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The questions you pose and issues you raise, (for instance about multiple religions existing all over the world, adam & eve, the issue of hell etc), are great questions and issues to think about. However, it is clear that you seem slightly overloaded in terms of coming to a conclusion about whether or not you can know if god exists or doesn't exist beyond any reasonable doubt. I agree with the people who told you take your time in doing your own independent research on the topics you brought up. You are only 17. Some of these questions take people years and years to come to a conclusion. My advice to you (as a Christian turned atheist/agnostic) is to never be afraid of a subject that makes you feel uncomfortable. Embrace that feeling and ask yourself "Why does this make me feel uncomfortable?" Above all, use critical thinking skills in order to help you arrive to the best possible conclusion to your questions that allows you to make up your mind based on facts and evidence. This is a very important process because people who are brainwashed often lack these skills, and this is what makes them impossible to talk to, reason with, and sometimes live with. Think of all the dogmatic Christians in Africa who hunt down and burn children because they think they are witches? Not much critical thinking going on there, but a whole lot of dogma and brainwashing.
For example, if someone tells you that hell is real and that all your friends who are not Christians will go there when they die, this might make you feel pretty uncomfortable. Embrace that. Think about why what this person is telling you makes you feel that way. Now, think about the person who is telling you hell is real. Has this person been to hell and back? Does he have proof? In most cases, Christians will present you with Bible passages. But, how do we know those words written on paper are true? The best way to know for sure beyond any reasonable doubt is to test their claims. If a person tells you that hell is real, this is a claim. If that person can only show you the opinions of people who existed thousands of years ago written in an ancient book as 'proof' that their claims are true, then you can make the rational conclusion that a place called hell most likely does not exist, because their claims were only backed by the opinions of other people and not cold, hard, indisputable facts. Some Christians will claim that the Bible is the word of God, and therefore everything in it is indisputably true, but I argue that if God wanted his word to be known and accepted as true, he would have written it himself and designed things in such a way that we could test and study his words the same way we can test for and study weather patterns and other natural occurrences that can be explained or studied by science. There are many religious texts out there that claim infallibility, but the best we can do, using critical thinking and analyzing the cold, hard facts, is test the claims of those texts. If the claims can only be backed by the opinions of other people, then we can certainly make rational conclusions based on a lack of evidence about those claims.
I would agree with those who say that one way to be a strong Christian is to have faith. Unfortunately, faith won't actually give you any proof or solid conclusions that you might be looking for. What faith will do is give you a sense that your beliefs are true in spite of whether or not they actually hold any water. Faith is a virtue to many Christians, however, it is not a virtue for myself, which is why I have come to a different conclusion after being in your position for a few years.
Furthermore, it is okay to be "on the fence" about whether or not you believe in God. Just keep asking questions and thinking about these topics. It is also okay to reach a different conclusion than other people around you. I've met people who believe in God, but follow the teachings of Jesus in the same way that people follow the ideals of Ghandi or Martin Luther King, not as a 'son of God', but as a person who had a great philosophy on how to live life and treat other people.
All in all, I think the most important thing to remember during your journey is to know that being a Christian, Atheist, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew or Pagan, doesn't make you a bad person by default. It is your actions that define you as a person as we are all inspired by many different beliefs and philosophies in life. There is no rush to feel that you need to either believe 100% in a God or not. Take your time and learn for the sake of learning
For example, if someone tells you that hell is real and that all your friends who are not Christians will go there when they die, this might make you feel pretty uncomfortable. Embrace that. Think about why what this person is telling you makes you feel that way. Now, think about the person who is telling you hell is real. Has this person been to hell and back? Does he have proof? In most cases, Christians will present you with Bible passages. But, how do we know those words written on paper are true? The best way to know for sure beyond any reasonable doubt is to test their claims. If a person tells you that hell is real, this is a claim. If that person can only show you the opinions of people who existed thousands of years ago written in an ancient book as 'proof' that their claims are true, then you can make the rational conclusion that a place called hell most likely does not exist, because their claims were only backed by the opinions of other people and not cold, hard, indisputable facts. Some Christians will claim that the Bible is the word of God, and therefore everything in it is indisputably true, but I argue that if God wanted his word to be known and accepted as true, he would have written it himself and designed things in such a way that we could test and study his words the same way we can test for and study weather patterns and other natural occurrences that can be explained or studied by science. There are many religious texts out there that claim infallibility, but the best we can do, using critical thinking and analyzing the cold, hard facts, is test the claims of those texts. If the claims can only be backed by the opinions of other people, then we can certainly make rational conclusions based on a lack of evidence about those claims.
I would agree with those who say that one way to be a strong Christian is to have faith. Unfortunately, faith won't actually give you any proof or solid conclusions that you might be looking for. What faith will do is give you a sense that your beliefs are true in spite of whether or not they actually hold any water. Faith is a virtue to many Christians, however, it is not a virtue for myself, which is why I have come to a different conclusion after being in your position for a few years.
Furthermore, it is okay to be "on the fence" about whether or not you believe in God. Just keep asking questions and thinking about these topics. It is also okay to reach a different conclusion than other people around you. I've met people who believe in God, but follow the teachings of Jesus in the same way that people follow the ideals of Ghandi or Martin Luther King, not as a 'son of God', but as a person who had a great philosophy on how to live life and treat other people.
All in all, I think the most important thing to remember during your journey is to know that being a Christian, Atheist, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew or Pagan, doesn't make you a bad person by default. It is your actions that define you as a person as we are all inspired by many different beliefs and philosophies in life. There is no rush to feel that you need to either believe 100% in a God or not. Take your time and learn for the sake of learning