Why Are Atheists Deconstructing?

Glasgow-born historian Niall Ferguson is perhaps the most influential historian – and certainly one of the most influential public intellectuals – in the world. In 2004, Time magazine named him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Ferguson recently spoke publicly for the first time about his rejection of atheism in favour of Christianity. He now describes himself as a ‘lapsed atheist’. Fellow-historian Sarah Irving-Stonebraker similarly appropriates language usually reserved for those leaving the faith to describe how she ‘deconstructed’ her atheism. An Australian from a completely secular background, she came to the UK to get a PhD at Cambridge, before moving on to post-doctoral work at Oxford – where her atheism was shattered.  

What led to them losing faith in the atheism of their childhood? For Ferguson it was firstly historical – for Irving-Stonebreaker, primarily ethical. Ferguson says that he came to realise that ‘no society had been successfully organised on the basis of atheism. All attempts to do that have been catastrophic’. The next step on his journey was the realisation that ‘no individual can be fully formed or ethically secure without religious faith’. Read more of this article written by Rev. Stephen Steele for a local paper by clicking here.