Ex-atheists

Ex-atheist Lee Strobel

There have been some notable incidences of atheists converting to theism.

Lee Strobel converted from atheism to Christianity and then became a Christian apologist.[1] Before investigating the claims of Christianity, Strobel had obtained an undergraduate degree in journalism and also obtained a Master of Studies in Law degree from Yale Law School. Strobel was an award-winning legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, and he won Illinois’ top honors for investigative reporting (which he shared with a team he led) and public service journalism from United Press International.[2] After a nearly a two year investigation of the evidence for Christianity, Strobel became a Christian.[3]

Although Richard Dawkins declared he was an agnostic in 2006 and 2012, in 2002 Richard Dawkins publicly argued for the position of militant atheism and claimed that he will not feel anything after death.[4][5][6] See: Richard Dawkins and agnosticism

C.S. Lewis abandoned his atheism and became a Christian and he was very much influenced by the writings of George MacDonald and G. K. Chesterton.[7] In Surprised by Joy, Lewis says: "In reading Chesterton, as in reading MacDonald, I did not know what I was letting myself in for. A young man who wishes to remain a sound Atheist cannot be too careful of his reading. God is, if I may say it, very unscrupulous."[8]

British philosopher Anthony Flew abandoned atheism and became an deist after as a result of the intelligent design issue. According to the news organization MSNBC, Flew became a deist because he believed a super-intelligence was the only good explanation for the origin of life and the complexity of nature.[9] In 2006, Flew and 12 prominent academics urged that intelligent design be taught in British government schools.[10]

The work of ex-atheist and psychologist Dr. Paul Vitz is often cited in regards to atheism. Dr. Vitz wrote the work Faith of the Fatherless which is a book which touches upon the subject of the causal factors in regards to atheism.

## Contents

* 1 Other ex-atheists
* 2 Evidence related to Antony Flew's conversion to theism/deism
* 3 Atheism and its retention rate in individuals
* 4 Recommended books
* 5 See also
* 6 External links
* 7 Notes

## Other ex-atheists[edit]

Alister McGrath

See also: Ex-atheist testimonies of Christians

* Alister McGrath
* Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Russian Orthodox Christian
* Peter Hitchens, Christian and former Communist
* John Warwick Montgomery, Christian legal apologist[11]
* Mark Zuckerberg
* Enoch Powell, politician, Christian
* A.N. Wilson[12]
* John C. Wright[13]
* Stephen Colbert[14]
* Teresa MacBain, Methodist
* Tamsin Greig, Christian
* Keir Hardie, Protestant Christian
* Gabriel Marcel, Catholic Christian
* Dmitry Medvedev, Russian Orthodox Christian
* Nursultan Nazarbayev, Muslim
* Anne Rice, believes in Jesus Christ and God, but no longer considers herself a Christian
* Sita Ram Goel, Hindu
* Martin Lings, Muslim
* David Wood

## Evidence related to Antony Flew's conversion to theism/deism[edit]

Richard Carrier

Athanatos Christian Ministries wrote concerning the book A Defense of the Integrity of Antony Flew's "There is a God" From His Own Letters by Anthony Horvath:

“  |  Famed atheist Antony Flew stunned the world with his repudiation of atheism in favor of deism about 2004 but the reasons for his change were unclear. Finally, in 2007, Flew released his book There Is a God: How the World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind in an attempt to set the record straight.” It was immediately challenged by hostile atheists on a number of grounds, not all of them very charitable. One of the challenges was put forth most prominently by PZ Myers and Richard Carrier: Flew had lost his mind; the arguments weren’t his at all, but rather were the product of manipulating Christian apologists.

There is just one teensy-weensy problem with this line of attack. In 2006, before it was even known to the world that Antony Flew would be releasing a book, a Christian apologist and author by the name of Anthony Horvath (Athanatos Christian Ministries) was in correspondence with Dr. Flew. Horvath wrote Flew specifically to ask him to commit his current positions and arguments to written form because even then there was much speculation. The answer was that the book was already in the works!

The correspondence was brief but turns out to be decisive against those claiming that “There is a God” did not reflect Flew’s actual positions. In this e-book, Horvath releases copies of the original letters along with his lengthy rebuttal to Richard Carrier’s assertions. To date, though Carrier has been made aware of that rebuttal, no answer has been received. And no wonder: these letters settle the matter once and for all.

For those interested in the best evidence and primary sources in coming to their conclusions, these letters by Flew will be instrumental.[15]

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## Atheism and its retention rate in individuals[edit]

See: Atheism and its retention rate in individuals

## Recommended books[edit]

* Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C.S. Lewis, Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich (March 23, 1966), ISBN 0156870118, ISBN 978-0156870115

* There is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind by Anthony Flew (2007) with Roy Abraham Varghese (ISBN 978-0-06-133529-7)

* A Defense of the Integrity of Antony Flew's "There is a God" From His Own Letters by Anthony Horvath, Publisher: Athanatos Christian Ministries, September 3, 2011[16]

## See also[edit]

* Resources for leaving atheism and becoming a Christian
* Conversion from atheism to Christianity
* Evidence for Christianity
* Ex-agnostics
* Books on the causes of atheism

## External links[edit]

* Why are So Many Former Atheists Coming to Christ?
* Resource created by an ex-atheist

v • d • e

Atheism

Atheism • Rebuttal • Morals • Academics • Quotes • Christianity • Debate • Evolution • Atheism and the suppression of science • Mass Murder • Communism • Atheist Shooters and Serial Killers • Mental and Physical Health • Miracles • Morality • Uncharitableness • Agnosticism • Deception • The Bible • The Problem of Evil • Agenda • Psychology • Population • Prison Statistics • Racism • Atheism and women • Brights Movement • Causes • Death Toll • Definitions • Evangelical atheist • Ex-atheists • Faith Freedom International • Godless: The Church of Liberalism‎ • Godless liberal • His Dark Materials • History • Liberalism • Militancy • New Atheism • Videos • Skeptics Annotated Bible • Strong atheism • The God Delusion • There Are No Atheists In Foxholes • Weak atheism

## Notes[edit]

1. ↑ http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=3884
2. ↑ http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=3884
3. ↑ http://www.leestrobel.com/LS_bio.htm
4. ↑ Mailvox: Richard Dawkins is not an atheist!
5. ↑ Richard Dawkins Says He's Agnostic -- NOT atheist - video testimony of Richard Dawkins saying he is not an atheist, but an agnostic
6. ↑
* Richard Dawkins on militant atheism
7. ↑ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n23_v47/ai_17863106
8. ↑ Lewis, Surprised by Joy op cit.
9. ↑ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6688917/
10. ↑ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/newspapers/sunday_times/britain/article1265412.ece?token=null&offset=12
11. ↑ EVIDENCE FOR JESUS’ RESURRECTION LEADS DISTINGUISHED PHILOSOPHER & ATHEIST, JOHN MONTGOMERY, TO FAITH.
12. ↑ A N Wilson: Why I believe again
13. ↑ The Last Crusade: Rip van Con by John C. Wright
14. ↑ Stephen Colbert reveals why he returned to Catholicism after losing his faith
15. ↑ A Defense of the Integrity of Antony Flew's "There is a God" From His Own Letters by Anthony Horvath, Publisher: Athanatos Christian Ministries, September 3, 2011
16. ↑ A Defense of the Integrity of Antony Flew's "There is a God" From His Own Letters by Anthony Horvath, Publisher: Athanatos Christian Ministries, September 3, 2011