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After Year Of Atheism, Former Pastor: 'I Don't Think God Exists'

Angry Floof

Angry Floof

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The pastor who tried living without God for a year now says he's no longer a believer. I couldn't find the old thread on it.

After Year Of Atheism, Former Pastor: 'I Don't Think God Exists'

Now he thinks certainty is a bit overrated.

"I think before I wanted a closer relationship to God and today I just want a closer relationship with reality," Bell says.
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(Emphasis mine.)

That's a pretty amazing statement.

I honestly don't know what to think of this. Part of me says, "yay!" but it all seems too pat. Maybe I'll read more of his blog later and hopefully get a better sense of his experience.
 
I share your skepticism; if he's an atheist now, chances are he was an atheist, or at least a serious doubter, before he started his twelve months.
 
bigfield said:
I share your skepticism; if he's an atheist now, chances are he was an atheist, or at least a serious doubter, before he started his twelve months.
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Yeah, you kinda get the feeling it was set up to go this way. I'll hold out judgment for sure until after I read more of his blog.
 
hylidae said:
bigfield said:
I share your skepticism; if he's an atheist now, chances are he was an atheist, or at least a serious doubter, before he started his twelve months.
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Yeah, you kinda get the feeling it was set up to go this way. I'll hold out judgment for sure until after I read more of his blog.
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Here. I didn't read his blog, but when I selected a "random" page from it, I got the following:

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/yearwithoutgod/2014/04/10/anticipating-my-journey-a-page-from-my-journal/

journal_may-14-2013-768x1024.jpeg
 
I was skeptical of the whole thing since I first heard of this stunt.

We don't choose what we believe. Once you know the evidence that the world is round instead of flat, then you can't choose to believe in a flat Earth even if you really want to. You can choose what evidence to accept but you can't really choose what conclusions the evidence leads you to.
 
I actually accused him, when he started (via an email) that it was just a publicity stunt where he'd write a book about trying atheism and finding it wrong.

Turns out I was wrong. It was just a publicity stunt to make money off his deconversion.

I mean, all of us here have been through the same process, we just didn't make a big deal about it and got a documentary made about us.

Welcome to the new era of self promotion/celebrity.
 
Well, count me in the group that believes what he is currently saying. Just having looked at some of his blog posts and statements, he seems to make some very sincere comments about how he was wrong about atheists and his judgments of them, and that religious viewpoints seem to be more erroneous than he had previously realized. Like Kosh mentions, I initially thought it was a setup and he would return to fundamentalism at the end of the year. He seems though to legitimately hold some atheist outlooks and understandings of how the world really works now. He seems legit, to me anyway.

Brian
 
I've always held that atheism can be quantified, not so much in what people say but by what they do. If this guy is staying off the sauce he's atheist in my book.
 
Which means there's got to be pastors with nuanced minds and a bold range of reading who find themselves atheistic but deep into a career in preaching. Imagine standing before a congregation and pontificating on stuff you know is absurd.
 
Now he can be agnostic for a year and declare whether or not he thinks we can ever know if gods exist.
 
I can't help but weigh in, being a former preacher myself and now a resolute skeptic. This guy's story is very similar to mine, as it took roughly a year of decompression between when I stepped out of the pulpit for the final time and when I came to the realization that it was all untrue.

Some of you may know that this year I joined The Clergy Project, a secret society strictly vetted to make sure you are who you claim to be. Hundreds of members of that society are active clergy who have come to the realization that they no longer believe. Protection of their anonymity is the prime directive. Almost 2/3 of the membership (like me) are what we call "alumni," people who continue to process the effects of transitioning from clergy to skeptic. Some have it rougher than others obviously.

The Internet, with its vast pool of readily accessible information, is allowing people to question things they once held sacred. Without the power of the Internet I'd probably still be a fundamentalist believer. The Internet helped me come to terms with the value of disparate cultures and beliefs. It then helped me look into questions I dared not ask in an earlier time. It also assured me I was not alone in my quest for answers. Once the light of truth bitch-slaps you with the absurdity of your once cherished beliefs it's pretty hard to go back to superstition and ignorance.
 
ideologyhunter said:
Which means there's got to be pastors with nuanced minds and a bold range of reading who find themselves atheistic but deep into a career in preaching. Imagine standing before a congregation and pontificating on stuff you know is absurd.
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We have several former preachers on this board and one I remember who was still preaching but juggling his non-belief, his family's expected reaction, consequences to them from the congregation if found out, and his many years invested.

So I think it is very real about active preachers including doubters.
 
Questioning one's beliefs should be the normal state of affairs, it's sad that it probably won't ever be.
 
Atheos said:
I can't help but weigh in, being a former preacher myself and now a resolute skeptic. This guy's story is very similar to mine, as it took roughly a year of decompression between when I stepped out of the pulpit for the final time and when I came to the realization that it was all untrue.

Some of you may know that this year I joined The Clergy Project, a secret society strictly vetted to make sure you are who you claim to be. Hundreds of members of that society are active clergy who have come to the realization that they no longer believe. Protection of their anonymity is the prime directive. Almost 2/3 of the membership (like me) are what we call "alumni," people who continue to process the effects of transitioning from clergy to skeptic.
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So you're a member of a "secret" society that welcomes members who are willing to fleece believers?
 
Kharakov said:
Atheos said:
I can't help but weigh in, being a former preacher myself and now a resolute skeptic. This guy's story is very similar to mine, as it took roughly a year of decompression between when I stepped out of the pulpit for the final time and when I came to the realization that it was all untrue.

Some of you may know that this year I joined The Clergy Project, a secret society strictly vetted to make sure you are who you claim to be. Hundreds of members of that society are active clergy who have come to the realization that they no longer believe. Protection of their anonymity is the prime directive. Almost 2/3 of the membership (like me) are what we call "alumni," people who continue to process the effects of transitioning from clergy to skeptic.
Click to expand...
So you're a member of a "secret" society that welcomes members who are willing to fleece believers?
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That's one way of looking at it if you don't account for the fact that the most common reason for which these folks join the society is because their personal integrity is at odds with continuing the facade. Most of these people have spouses and children depending on their income for their very subsistence. Summarily quitting their job just because it has gotten uncomfortable for them to do it would be entirely selfish. It's a tormenting conflict and I personally find your flippant characterization of the very real emotional turmoil these people endure quite offensive.

The Clergy Project provides assistance to such people, helping them find the resources, training and support to transition gracefully out of a livelihood their personal sense of integrity deems inappropriate. Most of them, like I did, got into the profession out of a deep commitment to do what was right.

Not every clergy member who becomes skeptical joins this group. Truth be known there are probably lots of clergy out there who never believed any of the BS they were taught in Sunday School. But of those who entered the profession as believers I would dare say there are some who grew skeptical and decided to continue "fleecing" and are not at all bothered by guilt. At that point it can become very similar to being a politician. Or a shady used car salesman.
 
ideologyhunter said:
Which means there's got to be pastors with nuanced minds and a bold range of reading who find themselves atheistic but deep into a career in preaching. Imagine standing before a congregation and pontificating on stuff you know is absurd.
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I suspect this is true. I've also suspected that there must a lot of members who no longer really believe but are afraid to step out for many reasons.

Wouldn't it be funny if we found the churches were actually fully of closet Atheists preaching to closet Atheists.

Not unlike a majority of the old "soviets" in the USSR!
 
Atheos said:
Kharakov said:
So you're a member of a "secret" society that welcomes members who are willing to fleece believers?
Click to expand...
That's one way of looking at it if you don't account for the fact that the most common reason for which these folks join the society is because their personal integrity is at odds with continuing the facade. Most of these people have spouses and children depending on their income for their very subsistence. Summarily quitting their job just because it has gotten uncomfortable for them to do it would be entirely selfish. It's a tormenting conflict and I personally find your flippant characterization of the very real emotional turmoil these people endure quite offensive.
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Of course the conflict is tormenting. They are deciding to, in a very real way, betray a group that they once served lovingly. They will bare this mark for life, so they need another group to attach themselves to who is willing to accept someone who would lie to a group of people they love in exchange for comfort.
Atheos said:
The Clergy Project provides assistance to such people, helping them find the resources, training and support to transition gracefully out of a livelihood their personal sense of integrity deems inappropriate.
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Hope they can learn a better path to love.
 
GenesisNemesis said:
Kharakov said:
You should question your beliefs a bit more.
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I do. Hence "probably"- I allow for some chance of it happening, however improbable.I'm not saying it's impossible.
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It was a metajoke about questioning your belief that you should question your beliefs. Should you question your belief that questioning your beliefs is something you should normally do?


Do you ever question your beliefs about the non-consciousness of spacetime or matter? Whatever happened to Smullyanesque? He was such a dick, fucking shame that he's gone.
 
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