Anne Rice Leaves Christianity
CNN: Joy Behar Show
Author of series The Vampire Chronicles, which includes the movie version of Interview with a Vampire, has left Christianity and officially declared it July 28. There’s much discussion and follow up on her Facebook fanpage. There’s also a teaser to an interview up on CNN page to the Joy Behar Show. I’m simply requoting what everyone else’s quoting (in case you don’t feel like looking it up).
Rice stated:
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.
And further:
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.
It would seem that Rice, like many others, is distinguishing between her faith, which is in Christ, and her religion, which is a 20th Century expression thereof. Many who consider themselves spiritual not religious are making a similar move.
Some responses
The responses to her declaration vary (naturally).
One Christian, Travis Lambert over at Blackbirdpress, says:
Now some of her “reasons” are clearly laughable–for instance, her refusal to be “anti-secular humanism.” Secular humanism denies both the existence of God and the supernatural basis of morality. Christianity affirms both. To affirm any proposition is logically to deny its opposite. Therefore, to affirm Christianity is to deny secular humanism. To want to affirm both is to maintain a perfect contradiction.
Lambert clearly holds logical and theological consistency as key, but places emphasis on theoretical associations rather than on Rice as a person. Given that Rice isn’t facing a theological entrance exam I feel that that Lamber misses what Rice actually says.
One atheist, Staks Rosch, says (and I’ve evidently selected the same quotes from Rice that he has):
While Anne Rice has quit Christianity, she has not yet returned to atheism and secular humanism. But this is at least a strong step in the right direction and may inspire others to re-evaluate the morals that Christianity indoctrinates.
Does Rosch really want Rice to return to the atheist fold? Here’s another religious person wanting to add another person to their religion.
And another, Godless Girl, says:
Good for Rice that she finally recognized the mess of this religion. I understand not wanting to identify with much of Christianity—especially the fundamentalist branches that make a business out of being anti-everyone–but that’s not good enough!
GG shares a strong opinion, identifying with Rice on one level but also asking her to go much further – to abandon her faith too.
Listening to Rice
All of these responses I’ve quoted above are examples of either-or categories, where you have to sign up for a team and belong to it. We’ve had this kind of thinking for a long time. We see it in tribal thinking, we’re living through the latter bit of a nationalistic mindset that still holds to it, and we’ve got our religions that are rooted in tribalistic and nationalistic frameworks. But the postmodern era, and those with a postmodern faith, are pushing the boundaries. Rather than hopping between one group and another they’re pushing a new course, on that takes them in the spaces between and around the religions.
According to Rice:
There were a few last straws… I’d seen one thing after another happen, one thing after another that organized religion had done basically in our secular culture or done publicly in the world that has caused me considerable moral discomfort … and my anger was building up, my confusion was building up, and I wanted to exhonirate myself … say that I’m not complicit in all of the different things that Christians are doing publicly around the world. I want to step away from this. My commitment to Christ demands a level of honesty and authenticity to me and I’m moving away from this group of followers.
Rice is being mature and consistent in her thinking, as is illustrated in the CNN interview with Joy Behar when questioned about Homosexuality and Feminism. Rice clearly refuses to be pushed into one camp or another on issues such as Abortion.
For example, when Joy Behar tries to get Rice to commit to one group. Rice acknowledges that since the Reformation Christians have been choosing a version of Christianity that suits them, and Joy Behar asks if there “Is there one denomination that you do like, one denomination at all?”
To which Rice maturely responds:
Right now I would prefer to walk away from the argument, from the confusion…. The appropriate thing for me to do is step away all together. I’m not just leaving the catholic church, I want to leave the entire fray, the entire quarrel, the entire public face of Christianity as it is now. I can’t be be committed to Christ and remain in this group… I’m not saying these people are bad… But I have to step away, I have to talk to God personally and seek his guidance…
Just as 1st Century Christians distinguished between the Person they place their faith in and their religious obligations and duties and requirements as muddied in historical politics and policies, so too are an increasing number of 21st Century Christians now doing similarly.
When listening to Rice I can’t help be impressed. Its such a refreshing alternative to the debates around the Emerging Church. Though I appreciated the CNN report on Brian McLaren’s response, I believe that the dialogue around where Christianity is right and where its wrong, and what we can do to fix it, and where its headed, and where its emerging or diverging or submerging, or whatever, isn’t as relevant beyond those interested in that particular conversation.
Though Rice may not take the title “spiritual not religious” upon herself (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong) she is certainly disassociating from the institutional, fundamentalist, and 20th Century expressions of Christianity … and she’s doing the same when faced with liberal politics (from the little I know about the political issues and dichotomies in the US). Rice maintains a core faith, but now distinguishes that faith from her religion.
I’m all for it, but what do you think?
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Thank u Anne, Its nice to know other people r tired of the hipocrites. I believe Jesus is the son of God. I don’t need the church to try and put their warped ideas on me. I’ve taught sunday school and brought my children to follow the Lord. But when my ‘Port in the STORM’ becomes so full of hate and anger that I can no longer tolerate the stupidity I’m no longer part of it. Thank u Anne for being so Brave ! Thank u, Maryjane
I admire Rice’s refusal to be pigeon-holed. I walked away from organized religion years ago for many of the same reasons, and ultimately found that faith was not a factor in my personal happiness or strength – i.e., organized religion wasn’t appropriate for me in the first place. However, Rice’s situation is extraordinarily thought provoking in that she should belong in Christianity, but morally can’t. And she refuses to give up her faith despite of that. It’s something I hope the Christian community chews on for a long while, because I don’t think Rice is the only person of faith who is uncomfortable with institutionalized intolerance.
Hi WriterGirl,
There’s an increasing number of people who’ve done exactly the same thing as Rice. Some have joined the Emerging Church crowd, others tend to move from one church to another, but increasingly people continue in relationship with Christ but do so apart from affiliation to church or denomination.
Personally I disassociate myself from Christianity but maintain a relationship with Godde.
I don’t mean to offer too many opinions (I just found your blog and it’s good), but I just learned about all of this Anne Rice stuff. Good on her, to be honest. I still belong to organized religion, because we’re not all power-hungry kooks. However, if you don’t want to be in, then by all means, leave. I don’t mean that as mean as it sounds. Anyway, I hope it works out for her.
Hi Dan,
I really believe there’s a time and place for everything (ok, going a bit Solomon here…). What I like about Rice is her balance and choice to maintain faith and integrity. For many organized religion works (whether Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, etc.) but increasingly there’s a growing group for whom its not working. It’s great that Rice can so elegantly step over into the second group, whilst maintaining love and respect for her fellow Christians.
Anne Rice’s reasons are no doubt very personal, emotional, experiential. You’re right in that Travis did not address her decision on those terms. However, part of living an authentic life (and Rice seems concerned about authenticity) is examining one’s own beliefs to make sure they are not contradictory. Christianity and secular humanism are contradictory, since rejection of God is part of the definition of secular humanism. She’s not being faced with a theology exam, but that does not excuse her excuse her from using her brain.
Hi Justin,
The traditional polarisations on these issues fail to allow for meaningful human-to-human interaction.There’s a small step from being anti secular humanist (the philosophy) to being anti secular humanist (the people). Unfortunately, Christians are complicit in crimes against people and quickly cross that line. I’ve personally experienced and witnessed that repeatedly (and from time-to-time been complicit myself), with Christians often being the barrier to Christ in missional situations.
In the interview with Behar, Rice clearly avoids a simplistic either-or scenarios or polarisation on a number of complex issues, including: abortion, homosexuality, denominationalism.
So, yes, on one level Christianity and Secular Humanism are incompatible. But belief systems are complex and multi-layered. Are they incompatible at every level? Surely not. Here’s two where where Christians/Christianity and Secular Humanists?humanism have much in common: “Secular humanism is a life stance that focuses on the way that humans can lead a good, happy and functional lives” and later “… an essential part of secular humanism is an ongoing search for objective truth, which is seen to be continually adapting and changing.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secular_humanism)
A simple either-or approach doesn’t do justice to any faith tradition or respect and value the people who lend their commitment the tradition, whether that of secular humanism, Christianity or another. Rice appears to be setting her mind and heart on the good and rejecting, within herself and the broad Christian religion(s), the hateful and disrespectful elements.