List of former atheists and agnostics: Difference between revisions

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This is a list of notable persons who formerly identified as either atheists or agnostics, but then developed belief in a deity or deities. In some countries the percentage of those professing "no belief" is growing.^[1] A 2008 Pew Forum study reported that 3.9% of Americans were raised without religion, but later affiliated with a religious group. The same study reported that 12.7% of Americans were unaffiliated despite being raised in a particular faith.^[2]

For lists specific to atheist converting to religions see

Christianity

Islam

Judaism

Baha'i

Former Atheists

Atheists who converted to Hinduism

Annie Besant (former atheist) – Theosophist, orator and feminist^[3]
John Dobson (former atheist who became a believer in Vedanta) – astronomer and telescope designer^[4]^[5]
Sita Ram Goel (former atheist) – Indian commentator, writer and Hindu activist^[6]

Atheists who became an unspecified/uncertain form of theism or deism

Gabrielle Carey - Australian author of Puberty Blues who was raised atheist but converted to Catholicism and then explored other theologies.^[7]^[8]
Antony Flew - Philosopher and one of the most respected atheist thinkers of the 20th century, became a deist.^[9]
Moses Hess - Socialist philosopher and Left Hegelian who first influenced Karl Marx in his criticism of religion, but who later tried to combine the pantheism of Baruch Spinoza with Hegelianism.^[10]
Anne Rice - Best-selling American author of Gothic and religious-themed books.^[11] She returned to Catholicism, and remained as such for many years, but has since announced that although she still believes in Christ she no longer considers herself a Christian.^[12]^[13]
J. Neil Schulman - Libertarian science fiction writer who states he met, or experienced, God and that this ended his atheism. The first such experience would have occurred when he was 35. That stated he remains skeptical of "the church" and does not belong to any religion.^[14]
Dave Sim - Comics writer and anti-feminist. He converted to, or created, his own mixture of Abrahamic religions.^[15]^[16]
Ted Turner - Media mogul who stated that he is no longer an atheist or an agnostic. He has not embraced any specific religion.^[17]

Former Agnostics

Agnostics who converted to Christianity

Paul Bourget – French author who became agnostic and positivist at 15, but returned to Catholicism at 35.^[18]
Bruce Cockburn - Canadian folk/rock guitarist and singer/songwriter. (former agnostic)^[19]
Avery Dulles – A Jesuit priest, theologian, and cardinal in the Catholic Church. He was raised Presbyterian, but was an agnostic before his conversion to Catholic Christianity.^[20]^[21]
Dawn Eden – Rock journalist of Jewish ethnicity who went from an agnostic to a Catholic writer, who was particularly concerned with the moral values of chastity.^[22]^[23]
Arnold Lunn – A skier, mountaineer, and writer. As an agnostic he wrote Roman Converts, which took a critical view of Catholicism and the converts to it. He later converted to Catholicism due to debating with converts, and became an apologist for the faith, although he retained a few criticisms of the faith.^[24]
Gabriel Marcel – A leading Christian existentialist. His upbringing was agnostic.^[25]
Malcolm Muggeridge – British journalist and author who went from agnosticism to the Catholic Church.^[26]^[27]
Joseph Pearce – An anti-Catholic and agnostic British National Front member who became a devout Catholic writer with a series on EWTN.^[28]^[29]
John Lawson Stoddard – Divinity student turned "Scientific humanist" turned Catholic. His son Lothrop Stoddard remained agnostic and would be significant to Scientific racism.^[30]
Evelyn Waugh – British novelist who converted to Catholicism from agnosticism.^[31]

Agnostics who converted to Islam

Silma Ihram - An Australian educator, author, and racial tolerance campaigner. After an agnostic upbringing she became "born again Christian" and then Muslim.^[32]

Agnostics who converted to Judaism

Christian B. Anfinsen, Nobel prize-winning chemist who converted from "orthodox agnosticism" to Orthodox Judaism.^[33]

References

^ Demographics of Atheism
^ U.S.Religious Landscape Survey (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. 2008. pp. 22–26. The unaffiliated group provides a good example of the high degree of religious movement that has taken place in the U.S. Overall, 3.9% of the adult population reports being raised without any particular religious affiliation but later affiliating with a religious group. However, more than three times as many people (12.7% of the adult population overall) were raised in a particular faith but have since become unaffiliated with any religious group.
^ Besant, Annie. The Building of the Kosmos and Other Lectures: Delivered at the Eighteenth. The Path, 1894.
^ "John Dobson: Amateur Astronomy's Revolutionary". space.com.
^ Wall Street Journal Article about John
^ Goel, Sita Ram, "How I became a Hindu"
^ ABC Australia.
^ The Australian
^ BBC Interview Quote: "What I was converted to was the existence of an Aristotelian God, and Aristotle's God had no interest in human affairs at all."
^ Moses Hess: The Holy History of Mankind and other writings
^ Christianity Today
^ LA Times
^ Baltimore Sun: My faith in Christ is central to my life. My conversion from a pessimistic atheist lost in a world I didn't understand, to an optimistic believer in a universe created and sustained by a loving God is crucial to me. But following Christ does not mean following His followers. Christ is infinitely more important than Christianity and always will be, no matter what Christianity is, has been or might become.
^ Interview with Schulman: "After a thorough analysis of my previous life's experiences, and later experiences that lent validation, I concluded that the reality was that what had happened to me were really encounters with God -- therefore proving God's existence to me."
^ Village Voice
^ Sun Comics
^ "Ted Turner apologizes, joins churches' $200M malaria fight". USA Today. Associated Press. 2008-04-01. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
^ Career stories: Belle Epoque novels of professional development by Juliette M. Rogers, pg 55
^ "I was brought up as an agnostic... and when I first became a Christian in the Seventies I didn't really know what it was I'd adopted." Faith in Practice: Holding on to the Mystery of Love, by Bruce Cockburn as told to Cole Morton, Third Way, September 1994, page 15. (Accessed 13 June 2007)
^ Obituary at the Guardian
^ Newsweek obituary
^ St. Petersburg Times
^ MSNBC
^ Catholic Converts: British and American Intellectuals Turn to Rome by Patrick Allitt, pg 199-201
^ Phenomenological approaches to moral philosophy By John J. Drummond, Lester E. Embree; pg 269
^ Malcolm Muggeridge: A Life by Ian Hunter
^ Chicago Sun-Times obituary
^ Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture
^ The American Spectator
^ Race: the history of an idea in America by Thomas F. Gossett, pg 390
^ Six Modern British Novelists by George Stade, pgs 53-55
^ FAIR (pdf)
^ Profile of Anfinsen

[1] Demographics of Atheism

[pew-2] U.S.Religious Landscape Survey (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. 2008. pp. 22–26. The unaffiliated group provides a good example of the high degree of religious movement that has taken place in the U.S. Overall, 3.9% of the adult population reports being raised without any particular religious affiliation but later affiliating with a religious group. However, more than three times as many people (12.7% of the adult population overall) were raised in a particular faith but have since become unaffiliated with any religious group.

[3] Besant, Annie. The Building of the Kosmos and Other Lectures: Delivered at the Eighteenth. The Path, 1894.

[4] "John Dobson: Amateur Astronomy's Revolutionary". space.com.

[5] Wall Street Journal Article about John

[HIBAH_1-6] Goel, Sita Ram, "How I became a Hindu"

[7] ABC Australia.

[8] The Australian

[9] BBC Interview Quote: "What I was converted to was the existence of an Aristotelian God, and Aristotle's God had no interest in human affairs at all."

[10] Moses Hess: The Holy History of Mankind and other writings

[11] Christianity Today

[12] LA Times

[13] Baltimore Sun: My faith in Christ is central to my life. My conversion from a pessimistic atheist lost in a world I didn't understand, to an optimistic believer in a universe created and sustained by a loving God is crucial to me. But following Christ does not mean following His followers. Christ is infinitely more important than Christianity and always will be, no matter what Christianity is, has been or might become.

[14] Interview with Schulman: "After a thorough analysis of my previous life's experiences, and later experiences that lent validation, I concluded that the reality was that what had happened to me were really encounters with God -- therefore proving God's existence to me."

[15] Village Voice

[16] Sun Comics

[17] "Ted Turner apologizes, joins churches' $200M malaria fight". USA Today. Associated Press. 2008-04-01. Retrieved 2009-10-27.

[18] Career stories: Belle Epoque novels of professional development by Juliette M. Rogers, pg 55

[19] "I was brought up as an agnostic... and when I first became a Christian in the Seventies I didn't really know what it was I'd adopted." Faith in Practice: Holding on to the Mystery of Love, by Bruce Cockburn as told to Cole Morton, Third Way, September 1994, page 15. (Accessed 13 June 2007)

[20] Obituary at the Guardian

[21] Newsweek obituary

[22] St. Petersburg Times

[23] MSNBC

[24] Catholic Converts: British and American Intellectuals Turn to Rome by Patrick Allitt, pg 199-201

[25] Phenomenological approaches to moral philosophy By John J. Drummond, Lester E. Embree; pg 269

[26] Malcolm Muggeridge: A Life by Ian Hunter

[27] Chicago Sun-Times obituary

[28] Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture

[29] The American Spectator

[30] Race: the history of an idea in America by Thomas F. Gossett, pg 390

[31] Six Modern British Novelists by George Stade, pgs 53-55

[32] FAIR (pdf)

[33] Profile of Anfinsen

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 === Agnostics who converted to Christianity ===
 *[[Paul Bourget]]&nbsp;– French author who became agnostic and positivist at 15, but returned to Catholicism at 35.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=DaJI8Qmn-LUC&pg=PA55&lpg=PA55&dq=%22paul+bourget%22+agnostic&source=bl&ots=Pc0Eue076w&sig=yjWNICPTnO8n66d06j0TcZQHhro&hl=en&ei=_KvSS9LhOIHc8QT76Iy2Dw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CBcQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=%22paul%20bourget%22%20agnostic&f=false Career stories: Belle Epoque novels of professional development by Juliette M. Rogers, pg 55]</ref>
+*[[Bruce Cockburn]] - Canadian folk/rock guitarist and singer/songwriter. (former agnostic)<ref>"I was brought up as an agnostic... and when I first became a Christian in the Seventies I didn't really know what it was I'd adopted." [http://www.things.org/music/bruce_cockburn/articles/third_way.html Faith in Practice: Holding on to the Mystery of Love], by Bruce Cockburn as told to Cole Morton, ''Third Way'', September 1994, page 15. (Accessed 13 June 2007)</ref>
 *[[Avery Dulles]]&nbsp;– A Jesuit priest, theologian, and cardinal in the [[Catholic Church]]. He was raised Presbyterian, but was an agnostic before his conversion to Catholic Christianity.<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/19/cardinal-avery-dulles Obituary at the Guardian]</ref><ref>[http://www.newsweek.com/id/174310 Newsweek obituary]</ref>
 *[[Dawn Eden]]&nbsp;– Rock journalist of Jewish ethnicity who went from an agnostic to a Catholic writer, who was particularly concerned with the moral values of chastity.<ref>[http://www.sptimes.com/2008/02/26/Pasco/Author_tells_of_her_j.shtml St. Petersburg Times]</ref><ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23437024/ MSNBC]</ref>