I don't believe it. Upbringing influences you tremendously--even if your athiest parents made you long for religious communities you saw your friends have, or your uber-religious parents helped you realize the hypocracy of your faith.

Well, yes, upbringing has an influence on it. It is also possible there may be a gene within one's body that causes you to believe in a higher power. However, it is still that person's choice. I had a friend who came from a long standing Catholic family, and he went to Catholic school. However, he is Agnostic. Ultimately, I believe it is the individual. A gene may affect that person, upbringing may affect that person, but it is still the person's ultimate choice. That is my opinion, and thank you to anyone who read it.

It makes perfect sense that this could be possible. however it must be a recessive trait because true non-beleivers are pretty rare. This is highly likely to me, and much more plausable than some of the religious arguments that i've heard for other things. If there isnt a logical explanation like this then how do you explain the people who DON't beleive. People who are raised catholic.. surrounded by catholics... and yet they completely reject the concept of God.. even though no big incident has happened to "break" their faith? and why is it that usually when two "athiest" parents get together their child ends up a non-beleiver as well? I have many friends who truly do not beleive, yet they pretend to because it is a comforting thought and they WANT to beleive.. they just don't... why is this if it is not a direct result of something they can't control?