An Enlightening Dream About Turtles

Letting Go of Christianity. Now what?

I had completely let go of christianity and no longer called myself a believer.

Now what?

I no longer believe that the bible is inspired by God, or inerrant or even relevant.

Now what?

Christianity is no longer a viable option for me.

Now what?

If I stopped believing in christianity, does that automatically mean that I don’t believe in anything?

Am I an atheist by default?

Is there anything out there worth believing?

An Enlightening Dream

These questions lingered in my mind for months after letting go of christianity. I was in limbo. Fortunately for me, I had a dream about turtles. Yeah, you read that right… turtles.

In that dream I was wandering around carrying a turtle. Somehow it slipped out of my hands and I started looking for it. (You know how dreams are.)

A voice in my dream asked what I was looking for.

“I’m looking for my turtle”, I replied.

“You need THAT turtle?” the voice asked.

I looked at the ground and there were turtles everywhere. Turtles of all shapes, sizes, and colors. I woke up wondering what that dream could possibly mean. I pondered on it for weeks.

 

Soon after that, I was at my local garden center and there were garden decorations with words on them. A rabbit had the word “Love” on it and a dragonfly had the word “Serenity”. (You get the idea.) Then I noticed a turtle, and to my astonishment, the word on it was, “Believe”. I immediately purchased it and put it in my garden.

 

 

So, how can I make sense this dream? My former christian friends (who were no longer talking to me) might have told me that God was reaching out to me and that I had been mistaken to leave. An atheist might have said that it was simply serendipitous and that there was nothing supernatural about it. I would have to disagree with both of them. I really have no explanation for this dream and its subsequent fulfillment, but I assure you that I’m not making it up.

“Believe?” Believe what?

Here is what I understand my dream to mean. Even though I had figuratively dropped my turtle of christianity, I didn’t need that turtle because there were plenty of other turtles I could pick up (and believe in).

True to my character, I began to read and investigate other options. I approached this new adventure with the same vigor I had when I was a new christian. I read a lot, and searched for something to believe in. Along that journey, I picked up and examined the turtles of progressive Christianity, Atheism, Secular Humanism and the writings of Thomas Paine and Dr. Bart Ehrman.

The Age of Reason

My quest led me to a book entitled “The Age of Reason.” by Thomas Paine, (a contemporary of the Founding Fathers). His book opened my eyes to a whole different way of thinking about religion. It was exactly what I was looking for. During my time in christian circles I could not find anyone who would/could discuss religion rationally. Thomas Paine did exactly that.

He opens “The Age of Reason” by stating exactly what he does and does not believe.

“I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness beyond this life. I believe in the equality of man, and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow-creatures happy.

But lest it should be supposed that I believe many other things in addition to these, I shall, in the progress of this work, declare the things I do not believe, and my reasons for not believing them.I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish Church, by the Roman Church, by the Greek Church, by the Turkish Church, by the Protestant Church, or by any church I know of. My own mind is my own church.

All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian, or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.

Each of those churches accuses the other of unbelief; and for my part, I disbelieve them all.”

A dream come true!

So, there you have it. My concerns about being in a void of belief after letting go of christianity were completely unfounded. I learned, (and this is the best part) that there is so much out there to believe in that doesn’t require faith. I was finally on solid ground, and it felt good.

Coming up next: The Christian Boogie Man

During my years going to church we were taught from the pulpit to fear (and hate) Secular Humanists. Those scoundrels were out to destroy christianity. However, when I looked into what Secular Humanists really believe, I was astonished to learn that all my fears were based on lies.

 

From Where I Stand

Dale Crum