At what age should a child be allowed to practice whatever religion he/she wants, should in case they do not want their parents’ religion
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At what age should a child be allowed to practice whatever religion he/she wants, should in case they do not want their parents’ religion
I was raised an atheist and I’m also raising an atheist family, well, until each person decides otherwise. I have a ten-year old boy and my little girl is 3 years old. We will never force our kids to go to church, because we don’t support religion of any kind. But if they should decide around their teenage years that they want to go through with a religious confirmation, then we definitely won’t deny them. It’s their life, their choice and when you’re 13 years old or so, you should be old enough know whether you’re religious or not. That doesn’t mean we do not mingle with theists, we have family members and friends who are Christians. And we try as much as possible to visit family members, follow them to church for a funeral, baptism, etc., we of course show up for those things out of respect for the families. Just because you’re visiting a church and don’t believe in anything said nor done in practice in there, you don’t turn into a moral-free asshole. Well, that’s at least what we try to teach our children, even though we’re atheists.
I believe this kind of decision, a child can make without having to wait till eternity. The world is revolving, it would be stupid to stay in the same loop. I was raised in a strict religious household. I was told that if I didn’t go, I would be kicked out of the home. This did not give me an opportunity to gain my own faith and love for religion. I had friends who at early years such as 12/13/14 didn’t practice their parents’ religion, some stayed atheists while some grew to go back to their parents’ religion. As funny as it may sound, kids often know what they want, and you can only support them, you most often cannot change their minds.
Faith is not something you can force. Please allow your kids to make their own decisions in regards to religion at any age they decide on that.