Preacher Boy: Liberty University Graduate bids Farewell to Falwell and Hello to Atheism

by Timothy Michael Short

Meet Tim. A homeschooler from rural Virginia, Tim dreams of attending Jerry Falwell's Liberty University and becoming a pastor of his very own Church. Indoctrinated in fundamentalist Baptist theology from toddlerhood, Tim is uniquely gifted to succeed in his pastoral training. After some close encounters with gay activists, Jerry Falwell, napalm explosives, the FBI, ATF, Police, nudist missionaries, alcoholic alums, sword wielding Muslim roommates and death threats from a Kenyan Muslim...Tim got quite the Liberty Experience. Tim, the preacher boy, took those things in stride but when he was challenged to read The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins his life and faith would never be the same.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography

304 pages, Paperback

First published November 5, 2011

Reviews

[Larry Bassett · Rating 2 out of 5]

For the record, when it comes to AWANA I just feel the need to apologize for ever having been a part of it. I didn’t know any better. I meant well. I wish I could apologize to every child I led to Christianity. I was confused.

We are told that AWANA means approved workmen are not ashamed and is a religious fundamentalist youth ministry affiliated with many conservative churches.

I live in Lynchburg, Virginia where Liberty University is located. The university campus is somewhat isolated in one part of the town. One of the political wards in the town of 76,000 is dominated by students. Founded in 1971, LU has a current resident enrollment of over 12,000 students. The university’s annual growth in recent years has been significant in regard to students and campus facilities. Its online enrollment is over 90,000.

I was still a Christian and very much one, in the truest sense that I still believed the Bible to be literally true. I believed Jesus had saved me and I still believed in Heaven, etc. I still prayed, though I dropped occasional F-bombs when I did. I had a very intimate relationship with the Lord during this time that was not predicated on or aided by bullshit at all. I spoke to him and relied upon him to keep from burning out. I nearly burned out a few times that year. Preacher boys often do. We just had no money and no time for the depth and breadth of study I so badly wanted to get into.

This is a book in which Tim Short comes to believe that that Bible is not infallible and that God is not good. As someone who believes that God and the Bible are straw men who are not hard to knock down, I did not find reading this that much of a revelation. Tim read Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris and found that he was willing to accept their veracity.

The fear set in as I considered the Dawkins message. Dawkins didn’t need to prove that all of his problems with God were true. If only one of them were correct, God would not be perfect. God would be revealed to be the very human creation of fiction he really is.

He did some of what religious arguments always depend on: quoting Bible verses. That is almost always a big turnoff for me. And I have already read Dawkins and Harris enough that watching them convert others is not very exciting. It was interesting to read Preacher Boy as he traveled through the times in Lynchburg when I was also living there: Dawkins coming to down to speak; gays from Soul Force being thrown off campus; Falwell dying. The front page headlines in the local paper screamed “Falwell dies” for a week.

I read this book because the Lynchburg Area Secular Humanists are going to discuss it and I wonder what other people right here in Lynchburg think about it. I am, after all, here in the Bible Belt. It is also the first book I have read completely on a Kindle.

For me, this was a two star book I could have skipped. Thank goodness it was pretty short. It did not impress me with the writing quality or the content. I think another reviewer likened it to reading someone’s rather personal journal. There was some interesting detail about life on the Liberty University campus that might have been shocking if you were under the delusion that fundamentalist Christians were goody two-shoes.

Many of LU’s staff are to varying degrees, sick of Liberty. Life circumstances have landed them positions that they cannot afford to quit. They know Liberty is full of shit and they accept it.

As some say: Big whoop!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met the author in DC. Because I showed him the way somewhere he gave me a copy of his book. It's an admittedly not well edited book about his growing up home schooled in a small town by Christian fundamentalists and how it screwed him up. After graduating from Jerry Falwell's Liberty U. he realized he couldn't be a"fundie" anymore because he realized it had made him scared of hell and wrong-doing, hateful of himself and others, ashamed of his body and sex, etc. I wish it was better edited and didn't assume the reader new about "fundies" to begin with. But it was touching, sincere, funny and sharp.

[Book Shark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Preacher Boy: A Liberty University Graduate bids Farewell to Falwell and Hello to Atheism by Timothy Michael Short

"Preacher Boy" is the interesting character study of one Timothy Michael Short an indoctrinated, homeschooled boy who had dreams of becoming a pastor just like his dad and who ultimately became an atheist. This book is about a preacher boy who ultimately discovers that his beliefs were a myth and how he came to that realization while graduating from Liberty University. This entertaining 219-page book is broken out into two main parts: Part One. To Raise Up a Child: The Origin of Preacher Boy and Part Two. In Which Preacher Boy has Arrived at Liberty University...and All God's People said, "Amen".

Positives:
1. Generally well written, conversational tone with a touch of irreverent humor.
2. The fascinating topic of self-discovery: from homeschooled indoctrination to the realization that it was all a myth, welcome to atheism.
3. Fair and respectful characterization of the players involved in his life.
4. Good format, each chapter begins with a topical quote, like this one from Christopher Hitchens: "All religions take care to silence or to execute those who question them and I choose to regard this recurrent tendency as a sign of their weakness rather than their strength."
5. The author does a wonderful job of bringing the reader into his world. A fundamentalist upbringing and all that it entails. The world of a preacher boy. Homeschooling and indoctrination.
6. The culture of Liberty University. Fascinating accounts of what college students face at this campus. Kids from diverse backgrounds who are confronted with strict rules and guidelines and how they compare to other religious schools.
7. Insight into the hateful rabble rousing.
8. Many interesting religious topics. Thought-provoking topics that give one cause, "There is some comfort that Hell is not a real place and there is no evidence to support Hell exists but what about the people who believe in it?"
9. I learned some good things from this book. As an example, why sharing Christ with someone to a fundie "is like running into a burning house to save an innocent child." I get it now.
10. Interesting look at how religious indoctrination works at a practical level. That is from a parenting and a scholastic viewpoint. Many great examples.
11. A healthy dad and son relationship.
12. Touches on different worldviews.
13. The religious obsession with sex. "I was stunned at how the most sexless community on the face of the earth was so obsessed by sex. Liberty University is probably the most sexually repressed and horniest school at the same time." Interesting accounts. The school's stance on interracial dating. Dating. Homosexuality.
14. The author's collegiate influences. The professors, the educators who left their marks and why. His best friendships and of course his girlfriend.
15. The concept of spiritual abortions. Proselytizing.
16. A look at biblical inerrancy. Interesting takes.
17. The book takes off when the author ponders evidence in support of Christianity. Dawkins, Harris...oh it gets really good. Defending faith, doubt.
18. A look at morality. Is it absolute? Relative? Good stuff.
19. A look at Jerry Falwell. Liberty University after Falwell.
20. A look at what atheism has provided the author.
21. One of the best values at $2.99!

Negatives:
1. Some cliff hangers leaves readers wanting more. As an example, what happened to his wife? Are they still together? Is everything alright? How did his mother take his loss of faith?
2. A few misspells.
3. This is not in any way a technical or philosophical book that goes through the main arguments in support or against theism/atheism. It's about self-discovery in the context that the life was lived.
4. A table in an appendix that displays the most common religious Christian sects and their beliefs would have added value. It would provide the reader with a worthy reference.
5. When introducing acronyms it is best to define them when they are introduced. As an example, I had to read quite a few pages before AWANA was defined. AWANA definition.

In summary, I enjoyed this book. Stories of conversions have always been of interest to me and this one gave me a different and interesting take. The process of indoctrination at all levels is fascinating and the book really takes off when he starts to doubt. The author didn't close out all the loose ends but this book is a welcomed addition to the human conversion experience. I recommend it!

Further suggestions: "Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity" and "The End of Christianity" by John Loftus, "God Hates You Hate Him Back" by CJ Werleman, "Why I Am Not a Christian: Four Conclusive Reasons to Reject the Faith" by Richard Carrier, "Natural Atheism" and "Cruel Creeds, Virtuous Violence: Religious Violence Across Culture and History" by Dr. David Eller, "Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, "Man Made God: A Collection of Essays" by Barbara G. Walker, "The Invention of the Jewish People" by Shlomo Sand, "The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever" by Christopher Hitchens, "Bible Thumper to Athiest" by Tom Crawford, "The End of Biblical Studies" by Hector Avalos, "Forged: Writing in the Name of God--Why the Bible's Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are" by Bart Ehrman, "God: The Failed Hypothesis. How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist" by Victor J. Stenger, "Godless" by Dan Barker, "Christian No More" by Jeffrey Mark, and "The Invention of God" by Bill Lauritzen.

[Paul Kilmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I found the inattentive editing and excessive swearing distracting, especially in the first half of the book, this was a very good read about one man's conversion from fundamentalism.

[Warreni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but surprisingly poorly-written testimony of a former Fundamentalist Christian

Short offers a personal story of moving from his fundamentalist Baptist upbringing to atheism. While it makes for interesting reading and Short has a breezy informal style, his "conversion" is ultimately predicated on the idea that atheism is the only rational alternative to theism in its many forms; this suggests to me that his reading of secular philosophy has been rather shallow. Furthermore, the experience is greatly marred (to me--your mileage may vary) by the innumerable grammatical and mechanical errors scattered throughout the text. There are weird misspellings, like Clause for Claus, improper constructions as in the nonsensical "Beckon call," and many instances of sentence fragments, run-ons, and apparently missing words. While I understand that Short may not have gotten the best of formal educations, these errors would have been caught by even the least competent of editors.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I normally love reading this genre, stories from deep inside the religious/conservative/viewpoint other than my default viewpoint. I've read a couple of other stories centered around liberty, In the Land of Believers: An Outsider's Extraordinary Journey into the Heart of the Evangelical Church and The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University as well as a lot of other assorted reading on the religous right and Liberty specifically.

So I went into Preacher Boy with somewhat high expectations. And boy was I disappointed. There were a lot of huge problems with this book, but lets start with the what wasn't the problem. I didn't dislike this book because of the authors viewpoint. I disliked it because he can't write. At all. In fact it reads like my writing. There's a reason I'm a computer programmer and not an author. It's disorganized, meandering, filled with terrible cliches, pointless anecdotes that go nowhere, etc.

I realize that this is a memoir so the material is what it is, but foreshadowing, structure, and above all editing are really required to make it readable. The narrative is scattershot and all over the place. The deconversion story at the end is a bit of a mess as well. Short does detail the longish process of how he came to leave the faith and it's worth reading, but even here I found it a real slog to get through.

I could keep going, but you get the point. It's an honest good effort, so I'll give it two stars, but unless you really want to learn about Liberty from an insider pass on this one.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Preacher Boy describes the experiences that Timothy had when he realized that he no longer believed in Christianity. At its core, it shows both the internal struggles that Timothy faced and the struggles with other people (and even his job) when he started telling people the truth about what he felt. It's an enlightening book on a few levels. It gives Christians an understanding of why someone like Timothy would believe the way he does (or doesn't?). I also feel that an atheist, never having been in a fundamentalist church, might find some insight on the frank feelings about the religion from someone who has left the faith.

I felt for Timothy in his situation, because he really was in a catch-22. His life, his income, his career, being tied to his faith, he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Without going to school to become a minister, I imagine this decision would be hard enough, even without losing your job when you're trying to support a young family.

I did also find a number of editing problems that sometimes took away from the flow of the text. But I really liked reading about Tim's story. Many people go through what Tim went through, so I think he, by telling his story, shines a light of understanding on these experiences for people who have never been in this situation.

[Joshua Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Preacher Boy chronicles a change in the core beliefs of a man losing his religion.
Having grown up as a particularly dedicated member of a fundamentalist christian sect, Tim Short left his homeschooling family and attended Liberty University, a school known for it's conservative political stance and rabid religiosity. He fit right in, at first. As Liberty grew more political and hypocritically Christian, though, Tim's disillusionment with both conservatism and Christianity began. In this poignant and thoroughly entertaining book we learn of a repressive and, at times, psychotic institution bent on political triumph through religious propaganda. Tim Short's identity as a christian wavers as a result of Liberty's overwrought enforcement of political and religious ideals. At the end of the book we see him renouncing his faith, with nothing but his new family and the nakedness of a new start, sans religion.
I particularly enjoyed this book for the catharsis it brings anyone who has left Christianity for atheism. It's replete with thoughts on the absurdity of religion, especially the homeschooling, thoroughly american form of christian fundamentalism. I'd recommend Preacher Boy to any atheist and any christian wanting to understand the disenchantment some atheists have with Christianity and conservatism.

[Roger Blakesley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story didn't perfectly reflect my journey from True Believer Evangelical Preacher Boy, but I certainly paralleled Timothy. I abandoned my faith with regret, but have embraced non-angry atheism with a more than refreshing sense of freedom and, odd word choice here, grace.

Timothy's book could use some more kind-hearted editing. Some of the passages read like raw journal entries. But the content itself, read past the awkward phrasings, is an excellent back-story.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent under-the-shroud look at Liberty U student life with and without Falwell, and how it stacks up against real life. With a LOT of copy editing, this would be a 4-star book.

[Deborah Summers · Rating 2 out of 5]

I applaud the author for sharing his experience. I had a similar one though I got out before the LU part. Just needs a good editor, more structure.