Ten years ago, Anne Rice said that Christ was her Messiah. The news shocked much of the world (at least the literary
world.)
This is because Anne Rice was the best selling author of The Vampire Chronicles among many other titles. With so much of her writing leaning towards the darker corners of our existence, hearing that she accepted the light of Christ was surprising to say the least. To date she has sold over 100 million books. As a new author myself, that’s quite a feat.
Here is an extended quote from Timothy Keller’s book, .
Anne Rice was one person who was startled to discover how weak the case for a merely human “historical Jesus” really is. Rice became famous as the author of Interview with the Vampire and other works… Raised a Catholic, she lost her faith at a secular college, married an atheist, and became wealthy writing novels about Lestat, who is both a vampire and a rock star…
Why did she do it? In the afterword to her new novel, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, she explained that she had begun doing extensive research about the historical Jesus by reading the work of Jesus scholars at the most respected academic institutions. Their main thesis was that the Biblical documents we have aren’t historically reliable. She was amazed at how weak their arguments were.
Some books were no more than assumptions piled on assumptions… Conclusions were reached on the basis of little or no data at all… The whole case for the non-divine Jesus who stumbled into Jerusalem and somehow got crucified… that whole picture which had floated around the liberal circles I frequented as an atheist for thirty years — that case was not made. Not only was it not made, I discovered in this field some of the worst and most biased scholarship I’d ever read.
On Wednesday, she let the Facebook world know that she is calling it quits. She has had enough. Let me let her say it her way.
As I said below, I quit being a Christian. I’m out. In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. In the name of Christ, I quit Christianity and being Christian. Amen.
Clearly this is not something she did quickly, it seems she has made a reflected decision and has acted based upon it. She provides some clarification here.
For those who care, and I understand if you don’t: Today I quit being a Christian. I’m out. I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being “Christian” or to being part of Christianity. It’s simply impossible for me to “belong” to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten years, I’ve tried. I’ve failed. I’m an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else.
On her , she quotes several scripture from Matthew, John and 1 Corinthians and then her most recent posting (as of my posting) is this…
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.
What do you think about what she is saying and how she is saying it? Would love to get your thoughts!
jamesM said...
1The last quote, especially, makes it seem like she’s tired of the junk that’s attached to being a Christian but is still trying to be faithful to the core. But to only read what she wrote on Facebook seems to be a lot worse (and misinformed).
I might recommend that Rice take a look (if she hasn’t already) at More Jesus, Less Religion by Stephen Arterburn and Jack Felton.
Hopefully her seeming despair over Christianity doesn’t keep her from the fellowship of the faithful. There are many others out there like her, I’d guess.
07/30/10 10:00 AM | Comment Link
said...
2It’s heartbreaking to me. I was a huge fan of Anne rice and have read a bunch of her novels when I was younger. I was pumped that she’d gotten saved.
What’s really sad is that I’m sure a lot of what she said in her facebook post is true in her experience. In fact, I’ve had many of the same thoughts she mentioned. But I know it’s not true in an absolute sense. Christ’s bride is not what she described and by closing herself off to it completely, she’s out of God’s will..
Lots of people in the church have weird ideas, but people who leave the church inevitably end up with even wierder ideas. Without exception in my experience, people who leave the church stop serving God.
I hope she reconsiders and spends time discovering the real bride of Christ, and ignores all the idiots out there that give the church a bad name.
07/30/10 10:51 AM | Comment Link
said...
3I seem to recall that you too, Jim, say “I’m a follower of Christ” rather than “I’m a Christian.” I think this is what Anne is saying, although she’s saying it specifically in the context of several issues.
Mo, I don’t think she’s saying that she no longer has faith in Christ. I think she’s rejecting the word “Christian” because of many of the connotations that come with the word. She says she’s following Christ.
I think what she’s saying is good. It would be amazing if she used her frustration and her convictions to reach others who think of all Christians as judgmental or hateful or ignorant.
07/30/10 12:56 PM | Comment Link
Candice said...
4Sometimes I can definitely identify with the way Rice feels. I guess just because we’re saved doesn’t mean we are perfected. The verse John 13:35 is very challenging for me when it states- Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples (NLT).
This reminds me that I can’t give up on other “Christians” or even block them out of my mind like I have a tendancy to do. I hope that other Christians will reach out to Rice during this frustrating time for her then the world will see that we are disciples of Jesus
08/3/10 10:18 AM | Comment Link
Caroline said...
5I agree with Mo here. I understand her anger at all those who tarnish the Christian name by claiming to be “Christian” while also continuously acting in ways and believing in things that Christ wouldn’t and doing so without an ounce of remorse. However, I don’t believe the way she approaches this issue will encourage other believers in their walk with Christ or lead others who aren’t followers of Jesus to become followers.
She States “I remain committed to Christ as always but not… to being part of Christianity.” To me this sounds like denouncing any form of Church and as we know from the Bible, Church is a very good thing. Christ encourages us to be in fellowship. The Church is the bride of Jesus. I would encourage her to reread the Book of Acts.
08/3/10 5:29 PM | Comment Link
Grant Richardson said...
6I am in sympathy with her position – churched Christainity is certainly confusing and contradictory – Look at the King James version of the Bible and you need look no further – it was written by committee with different agendas. That said, I firmly believe that faith is found with Christ and his community of believers. I do not believe they are exclusive to each other and I do believe that they can be reconciled by people of faith and good hearts. The need is not to leave but to lead as Christ expects us to do.
08/5/10 2:28 PM | Comment Link
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7Hey James, thanks for your thoughts and the book suggestion. I haven’t read it.
08/5/10 9:24 PM | Comment Link
said...
8Hey Mo! Speaking as one who has at times been the idiot and at other times the one who cringes at them, I wholeheartedly agree!
08/5/10 9:25 PM | Comment Link
said...
9EG, I can see where you are coming from. I do think there is something to the fact that we will demonstrate, like the disciples were told they would, our love for Christ by our love for each other. Thoughts?
08/5/10 9:27 PM | Comment Link
said...
10Very well put Candace. I posted something to that very same effect below. It has been great hearing your reflections this summer!
08/5/10 9:29 PM | Comment Link
said...
11Nice point Caroline. Thanks for posting!
08/5/10 9:30 PM | Comment Link
Jordon said...
12What’s important is the context. I could go into some her beliefs and personal biases:
But the key here is that she wanted to find a community who believed exactly what she believed, and when she didn’t she never considered challenging her own views but instead presumed that those that did not agree with her were wrong. In the video she sights examples of her plight that are both extremes of conservatism and liberalism, without any consideration for the majority that are in between.
Again, if you presume you are right in all things, then there is no room for the truth. I feel this has less to do with her “quitting Christianity” more than it has to do with her unwillingness to challenge herself.
08/10/10 5:07 AM | Comment Link
said...
13Jordan, you shared some great thoughts here! Thanks also for the vid, I have received a number of requests for where she went into more detail and this one is very helpful. I also agree that we need to be willing to challenge our own personal views, that we have the perspective of a listener and a learner. That doesn’t mean that we accept everything that we hear or that we like, but we reflect on those things through the context of what we hear the scripture saying to us and the church. Proverbs reminds us that a wise man is always ready to understand something better, but also has moorings. That is a tension that isn’t easily kept.
08/10/10 9:05 AM | Comment Link
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05/21/11 8:40 PM | Comment Link