Man "Tries Out" Atheism for a Year, Loses Job as Christian Professor at Christian University: Man, World Shocked.

"Hey man, if you think Christian pastors should be expected to be Christians and pastors, it seems like you're a little narrow-minded."

So said my friend Nathan Camp as we were discussing the mindblowing idiocy that is this article and the rest of the secular reaction to this pastor and professor who's "trying out" atheism. In case you haven't heard about any of this, James did a great article over at Evangelical Outpost outlining the subject, appropriately titled "Lord, I believe, but I'll give up my belief."

Basically, a (now former) pastor and professor at Azusa Pacific University made the public decision to live "without God" for a year. He will not pray, he will not read the Bible, he will not go to church, he will not actively trust in God's will: In short, he will not talk to God, he will not think of God, and he will not join people who gather for those purposes.

And after publicly declaring to do all of this, he is somehow shocked when he loses his two jobs teaching at Christian schools. After signing and affirming a Statement of Faith at Asuza Pacific, he is somehow surprised to find that disavowing that same statement comes with consequences: Indeed, his initial reaction is "But lots of other people probably doubt it too!"

 And he sees this reaction as affirming that there is a problem with the Church, since they crucify those on "an honest and intellectual spiritual journey."

Gah. I got a sour taste in my mouth just now. That is so gross, so inherently dishonest, that it's making me physically ill.

I've written of a similar phenomenon before: Of people being "vulnerable," and deflecting any and all criticism as an unjust attack. But this is even worse than that, because he wants to live without God for a year, and he wants this to be a big, dramatic moment, but at the same time, he wants to also live as a Christian.

He wants to live like an atheist? Fine. He can do his thing. But guess what? Azusa Pacific isn't going to let an atheist be a professor there. In fact, they have a Doctrinal Statement, that he signed, that affirms that he's not going to pull crap like that. And yet, when he publicly declares that he's going to live like an atheist, he somehow wants them to ignore it?

How seriously is he really taking this, if he doesn't expect his freaking employer to take it seriously?

Is there any other field where someone could disavow all central foundations of that field, and still expect to be trusted to teach that field accurately? If a mathematician "gave up math" and got fired, would he be surprised? If a teacher decided they were going to "give up education," would he protest the injustice of it?

But even more depressing than his reaction, is the reaction of the atheist community. After all, how dare APU enforce that document that he signed of his own free will? How dare the Christian school disallow a publicly-proclaimed "atheist for a year" from teaching? It's like...it's too sad. It's too depressing. It's too dumb. It's pointless to say anything more, because anyone who's actually thinking like that has just decided that any stick is good enough to beat Christianity with.