How I Became a Deist

by Jesse Woody

I wasn't born into a Christian family.  Many of my relatives on my father's side were devout Southern Baptists.  At any early age, while attending vacation bible school, I was persuaded to become a Baptist.  I led my mother, father, brother and sister to the church.  I believed and taught others that Christianity and the Baptist church was the path to salvation.  After graduating from high school in the "bible belt" town of Shawnee, OK, I naturally attended the local Oklahoma Baptist University.  At the religion based school, I was required to attend a daily assembly where Baptist doctrine was
taught.  In order to become sophomores we were required to take a semester each of the Old and New Testament of the bible.  I did quite well on tests and assignments.  As I began to read and study, I realized that this "holy book" was nothing but a superstitious fairy tale.  By having the contents of the whole bible laid out for me to study, rather than providing just those verses and stories that supported the Christian beliefs, my eyes were opened. If this was the word of God, I wanted nothing to do with it.  I was amazed that I ever believed in such a fantasy.  I certainly couldn't accept a God that had so many human faults. 
 
   As I completed the final exams for the course, I approached the instructor, a Baptist Minister.  I thanked him for all that I had learned from the bible course.  He smiled and said that he hoped I would use what I learned to guide me in the future.  I said "yes, I will never set foot in another church again". I left him with his eyes wide and mouth open.  He didn't expect my answer and made no response.  I was eighteen.  I am now 67 and looking back, I don't really know when I realized I was a Deist.  As I grew older, my concept of God became completely different from what the "Holy Books" described. I was totally against all "organized religion". The more I read and discovered, the stronger my disbelief became. The only God that my mind could conceive of, was the Creator of the universe. I rejected the idea that all of the complex things in the world around me just happened.  I have, using the brain given to me, accepted the existence of "Nature's God".