Questioning Young

(Via Matt)

So, I will start off on a funny note. When I was 7 and I was a fully indoctrinated christian, I read the bible cover to cover. I actually ended up stopping 3 book in. I was of course at Leviticus (Since then I have read it cover to cover for educational value). Specifically Leviticus 11:12.
I decided I liked squid better than I liked God. This is when I began to question religion. In my naivety I asked my Sunday school leader If I would go to hell because I like squid. Naturally, she had no idea what I was talking about. I showed her the verse and she said no, because Jesus died for me. To this day I wish the question I had asked was 'Why does God hate squid?'. I went on with my life with a little less trust in religion.

So now on to when I was a bit older and could make these serious decisions for myself. The setting now is Middle school biology. Of course here is where many people could be expected to turn atheist if they had any doubt in religion. I learned about evolution. In middle school (and high school) I was that scholarly type, always doing more research than was necessary.
So I went and read The Origin of the Species. This is when I really became an atheist (Though a closet case). I was at that time in a youth christian organization (YoungLife). I asked my leaders about evolution and how it pertained to religion. I wish I could remember their response, but I do remember it was snide. That really made me shy away from religion. Unfortunately, that also made me want to keep it a secret.

It stayed like that for awhile. I am 19 now. I am no longer a closet case after reading The God Delusion and learning about reasons not to keep it hidden. So one of my steps of course is to post here. I am a proud Atheist!