Why are black people so religious? Why is being an Atheist seen as ‘taboo’ in the black community? Should the bible be taken literally? If I were to tell you that Black Americans wouldn’t even be Christians had it not been forced on their ancestors by slave masters, what would you say to that? What’s gonna happen to me when I die? These are some of the questions asked in, Stray From The Flock: Story Of A Black Atheist. Filmmaker Andre Oliver documents being the only Atheist in a Black Christian family, as well as the circumstances that lead to his non-belief and his family’s feelings towards it.
6.65
Rating: 6.65/10 based on 23 votes cast.
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And I can’t call myself a true christian…but I believe (a) GOD exists.
I am not an athiest at all, and I am black and beautiful – but Andre’s family members could have come with some better “testimonies” or some type of better reasoning. They seem like cool people but if they are trying to spread the “good news” then they need to study the bible some more. Just like me….but until I do I won’t be opening my mouth up in defense of it. But thanks Andre for this perspective because it is soooo representative of group thinking. How you gonna have faith in something you haven’t studied through and through…God don’t ask you to have blind faith, that I know.
Easiest way to answer these questions,there’s 1 thing God refuses to infringe on. Free will. He loved Hitler as much as he loves me. Everyone has a choice. I questioned God, show me! If your real show me. I died for 33 seconds and my answer was clear along with other things. If you love a flower, let it grow…for if you pick the flower it will refuse to be what you love anymore.
your family are lovely,and not dumb or blind to anything,jesus loves you and will see your heart
Andre, you are a brilliant, brave gentleman. You seem to have a very loving family that is genuinely concerned for your well being.
However, it seems obvious that many of your family members could use some education on the relationships between slavery, the subjugation of African Americans, and religion.
One primary point: slavers DID in fact force Christianity upon slaves. Slavery is certainly condoned in the Bible…..the slave owners took advantage of the illiteracy of slaves in order to indoctrinate them with the “pieces” of the Bible that were helpful to keep the slaves from revolting. It’s obvious that these hideous interpretations have continued to be passed down upon future generations of African Americans: believe without question and respect authority that likely does NOT have your community’s best interests at heart.
I would guess that most of your relatives haven’t actually READ the Bible, except for the cherry picked passages that they are told to read. The book is truly a horrific story (as you know).
A suggestion? Tell your family that you are open to starting a Bible book club with them…..meet each week….everyone should read a certain number of pages of the Bible. Then sit down and discuss what everyone read. If they obviously didn’t read the assigned passages, well, that shows that they are unwilling to educate themselves on something that they have supposedly based their entire lives upon. If they DO read it, I have little doubt that they may draw the same conclusions as you.
Hey, I’d love to see this as another documentary!
“Slavery hasn’t gone away […] it’s called minimum wage”
FUCK YOU, YOU INSENSITIVE ASSHOLE! Slavery still exists in several parts of the world. Child slaves are still being used in areas such as South America and in Asia. There’s slave trafficing going throught the fucking United States and even in Europe. Fuck you, go read a fucking book and think before you open your fucking mouth!
LOL …. dude just said “where does air come from”? Ummmmm From trees and plants just maybe…… GO TO SCHOOL! or at least study a topic before arguing against it. So ignorant and dumb.
Dude, you’re dumb! Air doesn’t come from trees or plants. Plants produce oxygen which is just one component of air… first thing you do is assume someone doesn’t know when you don’t know!
I am an American Indian and I am (to my knowledge) the only atheist in my family. Andre’s family reminds remind me of my own. My family members are the best people I have met in my life and have never pushed Christianity on me. I had a strong church upbringing and have fond memories of that time. I just never believed it. I am thankful for my family and for their adherence to the true teachings of Jesus and his doctrine of unconditional love.
Very intelligent, polite, intellectual discussion. Well done!
Wow… I thought that was very well done- that is one of the first documentaries on the subject I have seen where I don’t get all heated and angry at the ‘other side’. Everyone had a very thoughtful point of view without being combative and nasty. I really enjoyed this. Honest and cool. Thumbs up!
Loved it. Enjoyed the straight up honest answers from everyone. Interesting perspectives on the black religious culture. Well done Andre, you’ve got a great family by the way.