

Thank you for your kind response. I tend to type as I think, and sometimes it comes out very rambley. I can only speak from my own life experiences. I'm sure other clergy members would have different experiences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

And you, sir/madam, are a indiscriminate name caller.

+1

Why the hostility?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

Thank you for your kind response. I tend to type as I think, and sometimes it comes out very rambley. I can only speak from my own life experiences. I'm sure other clergy members would have different experiences.

Not particularly kind, when you consider that as one person was being complimented, others were being demeaned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

Only before you die. After you die, it's too late, unless you're Catholic and a priest is nearby to give last rites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

Only before you die. After you die, it's too late, unless you're Catholic and a priest is nearby to give last rites.

Do you have proof?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

He did. He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for your sins. All you need do is put your trust in Jesus for forgiveness and you're good to go. Why is that so hard to accept? We all know we're sinners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

He did. He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for your sins. All you need do is put your trust in Jesus for forgiveness and you're good to go. Why is that so hard to accept? We all know we're sinners.

Do you have proof?

No, of course not. It's a belief, just like the belief that that Satan is especially interested in tricking clergy or that God loves and protects you or that only Catholics in a state of grace can go to heaven. Not even all Catholics believe that because they can't imagine their good Christian, but non-Catholic friends missing out on heaven. And we don't all believe we're all sinners. Not even all religious people believe that.

People have all kinds of different religious beliefs - no telling which ones are true or not, but it doesn't matter to the person who fervently holds the belief.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And when they die, they'll realize they were wrong about that.

I thought God forgave all.

He did. He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for your sins. All you need do is put your trust in Jesus for forgiveness and you're good to go. Why is that so hard to accept? We all know we're sinners.

Do you have proof?

No, of course not. It's a belief, just like the belief that that Satan is especially interested in tricking clergy or that God loves and protects you or that only Catholics in a state of grace can go to heaven. Not even all Catholics believe that because they can't imagine their good Christian, but non-Catholic friends missing out on heaven. And we don't all believe we're all sinners. Not even all religious people believe that.

People have all kinds of different religious beliefs - no telling which ones are true or not, but it doesn't matter to the person who fervently holds the belief.

We don't all believe we're sinners, but we all know it. Many don't like to face up to it. This is the real reason people reject God.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm clergy, an interfaith Christian minister. I do not agree with the PP's opinion that Satan is "targeting me". I don't believe in a being called Satan at all. It's ridiculous to assume, even if I believed in an evil being, that he would target me over anyone else. You don't get superpowers in seminary. There is no magic associated with being ordained. I'm just a very ordinary person who happens to feel called to ministry. The "devil" has no reason to target me over anyone else.

I think there are many things that could cause a minister to lose faith and decide that there is no god. Unless we spend our entire careers in a church, we are exposed to some really ugly stuff. I've worked in churches but most of my work has been in prison ministry and in Hospice. It's hard to see that stuff day in and day out and not feel conflicted. I have a close friend who works with the homeless population. He has seen child prostitution, sex slavery, drug use, violence, .... everything. We also talk to people who are experiencing crisis' of faith almost every day. And their reasons are often very valid.

Some ministers become atheist. Some leave the faith and then later return. Some decide they are called to a different spiritual path. Some remain where they are and work through their feelings. What we all have in common is a very human response to our experience with the concept of a God. Not all of us are on the same path. I believe regardless of detour, we all get to the same place. To suggest that clergy are somehow special in their spirituality does a disservice to everyone. I am trained to lead a church. I am trained to provide spiritual counseling. I am trained to work with the dying and their families. Those are things I learned in school. I feel called to be of service to others. I feel called to be of service to God. I feel called to ministry. Those are things that I feel. None of that makes me spiritually better or worse than any other human. I just happened to work in ministry.

Faith is highly personal. I can't prove to anyone the existence of God. I know that my life experience has left me certain that a loving God not only exists, but is a part of me. Just as I am a part of him/her. In my quiet time of meditation and prayer, God is as real to me as my own hands. There is no doubt in my mind at all.

I was about to post something like this after shaking my head at the crazy fundie Christians and the selectively-choosing-articles-to-bolster-his-confirmation-bias militant atheist. You, sir/ma'am, are a rare voice of reason, moderation and true spirituality on the Internet.

And you, sir/madam, are a indiscriminate name caller.

+1

Why the hostility?

Why the sensitivity? You guys insult Christians in much worse ways on an hourly basis. And whereas belief is hard to prove, PP's point about OP's confirmation bias is objectively true. Guess you can dish it out but you can't take it....