Most of us here were raised with one particular religion, which isn't in itself a good or bad thing. Some of us were raised with hardcore abusive fundamentalism, others in fairly devout families, and others still with the most liberal or token attachments to whatever faith their parents (or guardians) presented to them. And of those who were raised in religious households, most of THEM seem to have at some point abandoned it, sometimes for atheism or agnosticism, and sometimes for another system of belief.
But whether you ditched the religion you were born into, whether you were a child or an adolescent or an adult, it can be very hard to shed the habits of a lifetime, especially when you're raised from the cradle to believe certain things and have certain specific practices--to the point where those practices and habits become automatic with no real meaning behind them. And sometimes you may even feel uncomfortable stopping them, even though the gestures are a meaningless throwback to a faith you no longer (or maybe never even DID) ascribe to.
How many of you who grew up with religion and then left it have maintained--or even STILL maintain--some throwback or relic from that time? Is there some religious iconography you can't bear to part with? Do you find yourself sometimes starting to pray in some situations? Or something else?
I was never religious myself but was raised in a pretty religious environment. And for a long time I still kept doing things that were relics of it.
For one thing, I had a Saint Christopher medallion. Most Catholics--and I think a lot of other Christian denominations as well--are fans of St Christopher, who is the patron saint of travellers. Since my family travelled a looootttt, usually overseas, my mom made sure my brother and me both had one of these. (Having a saint medallion of some sort of supposed to give you the power or protection of that saint--hellooooo there Catholicism's pagan roots!) I wore one on a necklace pretty much nonstop until I was about nineteen, maybe even twenty. I never actually believed in any part of it, but my mom made me wear it when I was a kid and I just never took it off. Like, ever. I showered with it. If for some reason I couldn't wear it around my neck, then I'd just wear it somewhere under my clothes, like wrapped around my bra strap and tucked into a cup. I felt really weird and naked and strangely vulnerable without it, even though I didn't believe in it. The first time I went on a plane without it, I actually remember feeling apprehensive.
Another: being from a fairly old-school Catholic family, and being left-handed, there was always this weird, quiet stigma on me. But a stigma nonetheless. I was encouraged to do things with my right hand and for a while was told that I was being rude when I reached for something at dinner with my left. There's this big thing in some Catholic cultures for referring to all things bad and taboo as 'left-handed' so I developed a weird complex about it. I started think of my left hand as being 'bad' or 'evil'. I never made more than a token effort to stop using it but even to this day I still feel very distinct, different things towards my left and right hands. Not that I don't like my left hand or being a lefty (I think it's actually pretty cool), but just... it's like when you see a picture of someone who bullied you in school, it just makes you feel uncomfortable and maybe slightly bitter. Thanks, religion!
I also can't stand the thought of throwing away or shredding a bible. Though this might be just because I don't like the thought of destroying ANY books, because of what destruction of books represents.
So.
Does anyone else have any secret religious throwbacks?