Question: How do I reveal my atheism to my family?
So, you've decided that you cannot rationally or reasonably continue with the religion which you have always been involved in and which your family continues to belong to. Indeed, you can't even continue to call yourself a theist anymore — you find belief in the existence of God to be unreasonable for one reason or another have to abandon the label altogether.
Now what?
That's a difficult question to answer, especially when it comes to family — even more so if you are a young person still living at home. Telling your family that you no longer accept their religion or even the existence of their god isn't an easy thing, either for you or for them.
Religion is important for a many people. It is where many believe they derive their morals, their values, their meaning of life — even their purpose for living. They cannot imagine being without it and so will have difficulty imagining you abandoning it. Because of this, it may seem easier to simply "stay in the closet" and not tell anyone.
Sometimes, this may be a reasonable course of action. For example, if you are a young person still living at home and have a realistic basis for thinking that your parents might shun you or even kick you out of the house for being an atheist, keeping quiet would be wise. Aside from such extreme situations, however, you should consider carefully before going too far down the path of remaining in the closet because it brings a lot of problems you may not want to deal with later on.
For one thing, you may develop a lot of resentment not only towards your former religion (if you aren't too resentful already, that is), but also towards your family because you feel like they are forcing you to "live a lie" by pretending to still be religious. Also, you may at some point be expected to continue doing all sorts of things which you find objectionable, like regularly going to church or participating in religious ceremonies. If you ever do tell your family about your atheism, you may find it difficult to explain that you have been a nonbeliever for years or decades without saying anything. All of this can be very psychologically and emotionally draining, especially when it occurs over a long period of time.
On the other hand, precisely because telling others about your real beliefs and real feelings can be difficult, it can be an important step towards becoming more self-confident and mature. You could also being doing a lot to encourage better attitudes towards atheists by demonstrating how they can be moral and mature people. Perhaps there are other members of your family who also have doubts or who disbelieve — by speaking up, you will find that you share more in common with them and will also help them come to terms with who they are.
