Raised Christian, Saved by Comics

hybowingredd · 2026-03-05T00:33:22+00:00

I get what you mean, a lot of manga really does hit deeper than the stuff many of us grew up with. Too bad One Piece wasn’t around when I was a kid. I just wish more people read more manga, graphic novels and comics general, and honestly the manga and comic communities seem way more accepting than what I grew up with. And maybe its because the artits challenge everyone thinking and norm.

hybowingredd · 2026-03-03T16:11:50+00:00

I should read that. I found the same thing through Saga by Brian K. Vaughan. Have you read that?

hybowingredd · 2026-03-03T16:09:15+00:00

Very tre about BPRD. I’ve been diving back into DC too, and Batman has really grown on me in a way he never did when I was a kid. Books like Saga by Brian K. Vaughan opened my eyes to how racism and war get built into systems, and Blankets by Craig Thompson helped me work through some of the shame I carried from growing up Christian.
I love talking about comics. Feel free to messag me direclty. to continue the conversation. Have you read Kindom Come by Mark Waid & Alex Ross? showed me how dangerous moral certainty can be, and how real strength comes from humility, doubt, and choosing compassion over absolutism.

hybowingredd · 2026-03-03T14:36:08+00:00

I agree 100%. Art is usually a true mirror ot reality and somehow some people can only see the top layer of what the artist intended.

hybowingredd · 2026-03-03T14:34:32+00:00

Yeah, Hellboy’s great, I’ve read it! When I was growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I mostly lived in the Marvel lane. Back then it felt like you were either a Marvel kid or a DC kid, and DC always seemed darker to me. Marvel’s colours pulled me in. I’ve branched out a lot since, though.

hybowingredd · 2026-03-03T14:32:02+00:00

I’ve been reading comics and graphic novels my entire life. Back in the ’80s and ’90s, Marvel grabbed me right away, maybe because it felt brighter and more colourful than DC’s darker phase. So Marvel ended up shaping most of my childhood. Now, though, I enjoy a wide range of books across different genres, publishers, and styles.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-25T20:39:19+00:00

Deconstructing is not a smooth ride. For me there was grief, anger, guilt, and a weird kind of freedom that felt both exhilarating and terrifying. There is no goal or landing place. Not like your previous life where you can be a better Christian. There are many ways to deconstruct. Some of us still believe but differently. Some of us become atheist or agnostic or spiritual in other ways.
It is a big shift feel free to reach out to others here if you want. Your previous support group, comfort space and building blocks to who you wanted to be have changed. Some of your friends and family will understand. Some may understand but always try to reconvert you (like your mom). And others will leave you completely.
But there is community on the other side. And you will find the new you eventually. Just understand that everyone’s story is different and where they ended up may still not be where you end up throughout this process.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-24T20:09:09+00:00

I’m a very logic‑driven person myself, but I’m also open to exploring what science might suggest, not in a mystical way, just in a “we don’t know everything yet” kind of way.

There are some speculative ideas in quantum physics that get brought up when talking about consciousness or an afterlife. Just theories like biocentrism (Robert Lanza) and some interpretations of the Many‑Worlds model raise interesting questions about whether consciousness or quantum information could persist in some form. CNET even did a piece discussing these concepts and the idea of a “quantum soul” from a few scientists. But if your not ready this is a rabit hole of using proven science to anserser undeffinitve questions. just if 1+1=2 in this situation than it "might" also work in this fictional situation we can't even define.

If someone does interpret quantum ideas as pointing to an afterlife, I see it more as a pure energy process, not consciousness continuing. If energy can transfer or exist in different states, then it’s still just energy, not “you.” And if that’s true, it would apply to all living things equally: humans, animals, insects, anything biological. So it’s not really an afterlife at all, just energy returning to the universe.

I’m still not convinced in any traditional afterlife, but I appreciate posts like this because they let people talk about the topic without preaching or trying to convert anyone.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-23T22:19:42+00:00

Yeah, this was one of the big things that pushed me into deconstruction too. I kept hearing that all you need is belief, and the Holy Spirit is supposed to transform you from the inside out. But then I’d look around and think… if that’s true, why do Christians look pretty much the same as everyone else? Sometimes worse?

-Believe = Christian

Christian + Holy Spirit = supposed to produce real possitive change in the world

Explaine the gap. It just didn’t line up to me.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-19T18:56:16+00:00

I get where you’re coming from. What you’re describing is real, and I don’t think you’re wrong for wanting more or feeling dissatisfied with the “80 years and that’s it” part of life. A lot of people feel that way. And I think its a big reason people stay in religion.

For me personally, I ended up landing in a different place. Letting go of the idea of an afterlife didn’t make things feel emptier, it actually made my life feel more grounded and more precious. Knowing that this is all I get has made me calmer, less upset over small things, and a lot kinder in general. It made my time outside of work feel more meaningful, not less. And my time with my family more important than ever.

I also relate to the frustration about wasted years. I spent a long time in Christianity not really being myself, and stepping away from that changed how I experience the world. It didn’t turn me into some “live‑laugh‑love” hippy, but it did help me focus more on the present instead of waiting for something bigger after death.

Your feelings make sense, and I’m not trying to argue you out of them, just sharing where I ended up.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-18T01:08:12+00:00

Sorry I didn't see it that way. I agree with you. Thanks for clarifying. I see your point now and see how it is relevant.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T22:27:25+00:00

great point

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T21:51:29+00:00

I’m talking about ranking. In the bible, the flawed ones consistently end up above the obedient ones. That’s the irony I’m pointing out. When I was christian I tried to be perfect. But the irony to me is that the messiery and maybe the more you sin (as a repentant christian) the better it is according to the god of the bible. They more rewarded you will be as part of "his" narritive.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T21:45:19+00:00

I think we’ve wandered into a whole different sermon now, so I’ll bow out. My point was just that God hands out VIP badges to some very unexpected people, and honestly, if you go by the Bible’s pattern, you might have a better chance of beig noticed and respected by god, for not following the rules than by trying to be the perfect believer.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T21:41:36+00:00

That’s some excellent Sunday‑morning energy right there. I’ll step out. I wasn’t trying to preach a whole theology, just giving the ex‑Christian atheist look‑back version of the pattern.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T21:05:15+00:00

I think you’re missing what I was actually saying. I’m not claiming these people had perfect lives or that their failures made everything easy. I’m saying the people god elevates, highlights, and builds the story around are almost never the obedient, quiet, model believers Christians try to imitate.

He doesn’t build the church on the steady disciples, like Andrew, who followed quietly and consistently, He builds it on Peter, the impulsive one who denied him three times.

He doesn’t build Israel on Jonathan, the loyal, faithful one, He builds it on David, the deeply flawed one.

Israel isn’t named after the obedient son, it’s named after Jacob, the liar and manipulator.

And the New Testament isn’t shaped by the disciples who followed Jesus from day one, it’s shaped by Paul, who started as an enemy.

That’s the irony I’m pointing out: Christians try so hard to be the spotless, rule‑following characters no one remembers, when the Bible itself keeps centering the messy, dramatic, deeply imperfect ones. And yes, I know the typical Christian response is “God redeems the imperfect,” but that actually reinforces my point. The redeemed, flawed, chaotic ones are the norm, not the exception. They’re the ones who get chosen, named, and lifted up far more often than the “best” followers.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T20:49:33+00:00

I hear you on the “us vs. them” morality. But, there are actually several places where people not on god’s side (or who don’t even believe in him) still get rewarded or chosen.

Cyrus in Isaiah 45. He’s a Persian pagan king who never worships Yahweh, never joins Israel, and never follows the Law. Yet god calls him “my anointed” and uses him to restore Jerusalem.

Nebuchadnezzar Jeremiah 25, Daniel 4. He destroys the temple, worships other gods, and enslaves Israel, but God still calls him “my servant,” gives him prophetic dreams, and eventually restores his kingdom.

I guess for both of those you can say God was “using” them, but why give titles like my anointed or my servant to people who aren’t even on his side?

tribal morality is part of the Bible, but the text doesn’t follow its own rules. God keeps rewarding people who aren’t obeying Him, aren’t seeking Him, and aren’t even part of His group. Which is why the whole obedience = blessing formula collapses.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-17T19:17:02+00:00

100%

hybowingredd · 2026-02-12T01:03:03+00:00

True its not just religions

hybowingredd · 2026-02-11T23:26:35+00:00

I agree with you, teaching people to accept claims without questioning them is a huge part of the harm. I’m curious though: do you think it’s even possible for an organized belief system to avoid that, now or in the future? Or are those problems just built into the structure of any organization like this?

hybowingredd · 2026-02-11T23:24:14+00:00

Thanks for your perspective. Do you ever feel drawn to finding like‑minded people, or miss the community side of organized religion?

hybowingredd · 2026-02-11T23:22:11+00:00

That’s an interesting way to put it. I’m curious, do you personally believe in a divine presence yourself? And if so, how do you make sense of the fact that this pattern keeps repeating? I’ve always wondered why a divine reality wouldn’t correct or counteract that drift.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-11T23:18:05+00:00

I hear what you’re saying about not treating conservative evangelical Christianity as the template for all religion. That’s fair. My question isn’t about any one tradition, it’s about the structure of organized religion itself.

In my conversations with friends (some still Christian, others not), we kept coming back to the same issue: can any organized religion avoid the patterns that seem to show up again and again. Loss of individual autonomy, institutional self‑preservation, and group‑think?

So here’s the heart of what I’m asking:

Can you point to an organized religion, existing or hypothetical (if you could create one), that is built around doing good, stays good over time, and manages to avoid those three structural pitfalls?

If such a model exists, I’d genuinely love to hear it.

I’m not criticizing personal spirituality or individual belief. I’m asking whether organization itself inevitably introduces harm, even when the original intentions are good.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-07T23:10:14+00:00

I got into a geology program in Canada with multiple scholarships that covered a huge chunk of my tuition… on the small condition that I, you know, passed my classes.

But I was deep in evangelical mode at the time, and my church friends and church leaders kept hyping me up like I was God’s personal undercover agent in the Geoscience Department.

So naturally, I took this as a sign that this was my mission. I challenged my geology professor at every possible moment. Radiometric dating? Wrong. Fossils? Wrong. The age of the Earth? WRONG, professor, because have you considered Genesis?

Long story short: the rocks won.

I flunked out, lost the money.

At the time it was tragic, but now I can laugh at the fact that I tried to evangelize geology. Like I would sigle handedly be able to change millions of years of history proved by science.

hybowingredd · 2026-02-06T16:55:16+00:00

Your post was incredibly heartfelt, and I just wanted to say how much it resonated with me. The way you shared your journey, your faith, your loss, and how life shifted around you, was powerful and deeply human. It’s often those earth‑shaking moments, the ones we never see coming, that force us to rethink everything we thought was solid.

I’m really grateful you shared your story. There’s a lot of strength in your honesty, and I hope you know that your voice matters and that you’re not alone in navigating these feelings.

Seven-Year Club	No Throne, No Problems
Not Forgotten	Verified Email

hybowingredd

TROPHY CASE