Have you lost any relationships with friends/family over religion?

[Lightning Count]

A good friend of my cousin got thrown out of her house because she became atheist in her late teens, her mother is really deep into Christianity, she quotes passages from the bible in everyday discussion and attends church regularly.

She also got abused in her early teens before this. She told her daughter she was going to hell when she found out her daughter was dating another girl at her high school because it goes against her conservative religious beliefs.

Her mother views her sexuality like a disease and became obsessed with conversion therapy, which is pretty vile, she even mentioned going abroad to have her daughter treate, because conversion therapy is illegal here (rightfully so). Eventually after years of bitter arguing daughter cut the mother off as she was sick of the treatment she was receiving, whenever they talked about it the mother would refuse to acknowledge any girlfriend her daughter had, referring them as friends rather than being in a relationship and was constantly trying to break them up.

Anyone else have any similar experiences?

 

[Video Games Are Dumb]

She also got abused in her early teens before this.

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Her mother views her sexuality like a disease

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No pun intended but JESUS CHRIST that doesn't sound like a falling out over religion. That's just abuse, plain and simple.

 

[jml]

Definitely nothing on the level of the OP. My grandma was disappointed and thought less of me after learning I was an atheist and not a Catholic but it wasn't something that bothered me that much.

 

[WeAreStarStuff]

Yes; the most recent I can think of happened about three years ago. I'm an atheist, and I used to be very good friends with this woman that is very much Christian. When we were in our - early/mid 20s (I'm 36 now) we used to party a lot, smoke weed, drink, and just hang out and have good times with a group of friends. As we got older and moved to different states we lost touch besides the occasional text message or email. As we aged she also became more religious and she knew my stance, and yet about three years ago she sent me an email trying to get me to watch a bunch of Creationist videos. Out of respect I tried to get through the first one but could only last about 5 minutes before I gave up. I sent her an email in which I did not hold back my feelings, and that was the last I ever heard from her. Makes me sad to think about now.

I am also the 'rare black atheist' and so no one in my family agrees with my views, but that doesn't bother me.

 

[dark_prinny]

No, I don't care about other people's beliefs as long as they respect mines. Let alone my family.

 

[Torpedo Vegas]

No, none of my family has ever been church people

 

[Scarlet Spider]

No, none of them are hardcore Christians. They stopped going to Church several years ago too.

 

[PoppaBK]

I'm sure it has prevented some friendships from becoming deeper, but other than that, not really.

 

[Transistor]

I was dating a girl who decided to stop seeing me when she found out I was an atheist. Other than that, I've been lucky in that regard.

 

[Deleted member 179]

A few, my ex and her fam were catholics when they wanted to be which included her wanting a big expensive church wedding that I wasn't down with. One of the many wedges there!

My best friend and his wife are avid Christians, never push it on me though. I've hung out with their friends from church before and they're all really cool. I wish I saw them more often but the only way to do that would be to join which I'm not down to do strictly to make friends.

 

[CanUKlehead]

Not yet. But feeling lucky I never made close friends with extremist religious people and extremist atheists. One of my best friends is religious but she doesn't try to evangelize. And my parents are too, but even my dad makes jokes about me being godless (while praying for me). If anything, I've found fellow atheists more intolerant, ironically lol

Politics though, yes, I've dropped and been dropped for that.

 

[shnurgleton]

No. My family is religious and my friends if religious are almost all progressive Christians. We're a pretty welcoming bunch.

 

[Strangelove_77]

That lady doesn't sound like a christian to me. Im not religious but Im not a fan of twisting religion into something hateful when it doesn't have to be. My mom goes to church twice a week and talks to me about god and respects that its not my thing. Even the people Ive met through her are good people who don't discriminate.

Anyways, this lady has mental problems that have nothing to do with Christianity. She's just using it to excuse her hate.

 

[Video Games Are Dumb]

Politics though, yes, I've dropped and been dropped for that.

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Same. I just can't be around the horseshit. It's packaged racism, homophobia, hatred of the poor, wrapped up in polite language.

 

[The Albatross]

Nah, not really. Most people in my life, whether they're religious, non-religious or atheists, or somewhere in between, aren't really fundamentalist in that way where they can't compartmentalize whatever that belief system is. I know some pretty religious Christians and they're all mostly focused on the social justice, "love your neighbor" side of Christianity, less so on the fire and brimstone side.

 

[Van Bur3n]

My mother has fully accepted that she is going to hell as punishment for not teaching me to be a Christian.

 

[Lightning Count]

That lady doesn't sound like a christian to me. Im not religious but Im not a fan of twisting religion into something hateful when it doesn't have to be. My mom goes to church twice a week and talks to me about god and respects that its not my thing. Even the people Ive met through her are good people who don't discriminate.

Anyways, this lady has mental problems that have nothing to do with Christianity. She's just using it to excuse her hate.

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I agree, she is just using religion as a basis for her hatred and intolerance, hiding being it as justification.

 

[joecanada]

My mother has fully accepted that she is going to hell as punishment for not teaching me to be a Christian.

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At least you'll be together!
My mom has toned down alot over the years and has obviously become disenfranchised with organized religion and also hates Republican b.s. religion so I hope she's doing good with her own spirituality I don't think all that other crap is useful if you're into spirituality

 

[Red Liquorice]

I find it absolutely baffling that a person can be so warped as to put their religion before their own child. Blows. my. mind. From disowning a child to "honour" killings, that is some disgustingly fucked up sense of logic you have there.

 

[Wackamole]

Nope. But i don't have religious parents or friends.
I do have religious family members but they are fine.

 

[Camwi]

Fortunately, no. My sister asked me if I was a atheist one day, and I said I was. It was never brought up again after that, but now I wish I had asked more about her thoughts on it, since I know a lot of churches try to demonize atheists as "devil worshippers".

That lady doesn't sound like a christian to me. Im not religious but Im not a fan of twisting religion into something hateful when it doesn't have to be. My mom goes to church twice a week and talks to me about god and respects that its not my thing. Even the people Ive met through her are good people who don't discriminate.

Anyways, this lady has mental problems that have nothing to do with Christianity. She's just using it to excuse her hate.

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No true Scotsman fallacy.

 

[Cess007]

No.

I am an atheist, but I was lucky that my family, while religious always judged me on my merits alone and never seemed to care about that. I even have a lot of religious friend and fortunately, it has never been an issue for them or me.

 

[Svadhyaya]

No. My family is religious and my friends if religious are almost all progressive Christians. We're a pretty welcoming bunch.

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That's not a thing.

 

[El_TigroX]

There was a period of time where I was the outlier in my family - and I experienced some pain as a result.

They weren't weekly church-going people, but there was a culture of Catholicism in our house from my parents upbringing. I did a slow roll on them... questioning in my late teens... went to Catholic college and so in a lot of ways had a deeper understanding than some of my family.

At some point, I announced I wasn't going to Christmas Mass and it got me a TON of flack and judgment... a few years later, my parents started having discussions with me about it, and they both came to a realization that they probably weren't Catholic. My mother is more of a Deist... and I was able to slowly show her that. Her Catholic upbringing had her initially reject it, but when we really got down to what she believed, I had to let her know she wasn't Catholic, and that was ok.

My dad rejecting the Church after the sex scandals in Philadelphia - it was a bridge too far for him. He is more spiritual than anything - but quietly so. I suspect he's fearful more than anything to be completely honest.

My sisters have fully shifted, and are non-religious, but probably wouldn't classify as atheist.

It was a PROCESS of about 24 years in my family... and a LOT of arguments, but respectfully.

 

[Z-Beat]

No but you wouldn't believe how many I lost over The Great Pumpkin

 

[Tawpgun]

My family is very catholic and I am very not. I think they got used to it over time of me constantly complaining about it. Thankfully they don't seem to care much anymore. They even joke about "whens the last time you went to church" lol

I have a friend who basically had to run away from home because she was in a religious cult and her family disowned her.

 

[Leonadar]

I've cut off a super religious aunt for comparing same-sex marriage to pedophilia.

 

[Deleted member 35987]

Yes. I was in a 9 year relationship with a Palestinian woman. She was pretty religious at first but socially liberal. She became less interested in Islam as she got older and was vehemently against the sexism in her family. It was pretty bad. She had curfews, crazy social restrictions and her mom used bully her that no male suitor would want her. In fact I still hate her mom to this day, evil woman. For the last few years of our relationship we tried to make plans so that she could live a independent life (regardless of me). We had to hide our relationship for all of those 9 years. She started working pretty good jobs, got a masters in design. She is an extremely intelligent person. I thought we would be with each other forever, we were always on the same page. even her youngest brother knew about us and supported it. It really felt like we were on the verge of things working out, but about 2 years ago she told me that she couldn't betray her family and had decided to give in to the family lifestyle. she decided she couldn't be with me. I know she loved me because the pain coming from her voice was unlike anything I've ever heard. I almost ended up dying that year.

anyway, I think about her everyday and I still love her dearly. I hope she is living a very beautiful life

EDIT:
The issue was that I'm half white and half Indian and come from a Protestant background (not religious though). She was only allowed to associate with other Palestinians and marry a man from Beit Hanina or the surrounding area

 

[shnurgleton]

That's not a thing.

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Yes, it is. Don't be baselessly antagonistic

 

[Grimmjow]

A cousin of mine unfriended me on Facebook after we got into an argument over a article about some 14 y/o girl being escorted off the church stage after she confessed that she is lesbian.

My cousin, a mormon, said that there was "a time/place for such things and church was neither of those". I got pissed and said some not nice things about religion and it's followers. Haven't spoken to her in person or online is about 5 years.

 

[Pau]

My parents forced me to get Confirmed, but I think it was mostly so that I could go to the same Catholic high school as my sister. (Which I dropped out of after one semester.) My mom threatened to kick me out if I didn't do that, but who knows if she would have actually have done it.

Otherwise, my mom just would get angry if I told anyone I was atheist. The more religious members of my family mostly live in another country so I barely see them. I think they forget, or my mom tells them I believe again.

I lost touch with almost every friend in elementary and middle school, I think in part because of religion. Towards the end of it I was pretty systemically shunned. It wasn't the only reason, but it didn't help that I was the weird atheist who believed in things like LGBT rights, abortion rights, etc.

 

[BasilZero]

All my family is religious including myself so had no issues - 99% of my family is Syrian Jacobite Orthodox Christian and 1% is Catholic.

Have friends of all religious views and no views - no issues with any of them simply because I have a rule of discussion and I usually expand this online too in terms of debate

I don't debate politics, money or religion nor do I care to do so in all aspects - because in the grand scheme of life/things, it's irrelevant to debate about views - you aren't gonna change the person and they sure as hell won't be changing you.

If it's a simple question like what do you do for work or do you eat beef/pork (two common questions I get asked) - I just give a simple answer and don't elaborate cause there's no need to.

(Incase if you are wondering how I respond - I work in IT and I eat both beef/pork)

I don't talk politics at all to anyone including family, friends or otherwise because I don't see a point in discussing these type of topics in these type of social circles in the first place.

 

[Mauricio_Magus]

I don't think so, and I am super open and vocal about my atheism.

Almost everyone I know is Catholic btw.

 

[kamineko]

I'm an Episcopalian and have parted ways with a few evangelical friends. Politics/religion overlap

 

[PersonAndStuff]

I would say this is more prejudice than religion.

We went to a bar, at the request of my friend Kevin who is religious. The bar had an N64 and smash Bros. Unknown to Kevin, it was drag show night. We stayed and played Smash for a bit. When the drag show started, we were in the back and Kevin was making vaguely shitty jokes. First performer/MC started out dancing a bit and accepting tips from the audience. Two of my friends moved forward and I joined them after a minute or two. Unbeknownst to us, behind our back, Kevin had stacked up the chairs and started walking home, ten miles in light rain. 6 miles in pitch black country roads. We texted him to stay by the car if he didn't want to watch the show. But he refused. After the show ended, we went and picked his ass up a mile away.
He didn't apologize and he used homophobic language after I got out of the car.

 

[It’s Time To Go]

My Nan never spoke to me for like 6 years before she died because I decided I didn't believe in god as a teenager. Which is funny now since I kinda believe or I'm not sure anyway.

 

[Vitet]

No one in my group of family and friends is even remotely religious. Maybe my grandparents but they are all gone.

 

[Deleted member 21709]

We should create a thread like this but for GAAS.

 

[Pilgrimzero]

My mom almost stopped talking to me when I converted to Catholicism. It was doubly weird because we have other Catholics in the extended family.

 

[Deleted member 16657]

I see this in my future, I've been pretending to be Muslim for years now. As I get older I wonder how things will change with my family.

Also I would happily believe if I could but I can't which is the annoying part. It would be a lot easier to do all the religious stuff if I actually believed it

 

[Neece]

Nobody knows yet so, no.

 

[meowdi gras]

My fundie zealot parents rejected me when I came out to them as trans six years ago at age 37. Been no contact since.

 

[scottbeowulf]

I've had a few friends over the years that I just stopped hanging out with because they were so religious. But nothing like what OP posted. It was more just growing into different people.

 

[Tremagus]

As a former Jehovah's Witness, yes. My entire family who is still a membwr has stopped talking to me, meaning my mom, my step dad, lots of step Brothers, and nearly every friend and close friend I had and knew since I was a child has stopped talking to me and have actively shunned and gone out of their way to block me on social media accounts, delete me from photos, and talk bad about me.

I only now have my blood sister and my biological dad, however, he and I have only met a few times whereas my mom and I were basically best friends.

Religion truly does fuck up families.

 

[Zaphod]

Not yet, but that's only because my mother and step-dad have absolutely no idea what I think about politics and religion. They've moved so far off from the normal people I knew 25 years ago. Like armageddon is coming soon to wipe out all muslims and liberals thanks to their god king Trump. When I spend time with them I just nod and ignore it, no point in arguing about it at this point.

At least my dad is cool and doesn't care that much about those things. I hang out with him more now that I did growing up.

I feel super lucky compared to those that have had to face total abandonment for being who they are, like too many LGBT children.

 

[Lexad]

I and my family are Christian and we struggled for a bit when my uncle converted to Judaism. He married a Jewish woman. It was odd at first but we still loved him and his wife. It just led to some awkward conversations in the future, especially around Christmas and whether they wanted to be present or not. But otherwise that was probably the only thing in my family and thank goodness didn't lead to an excommunication.

 

[Tom Penny]

My mom was going to disown my brother because his girlfriend wasn't catholic..

 

[Volimar]

Definitely harmed a few relationships, but I didn't lose any completely. We just don't talk about religion.

 

[Papa Satanás]

Nah. My family is mostly non-religious or casual Catholics. I still haven't told them I'm a member of The Satanic Temple, but doubt they'd care much anyway.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

One of the main reasons I broke up with my ex was because we couldn't agree on religion. I'm normally pretty chill about that stuff but she would always bring it up and make fun of me for it and even provoke me with threatening to study Satanism.

I'm Catholic and she was... I'm not sure, not Catholic though