Shame on Christian Parenting

I just finished listening to one of my weekly podcasts, The Atheist Experience. This week's episode was about deconversion from Christianity to Atheism. This episode was great because it touched on some common misconceptions people have about atheists, why people believe, and why people become atheists. (Go check it out...episodes can be found in audio and video through their website)

Tracie Harris brought up the point that many people believe in their gods because of feelings they have. Emotional experiences are usually what lead people to become Christians. Some people will later look for evidence to back up their beliefs, but it usually is not the evidence that comes first.

This made me think a little more about the conversation my son had with his cousins this weekend. He sincerely wanted to know why they believe in god and all they could say is "I don't know." It's really not surprising because they never had a choice in the matter. Their parents were scared into religion by the "Left Behind" book series and started going to church.

In a conversation with my sister-in-law this past weekend, I was appalled by one of her comments. On Sunday, the kids were all running around playing and having a wonderful time with one another. In an attempt to see my kids' new bikes, her boys stepped off the curb into the street. She FREAKED out...they are 7 & 5, but you'd think they were toddlers the way she reacted. She called them over and proceeded to yell at them about not going into the street. Once she was finished, we decided to go into the backyard to play.

Then, she proceeded to brag to me about how easy it is to "shame" her oldest son. She said she loves it because he's so much easier to control than her youngest son. I'm not sure if the disgust I was feeling showed on my face, but I was speechless. Why would a 7 year old need to feel shame? She basically admitted to me that she enjoys humiliating her son because it makes him easy to control. I have never had to shame my kids, speaking to them rationally works much better.

But, this is the mindset of many Christians. Children who are controlled are viewed to be sweet kids while the kids who are out exploring and thinking for themselves are little devils. In a comment on my last post, Jessie said it reminded her of the movie Jesus Camp.....and I have to agree. These people must realize there is not truth to back up their claims because they feel they need to scare the shit out of kids to control them. In my eyes, this is emotional child abuse.

Think about this for a second: my 5 & 7 year old nephews told my son he would be burned by a god who loves him. This thought did not bother them! If they were not speaking in reference to Christianity, would this be tolerated?

Imagine a 5 year old telling his cousin that he would be brought before a firing squad consisting of grandma, grandpa, uncle and aunt if he didn't do what they wanted. This type of thinking is what leads people to do terrible things. My nephews are being desensitized to the worst kind of violence...and in America it's perfectly OK. DISGUSTING! I will be happy every time my kids are "little devils" because at least I will know they can think for themselves.