Claire Dooley grew up in a large religious family in Mississippi. Here, she shares some of her reasons for leaving the faith and why, after years of atheism and in her moment of deepest despair, she started exploring Christianity 

Many people reject God because they had a bad experience with religion or religious people. It is a common tale. What once seemed hopeful and good turns bad and even repulsive, easy to reject. Religion becomes the counterfeit, worthless and empty, discarded along with other childhood stories and superstitions. Not worth taking another look, until perhaps it is. 

Saying goodbye to God

Claire Dooley was raised in Mississippi as one of six children in a religious home. From a young age, her mother took them door-to-door telling others about God, a common practice among Jehovah’s Witnesses. Obedient to strict religious rules, she constantly felt like an outsider, unwelcomed among her peers. As much as she tried to be the perfect Christian, she felt that she never lived up to their high standards of performance. She would never be pleasing to God, slipping into… (Register to read the rest of the article)