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本文翻译自 https://steemit.com/philosophy/@dan/why-i-gave-up-christianity ，BM讲述自己为什么放弃宗教信仰的过程。
全文内容如下：
Why I gave up Christianity
为什么我放弃了基督教
Giving up my belief in Christianity was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I was raised in a Christian home, was a leader in my youth group, and went on multiple overseas mission trips. In college I attended multiple church services every week, lead bible studies, and even attended a 3-month leadership training program.
放弃信仰基督教是我做过最困难的决定。我在一个基督教家庭的环境长大，这影响了我整个青年时代。大学期间，我每周都会去几次教堂帮帮忙，像领读圣经，甚至参加过为期3个月的教会领导力培训计划。
I was that guy who only listened to christian music because all secular music was evil. I waited until marriage to have sex with the mother of my children. In other words, I was a hard-core evangelical conservative Christian.
我当时只听宗教音乐，因为觉得所有俗世音乐都是有害的，这种想法直到婚后和孩子妈妈有了性关系之后才有所改变。总的来说，我曾经是一个不折不扣的，既狂热又保守的基督徒。
While it is common for many people to lose interest over time, I suspect it is very unusual for someone to switch sides as dramatically as I have. It took me years to come to terms with it and in the process contributed to the break up of my marriage and made certain things awkward with my parents.
随着时间的推移，大部分人对一件事情失去兴趣很正常，但我猜想要是有人能够像我一样前后完全矛盾地切换立场是非常罕见的。我用了几年的时间来接受它，在这期间我结束了自己的婚姻，也让我的父母真正地陷入了进退两难的处境。
Pursuit of Truth
追求真理
The whole process started back in 2006 when I began to pursue the truth in everything. I started reading about libertarian philosophy and Austrian economics. In the process I learned how to think clearly, rationally, and with a focus toward eliminating contradiction in my beliefs.
变化从2006年开始。当时我对一切真理都充满好奇，并开始阅读自由主义的哲学和奥地利学派的经济学。在这个过程中我学会了怎么清晰理性地思考，并且着重关注如何解决我信仰中的矛盾。
This is where I started developing strong convictions on the immorality of government. I became convinced that initiating the use of violence was wrong. Not only that, I became convinced that the use of violence systematically makes all of society poorer. This means I began to reject the legitimacy of all governments built on violence.
这个过程中，我坚信政府的不道德行为，也坚信 “ 以暴制暴 ” 的体系会让整个社会更加贫穷。这让我拒绝承认所有建立在暴力基础上的政府的合法性。
Biblical Support for Liberty
圣经中对自由的支持
As my perspective on government was changing I began searching the Bible to see whether my new understanding fit. The good news is that I could find plenty of support in the bible.
… ’Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” — Matthew 22:39-40 ’
随着我对政府看法的变化，我当时开始在圣经中尝试找到相对应的支撑点。幸运的是，圣经中很多论证都支持我的新看法。
“像爱你一样去爱你的邻居。”所有的法律和先知都以这两条圣训为前提。——马太福音
Aside from “loving God”, the 2nd greatest commandment and all the laws of the profits supposedly hang on the phrase of ‘love your neighbor as yourself’. This phrase is effectively a statement of “don’t do to others what you don’t want others doing to you.” It might imply going above and beyond, but it certainly encompasses the silver rule.
除了“爱上帝”之外，第二重要的圣训和所有法律的好处，都是假设以“像爱自己一样爱你的邻居”为前提，这和“己所不欲，勿施于人”的意思相近。这在那个时代也许意味着超前，但它肯定不会超过现在的至理名言（silver rule）。
So straight from the mouth of Jesus I had confirmation that my libertarian beliefs are founded upon the greatest commandment from which all other commandments must submit to.
耶稣让我坚信对自由主义的信仰，它是建立在所有圣训都必须服从的最伟大的圣训之上的。
I proceeded to reinterpret all other parts in the bible with this perspective in mind and found that almost everything taught by Jesus himself was compatible. What I also found is that many christians interpret Jesus’ teachings in ways that are incompatible.
我开始用这样的视角重新解读圣经中的其他内容，然后发现几乎从耶稣那里学到的一切都可以解释得通。同时也发现大部分基督徒都是用生硬的方式来理解耶稣的教诲的。
Hypocrisy in the Church
虚伪的教会
For a while I used my new found insights to stir the pot at bible studies. I felt certain that most Christians would quickly recognize that their support and even worship of government was sinful. Sadly, most people could not make the connection.
曾经有一段时间，我故意用新的理解和他们讨论对圣经的内容，我能感到绝大多数基督徒很快就能意识到，他们支持甚至是崇拜的政府是有罪的。遗憾的是，他们并不能从中找到关联来认证这一点。
Sunday morning sermons became unbearable as pastor after pastor gave messages that were incompatible with the 2nd greatest commandment. I took these pastors aside to talk with them about it. It went nowhere.
当牧师给出和第二大圣训不兼容的信息后，周日早上的布道难过得让我如坐针毡。我尝试和牧师们在过道上讨论我的理解，然而却不被接受。
How could I attend a church that pledges allegiance to the flag of a government that is waging war around the globe? How could I attend a church that subjugated itself to the government by filing for 501.3c status?
一个在全球发动战争的政府，我怎么能加入对其承诺效忠的教会呢？我怎么能加入一个通过申请501.3c（
译者注：501.3c 具体解释可以在以下地址找到更完整的内容： https://ipfs.io/ipfs/QmXoypizjW3WknFiJnKLwHCnL72vedxjQkDDP1mXWo6uco/wiki/501(c)_organization.html
）身份来使政府服从的教会呢？
There are certainly some churches out there that reject 501.3c, some that don’t pledge to the flag, and even some that are completely libertarian in their philosophy. But by the time you filter out all of the false teachers there is hardly enough for a small congregation in towns with 10’s of thousands of people.
当然有些教会不在此列，会拒绝501.3c，会不向政府誓忠，甚至有些在他们的哲学意义上是完全自由的。但是当你过滤掉所有不恰当的布道者，为数不多的合格者很难满足需求。
Would God let 99.99% of Pastors miss the Mark?
上帝会让99.99％的牧师错过Mark吗？
I started to ask myself a simple question. How can people who pray every day and maintain a relationship (two way communication) with Jesus can be left completely ignorant to their obvious sins they commit. How can God let these people lead his flock with so many obviously false teachings?
问自己一个简单的问题。那些每天祈祷保持和耶稣沟通的人，怎么能够完全忽略他们犯下的显而易见的罪恶呢？上帝怎么能让这些误人子弟的人带领他的信众？
There is only one obvious answer, these people are not hearing from God. If God was dwelling within them, and they heard the truth, then one would think the Spirit would stir inside them to confirm the truth. They would immediately repent, ask forgiveness, and sin no more.
只有一个答案——这些人并没有从上帝那里听到什么。假如上帝在他们心中，他们就能听到真理，就会驱动他们来证实这个真理。他们将会立即忏悔，请求原谅，远离罪恶。
This isn’t a matter of intelligence. Many of these people are incredibly smart. This is a simple matter of “hearing the truth” and “obeying”. Apparently God doesn’t care if you understand his laws, only that you obey. If God was speaking to these people, then they would know his voice and would obey. Clearly, these people are not actually hearing from God.
这和智商无关，我上面提到的绝大部分人都非常聪明。这是一个“听到真理”和“服从”的问题。上帝并不在意你是否能理解他的圣训，他只需要你服从。假如这些人有机会和上帝交谈，他们将会听到内容并且服从这些内容。但很明显的是，这些人并没有。
You cannot trust People
你无法相信人
Since I have clear evidence that most people who think they hear from God are clearly not hearing from God, I must now question everything. All of christianity is a bunch of people telling and retelling the same stories for generations. Each generation chooses to believe the prior generation.
因为我确信那些人撒谎了，所以我必须对一切重新提出质疑。基督教的教义是由一代又一代的复述和传颂得以延续的，我们没有选择，只能相信上一代人的版本。
People believe because not believing would result in becoming a social outcast. Who wants to strain the relationships with everyone in their life? Who wants to question beliefs that seem to answer big scary questions for which there is no obvious answer (such as what happens when you die).
人们会相信是因为要是不相信，就会和社会不合群。难道愿意和身边的人关系不好？难道想要被问起那些让人不安却没有明确答案的信仰问题（比如死后会发生什么）？
Back to the Bible
回到圣经
If you skip through all the intermediaries you end up going straight back to the bible. The bible is declared the infallible word of God by most. Here we have a logical dilemma, the part of the bible that claims this was written before other parts of the bible. Furthermore, it only claims the “word of God” is infallible, but no where does it state what is and isn’t the “word of God”.
如果你直接回到圣经本身，忽略中间的复述，圣经被大多数人称为是上帝无误的话语。这样的话我们会陷入相互矛盾的处境，这部分的圣经宣称是在另外圣经其他部分完成之前完成的。而且它只宣称上帝的话是准确无误的，并没有指出哪些是上帝的话。
So I started looking into how the books of the bible were selected. Lo-and-behold, it was done through a democratic process. People, many of whom were appointed by the Roman emperor, voted. Here we have the people problem again. Not only that, we have a government problem.
所以我开始挑选更合适的圣经书籍。你看，民主的过程是怎样完成的。以前大部分人是被罗马皇帝任命的，后来人民有了选举权，现在我们除了人民，需要解决的还有政府问题。
At the time the bible was written there were few people who could read and write. Those who were able were often employed by governments. It is clear to me that governments at all times and places attempt censorship and practice propaganda. It doesn’t take much, just changing a word here or there can completely change the meaning.
当时有能力参与出版圣经的少数知识分子，同时也是为政府打工的人。很明显，政府总是用尽方法无处不在地参与审查和尝试政治宣传，它只需适当地改动一个词，就能完全让本意颠倒。
Even the oldest known copies of the bible are still greatly removed in time from the people who wrote them.
即使是最原始版本的圣经，也能被改得面目全非。
Shared Delusions
分享妄想
It became clear to me that people are very vulnerable to falling into group delusions. People around the world have often willingly adopted an unquestioned belief. Beliefs can be so strong that it is not uncommon for people to commit mass suicide.
人很容易陷入群体妄想，他们倾向于接受普世的信仰。信仰的力量强大到能让人走向群体自杀的事件频频发生。
What this means is that conviction unto death is not a sign of truth. Dependence upon communities was so strong that renouncing belief in the shared delusion could appear to be its own death sentence.
这意味着最终的死亡并不是真理的一种。如此依赖社群的人，一旦放弃可以共享妄念的信仰群体，就像是给自己判了死刑。
Ultimately, all we have is the testimony of people who knew Jesus directly. This testimony is as reliable as any other testimony of people today. After all, plenty of people have claimed to witness miracles. Many have doubts about these people, but we are supposed to trust someone who lived 2000 years ago?
我们最后只能从一些声称和耶稣接触过的人得到信息，这些证词至今受用，就算很多人怀疑这些见证者的真实性，但是我们应该更相信那些生活在2000年前的人。
Removing People from the Equation
平衡内心，断离舍
The bible claims that even those who do not hear the word of God are still liable because all of nature testifies. In other words, ignorance is no excuse and those who remain ignorant are doomed to hell. You are only saved by knowing Christ.
圣经上说，天赋人权，各尽义务。无知不是借口，但那些愿意一直处在无知的人注定要下地狱，你只有找到基督才能找到救赎。
I decided to take this point of view and simply pretend there were no people around to tell me what God says. I decided to look into nature. It was here that I discovered meditation and through meditation I became more connected to who I am.
我决定用上帝的这个观点继续生活，开始探索自然，在这个过程中我找到了冥想这个工具，并通过它来探索自己。
If all that is necessary to know God is available to me without the need of people, then clearly reason and rationality are a major component. I concluded that anything that could not be deduced from reason and nature could not be guaranteed to be from God.
和上帝有关的信息，清晰的推论和理性是必不可少的根据。总的来说，任何不能从理性和本质推理出来的东西，都不能保证来自于上帝。
At this point I concluded that almost everything that makes christianity, Christian, cannot be derived from nature. What remains is a solid belief in a set of moral principles that hold me to a higher standard than what is taught in churches and the bible. But these principles do not make me Christian.
在这一点上我的总结是，几乎所有的教义和信徒，都不是从本质出发的。现在的接触到的信仰，比教会圣经中更僵化束缚，这些条条框框没有让我继续成为基督徒。
Am I going to hell?
我会下地狱？
Well, many christians believe Once Saved, Always Saved so I guess I am covered by my prior belief when I gave my heart to Christ. Some would say I was never saved, but I couldn’t tell the difference for years. I certainly have nothing against God and obviously am more than happy to yield to anything he requests of me. I just don’t trust anyone but God to deliver the message.
很多基督徒相信 一旦被拯救，永远得救 ，当时我也是全心全意做教徒的。一些人会说我从未被拯救过，无法反驳。我不是反对上帝，相反的，我乐意去做任何他要求我去做的。我只是不相信任何传递上帝信息的人。
本文翻译自 https://steemit.com/philosophy/@dan/why-i-gave-up-christianity
翻译：Lochaiching
校对：Sheldon
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