Think of the children, the poor diseased children.

[caustic 0_0]

No, don't talk of diseased children. Start your own thread for that. xD

This thread is about children though, but in general. They don't have to be diseased.
More specifically, children and raising them (especially in regards to religion and morality). Whether or not you plan to spawn, or even without taking your own beliefs into question, I'm curious about what some opinions are on the subject.
Some questions I was thinking of- What would you tell them? Do you wait until they ask about so and so going to 'church'? What'd your parents do with you? Any stories in general?
And so on.

One of my highschool teachers, the same teacher who felt religion was pretty much needed in order to have good morals, talked a bit about his kids at times. He and his wife kept them away from anything remotely violent or 'bad' on tv.
Another teacher was also very sheltered herself, and absolutely spoiled the hell out of her kids who were complete and utter brats. And kind of ironically, they were sheltered kids who threw a lot of violent fits to get their way.

I have two friends who were quite sheltered and in religious families. One is out on her own and doing well in college. The one who had more controlling parents is now living with her boyfriend, dropping out of college, growing/selling shrooms, and using various other drugs. Yet, another friend who has a very religious mother, alot of really bad family issues, but wasn't sheltered, ended up a little more stable. Granted, she does some pot and other things on occasion but she has a job and is thinking about at least community college or something else.

I don't know how trying to actively control how people 'turn out' works at all, or why people really expect it to. So many different factors come into play that I don't see how you can just be strict, or whatever solution you think of, and make everything end up perfect. o.x  

[Sanguvixen]

I know that there is a common problem when kids are raised in a sheltored strict religous environment. When they get out on thier own they cause problems for themselves because now with the power over thier own body and will....they don't know how to use it.

 

[Yami_Ichi]

I plan to let my children decide on what path they would like to take in life. Yes, I am an atheist... but if my children want to be christian, so be it.

I was raised in a home where Christianity was forced upon me like you would not imagine. I was sent to conferences, forced to go to church, and so on. I am still here, and I do not like what I am being treated as here. I am atheist, not some diseased person.

I will not force religion on my children. Religion is a thing of choice that YOU decide, not something someone else says for you. If they ask me, I will tell them. If they go to church, I will let them. But, you will not see me going; but I will not discourage them in anyway.

Yes, I know that they can tell people at the church that their mother is an athist and such, and the church can contact me all they would like... you will not see me there.

All it boils down to is how you want to raise children. Would you like to try and make them like you and follow in your footsteps? Or will you give them freedom?

 

[Dathu]

I'll probably avoid religious subjects at first, but once Pandora's Box is opened, I'll support whatever he/she/they decide. However, not without a long debate. Not so much to change their minds, but to see how much thought they've given this decision.  

[MinaTheRomanticNeko]

I will raise my children to be creative, independant, confident, smart, strong, blah blah, bascially all the stuff that I am. 3nodding You dont need a bible to tell you right from wrong. And that is exactly how I'm going to raise my children. My children will be great people without having to conform to a religion. However, if they do, I wont have a problem with it. A great part of me being an Atheist is being able to make my own moral decisions without feeling guilt or pressure. I'd like for my children to feel the same way.  

[Pistil]

For the longest time, the only time I went to church was when we were visiting my aunt. My family wasn't and isn't very religious, but I had a sheltered life. As have my siblings. None of us have ever smoked or done drugs. My brother makes good money. I'm attending University. My sister is top of the class and heading into high school. So my parents have done good. The biggest problem is my mom is highly over-protective.

THAT is the one thing I will make sure not to repeat.  

[Syrenka]

I think I just won't say anything to my child/ren about it until asked, in which case I'll just help them research a whole bunch of religions and let them choose. No pressure. I want my child/ren to be tolerant of other people in society, whether they be a different race, religion, sexuality, etc.

 

[iviary]

I'm curious what my sister's going to do with her children. Her first child is due in 8 days. She's Christian, and her husband is agnostic. I don't suppose he'll mind his child(ren) being raised Christian, but the topic of his faith will come up fairly quickly, as I doubt he'll accompany them to Church.

Honestly, I'll try to raise my children in a similar way to how my parents raised me. Certainly, there was Christianity, but my parents have never been big fans of organized religion. Church-going came and went, and was rarely a big part of my life. 2 of their 3 children have ended up agnostic (with atheist leanings in my case or fairly deist, in my brother's case), so religion wasn't exactly force-fed to us. I'll just cut out the church-going, unless I marry a Christian, or man of some faith, and he can take them to worship if he so desires. I would not marry a man with problems with my lack of faith, so our children would hopefully end up open-minded as well.  

[~Fashionably~Challanged~]

I plan on preventing them from to much brianwashing (AKA, church) untill they're old enough to understand that not everything there is truth, and it's pretty much just a bunch of stories. Then I will point out that religion was made to keep people from being afraid and to keep peopole from killing one another. I plan on being close, and allowing them to attempt indepenabce on occasion.  

[Sanguvixen]

Reading through the replies I would point this out. It would make sense to prohibit children from going to church until they are old enough and mature enough to resist the brain-washing that goes on there.

I have this concept of a Chain that explains it. See...children from an early age go to church, and they are brain-washed. Sorry...but that is the best term for it because a lot of brain-washing goes on behind closed doors.

Now...these kids grow into teenagers. Having been brain-washed many of them are unable to think for themselves or question wether or not they really beleive in the religion and the beleifs that go with it. My younger brother is an example of that.

Now...any attempt to reason with these brain-washed teenagers is usually in vien. Once these teens reach adulthood they go off and marry other theists. Then they have children. Thus another link in the chain is made.

The child gets sent to church and becomes brain-washed like thier parents were, and thus the cycle starts again laying the grounds for another link in the chain.

See...this is where I do not like people being religious. It doesn't work for a person to say "I believe in god because I do." or, "I go to church because my parents do"....that is circular reasoning and it is wrong.

If a person wants to follow a religion, or become athiest it should be a personal choice. Thus...to break the chain of brainwashed religious zombies, children should not be sent to church at an earlier age.

That is my opinion...I will never have children. If I did though, for the sake of the question I would keep them from going to church until they are able to reason on thier own, and stand up to people intent of brain-washing them.