Navigating the complexities of faith and family dynamics, a 24-year-old Redditor finds herself at a crossroads over an unexpected birthday gift. She shares her story about the challenges she faced after getting religious books as a birthday gift from her devout parents, despite her agnostic views.
She Was an Atheist
Maggie, a 24-year-old, revealed her agnostic beliefs to her devoutly Christian parents.
The Discussions
As anticipated, this revelation ignited a discourse around morality and religiosity.
The discussion has been tabled mostly and comes up every month or so.
She Respected Her Parent’s Faith
Maggie, out of respect for her parents’ faith, has consciously refrained from engaging in any religious discussions or acts that might undermine their beliefs.
Her Mother Became More Religious
Maggie’s mom leads an online church group and has become more religious after she experienced near-fatal complications after surgery last year.
God Saved Her
As a result, she credits God for her still being alive, saying, “He gave humans the knowledge for my doctor to learn medicine.”
The Drive
The story began during a road trip when Maggie’s mother pointed out two books in a gift shop – “Women of Color in the Bible” and “100 Bible Verses for Anxiety and Fear.”
She Wasn’t Interested
Knowing Maggie’s love for reading, her mother sought to share something meaningful.
Maggie, however, expressed her disinterest in those particular titles, prompting them to move on.
The Birthday Surprise
Months later, on her birthday, Maggie was confronted with an unexpected twist.
She Bought Her the Religious Books
Unwrapping her presents, she discovered that the very books she had dismissed earlier were gifted to her by her parents.
Maggie was disappointed, but she maintained her smile and expressed gratitude.
She Said She Was Not Interested
Later, when she reminded her mom that she was not interested in the books, she got upset and said that she knew Maggie liked to read and they seemed like good books for her.
Verses Wouldn’t Help Her
Maggie replied that she wouldn’t use Bible verses to help her anxiety and wasn’t interested in the WOC book.
Her Father Questioned Her
Maggie’s father took her to the side and spoke to her about her reaction to the books and how she seemed disgusted by them.
She replied that she was not disgusted but upset about it.
Her Mother Thought She Would Come Back to Their Religion
The father said that her mother bought the books as she expected Maggie would change her mind about religion.
She Was Upset
Maggie has kept quiet about her lack of faith, but seeing her mother disregarding her interests to push her back to Christianity made her more upset.
It’s Not Wrong to Be Upset
She took to Reddit to ask whether she was wrong in the situation and several Redditors sided with her saying that he was not wrong.
You Can Make Your Own Decision
One Reddit user wrote, “You are an adult and get to make your own decisions. Mom is the jerk for refusing to acknowledge that simple fact.”
Another Redditor commented, “She wants to re-indoctrinate you, plain and simple. Follow your own path and decide for yourself, and you need to set clear boundaries with your parents that allow you to be your own person without their interference.”
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The post Religious Indoctrination Wrapped as a Birthday Gift: A Devout Mother’s Attempt to Influence Her Daughter’s Faith first appeared on Mama Say What?!
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Olha Nosova. The people shown in the images are for illustrative purposes only, not the actual people featured in the story.
Source: Reddit
