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The Anatomy of Deconversion : Keys to a Lifelong Faith in a Culture Abandoning Christianity
Believers are abandoning faith. But why?
Atheism is on the rise. What, if anything, can be done to prevent this trend? The Anatomy of Deconversion goes to the source of these issues and gives readers a broad picture of the deconversion process. Learn why believers lose their faith, and, perhaps more importantly, discover why so many former Christians claim to be happier, freer, and more fulfilled as unbelievers than they were as Christians. No one fully escapes the pitfalls in life that create a faith crisis. However, learning to navigate these times of crisis is the key to developing a grounded, flourishing faith.
Based on data gleaned from first person interviews and written narratives, The Anatomy of Deconversion uncovers the reasons, processes, and impacts of deconverting from Christianity. Unlike other books that address the topic of deconversion from a purely theological perspective, The Anatomy of Deconversion takes a multidisciplinary approach. In doing so, it provides the only comprehensive account of deconversion available today.
Atheism is on the rise. What, if anything, can be done to prevent this trend? The Anatomy of Deconversion goes to the source of these issues and gives readers a broad picture of the deconversion process. Learn why believers lose their faith, and, perhaps more importantly, discover why so many former Christians claim to be happier, freer, and more fulfilled as unbelievers than they were as Christians. No one fully escapes the pitfalls in life that create a faith crisis. However, learning to navigate these times of crisis is the key to developing a grounded, flourishing faith.
Based on data gleaned from first person interviews and written narratives, The Anatomy of Deconversion uncovers the reasons, processes, and impacts of deconverting from Christianity. Unlike other books that address the topic of deconversion from a purely theological perspective, The Anatomy of Deconversion takes a multidisciplinary approach. In doing so, it provides the only comprehensive account of deconversion available today.
228 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 13, 2021
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March 5, 2025
As someone relatively new to the Stone-Campbell tradition, this book is a great introduction to the moment the movement was truly initiated.
August 13, 2022
3.5 stars, leaning towards 4.
This book took me some time to read through, letting me soak in an important yet criminally understood topic.
Divided into three sections, this book highlights the importance of delving deep to discuss deconversion, and even moreso that we need to be mindful of the personal accounts of said deconverts. The author spent time interviewing several dozen individuals who once identified as 'Christian', but no longer do.
The first section lays out the WHY of this foundation, with the author making a compelling argument that this topic should matter regardless of your theological background, providing a framework that is useful for any Christians. If you find this a challenging or unnecessary topic, I would implore you to remain open minded.
The second section contains the contents of deconverts and the implications of their struggling and eventual turning away from the faith. Though the author is a Christian, these testimonies are done well with several similar narratives forming the basis for each chapter.
The last section contains several practical applications for individuals and churches to incorporate as a whole to, as the author puts it, 'innoculate' believers and avoid setting up people for a crisis of faith.
What holds this book back for me is the middle section, that briefly alternates between several stories to form the narrative structure. I found this to be tedious at times and depending on the topic, difficult to read through without it feeling 'textbook' like. Perhaps presenting these findings in another way would have been best.
However, I can recommend this book simply because of the topic. This is not something that the Christian church discusses nearly enough, and something I would love to see more of. The most value can be seen in the last chapters, with insightful takeaways that may showcase the authors theological leanings, but should be significant for any Christian who is serious about their faith.
This book took me some time to read through, letting me soak in an important yet criminally understood topic.
Divided into three sections, this book highlights the importance of delving deep to discuss deconversion, and even moreso that we need to be mindful of the personal accounts of said deconverts. The author spent time interviewing several dozen individuals who once identified as 'Christian', but no longer do.
The first section lays out the WHY of this foundation, with the author making a compelling argument that this topic should matter regardless of your theological background, providing a framework that is useful for any Christians. If you find this a challenging or unnecessary topic, I would implore you to remain open minded.
The second section contains the contents of deconverts and the implications of their struggling and eventual turning away from the faith. Though the author is a Christian, these testimonies are done well with several similar narratives forming the basis for each chapter.
The last section contains several practical applications for individuals and churches to incorporate as a whole to, as the author puts it, 'innoculate' believers and avoid setting up people for a crisis of faith.
What holds this book back for me is the middle section, that briefly alternates between several stories to form the narrative structure. I found this to be tedious at times and depending on the topic, difficult to read through without it feeling 'textbook' like. Perhaps presenting these findings in another way would have been best.
However, I can recommend this book simply because of the topic. This is not something that the Christian church discusses nearly enough, and something I would love to see more of. The most value can be seen in the last chapters, with insightful takeaways that may showcase the authors theological leanings, but should be significant for any Christian who is serious about their faith.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 11, 2022
This book is written to be purchased and read by conservative Protestant Christians. Such consumers may conclude that, while it's unfortunate some believers make the mistake of leaving the church, we can fix the problem by being a bit nicer and answering questions better.
To a reader standing outside conservative Christianity, however, the book may suggest different conclusions. The pathologies of contemporary conservative Christianity are laid out clearly--even though they are downplayed. The final section of the book offers a significantly different, and healthier, understanding of the gospel itself than one is likely to hear in conservative Christian churches. In other words, this book may actually be a call for major changes in the church.
To a reader standing outside conservative Christianity, however, the book may suggest different conclusions. The pathologies of contemporary conservative Christianity are laid out clearly--even though they are downplayed. The final section of the book offers a significantly different, and healthier, understanding of the gospel itself than one is likely to hear in conservative Christian churches. In other words, this book may actually be a call for major changes in the church.
April 29, 2025
This is a nice collection of clear and concise essays, written by specialists but accessible to non-specialists, exploring that frontier phenomenon known as the Cane Ridge Revival. The contributors place Cane Ridge in its historical context, discuss what happened there, and reflect on the legacy of the event. An appendix contains half a dozen eye-witness accounts, so readers can see for themselves some of the most significant primary sources from which contributors derive their insights.
November 27, 2021
While his insight is needed and refreshing, the prose was cumbersome at times. It is still one of the needed discussion points for the church at-large and many pastors and lay leaders need to read his research and use it for vision planning and community outreach. Additionally, the healing portion of the book, Section 3, is a great starting point for churches in crisis and working out of those moments to a community under grace. One of the best metaphors and needed commentaries came in relating the idea of vaccinations to the idea of a mature faith.
"In order to protect believers from the most common challenges that lead to a crisis of faith, they need to be inoculated against such challenges . This is done by ensuring that believers are initially exposed to challenges in a safe environment by knowledgeable Christians. Given that the most common and effective objections to the Christian faith revolve around the Bible, it is these issues that deserve our attention. Believers should be exposed to Old Testament “terror texts,” the problems raised by historical criticism, and various textual discrepancies of the Bible by other believers before they are acquainted with them by unbelievers. By doing so, many potential problems can be avoided."
If these are not the words you want to hear in church at thisoment then keep looking for a different read. But if you want to do some heavy lifting of healing the relationship your church has with the community then start here.
This was reviewed as part of the ARC program for Netgalley.
"In order to protect believers from the most common challenges that lead to a crisis of faith, they need to be inoculated against such challenges . This is done by ensuring that believers are initially exposed to challenges in a safe environment by knowledgeable Christians. Given that the most common and effective objections to the Christian faith revolve around the Bible, it is these issues that deserve our attention. Believers should be exposed to Old Testament “terror texts,” the problems raised by historical criticism, and various textual discrepancies of the Bible by other believers before they are acquainted with them by unbelievers. By doing so, many potential problems can be avoided."
If these are not the words you want to hear in church at thisoment then keep looking for a different read. But if you want to do some heavy lifting of healing the relationship your church has with the community then start here.
This was reviewed as part of the ARC program for Netgalley.
February 7, 2024
The story often is told: “the Restoration Movement began in the 1820s with Thomas and Alexander Campbell and their theological shift away from Presbyterianism toward a reformation…”
And if this is the framework in which the Restoration Movement’s origins is framed, much has already been lost.
In Answered by Fire: The Cane Ridge Revival Reconsidered, a consortium of scholars associated with churches of Christ explore the Cane Ridge Revival of 1801: what it was, what it came from, who was involved, what effects it had, and the move away from such things and why. They consider not just the major players but also how Black people participated and women exhorted. They also consider what its legacy might mean for us today. The appendix provides primary and secondary sources for the Cane Ridge Revival.
What was the Cane Ridge revival? For years Presbyterians would occasionally hold large gatherings for communion, and it seems that Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was the meeting place for such a gathering in 1801. Some previous experiences had primed Cane Ridge to become what it was. An exceedingly large number in the tens of thousands gathered at Cane Ridge, and there seemed to be an outpouring of the Spirit on people in various ways: people got the jerks, had a holy laugh, would fall down as if dead and arise converted to Jesus. This was happening among some who were already somewhat religious but also among deists and those who had no religion. While it was ostensibly a Presbyterian gathering, the spirit involved was quite ecumenical: Methodist and Baptist preachers were proclaiming the gospel, and all would share in communion together.
The “pastor” of the church in Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was a man named Barton Stone, and the experience of Cane Ridge would never leave him. His goal of an undenominated movement toward unity among Christians was motivated by his Cane Ridge experience. He would never discount the work of the Spirit on account of what he saw at Cane Ridge.
In the 1830s Stone’s “Christian” movement would merge with the Campbell “Disciples” movement, for they both maintained similar aspirations. Campbell brought a more systematic concept of restoration, but also one far more entranced with Baconian rationalism, and thus did not find much room for the Spirit and His working, and looked upon such things with great skepticism. Thus it was possible for a movement which can count as part of its origins one of the most profound revival experiences in American history, sometimes called “America’s Pentecost,” to become so hyper-rationalist that it uniquely taught and emphasized the idea the Spirit only works in and through the Scriptures.
So there is a lot members of churches of Christ can gain from considering the Cane Ridge Revival, Barton Stone’s role in it, how it shaped Stone and his strand of the movement, and why our forebears so thoroughly turned away from any seeming manifestation of the Spirit among His people. We can rightly critique some excesses which can attend to “spiritual enthusiasm,” but there is also much that can be critiqued in quenching the Spirit in the name of upholding a rationalist system imposed upon the text and the faith.
And if this is the framework in which the Restoration Movement’s origins is framed, much has already been lost.
In Answered by Fire: The Cane Ridge Revival Reconsidered, a consortium of scholars associated with churches of Christ explore the Cane Ridge Revival of 1801: what it was, what it came from, who was involved, what effects it had, and the move away from such things and why. They consider not just the major players but also how Black people participated and women exhorted. They also consider what its legacy might mean for us today. The appendix provides primary and secondary sources for the Cane Ridge Revival.
What was the Cane Ridge revival? For years Presbyterians would occasionally hold large gatherings for communion, and it seems that Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was the meeting place for such a gathering in 1801. Some previous experiences had primed Cane Ridge to become what it was. An exceedingly large number in the tens of thousands gathered at Cane Ridge, and there seemed to be an outpouring of the Spirit on people in various ways: people got the jerks, had a holy laugh, would fall down as if dead and arise converted to Jesus. This was happening among some who were already somewhat religious but also among deists and those who had no religion. While it was ostensibly a Presbyterian gathering, the spirit involved was quite ecumenical: Methodist and Baptist preachers were proclaiming the gospel, and all would share in communion together.
The “pastor” of the church in Cane Ridge, Kentucky, was a man named Barton Stone, and the experience of Cane Ridge would never leave him. His goal of an undenominated movement toward unity among Christians was motivated by his Cane Ridge experience. He would never discount the work of the Spirit on account of what he saw at Cane Ridge.
In the 1830s Stone’s “Christian” movement would merge with the Campbell “Disciples” movement, for they both maintained similar aspirations. Campbell brought a more systematic concept of restoration, but also one far more entranced with Baconian rationalism, and thus did not find much room for the Spirit and His working, and looked upon such things with great skepticism. Thus it was possible for a movement which can count as part of its origins one of the most profound revival experiences in American history, sometimes called “America’s Pentecost,” to become so hyper-rationalist that it uniquely taught and emphasized the idea the Spirit only works in and through the Scriptures.
So there is a lot members of churches of Christ can gain from considering the Cane Ridge Revival, Barton Stone’s role in it, how it shaped Stone and his strand of the movement, and why our forebears so thoroughly turned away from any seeming manifestation of the Spirit among His people. We can rightly critique some excesses which can attend to “spiritual enthusiasm,” but there is also much that can be critiqued in quenching the Spirit in the name of upholding a rationalist system imposed upon the text and the faith.
May 3, 2021
The New York Times recently published a story about a well-known pastor’s son who had deconverted and was using social media to criticize the faith he once — and his father still — confessed.
I read the story with conflicting emotions: sorrow that the son had lost faith, embarrassment that a family’s deep religious divisions had gone public, frustration that media seem to think deconversion from Christianity is more noteworthy than conversion to it, and worry that if deconversion could happen in a famous pastor’s household, it could happen in mine, too.
As a Christian parent, I take seriously the apostle Paul’s admonition: “Do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). Furthermore, as a minister, I want my work to “impart … some spiritual gift to make you strong,” as Paul put it (Romans 1:11). In other words, I hope my words and deeds increase people’s faith, whether in my house or the household of God.
I know that my hope, not to mention that of other Christian parents and pastors, doesn’t guarantee desired spiritual outcomes for people in my sphere of influence, however. None of us controls another’s faith. At best, we cultivate the ground in which authentic belief can take root.
In The Anatomy of Deconversion, John Marriott aids Christian readers in their cultivation efforts by examining why and how people leave the faith. Marriott is director of Global Learning at Biola University’s Cook School of Intercultural Studies. His doctoral dissertation focused on Christians who deconverted to atheism.
For Marriott, deconversion involves three elements: “the rejection of Christian beliefs, disengagement from a Christian community, and having no religious affiliation.” The third element seems too narrowly tailored to atheists. People may leave Christianity for no religion or for some other religion, after all. Although Marriott’s analysis focuses on atheists, what he says about deconversion applies in broad outline to both no-religion and other-religion deconverts from Christianity.
So, why do people leave the Christian faith? Marriott identifies two types of reasons offered by deconverts: emotional and cognitive. “Emotional reasons tend to be related to the perception of hurt by other Christians or by God himself,” he writes. “Cognitive reasons have to do with the truth claims of Christianity.” Specifically, deconverts to atheism cite “perceived problems with the Bible, Darwinian evolution, and the influence of atheists themselves” as key factors in their loss of faith.
Why a person deconverts is unique, but how they do so generally follows a seven-stage process. Here’s Marriott’s description of those seven stages:
Context. The religious environment in which deconverts once practiced Christianity plays an ironic role in deconversion. Specifically, Marriott writes, “deconversion stories exhibit aspects of fundamentalism.” He defines fundamentalism as “an approach to religious faith that emphasizes the avoidance of taboos, an embrace of anti-intellectualism, a demand for keeping unspotted from ‘the world,’ a narrow-minded and religious exclusivism, and a negative posture to those outside the faith.”
Crisis. Deconversion typically begins with a “significant event … that caused the believer to question his or her faith.” Such events include “bad experiences with other Christians, exposure to virtuous non-Christians, and confronting intellectual challenges to the faith.”
Seeking the truth. Crises generate cognitive dissonance, which “believers began to seek ways to resolve” at this stage by choosing “to seek the truth,” whatever that might be.
Trying to retain faith. According to Marriott, a “majority [of deconverts] skipped this step altogether, capitulating quickly when challenged either emotionally or intellectually.” A minority looked for “a way to hold on to the core of [their] faith and accept the new ideas [they] were learning,” albeit unsuccessfully.
Going from believer to agnostic. For many deconverts, agnosticism was a comfortable halfway house on the road to full atheism. Agnosticism — literally, I-don’t-know-ism — is a statement about “an individual’s subjective, inner mental state,” writes Marriott. Atheism, on the other hand, “makes a claim about reality.”
Going from agnostic to atheist. About half the deconverts Marriott studied skipped agnosticism and went straight to atheism.
Coming out as an unbeliever. At this stage a person goes public with their unbelief, a decision that is costly. “For many deconverts, leaving the Christian faith is much more than rejecting a set of beliefs,” Marriott explains. “Because of the role belief structures play in constructing the world and situating us within it, they provide us with a sense of identity and security. But despite how hard it can be to lose one’s belief system, deconverts testify that it’s the loss of relationship that is the greatest loss.”
Once Christians understand the why and how of deconversion, they are better prepared to help Christians in the throes of a crisis of faith. In negative terms, this help can be described as “avoiding” or “averting” crisis. In positive terms, it can be described as “cultivating” faith.
However described, the help must be offered in the right context. Marriott calls the churches that deconverts often leave “fundamentalist.” He himself is an evangelical Christian, affirms orthodox theology, and wants people to follow Jesus Christ. In some deconverts’ minds, Marriott is a fundamentalist, even though that’s not his self-designation.
Regardless of what term is used, one crucial issue is the religious environment in which a person’s faith is being formed (or deformed). Context may not be everything, but it matters. People can come to faith in bad environments and leave it in good ones, but generally, bad environments increase deconversions and good environments increase conversions.
Marriott asks a question church leaders especially need to answer: “What does it say about the kind of Christianity that [deconverts] were socialized into when, despite losing some of the most important relationships in their lives, deconverts said it was worth it for the freedom they found?”
Context matters, but so does content. As mentioned above, deconverts raised questions about the Bible, evolution, and virtuous nonbelievers. If Christians want to cultivate lifelong faith in others, they need to know how to answer such questions.
Again, Marriott asks a tough question in this regard: “Why was it that deconverts found their Christian environments morally and cognitively inferior to what they discovered in their life after faith?”
Marriott’s two questions take us back to the why of deconversion, those emotional and cognitive reasons people leave the faith. Churches that want to avoid deconversion and cultivate faith need to be emotionally healthy and cognitively reasonable. Such a religious environment is the good soil in which the seed of the gospel can take deep and lasting root.
Book Reviewed
John Marriott, The Anatomy of Deconversion: Keys to a Lifelong Faith in a Culture Abandoning Christianity (Abilene, TX: Abilene Christian University Press, 2021).
P.S. If you liked my review, please click “Helpful” on my Amazon review page.
P.P.S. This review is cross-posted from InfluenceMagazine.com by permission.
I read the story with conflicting emotions: sorrow that the son had lost faith, embarrassment that a family’s deep religious divisions had gone public, frustration that media seem to think deconversion from Christianity is more noteworthy than conversion to it, and worry that if deconversion could happen in a famous pastor’s household, it could happen in mine, too.
As a Christian parent, I take seriously the apostle Paul’s admonition: “Do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). Furthermore, as a minister, I want my work to “impart … some spiritual gift to make you strong,” as Paul put it (Romans 1:11). In other words, I hope my words and deeds increase people’s faith, whether in my house or the household of God.
I know that my hope, not to mention that of other Christian parents and pastors, doesn’t guarantee desired spiritual outcomes for people in my sphere of influence, however. None of us controls another’s faith. At best, we cultivate the ground in which authentic belief can take root.
In The Anatomy of Deconversion, John Marriott aids Christian readers in their cultivation efforts by examining why and how people leave the faith. Marriott is director of Global Learning at Biola University’s Cook School of Intercultural Studies. His doctoral dissertation focused on Christians who deconverted to atheism.
For Marriott, deconversion involves three elements: “the rejection of Christian beliefs, disengagement from a Christian community, and having no religious affiliation.” The third element seems too narrowly tailored to atheists. People may leave Christianity for no religion or for some other religion, after all. Although Marriott’s analysis focuses on atheists, what he says about deconversion applies in broad outline to both no-religion and other-religion deconverts from Christianity.
So, why do people leave the Christian faith? Marriott identifies two types of reasons offered by deconverts: emotional and cognitive. “Emotional reasons tend to be related to the perception of hurt by other Christians or by God himself,” he writes. “Cognitive reasons have to do with the truth claims of Christianity.” Specifically, deconverts to atheism cite “perceived problems with the Bible, Darwinian evolution, and the influence of atheists themselves” as key factors in their loss of faith.
Why a person deconverts is unique, but how they do so generally follows a seven-stage process. Here’s Marriott’s description of those seven stages:
Context. The religious environment in which deconverts once practiced Christianity plays an ironic role in deconversion. Specifically, Marriott writes, “deconversion stories exhibit aspects of fundamentalism.” He defines fundamentalism as “an approach to religious faith that emphasizes the avoidance of taboos, an embrace of anti-intellectualism, a demand for keeping unspotted from ‘the world,’ a narrow-minded and religious exclusivism, and a negative posture to those outside the faith.”
Crisis. Deconversion typically begins with a “significant event … that caused the believer to question his or her faith.” Such events include “bad experiences with other Christians, exposure to virtuous non-Christians, and confronting intellectual challenges to the faith.”
Seeking the truth. Crises generate cognitive dissonance, which “believers began to seek ways to resolve” at this stage by choosing “to seek the truth,” whatever that might be.
Trying to retain faith. According to Marriott, a “majority [of deconverts] skipped this step altogether, capitulating quickly when challenged either emotionally or intellectually.” A minority looked for “a way to hold on to the core of [their] faith and accept the new ideas [they] were learning,” albeit unsuccessfully.
Going from believer to agnostic. For many deconverts, agnosticism was a comfortable halfway house on the road to full atheism. Agnosticism — literally, I-don’t-know-ism — is a statement about “an individual’s subjective, inner mental state,” writes Marriott. Atheism, on the other hand, “makes a claim about reality.”
Going from agnostic to atheist. About half the deconverts Marriott studied skipped agnosticism and went straight to atheism.
Coming out as an unbeliever. At this stage a person goes public with their unbelief, a decision that is costly. “For many deconverts, leaving the Christian faith is much more than rejecting a set of beliefs,” Marriott explains. “Because of the role belief structures play in constructing the world and situating us within it, they provide us with a sense of identity and security. But despite how hard it can be to lose one’s belief system, deconverts testify that it’s the loss of relationship that is the greatest loss.”
Once Christians understand the why and how of deconversion, they are better prepared to help Christians in the throes of a crisis of faith. In negative terms, this help can be described as “avoiding” or “averting” crisis. In positive terms, it can be described as “cultivating” faith.
However described, the help must be offered in the right context. Marriott calls the churches that deconverts often leave “fundamentalist.” He himself is an evangelical Christian, affirms orthodox theology, and wants people to follow Jesus Christ. In some deconverts’ minds, Marriott is a fundamentalist, even though that’s not his self-designation.
Regardless of what term is used, one crucial issue is the religious environment in which a person’s faith is being formed (or deformed). Context may not be everything, but it matters. People can come to faith in bad environments and leave it in good ones, but generally, bad environments increase deconversions and good environments increase conversions.
Marriott asks a question church leaders especially need to answer: “What does it say about the kind of Christianity that [deconverts] were socialized into when, despite losing some of the most important relationships in their lives, deconverts said it was worth it for the freedom they found?”
Context matters, but so does content. As mentioned above, deconverts raised questions about the Bible, evolution, and virtuous nonbelievers. If Christians want to cultivate lifelong faith in others, they need to know how to answer such questions.
Again, Marriott asks a tough question in this regard: “Why was it that deconverts found their Christian environments morally and cognitively inferior to what they discovered in their life after faith?”
Marriott’s two questions take us back to the why of deconversion, those emotional and cognitive reasons people leave the faith. Churches that want to avoid deconversion and cultivate faith need to be emotionally healthy and cognitively reasonable. Such a religious environment is the good soil in which the seed of the gospel can take deep and lasting root.
Book Reviewed
John Marriott, The Anatomy of Deconversion: Keys to a Lifelong Faith in a Culture Abandoning Christianity (Abilene, TX: Abilene Christian University Press, 2021).
P.S. If you liked my review, please click “Helpful” on my Amazon review page.
P.P.S. This review is cross-posted from InfluenceMagazine.com by permission.
October 24, 2022
I have to firstly give John credit for actually going out and listening to people who have deconverted from Christianity. It’s one of the few books written by a Christian that does not simply slander former believers by insinuating that they just want to sin or whatever.
The story he paints of deconversion is accurate. It more or less follows the track of my own deconversion. Parts one and two of the book are very fact-oriented, simply letting those who have left the church tell their story (only slightly tainted by his commentary on where he thinks they “went wrong.”)
Which leads to part three. He absolutely fell off the rails in this section. The overall conclusion that he draws from these stories is that former Christians deconstructed from a Christianity that was not the true one. I can’t begin to tell you how insulting that is to former believers. It is, of course, his right to believe that and argue for it, but it takes away the brownie points away that he earned earlier from doing the work of actually listening to former Christians. He also simply concludes that presupposing the truth of Christianity is the best accounting for how one can reason, which makes me lose all remaining respect for this author. You can’t slander those who leave your faith and then just defend it by saying that you presuppose it to be true.
Overall, this would have been a much better book if he had left part three out. Instead of simply listening to people, he uses it as an opportunity to say, “how can we use this information to keep people in the church?”
The story he paints of deconversion is accurate. It more or less follows the track of my own deconversion. Parts one and two of the book are very fact-oriented, simply letting those who have left the church tell their story (only slightly tainted by his commentary on where he thinks they “went wrong.”)
Which leads to part three. He absolutely fell off the rails in this section. The overall conclusion that he draws from these stories is that former Christians deconstructed from a Christianity that was not the true one. I can’t begin to tell you how insulting that is to former believers. It is, of course, his right to believe that and argue for it, but it takes away the brownie points away that he earned earlier from doing the work of actually listening to former Christians. He also simply concludes that presupposing the truth of Christianity is the best accounting for how one can reason, which makes me lose all remaining respect for this author. You can’t slander those who leave your faith and then just defend it by saying that you presuppose it to be true.
Overall, this would have been a much better book if he had left part three out. Instead of simply listening to people, he uses it as an opportunity to say, “how can we use this information to keep people in the church?”
April 13, 2021
John Marriott thoroughly investigates the trend of the faithful leaving the flock. Data driven research with is geared towards finding the reasons that previously adherent Christians denounce faith in their religion and even in the existence of a God. He is looking at those individuals who transition from believer to agnostic to atheist.
This trend is disturbing in actuality to the hierarchy and leadership of the group. What his first hand research shows, is that to the "deconvereted" the experience is release and relief.
At the end of the book he does offer some guidance on how the churched can sympathize with the deconverted.
This book seems primarily written for the academic community.
I would like to now read Mariott's other book, A Recipe for Disaster, which may be more oriented toward the less academic reader.
This trend is disturbing in actuality to the hierarchy and leadership of the group. What his first hand research shows, is that to the "deconvereted" the experience is release and relief.
At the end of the book he does offer some guidance on how the churched can sympathize with the deconverted.
This book seems primarily written for the academic community.
I would like to now read Mariott's other book, A Recipe for Disaster, which may be more oriented toward the less academic reader.
January 15, 2023
To be honest, my experiences with fundamentalism include crying on my dorm floor because I just couldn’t be a young earth creationist, no matter how hard I tried and also trying to convince a dorm mate that her reasoning for preferring the KJV was pretty racist. That is to say, I did not grow up in this world.
It’s fascinating and sad to see how much of this was going on literally right under my nose, and I thought my parents “well, whatever. Just explore on your own” attitude was normal. Apparently it was not. And boy, howdy, what a mess.
I understand the deconstruction phenomenon a lot better now. I’m sad to see people leave, but I also understand that Christianity is different for different people. I’ve always felt intellectually free to explore and discover, and so I’ve never felt any need for deconstruction. I enjoy an occasional apologetics book, but I really don’t need a reason to believe. Partially because I’m not that dogmatic about the text; I don’t need a spade in the ground to find the golden plates for it to be true. But partially because I just read Richard Dawkins in high school and though he was stupid.
My favorite section in the entire book is where he talks about the tendency of those who deconstruct to assume the text is either inerrant or it’s wrong. The text never demands itself to be inerrant. That is a post- 1900 idea anyway. YES! SHOUT THIS FROM THE FREAKING ROOFTOPS
It’s fascinating and sad to see how much of this was going on literally right under my nose, and I thought my parents “well, whatever. Just explore on your own” attitude was normal. Apparently it was not. And boy, howdy, what a mess.
I understand the deconstruction phenomenon a lot better now. I’m sad to see people leave, but I also understand that Christianity is different for different people. I’ve always felt intellectually free to explore and discover, and so I’ve never felt any need for deconstruction. I enjoy an occasional apologetics book, but I really don’t need a reason to believe. Partially because I’m not that dogmatic about the text; I don’t need a spade in the ground to find the golden plates for it to be true. But partially because I just read Richard Dawkins in high school and though he was stupid.
My favorite section in the entire book is where he talks about the tendency of those who deconstruct to assume the text is either inerrant or it’s wrong. The text never demands itself to be inerrant. That is a post- 1900 idea anyway. YES! SHOUT THIS FROM THE FREAKING ROOFTOPS
July 27, 2021
This is a tough book to read for those who hurt for those who reject Christ. I believe God himself weeps when those He loves reject Him, especially for reasons that have nothing to do with Him.
I found myself often angry and sad over the perspectives of deconverts and the church communities they rejected. Although I would recommend the book, it is not for everyone. My biggest critique of John Marriot's approach is that he doesn't challenge the account of the deconverts but let's them speak as authorities. In the last chapter, he does give a rebuttal, but for some, it may feel too late. I understand the reasoning behind it. There is a sense that we need to listen and digest what deconverts are saying without objection before we pause and prayerfully look for ways to not make the same mistakes. At the same time, Marriot never really challenges the motives or hearts of the deconverts, but puts almost all the blame for their rejection of Christianity upon the church communities from which they came. As hard as that is to hear, I do understand that his intended audience is the church, and thus, it makes sense to challenge the church to do better.
There were some theological areas where I would disagree with Marriot, but (as he says in the book) theological disagreements don't change the lessons the church can learn from this.
I found myself often angry and sad over the perspectives of deconverts and the church communities they rejected. Although I would recommend the book, it is not for everyone. My biggest critique of John Marriot's approach is that he doesn't challenge the account of the deconverts but let's them speak as authorities. In the last chapter, he does give a rebuttal, but for some, it may feel too late. I understand the reasoning behind it. There is a sense that we need to listen and digest what deconverts are saying without objection before we pause and prayerfully look for ways to not make the same mistakes. At the same time, Marriot never really challenges the motives or hearts of the deconverts, but puts almost all the blame for their rejection of Christianity upon the church communities from which they came. As hard as that is to hear, I do understand that his intended audience is the church, and thus, it makes sense to challenge the church to do better.
There were some theological areas where I would disagree with Marriot, but (as he says in the book) theological disagreements don't change the lessons the church can learn from this.
November 16, 2023
What an outstanding book. Recommended by a friend; this is written by someone I would never have come across in my section of the church. John Marriott identifies with the Fundamentalist/Evangelical wing of the church. But, in spite of that identification Marriott is broad minded and alerting the church to a disturbing trend which is operative across all spectrums of the church. He is particularly disturbed that many are leaving the evangelical/fundamentalist wing and reporting that their lives are better now that they have become atheists. The gist of the book, filled with quotes and illustrations from many deconverts he's personally interviewed is that they have good reasons for leaving, that somehow their churches failed them in passing on the faith, that they and perhaps the whole church as well needs to change if we are genuinely going to offer the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I'd like to go into more depth about what he reports out - but that would be a regurgitation, and perhaps a poor one at that of his work. I don't believe many in my wing of the church will hear of his work - so here is my appeal to take up his book, argue with it, fight it, but hear him. Intolerance everywhere is killing us.
I'd like to go into more depth about what he reports out - but that would be a regurgitation, and perhaps a poor one at that of his work. I don't believe many in my wing of the church will hear of his work - so here is my appeal to take up his book, argue with it, fight it, but hear him. Intolerance everywhere is killing us.
January 1, 2024
Okay book, had some interesting points and ideas. I feel the style of the book was a little odd, the author withheld a lot of commentary and it seemed a bit forced in a way? But that led me to make inferences for myself and think about different cases for myself. You have to do a bit more analysis than other books because he leaves a lot open ended.
I also think the book may have given a lopsided story, because deconversion was defined as christian to explicitly atheist. So this led to most of the stories coming from fundamentalist “either-or” backgrounds that would explain the harsh line between Christian and not, compared to more loose evangelical backgrounds. Also many of the atheists interviewed were passionate activists and not really your average atheist, so that seemed to skew the general story a bit.
I also think the book may have given a lopsided story, because deconversion was defined as christian to explicitly atheist. So this led to most of the stories coming from fundamentalist “either-or” backgrounds that would explain the harsh line between Christian and not, compared to more loose evangelical backgrounds. Also many of the atheists interviewed were passionate activists and not really your average atheist, so that seemed to skew the general story a bit.
September 10, 2021
The author has started to address a very real issue in the church of the 21st century. But, his editors ought to be taken to task. This volume reads like a doctoral dissertation with poor transitions between chapters. The author's interaction and work with those who are in the deconversion process are amazing. He does seem to hit the very critical issues that are involved. Sadly, he spends the first three-quarters of the book telling the deconversion stories without really addressing what to do about it. The result is that the reader becomes increasingly depressed before they get to some of the worthwhile concepts of what to do. This book is more for the pastor or researcher rather than for the parent wondering how to deal with their adult child who has given up on Christianity.
October 2, 2022
The book explains what deconversion is and then examines the lives of Christians who deconverted and what led to their deconversion.
It wasn't an easy book for me to read because I know former friends who were believers and now question the existence of God and because it caused me to wonder how I can protect myself or my loved ones from this same situation.
The last part of the book does offer hope. There are some who deconvert and then come back to God, often not to the same strict standards they once held, but at least they now believe and are serving God.
It wasn't an easy book for me to read because I know former friends who were believers and now question the existence of God and because it caused me to wonder how I can protect myself or my loved ones from this same situation.
The last part of the book does offer hope. There are some who deconvert and then come back to God, often not to the same strict standards they once held, but at least they now believe and are serving God.
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August 21, 2024Книгата е написана много ясно и достъпно и (на пръв поглед) се основава на добро изследване.
Двете най-важни неща, които са напълно актуални и за България са
1. Причините, които хората посочват за загуба на вярата -някои от тях могат силно да ни изненадат.
2. Главата за това какво може да се направи, за да бъде предотвратено подобно изоставяне на вярата е безценна - стига да има кой да слуша.
Двете най-важни неща, които са напълно актуални и за България са
1. Причините, които хората посочват за загуба на вярата -някои от тях могат силно да ни изненадат.
2. Главата за това какво може да се направи, за да бъде предотвратено подобно изоставяне на вярата е безценна - стига да има кой да слуша.
January 11, 2025
Deconversion has become such an overused buzzword today and much of it masking a reason to be just as fundamentalist but now toward conservative Christianity. Marriott redeems its use by studying the experience of those that have undergone the process and with his research and analyzation skills puts together a strong book on how to have a healthy journey from Deconversion to reconversion.
January 4, 2022
One part depressing, one part encouraging but completely necessary. I learned a lot from this book. I did not agree with all of the conclusions and maybe even some of the methods he used. But I felt it went a good direction and one that will benefit me as a teacher. Recommended
July 9, 2022
Insightful read to help me better understand all that takes place within those who deconvert. I have a much better awareness of the process and effects that take place.
I must say though, I didn’t find the application as helpful as I would have liked… still overall a good book to check out!
I must say though, I didn’t find the application as helpful as I would have liked… still overall a good book to check out!
April 13, 2023
This book has probably been overcome by events and out done by more in-depth research, but it makes some important points. I presume this was a D. Min studies dissertation popularized. Could be wrong about that.
March 2, 2022
Important book. Helpful insights and observations.
January 1, 2022
The Anatomy of Deconversion is a book that deals with a very important current issue that many Christians are facing and trying to understand. John Marriott takes his readers through different conversations with people who have left the Christian faith and dives into the reasons why people become disillusioned by the Christian faith or the church in which they are a part.
I found the conversations interesting, but I did find the book a bit much to slog through. To be honest I could have done with a more simplistic book that summed up the reasons why people leave the church in the first section (maybe a chapter of reasons and a chapter of different experiences) and a second section on what we need to do as Christians. I felt like the book had some great points but it dragged on and was repetitive at times. It also felt as though I was reading a thesis versus reading an accessible book for the layman to understand what is going on to the people in their lives that are falling away from the faith.
The meat of the book was good. I just felt like it dragged on and had many parts that I could have cut out to get to the point more rapidly. I don't think I would recommend this book to many people who are in need of understanding this issue, because I do not feel as though the book would help them to understand what they are looking to know. A more simplistic version of his great information might be more beneficial for the majority of people.
I found the conversations interesting, but I did find the book a bit much to slog through. To be honest I could have done with a more simplistic book that summed up the reasons why people leave the church in the first section (maybe a chapter of reasons and a chapter of different experiences) and a second section on what we need to do as Christians. I felt like the book had some great points but it dragged on and was repetitive at times. It also felt as though I was reading a thesis versus reading an accessible book for the layman to understand what is going on to the people in their lives that are falling away from the faith.
The meat of the book was good. I just felt like it dragged on and had many parts that I could have cut out to get to the point more rapidly. I don't think I would recommend this book to many people who are in need of understanding this issue, because I do not feel as though the book would help them to understand what they are looking to know. A more simplistic version of his great information might be more beneficial for the majority of people.
October 9, 2021
This is an interesting and useful book. It is also one that I wish every pastor that I know (and don’t know) would read. From my perspective in Europe, the American bible-belt perspective is unfortunate, such that some of the details are irrelevant. However, the larger findings are (I believe) equally important anywhere in the world. The two largest takeaways for me were: 1) if the “gospel” taught in a church is not truly good news to the society, there may be something wrong with the message, and 2) teaching grey areas (e.g., dogmatic inerrancy, specific view on origins, we are the only ones with the correct interpretation of scripture, etc.) as if they are of central importance to Christianity, is a serious mistake.
July 13, 2021
Since I have been a Christian (about ten years now), I have watched people deconvert and deconstruct their faith. And it's always been heartbreaking to watch. What's even more heartbreaking is seeing the research that John Marriot accumulated for this book. The deconverters have very similar stories and situations. In the end, I was reminded not to be legalistic, to allow people to have questions, to walk along side them as they wrestle with questions, and to love them. Just love them. Regardless of where they end up, LOVE THEM!
I don't want to give everything away, but the last two chapters and the afterword will leave you hopeful. Again, love is the answer!
I don't want to give everything away, but the last two chapters and the afterword will leave you hopeful. Again, love is the answer!
September 13, 2021
Helpful but disturbing.
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