DOCSLIB.ORG

Losing Faith in Fundamentalist Christianity

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Losing Faith in Fundamentalist Christianity LOSING FAITH IN FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIANITY: AN INTERPRETATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS by Karen Heather Ross A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology for Psychology Specialists Graduate Department of Adult Education and Counselling Psychology Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto © Copyright by Karen Heather Ross (2009) Losing Faith in Fundamentalist Christianity: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Karen Heather Ross Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology for Psychology Specialists Department of Adult Education and Counselling Psychology Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto 2009 ABSTRACT This study investigated the psychological experience of losing faith in God, within the context of fundamentalist Christianity. Nine former fundamentalist Christians were interviewed about their experience of losing faith. Data analysis was guided by principles of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, 2004), an inductive qualitative approach that identifies themes to generate a description of an experience’s essence. Themes were classified into three domains (Experience of Christianity, Transition out of Christianity, and Experience of Unbelief). Participants’ transition was characterized by emotional shifts (associated with a loss of trust in, or loyalty to, God) and intellectual shifts (associated with a loss of belief in God’s existence). Two typologies of experience emerged within the Experience of Unbelief, one characterized by a sense of relief and the other by a sense of struggle. The findings are discussed in relation to theories of identity and attachment, and are used to generate recommendations for counselling practice. ii Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... ii Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................... iii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ vi List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. vii List of Appendices ...................................................................................................................... viii Chapter I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................1 Rationale and background .......................................................................................................2 Purpose of the study ..............................................................................................................11 Guiding questions of the study ...............................................................................................13 Organization of the study ......................................................................................................13 II. Literature Review ......................................................................................................14 Evangelical and fundamentalist Christianity ..........................................................................14 Religious transition .................................................................................................................19 Psychotherapy with former fundamentalist Christians...........................................................31 Summary: Literature review ...................................................................................................36 III. Methods .......................................................................................................................37 Research approach ..................................................................................................................37 Procedure ................................................................................................................................44 Methodological biases and limitations ...................................................................................52 IV. Results, Part 1: Experience of Christianity .............................................................54 Participant summaries ............................................................................................................54 Domain 1: Experience of Christianity ....................................................................................66 Immersion in Christianity .......................................................................................................68 Relationship with God ............................................................................................................71 Christian identity and worldview ...........................................................................................73 Guilt ........................................................................................................................................78 Fulfillment of psychological needs ........................................................................................80 iii Deviations from the Christian norm .......................................................................................82 Dealing with cognitive dissonance .........................................................................................87 Summary: Experience of Christianity ....................................................................................90 V. Results, Part 2: Transition out of Christianity ........................................................91 Increasing tension ...................................................................................................................96 Crisis or catalyst .....................................................................................................................98 Interaction of emotional and intellectual factors ..................................................................100 Emotional and intuitive shifts ...............................................................................................102 Intellectual shifts ..................................................................................................................108 Acknowledging unbelief ......................................................................................................113 Summary: Transition out of Christianity ..............................................................................114 VI. Results, Part 3: Experience of Unbelief .................................................................116 Type A .................................................................................................................................118 Resolution of tension .......................................................................................................119 Embracing new possibilities ............................................................................................122 Negative views of religion ...............................................................................................127 Strengthening the identity of unbelief ..............................................................................131 Type B ..................................................................................................................................134 Loss ..................................................................................................................................135 Emotional ties to belief ....................................................................................................140 The letdown of unbelief ...................................................................................................143 Depression .......................................................................................................................145 Comparison of types .............................................................................................................146 Social consequences .............................................................................................................149 Counselling experiences .......................................................................................................157 Summary: Experience of Unbelief ......................................................................................162 VII. Discussion..................................................................................................................164 Summary of results ...............................................................................................................165 Identity ..................................................................................................................................171 iv Attachment and loss .............................................................................................................186 Summary of discussion ........................................................................................................190 VIII. Conclusions ...............................................................................................................191 Implications for counselling
Load more

Recommended publications
  • More Visible but Limited in Its Popularity Atheism (And Atheists) in Finland
    TEEMU TAIRA More visible but limited in its popularity Atheism (and atheists) in Finland his paper argues that atheism has become more atheism has become more visible in the public sphere, visible in Finland, but it is a relatively unpopular especi ally in the media. Some suggestions will be of­ Tidentity position. The relatively low popularity of fered as to why this is the case. This will be done by atheism is partly explained by the connection between using different kinds of data, both quantitative (sur­ Lutheranism and Finnishness. In public discourse athe- veys) and qualitative (mainly media outputs). ism has been historically connected to communism This paper proceeds as follows. First, surveys and the Soviet Union (and, therefore, anti-Finnishness). about Finnish religiosity and atheism will be exam­ However, atheism has slowly changed from being the ined in order to chart the modes and locations of other of Finnishness to one alternative identity among Finnish non­religiosity. This section is based on a many, although it has not become extremely popular. fairly detailed exploration of surveys, including an Recently, with the rise of the so-called ‘New Atheism’, examination of the popularity of religious beliefs, re­ atheism has become more visible in Finnish society and ligious behaviour, membership and identification in this development has led to a polarised debate between Finland. It demonstrates that atheism is relatively un­ defenders and critics of religion. Despite being a study popular in Finland, despite the low level of religious on locality, the aim is to develop a methodological ap- activity. In order to examine why this is the case, pub­ proach that can be applied to other contexts.
    [Show full text]
  • Atheism” in America: What the United States Could Learn from Europe’S Protection of Atheists
    Emory International Law Review Volume 27 Issue 1 2013 Redefining A" theism" in America: What the United States Could Learn From Europe's Protection of Atheists Alan Payne Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/eilr Recommended Citation Alan Payne, Redefining A" theism" in America: What the United States Could Learn From Europe's Protection of Atheists, 27 Emory Int'l L. Rev. 661 (2013). Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/eilr/vol27/iss1/14 This Comment is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Emory Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Emory International Law Review by an authorized editor of Emory Law Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PAYNE GALLEYSPROOFS1 7/2/2013 1:01 PM REDEFINING “ATHEISM” IN AMERICA: WHAT THE UNITED STATES COULD LEARN FROM EUROPE’S PROTECTION OF ATHEISTS ABSTRACT There continues to be a pervasive and persistent stigma against atheists in the United States. The current legal protection of atheists is largely defined by the use of the Establishment Clause to strike down laws that reinforce this stigma or that attempt to deprive atheists of their rights. However, the growing atheist population, a religious pushback against secularism, and a neo- Federalist approach to the religion clauses in the Supreme Court could lead to the rights of atheists being restricted. This Comment suggests that the United States could look to the legal protections of atheists in Europe. Particularly, it notes the expansive protection of belief, thought, and conscience and some forms of establishment.
    [Show full text]
  • Part Four - 'Made in America: Christian Fundamentalism' Transcript
    Part Four - 'Made in America: Christian Fundamentalism' Transcript Date: Wednesday, 10 November 2010 - 2:00PM Location: Barnard's Inn Hall 10 November 2010 Made in America Christian Fundamentalism Dr John A Dick Noam Chomsky: “We must bear in mind that the U.S. is a very fundamentalist society, perhaps more than any other society in the world – even more fundamentalist than Saudi Arabia or the Taliban. That's very surprising.” Overview: (1) Introduction (2) Five-stage evolution of fundamentalism in the United States (3) Features common to all fundamentalisms (4) What one does about fundamentalism INTRODUCTION: In 1980 the greatly respected American historian, George Marsden published Fundamentalism and American Culture, a history of the first decades of American fundamentalism. The book quickly rose to prominence, provoking new studies of American fundamentalism and contributing to a renewal of interest in American religious history. The book’s timing was fortunate, for it was published as a resurgent fundamentalism was becoming active in politics and society. The term “fundamentalism” was first applied in the 1920’s to Protestant movements in the United States that interpreted the Bible in an extreme and literal sense. In the United States, the term “fundamentalism” was first extended to other religious traditions around the time of the Iranian Revolution in 1978-79. In general all fundamentalist movements arise when traditional societies are forced to face a kind of social disintegration of their way of life, a loss of personal and group meaning and the introduction of new customs that lead to a loss of personal and group orientation.
    [Show full text]
  • Inseparable Faith: Exploring Manifestations and Experiences of Faith-Work Integration in Young Alumni from a Christian University Emilie Hoffman Taylor University
    Taylor University Pillars at Taylor University Master of Arts in Higher Education Thesis Collection 2017 Inseparable Faith: Exploring Manifestations and Experiences of Faith-Work Integration in Young Alumni from a Christian University Emilie Hoffman Taylor University Follow this and additional works at: https://pillars.taylor.edu/mahe Part of the Higher Education Commons Recommended Citation Hoffman, Emilie, "Inseparable Faith: Exploring Manifestations and Experiences of Faith-Work Integration in Young Alumni from a Christian University" (2017). Master of Arts in Higher Education Thesis Collection. 90. https://pillars.taylor.edu/mahe/90 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Pillars at Taylor University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master of Arts in Higher Education Thesis Collection by an authorized administrator of Pillars at Taylor University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INSEPARABLE FAITH: EXPLORING MANIFESTATIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF FAITH-WORK INTEGRATION IN YOUNG ALUMNI FROM A CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY _______________________ A thesis Presented to The School of Social Sciences, Education & Business Department of Higher Education and Student Development Taylor University Upland, Indiana ______________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Higher Education and Student Development _______________________ by Emilie Hoffman May 2017 Emilie Hoffman 2017 Higher Education and Student Development Taylor University Upland, Indiana CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL _________________________ MASTER’S THESIS _________________________ This is to certify that the Thesis of Emilie Hoffman entitled Inseparable Faith: Exploring Manifestations and Experiences of Faith-Work Integration in Young Alumni from a Christian University has been approved by the Examining Committee for the thesis requirement for the Master of Arts degree in Higher Education and Student Development May 2017 __________________________ _____________________________ Drew Moser, Ph.D.
    [Show full text]
  • Fewer Americans Affiliate with Organized Religions, Belief and Practice Unchanged
    Press summary March 2015 Fewer Americans Affiliate with Organized Religions, Belief and Practice Unchanged: Key Findings from the 2014 General Social Survey Michael Hout, New York University & NORC Tom W. Smith, NORC 10 March 2015 Fewer Americans Affiliate with Organized Religions, Belief and Practice Unchanged: Key Findings from the 2014 General Social Survey March 2015 Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Most Groups Less Religious ....................................................................................................................... 3 Changes among Denominations .................................................................................................................. 4 Conclusions and Future Work....................................................................................................................... 5 About the Data ............................................................................................................................................. 6 References ..................................................................................................................................................... 7 About the Authors .......................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Informal Religious Activity Outside Hegemonic Religions: Wild Traditions and Their Relevance to Evolutionary Models Pascal Boyera,B
    RRBB1678518 Techset Composition India (P) Ltd., Bangalore and Chennai, India 11/8/2019 RELIGION, BRAIN & BEHAVIOR https://doi.org/10.1080/2153599X.2019.1678518 5 Informal religious activity outside hegemonic religions: wild traditions and their relevance to evolutionary models Pascal Boyera,b 10 Q1 aDepartment of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA; bDepartment of Psychological ¶ & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA ABSTRACT KEYWORDS Q2 Evolutionary approaches to religious representations must be grounded in Cultural evolution; 15 ¶ a precise description of the forms of religious activity that occurred before evolutionary models; the emergence of state societies and doctrinal religious organizations. religions; shamanism These informal religious activities or “wild traditions” consist of services provided by individual specialists, with no formal training or organization, who generally specialize in palliating or preventing misfortune. The anthropological and historical record show that (a) such 20 traditions are present in almost all documented human societies, (b) they have important common features, and (c) they reappear despite the political dominance of doctrinal organizations. The form of religious activity that humans spontaneously create, or re-create in the face of political suppression, comprises no stable doctrine, faith, or community Q3 of believers. In light of these facts, important corrections should be 25 ¶ made to current models of the evolutionary underpinnings of religious thought and behavior, in particular, by taking into account the great importance of political coercion and the minor role of doctrines in the QA: Coll: spread of religious concepts and practices. 30 Q4 Evolutionary perspectives in the study of religious representations aim to describe the kinds of men- ¶ tal capacities or preferences that (a) occur in human minds by virtue of natural selection and (b) influence the acquisition and transmission of what we usually call “religious” thought and behavior.
    [Show full text]
  • Augustinian Christian Philosophy
    AUGUSTINIAN CHRISTIAN PHILOSOPHY How does Christianity bear on philosophy? Is there such a thing as Christian philosophy, or are there only Christians who are also philoso­ phers? How should Christianity and philosophy be related? Should they be related? In "Advice to Christian Philosophers" I said that Christian philosophers should display more autonomy: they have their own fish to fry, their own projects to pursue, (or their own axes to grind, as some might prefer to put it). Here I want to say more about what these projects (or fish, or axes) are like. And the right way to think about these matters, so it seems to me, is broadly Augustinian. Accordingly, I want to propose a program­ matic sketch (a very programmatic sketch) of a conception of Christian philosophy that grows out of some central Augustinian emphases. I don't claim, however, that Augustine in fact thought of Christian philosophy the way I shall suggest. The primary focus of my paper is not historical (that would in any event be beyond my competence); what I want to do is make a suggestion as to how we should think about Christian philosophy now; but this way of thinking of the matter grows out of Augustinian roots.! It's worth noting, furthermore, that what is at issue is not just a way of thinking about Christianity and philosophy, but about Christianity and scholarship more generally. There are at least four elements in Augustinian Christian philosophy. The first two of these are widely recognized and relatively uncontroversial: I shall therefore be brief about them.
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction to the Agnostic Age: Law, Religion, and the Constitution
    Alabama Law Scholarly Commons Working Papers Faculty Scholarship 1-6-2011 Introduction to The Agnostic Age: Law, Religion, and the Constitution Paul Horwitz University of Alabama - School of Law, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.ua.edu/fac_working_papers Recommended Citation Paul Horwitz, Introduction to The Agnostic Age: Law, Religion, and the Constitution, (2011). Available at: https://scholarship.law.ua.edu/fac_working_papers/523 This Working Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at Alabama Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Working Papers by an authorized administrator of Alabama Law Scholarly Commons. introduction What is truth? said jesting Pilate, and would not stay for an answer. — Francis Bacon 1 It is a sad thing for the human race that Pilate went out without waiting for the answer; we should know what truth is. — Voltaire 2 Most scholars of law and religion have something important in common with Pontius Pilate, and an important difference. Here is the common point: Like Pilate, they throw up their hands at the question: “What is truth?”3 And here is the difference: At least Pilate was willing to ask the question. Not so with today’s leading theorists on freedom of religion. Indeed, if there is any single question they are most likely to fl ee, it is the question of religious truth—the question of the nature of the universe, the existence of God, and our own fate after death. That question, and how to approach it, is the subject of this book.
    [Show full text]
  • The Etienne Gilson Series 21
    The Etienne Gilson Series 21 Remapping Scholasticism by MARCIA L. COLISH 3 March 2000 Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies This lecture and its publication was made possible through the generous bequest of the late Charles J. Sullivan (1914-1999) Note: the author may be contacted at: Department of History Oberlin College Oberlin OH USA 44074 ISSN 0-708-319X ISBN 0-88844-721-3 © 2000 by Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies 59 Queen’s Park Crescent East Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 2C4 Printed in Canada nce upon a time there were two competing story-lines for medieval intellectual history, each writing a major role for scholasticism into its script. Although these story-lines were O created independently and reflected different concerns, they sometimes overlapped and gave each other aid and comfort. Both exerted considerable influence on the way historians of medieval speculative thought conceptualized their subject in the first half of the twentieth cen- tury. Both versions of the map drawn by these two sets of cartographers illustrated what Wallace K. Ferguson later described as “the revolt of the medievalists.”1 One was confined largely to the academy and appealed to a wide variety of medievalists, while the other had a somewhat narrower draw and reflected political and confessional, as well as academic, concerns. The first was the anti-Burckhardtian effort to push Renaissance humanism, understood as combining a knowledge and love of the classics with “the discovery of the world and of man,” back into the Middle Ages. The second was inspired by the neo-Thomist revival launched by Pope Leo XIII, and was inhabited almost exclusively by Roman Catholic scholars.
    [Show full text]
  • Hinduism and Hindu Philosophy
    Essays on Indian Philosophy UNIVE'aSITY OF HAWAII Uf,FU:{ Essays on Indian Philosophy SHRI KRISHNA SAKSENA UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII PRESS HONOLULU 1970 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 78·114209 Standard Book Number 87022-726-2 Copyright © 1970 by University of Hawaii Press All Rights Reserved Printed in the United States of America Contents The Story of Indian Philosophy 3 Basic Tenets of Indian Philosophy 18 Testimony in Indian Philosophy 24 Hinduism 37 Hinduism and Hindu Philosophy 51 The Jain Religion 54 Some Riddles in the Behavior of Gods and Sages in the Epics and the Puranas 64 Autobiography of a Yogi 71 Jainism 73 Svapramanatva and Svapraka!;>atva: An Inconsistency in Kumarila's Philosophy 77 The Nature of Buddhi according to Sankhya-Yoga 82 The Individual in Social Thought and Practice in India 88 Professor Zaehner and the Comparison of Religions 102 A Comparison between the Eastern and Western Portraits of Man in Our Time 117 Acknowledgments The author wishes to make the following acknowledgments for permission to reprint previously published essays: "The Story of Indian Philosophy," in A History of Philosophical Systems. edited by Vergilius Ferm. New York:The Philosophical Library, 1950. "Basic Tenets of Indian Philosophy," previously published as "Are There Any Basic Tenets of Indian Philosophy?" in The Philosophical Quarterly. "Testimony in Indian Philosophy," previously published as "Authority in Indian Philosophy," in Ph ilosophyEast and West. vo!.l,no. 3 (October 1951). "Hinduism," in Studium Generale. no. 10 (1962). "The Jain Religion," previously published as "Jainism," in Religion in the Twentieth Century. edited by Vergilius Ferm.
    [Show full text]
  • Scientific Agnosticism
    SCIENTIFIC AGNOSTICISM When flailing about for a meaningful topic for my ever‐looming presentation to the fellowship, I happened upon a review of a book intriguingly titled “When God is Gone, Everything is Holy: The Making of a Religious Naturalist”, in an issue of UU World. After reading the review and a few others, I knew that I had found my topic! So, armed with my newly‐purchased, very accessible, user‐friendly book, and a case full of flag‐type post‐it notes, I set to work. My strategy was to mark a few particularly‐meaningful passages as I read, that I would later easily compile into an overview of the book. Oh, how naïve I was. This is where that flagging strategy led me. Either I’m not selective enough or this guy is really profound. I found so many passages that I wanted to remember when writing an overview of the book, and I wanted to do Dr. Raymo’s message justice. Dr. Raymo’s message struck a chord with me on several levels. We each approached spirituality after being imprinted in the Catholic religious tradition, moving away from traditional beliefs toward more science‐based perspectives. I recognized his name immediately, as the author of an astronomy book that I used as a reference when I taught an after‐school nature journaling class for elementary school students. For me, just a quick glance into the night sky has long instilled a sense of wonder and an appreciation for the fact that my world is vaster than my imagination and that I am a small part of a universe or universes beyond my understanding.
    [Show full text]
  • ABSTRACT on Science and Atheism: Whether Atheistic Belief Is
    ABSTRACT On Science and Atheism: Whether Atheistic Belief is Scientifically Motivated Charles L. Jester Director: Gerald Cleaver, Ph.D. The intent of this paper is to explore the motivation behind the rejection of theistic religious faiths by modern atheist scientists, and whether it is justified to claim that this rejection is scientifically motivated. First, a brief background of the development of the contemporary schism between faith and science is given, noting in particular changes in belief amongst the scientific community. Next, an exposition on the motivations for scientists’ convictions concerning God is laid out, followed by an address to the question of whether atheistic scientists reject all properties of God, or only certain of them. Based on analyses of personal statements, statistical data on beliefs, and developments in twentieth-century physics and mathematics, it is concluded that modern scientists who reject theism are not overwhelmingly motivated by science, and that they in fact do not reject all ideas of God. APPROVED BY DIRECTOR OF HONORS THESIS: _____________________________________________________ Dr. Gerald B. Cleaver, Department of Physics APPROVED BY THE HONORS PROGRAM: _____________________________________________________ Dr. Andrew Wisely, Director DATE: ___________________________ ON SCIENCE AND ATHEISM: WHETHER ATHEISTIC BELIEF IS SCIENTIFICALLY MOTIVATED A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Baylor University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Honors Program By Charles L. Jester Waco, Texas
    [Show full text]