13. Francis Spufford & Andrew Klavan: A celebrated author and Hollywood screenwriter come to faith
Feb 20, 2024
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Prize-winning author and Hollywood screenwriter share their journeys back to faith, discussing their conversion stories and the emotional sense Christianity can make, exploring unexpected paths to belief in God.
Two celebrated authors share their unique journeys back to faith after years as atheists.
Struggles with depression, relationships, and literature influence personal growth and understanding of love.
Encountering transformative love and experiencing healing lead to a reassessment of beliefs, ultimately embracing faith.
Deep dives
Inauthentic religious upbringing and loss of faith
The speaker recounts growing up in a non-religious Jewish household and being forced to participate in religious traditions without having any belief. This led to feelings of hypocrisy and guilt during his bar mitzvah, eventually leading him to discard the gifts he received as a result of the ceremony.
Depression, literature, and finding authentic masculinity
The speaker shares his struggles with depression, heavy drinking, and a sense of alienation in his teens and 20s. He sought solace and inspiration in literature, particularly masculine heroic figures, which influenced his own writing. He also developed a fascination with the themes of knighthood and honor, as portrayed by authors such as Raymond Chandler.
Difficult personal relationships and the discovery of love
The speaker recounts tumultuous personal relationships, including struggles with rage and intimacy. However, he found solace and healing in the love and support of his wife and a therapist. Through these relationships, he began to recognize the transformative power of love and its capacity to heal and bring about positive change.
Therapy and the search for meaning and truth
The speaker's experience of therapy provided him with significant personal growth and healing. Although the therapeutic theories discussed were ultimately found lacking, he credits the transformative effects to the love, connection, and genuine human relationship he experienced in the therapeutic process.
Overcoming Moral Relativism
The podcast episode explores the influence of the novel 'Crime and Punishment' on the speaker's understanding of morality. At a time when moral relativism was prevalent, the protagonist's moral transformation in the face of committing a murder challenged the speaker's belief in the absence of objective evil. The vivid depiction of a gruesome crime scene in the novel reinforced the speaker's conviction that certain acts, regardless of cultural context or personal opinions, can be inherently evil. This realization acted as a defense against the rising tide of moral relativism and postmodern philosophies that threatened to engulf the speaker's worldview.
From Doubt to Faith
The podcast episode traces the speaker's journey from skepticism to faith. After gaining success as a writer and experiencing personal happiness, the speaker was no longer burdened by his previous misery and began to reassess his belief in God. Through personal experiences and moments of clarity, such as hearing a baseball player's response about playing in pain and saying a simple prayer, the speaker found a deepened understanding and joy in life. This led to a growth in prayer and a gradual acceptance of the truth he found in the Gospels. Eventually, the speaker considered and ultimately embraced the proposition to get baptized, despite the potential consequences and challenges it presented.
Prize-winning author Francis Spufford was an atheist for over 20 years before finding his way back to faith. His book 'Unapologetic: Why, despite everything, Christianity can still make surprising emotional sense' was an unconventional response to New Atheism.
Hollywood screenwriter and bestselling novelist Andrew Klavan, also came to Christian faith as an adult from a secular Jewish background - a story he tells in his book 'The Great Good Thing'.
Justin hears both their conversion stories in this bonus edition of the podcast. The documentary format resumes next time.
