Why
I became an Atheist:
A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity
By
John W. Loftus
Geoffrey W. Sutton
John Loftus explains his reasons for becoming an atheist in a way that’s quite different from the likes of Dawkins (2006) and Harris (2004). Loftus knows Christianity from the inside and the outside. He graduated from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and served as a pastor. The text reveals his familiarity with Christian theologies and apologetics.
The author covers some familiar territory by reviewing the problems with the classic arguments for the existence of God. These arguments are commonly presented in philosophy of religion courses. As is commonly known, the arguments do not offer a pathway to belief in the God of the Bible or another god. Loftus presentation is even-handed and not belligerent.
He also challenges Christian views of the Bible. As might be expected, he points out problems with the texts and the associated difficulty of accepting the Bible as infallible or authoritative.
Loftus presents his views in terms of three categories. One
category is the outsider test for faith. That is, how would various biblical stories sound to someone who is not a Christian. He presents readers with
stories that would sound strange to an outsider like the story of Jonah and the
fish.
A second category or theme is the problem of discovering
biblical truth in ancient stories reflecting superstitious beliefs about the
causes of events. The Bible contains stories about God's life-destroying earthquakes and a world-wide
flood. These events are interpreted by biblical writers as God's punishment for sin. Although Loftus is an atheist, Christians also question the attribution of natural disasters to God who is presented by Jesus as a loving father.
The third category deserves more attention by thoughtful
readers as he tackles the problem of evil. He presents the arguments well. Thoughtful readers will recognize that there are no easy answers to the presence of evil.
______________
There are several Christian beliefs that Loftus challenges
as unreasonable or improbable. These include Jesus' virgin birth, Jesus as God
incarnate, and the physical resurrection of Jesus. He quotes evangelical and
atheistic sources as he strives to engage readers in reconsidering these Christian traditions.
______________
Loftus sums up his project: “I have done what they asked me
to do. I’ve examined and evaluated Christianity with the standards of reason
and modern science and concluded the Christian faith is not a reasonable faith”
(p. 402).
______________
Reflections
John Loftus provides some insights into his spiritual
journey at the beginning of the book. I include them here because they
represent my interest in the psychology of religion. In this case, Loftus
offers us insights into conversion and deconversion of a person who is clearly
a highly intelligent thinker.
He converted to Christianity at age 18 after a decidedly “un-Christian”
lifestyle, which he succinctly describes as featuring alcohol, drugs, and sex.
By all appearances, he became a committed Christian with a passion to serve
Christ. He attended seminary and served as a pastor. Three events appear
critical in his deconversion.
First, Loftus had an affair, which of course garners much
unwanted attention for any ardent Christian—especially clergy. Second, he, like many others, struggled with the Genesis story of creation, which appeared to contradict
scientific evidence. And third, after resigning from the ministry due to the
affair, he continued to experience spiritual struggles. Concerning these
experiences, he wrote: “This was the last blow to my faith and one of the
reasons why I am an atheist today” (italics in the original, p. 31).
The deconversion
experience leading from Christianity to atheism is of course based on Loftus’
recollection of events. However, it is noteworthy to consider the role of
emotions in these experiences. Although Loftus’ work relies heavily on reason
to show why select Christian beliefs or biblical events are unreasonable, it is
hard to avoid wondering about the intensity of feelings that might accompany
his spiritual struggles. Rather than attribute emotions to an author I do not
know, I offer this reflection to suggest looking deeply at the emotional
component that gives energy to religious and spiritual conversions and
deconversions.
Loftus also offers insights into consideration of another principle
of psychology called sunk
costs. People have a tendency to invest heavily into a career. On
the one hand, Loftus invested personal resources in obtaining a seminary degree
and working as a pastor. When investments go bad, many people cling to them or
even invest more time and resources rather than admit to a loss. Walking away
from faith and investing in a new identity as an atheist is a “cut your losses”
type of move. Now he has invested in this new “career.” People are different in
how they manage this investment of resources in faith. Many find it hard to
move to a different church even when their current understanding of faith doesn’t
fit well with their existing congregation.
As a psychologist, I also consider the role of human memory in dealing with ancient texts. Such considerations can accommodate differences in recall by eye witnesses. This will not help Christians who require a perfectly accurate text but an acceptance of the human factor in the works of biblical authors may allow some Christians to focus on the meaning of a give text or perhaps an acceptance of a literary presentation of a conversation reported perhaps 30-40 years before it was written in a gospel. One evangelical scholar, Craig Keener, recently acknowledged the contribution of memory research.
Finally, I wonder if his spiritual career might have been different if
compassionate Christians had offered him restorative support following his
affair or if he had found a home in one of the progressive Christian
congregations with support from progressive writers who offer a Christianity based on following Jesus' Way rather than affirming a set of belief statements.
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John W. Loftus is a former Christian minister and apologist
who is now an atheist. Following graduation from Great Lakes Christian College,
he earned M.A. and M. Div. degrees from Lincoln Christian Seminary and a
Th.M. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. In addition to taking courses
toward a Ph.D., he taught classes on apologetics and philosophy at Christian
and secular colleges.
References
Dawkins, R. (2006). The god delusion. New York:
Houghton Mifflin.
Harris, S. (2004). The end of faith: Religion, terror;
and the future of reason. New York: WW. Norton.
Loftus, J.W. (2008). Why I became an atheist: A former
preacher rejects Christianity. Amherst, NY: Prometheus.
Sutton, G.
W. (2010). Boundaries of faith and reason: Loftus’s path to Christianity and
atheism. Journal
of Psychology and Theology, 38,
65-68. Research
Gate Link Academia
Link
Sutton, G. W. (2009). [Review of the book The End of faith: Religion, terror, and the future of reason by S.
Harris]. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 28,
280-281. Academia Link Research
Gate Link
Sutton, G. W. (2009).
[Review of the book The god delusion
by R. Dawkins]. Journal
of Spirituality in Mental Health, 11, 235-239. Academia Link Research
Gate Link
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