Catherine Dunphy came to seminary in her mid-20s, full of passion to
work in the service of the Catholic Church. By the time she left, for
many reasons, she had lost her faith.
“I had this struggle where I thought, ‘I don’t believe this anymore,’” “I had this struggle where I thought, ‘I don’t believe this
anymore,’” said Dunphy, now 40 and living near Toronto. “I felt I had no
space to move or breathe. I felt like an outcast.”
Now, 10 years later, she is part of a new online project aimed at
helping others like herself who are isolated by doubt in a sea of
believers. Called Rational Doubt: The Clergy Project Blog, it debuts this week on Patheos, an online host of religion and spirituality blogs.
Rational Doubt is an extension of The Clergy Project,
a private online community of clergy who, for a range of reasons, no
longer believe in God. Started three years ago, the initiative has grown
from just a handful of anonymous members who supported each other on
online forums and discussions to a current roster of more than 550
priests, ministers, nuns, rabbis and even a few imams.
The blog’s goal is lofty: to engage and support clergy and laypeople
who are not members of The Clergy Project but who doubt or reject
religion and feel they cannot confide in friends, family and colleagues.
Clergy Project members — all former clergy who no longer believe in God
— will write posts, answer questions and engage in discussions about
religion, nonbelief and the journey between the two.
come out is having a negative effect on their lives,” said Linda
LaScola, a founder of The Clergy Project and editor of Rational Doubt.
People should not have to suffer that way.”
And they do seem to suffer. LaScola, a qualitative researcher, studied nonbelieving clergy with Daniel Dennett, a Tufts University professor. The two researchers found signs of depression, stress and debilitating anxiety.
After publishing their work, they helped found The Clergy Project with Richard Dawkins, the atheist and evolutionary biologist, and Dan Barker, a former minister who is now a secular activist.
“I hope the blog will provide encouragement and support to people who
are in the same predicament as the people in The Clergy Project,”
Dennett said. “I think there are a lot of them out there.”
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