Published inExCommunications·Jun 21, 2022Why We Need Evidence“Just believing” isn’t good enough — Christian apologetics has, at best, a mixed record in response to critics insisting that the religion’s claims require evidence before they can be accepted. Tim Keller, author of The Reason for God (one of the most prominent apologetics books of today), asserts flat-out in his book that evidence is unnecessary: …Religion4 min readReligion4 min read
Published inExCommunications·Jan 11, 2022Review: “Atheism for Kids” by Jessica Thorpe & Teal BarnesHaving “the (other) talk” with young children Atheism today can be such a sensitive topic that, if a child asks “Mom, what’s an atheist,” the mother might well reply: “…Have I ever explained how Mommy and Daddy make a baby?” Fortunately, author Jessica Thorpe and illustrator Teal Barnes make this…Atheism4 min readAtheism4 min read
Published inExCommunications·Dec 14, 2021Review: “The Anatomy of Deconversion” by John MarriottThe process and outcomes of deconversion from Christianity Dr. John Marriott, Professor of Philosophy at Biola University, set out to produce the most comprehensive look to date regarding how and why people leave the Christian faith. …Religion10 min readReligion10 min read
Published inExCommunications·Dec 2, 2021Can Sunday School Teachers Be Wrong?Are mistakes allowed, with eternity at stake? — Secularists like myself commonly leave the Christian environment of our childhood at least partly from discovering that certain Christian claims are untrue. When we describe these experiences to Christians, a common response is that not all Christians believe those claims, and that we must not have grown up with True…Religion3 min readReligion3 min read
Published inExCommunications·Sep 10, 2021Do Science and Christianity Conflict?It’s complicated. But less so than Christians would like. Modern Christians enthusiastically insist that science and (their) religion can coexist peacefully, at a time when a perceived hostility to science is seen as one reason that young people are leaving the faith. The Colson Center’s YouTube channel spoke on the…Christianity7 min readChristianity7 min read
Published inExCommunications·Jul 24, 2021Do Evangelicals Want Me to Suffer?When Bad Things are Wished on Good People — In my last post, I described the scariest period of my life — a time when any existing gods who really wanted a personal relationship with me would have swooped in to 1) demonstrate that they exist and 2) help me through it in some tangible way. …Religion4 min readReligion4 min read
Published inExCommunications·May 13, 2021No God Helped Me When I Needed It MostIf not then, what would it take? — CW: Emotional abuse If you spend enough time in church environments, you have probably heard a few people give their Christian testimonies — that is, their stories about THE moment when they accepted Jesus as their lord and savior. Many of these stories, I have realized, tend to follow the…Spirituality5 min readSpirituality5 min read
Published inExCommunications·Apr 12, 2021“Indiana Jones” and God’s Imperfect PlanHow “The Big Bang Theory” Pokes a Hole in Both — At one time in my life, I was a huge fan of the CBS sitcom, “The Big Bang Theory.” Valid criticisms aside, I thought it was cool that science and geek culture had become popular enough that studio execs thought that we nerds were worth pandering to. And I’ll admit…Storytelling3 min readStorytelling3 min read
Published inExCommunications·Mar 12, 2021An Atheist Goes to Church CampWait, what? — I’d like to share an increasingly-weird fact about me: I’m an atheist who voluntarily goes to a week of church camp during every (non-pandemic) summer. To address the obvious question first: no, the other campers do not know that I’m an atheist (as of this writing, at least). Some of…Family6 min readFamily6 min read
Published inExCommunications·Feb 18, 2021Covid-19 and the Problem of EvilNo loving, all-powerful god would let this happen — The Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably revived one of Christianity’s bigger philosophical challenges: the “Problem of Evil,” which tries to reconcile a loving Heavenly Father with the tragedies that occur on Earth. This problem is often phrased with the question “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Christians routinely answer…Atheism4 min readAtheism4 min read
