GRAND RAPIDS — Cathy and Jefferson Seaver are atheists, and they said they liked the Christian preschool in Allendale Township, where they sent their son.

But when they tried to send their daughter there a couple of years later, they hit a snag.

The school required them to sign a statement of faith in God. Feeling it would be a lie, Cathy asked if she could opt out. The administrators said if they didn’t sign, the school would not enroll their daughter.

"That was clear discrimination, and it was very disappointing," she told an audience Wednesday at the Center for Inquiry Michigan gathering at the Women's City Club.

The nonreligious group caused a stir last month by buying space on a billboard along northbound U.S. 131 near Hall Street SW with the message: “You don’t need God — to hope, to care, to live, to love.”

A story about the group and its billboard on MLive.com resulted in nearly 900 comments and counting from readers debating the need for belief — or not — in God.

Panelists with the group shared stories about their “de-conversion” from religious belief — mainly Christianity — and explained their reasoning for choosing to live that way, even though it puts them in a minority that may result in persecution.

“It’s very important to provide our community with a voice, and that’s where the billboard fits into this,” said moderator Jefferson Seaver, who used much of the online debate as fodder for quizzing panelists about their philosophy on things like morality and doubt, and how their nonbelief in God has affected family and relationships.

Panelists stressed that becoming an atheist does not lead to a sad, unfulfilling life. Quite the contrary, they said.

Casting off belief in hell and other religious dogma can be liberating, each said.

“It was amazing how little for me changed,” said Jeremy Beahan, a professor at Kendall College of Art & Design. He said he was attending a Bible college when he changed his mind about God. “I feel like my horizons have been broadened by leaving religion behind.”

Ellen Lundgren, a student leader with the Center for Inquiry chapter at Grand Valley State University, said religious history, when looked at from an academic perspective, appears more akin to mythology. She believes science offers a better basis for understating the natural world.

Panelist Jason Pittman, a Center for Inquiry board member, stressed that “we’re not this scary ‘other’ trying to take over.”

Nonetheless, one panelist, “Mike R.” — who refused to give his last name out of fear of co-workers’ potential reprisal — said a friend noticed comments he made on Facebook and said, “I didn’t know you were an atheist — you seem like such a nice guy.”

Beahan said his days as a Christian helped teach him to think more deeply, but after he left religion behind, he began to look back at some of his experiences, like summer youth camp, as a “little creepy.”

As for his grounding in morality, Beahan said being nonreligious allows one to care for a wider swath of people without being shackled by some dogma that dictates that maybe certain groups “aren’t worth caring about,” he said. “Empathy and compassion are naturally woven into the human fabric. Ideology comes later.”

In the back of the room, there were Center for Inquiry shirts and bumper stickers available. One audience member stood up and “came out” as an atheist, thanking the group for the billboard. Several others asked what could be done to boost positive perceptions about atheists locally.

Cathy Seaver said the local Secular Service Committee always is accepting donations or volunteers for diaper drives, eyeglass give-aways and other community services. Their events can be found at www.cfimichigan.org.

E-mail the author of this story: localnews@grpress.com