How do I deal with a religious family as an atheist?

Well, this is a typical situation. If you are dependent on them for now then you can pretend to be religious in front of them. If you are independent, I don't see any reason to be their slave. You are a free person who has the right to make your own choices. On the other hand they also have a right to profess their own religion. You can be an atheist but you need not to make fun of their religion or impose their atheist views on you. Just live and let live. Do what you like and let your family do what they like.

I remain open to their faith and how it might guide and shape them. Understanding rather than being ambivalent to their faith has always served me better than standing on my own different beliefs. It is through understanding that we learn from each other. Intolerance yields nothing but friction and possible argument about faith, rather than a healthy discussion between individuals. When I find a friend or coworker with a different faith, which I know little or nothing of, I will often ask if they are open to discussing it with me so that I have a basic knowledge of their belief system. This also helps me to avoid doing something that may offend them.

My family is Christian. My dad's a believer - better classified a deist than a Christian. However, he follows all christian rituals and celebratory occasions. Mom is a staunch christian who believes Jesus is more or less directly responsible for all the good in our life. I don't know exactly when I lost my faith, but it was never strong/ unshakeable to begin with. I never really thought about it much during my childhood. Once I started thinking about it - in college, I was quick to denounce the whole thing as rubbish. How did my folks react? Mom was and is sad - she believes that since I'm a good person overall, a just and all loving God would NOT punish me/ send me to hell... But she's still disturbed that I don't believe. She often tells me to just try to believe again. My dad essentially tells me to pretend. He says that it takes little effort to just go to church once in a while, or to pray when mom wants. He says I don't know enough to renounce God altogether. He agrees that the stories in the bible are full of holes, and shouldn't be the basis of my actions/ beliefs. But he says that believers have a better life and community support - so at least on practical grounds, I should just play along. That kinda makes sense to me. I clarified with dad if he was actually doing that - no. He really does believe. And he doesn't fret about it too much. My brother is on the verge of losing faith, but he has consciously stopped thinking about it. He says that believing gives him a sense of peace, even if it's irrational. He doesn't want to lose that, and to that extent, purposefully avoids reading more about this. My wife is clearly the most religious of the lot. She - ahem - finds my lack of faith disturbing. She feels helpless, and is often saddened by this. Both my wife and my mom don't discuss religion much with me - Most of our arguments end with them not having an answer, and then saying "We don't know enough about the bible/ God to answer that. You should talk to so and so pastor/ relative if you want to have this discussion". In the end, they are believing cos they chose to believe. For my part, I'm not picking fights. I have only told some people I'm an atheist. I don't object to my family's traditions/ customs tied to religion. I hate going to church, but I'm OK doing that once in a while (if you pay attention to what's being said, the sermons can be quite hilarious. The best cure for Christianity IS the bible, after all.) The only exception would be when they use Christianity to judge other people, like homosexuals. But that doesn't come up often. In fact, it hasn't cropped up in discussion in years. When I met my wife, she was convinced that being gay was an unnatural lifestyle choice that people use to rebel against God. But she was reasonable enough to listen and read - she doesn't feel that way anymore. Overall, I must say I'm lucky that my family's religiousness is not extreme. I'm sure that I'd have had a really tough time in a really religious household

This is me right here! I love my family and respect individuals - even if not their ideas - but I also demand they respect me by actions if not words. They insisted that I go to church, so I would but then not go through the motions, which eventually worked so that they no longer pressured me. Pray for me? Go right ahead. I don't make a big deal out of my athiesm despite the discussions around me, or even provocative statements aimed at me. I often use humor: Of course I have a close relationship with my creator: I talk to mom everyday and spoil her on my birthday!

Dealing with a religious family can be difficult since you are taken into a perspective that you feel like you are the black sheep of your family. I completely understand that. Since they are indeed your family that has raised you since birth, try to respect their religious practices, It is important to be respectful for their beliefs since it makes them happy. You do not have to agree with their sayings, you can just let them believe their own religion as long as they are not mentally abusing you. If religion gets really bad, then try to stand up for what you believe in and calmly speak to your family of your own decisions.

This is a tough one, because I am in this exact situation right now. I don’t know the full story/circumstances you are in, but I do know that as a minor myself, it is a living hell. Parents Especially have control almost everything sometimes. It’s also hard when you are at family gatherings and your super conservative grandma starts talking about religion and politics. From what I have done to cope so far is to just be patient. If you have family members who are not open minded and will just gas-light you, I would recommend to just stay quiet. It is not worth your time to bicker with someone who thinks in black-and-white and is narrow minded. I know how hard it can be sometimes, but I promise you there will be a day where you will be able to surround yourself with people who either share your same beliefs/non-existent beliefs, or at least people who will respect and understand you. Remember, us listeners are here if you ever need it!

With something as important as faith, arguments are bound to come up between you and your religious family. Handling this the wrong way can put a permanent divider between you and your loved ones, and so if you want to preserve your familial relationships as much as possible, here’s what you need to do. First, argue with kindness. If you’re angry, confrontational, or vengeful as you try to convey truth, you’ll only cement your family’s beliefs, as well as their view that atheism is an evil. Be kind, however, and your family may just begin to realize how wrong they are about you. They’ll see that you’re an atheist, yet you’re not fitting any of their negative, preconceived notions of what an atheist is. With a little work, you’ll open their eyes and help them to see you as a person, not as a label. And whatever you do, don’t argue to “win.” Argue to reveal truth—that’s the goal. Keep an open mind, too, to whatever they may have to teach you. Argue the right way, and your coming out as an atheist might just have the happiest ending you could ask for.

Sometimes it can be difficult to live with people who have different foundational beliefs than you. It is important to realize, though, that it is possible, and even can be a positive experience, to coexist with people of diverse religious backgrounds. Just because you do not believe what they believe doesn't mean you have to engage them in discourse regarding their or your belief systems. It also doesn't mean you need to respond to expressions of their faith (or that they need to respond to your atheism). It is possible to live with people of different beliefs without imposing your atheism on them and without them imposing their faith on you. Setting healthy boundaries with them is a great place to start.

It might be best to just try and see if they will understand. There's not much you can do until you are out on your own. There is no direct way to "deal" with it, but try communicating how you feel. It may seem hard to get them to understand but over time they will leave it alone. At the end of the day, if they truly love you, they won't care whether you practice a religion or not. Also their religion, no matter which one, tells them to love others. Simply put, they will understand eventually but they love you regardless.

First, I would make sure you have someone else you can talk to because depending on how religious your family is, they might dismiss your feelings and this support system will be there for you if the next step fails. Next, I would talk to your family and tell them why you do not believe in religion and if they dismiss you or they don't listen to you then unfortunately there is not much you can do about that. You can't force people to accept you, including family. Luckily, there are great communities here for everyone and lots of people who are going through the same situation as you.