Firstly...read this, then come back here. (If you went there and thought 'this is too long!!' here is a summary :- Good people in the Catholic church should boycott the Popes visit to the UK because he was directly involved in the cover up of child rape, and he lists some individual cases to show this fact.)
I am an atheist. I have been for a long time. My reasons are many and varied but just to be clear about it, because I have often found myself correcting this, I did not become an atheist out of laziness. My atheism was a definite, clear and deliberate decision and act. Through reading, researching, thinking and learning, I came to realize that the situation that makes most sense to me is that there is no God. It wasn't just a laziness thing or through apathy that I just fell out with God and religion. I sincerely believe, from looking at it in many ways, there cannot be a God.
But I am in a minority. I am aware of that. People have many different reasons for believing in God. From my experiences I think the most common reason is that they were raised that way. The second most common reason is they like the comfort of it. These are observations, not any sort of scientific study or survey and of course are probably inaccurate. But if a person feels they are improved by religion, so be it. I of course believe these good people are good anyway and religion had nothing to do with it, but that is another blog altogether. But what is the point of religion if there is no good from it? (And I don't count simply spreading 'the word' as doing good!)
About a month or two ago I left the Catholic Church. I didn't know you could do this but a friend of mine told me about a site that showed you what to do. I was delighted and I used the information on Count Me Out to do it. There were varied reactions. Some people were shocked, some surprised, some thought I was petty and some were not surprised at all.
People wondered why I did it. Most people know I am an atheist. So why actually leave the church. Isn't it being a bit spiteful or controversial just for the sake of it? Well no. And if you read that article at the start before getting to here you now know why I did it and why I didn't want my name linked with the Catholic Church.
That horrible and disgusting man who calls himself The Pope is not a spiritual leader. He is not a moral guide. He is a bureaucrat more interested in keeping the business and image of the church intact than caring for the children who suffered while under their supposed protection. I do not want my name listed as being part of his church.
Next to my name on the baptismal registrar of my local church is says 'defected'. And I am proud.
