Local Resident's Search for Truth Leads Them Away From Religion
- Robert Perrell
- Oct 12, 2019
- 4 min read
The decision to leave religion is a personal choice for many people, sometimes taking years to develop and often met with negative repercussions. Asking people to share that story and, in essence, open themselves up to scrutiny is no easy task. So, when I extended a request to the Freethought Society of the Midland's Facebook group that I was looking to interview someone about their "de-conversion" from religious to non-religious, there were not many volunteers. Eventually though I was contacted by Erik, who is in the process of writing a book about his experience in leaving religion. I jumped at the opportunity to speak with him and we scheduled a lunch interview the following Wednesday.
Erik sat waiting for me at a booth in the corner of Pho Viet, an authentic Vietnamese restaurant located in the “Five Points” district of Columbia, South Carolina. The small restaurant only had a dozen or so patrons and gave off a green glow of peace and tranquility as I entered through the double doors. The décor was simple and clean, with walls painted in a light green color while the window at the front was letting in natural light that filtered through several plants on display.
Erik was dressed in a black collared shirt and was perusing the menu as I sat down across the table from him. Looking at the menu was a ruse though, as Erik knew exactly what he wanted.
“The number 60, and you won’t be disappointed,” said Erik after I asked for a suggestion on what to order.
I had never eaten Vietnamese food before and even though I had my doubts, I took a risk and indulged myself in this new experience. How else can we find out the truth than to experience what is out there?
We exchanged pleasantries and I began to explain myself and my goal for the interview. It is always interesting when two non-believers meet for the first time, they look each other over and immediately seem to recognize a commonality in the stranger before them. A sense of belonging, that the person across this dark wood table knows something that many do not and they understand how important that is.
Erik, who was once a strict Southern Baptist, began to navigate through his story as the food was delivered to the table. I will admit, at first it was hard to concentrate as I got the first look at the unique cuisine in front of me. Warm and tangy pork along with heavily grilled shrimp rested on a bevy of thin noodles, fresh lettuce, alfalfa sprouts and other tantalizing vegetables. I watched and copied Erik as he poured a brownish colored sauce all over the food, then followed that with my personal favorite, Sriracha hot sauce. I knew what to do from there, grabbing my chopsticks, mixing the contents and ravenously devouring this meal I never knew existed ten minutes ago.
Erik continued his story as we ate, explaining that he always had wanted to be a “good Christian” but there had come a time in his life where he began to doubt the teachings of the church and his place in it. He finally asked his God to show him the way, to use him for whatever purpose that was needed to better serve.
“I just remember being in the shower and dropping to my knees and praying right there, asking for God to reveal what he needed from me,” said Erik.
After this prayer, Erik’s doubts began to grow as he was confronted with several life events that challenged his faith. These were simple events, ones that some would consider trivial, for in fact, he had no terminal illness or traumatic experience, but instead, he was faced with basic philosophical truths that he had been avoiding for years.
He began to scrutinize not only the Bible but his entire faith in religion. He studied religious texts and historical documents, comparing their similarities and noting their differences. He slowly realized throughout his research that he no longer could believe in the teachings of the church and formally dispelled the notion that a God existed.
His search for truth had yielded results, just not the ones he was looking for.
“I never set out to be an atheist, I just wanted to better understand my religion and to find the truth in why I believe what I believed,” said Erik.
I looked down at my bowl as Erik finished his story, desperately trying to conjure the skills necessary to finish off the few small portions left with nothing but a pair of chopsticks. Eventually, I slid my bowl to the side of the table and looked up at Erik, who was doing the same. I understood his story, I recognized his dilemma. As non-believers we have all come to that decision at one point or another, for one reason or another, it is what binds us as a community.
We continued talking about our post religious lives and Erik mentioned the scrutiny he faced for even questioning the religious teachings.
“All I did was ask questions, but I found out the hard way that questions about the church would not be tolerated,” said Erik.
This is not a unique experience, according to a 2014 pew research study, Evangelical Christians rated atheists lowest among religious groups in a “feeling thermometer” from zero to 100. Atheists came in at a frigid 25, just under another, much maligned group in America, Muslims. This may explain why even asking questions about faith caused so many negative reactions for Erik.
Many religious Americans are experiencing more doubt in God each year and, along with this doubt, come questions about the validity of the church’s claims. In Erik’s case, the inability to answer those questions helped clarify his decision that God did not represent truth, and for him, he immediately saw a difference in his life.
“I am a much better person now than when I was religious, I get my morality from a more humanist point of view and that has changed my outlook on life and people in general,” said Erik.
Ultimately, he embodied the powerful words of author Christopher Hitchens, “take the risk of thinking for yourself, much more happiness, truth, beauty and wisdom will come to you that way.”
Erik’s risk paid off, and so did mine.
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