While the number of atheists and nonbelievers may be growing, it isn't growing at the same rate across all demographics. Numerous polls and studies have found that on the whole, African Americans are more religious than other ethnicities. Harvard-educated religious scholar Anthony B. Pinn is working to change that. In Writing God's Obituary he tells the intriguing personal story of how he became one of the youngest ordained members in the African Methodist Episcopal Church--and later, an outspoken atheist.

Wind back the clock a few hundred years and you'll find that many leading Enlightenment writers were questioning faith as well. The Original Atheists, a new anthology edited by S. T. Joshi, reveals that intellectual giants like Locke, Jefferson, and Voltaire were much more skeptical about religion than one might imagine.

First, The Promethean sat down with memoirist Anthony Pinn:

 
Faith has a lot of different meanings, depending on who you ask. What is your definition of faith?

Like spiritual, there are numerous ways in which faith is defined.  Although often associated with some type of assurance grounded in a type of cosmic support (e.g., god), there are ways to think about faith that aren't tied to theistic assumptions.  For example, I would define faith as belief in creative possibilities for meaningful existence grounded in the data of history.

You preached your first sermon at age twelve. How did your involvement in the church affect your childhood?

Yes, it was about 12.  Moving into ministry so early, I didn't have much of a childhood.  While I made my share of mistakes and was involved in my share of mischief, I didn't have a sense of youthful freedom.  My sense of obligation and guilt was much stronger than it should be for a pre-teen. And, it was so strong because I was placed in a special place, given special responsibilities because of that first sermon.  My childhood was filtered through a very strong sense of "what would Jesus do?"  I was expected not to move through the world in a youthful daze, but rather I was to have answers and spiritual insights others could use to live well.

When did you first start to question your faith?

While I was an undergraduate at Columbia University, I began meeting people--very nice, pleasant, helpful people--who didn't share my faith.  Those encounters combined with what I was learning in classes and what I encountered at my church in Brooklyn forced me to confront the nature and meaning of my Christian faith.  So much of what I'd come to think and believe while growing up in Buffalo started to show cracks and flaws.  I started finding it hard to participate in the church as a minister because I wasn't certain my Christian faith was effective, and I was no longer so confident that others were wrong.

How did your family and friends react to your change of path?

Family and friends disagreed with me, but for the most part there was no hostility.  I didn't lose many friends and my close family members remained close.  My mother, who was involved in church ministry at the time, told me that she disagreed but that I was her son and her love for me knew no limitations, had no barriers.  I was fortunate in this way.  I know of some many others who have been disowned and cast aside because they reject the Christian faith.  But, I think some members of my family and some of my friends are still waiting for me to come back to the church.  I always tell them that I don't make the same mistake twice.

Anthony Pinn Photo by Tommy LaVergne

It's very easy.  I'm involved in the academic study of religion.  I view religion as a cultural system that has guided thought and actions for many humans over the course of centuries.  My interest revolves around exploring the nature and meaning of religion so understood.  I don't teach courses that only reflect my own interests, and I don't use the classroom as a recruitment opportunity.  Within the University setting most don't assume the professor necessarily has a personal allegiance to the material studied.   The professor teaching a course on Marxism need not be a Marxist.  And, the professor--like me--studying religion need not be a theist.  The balance is easy to maintain in that my beliefs inform my personal life but my academic responsibilities extend beyond my personal worldview.

If you could share one bit of knowledge from your journey with every person struggling with their faith, what would it be?

I would strongly encourage people struggling with faith to keep at it.  Be true to their thinking, and recognize that there are likeminded people out there more than ready to lend a hand.