Anne Rice: “I quit being a Christian”
Has popular novelist Anne Rice abandoned her faith? CNN’s religion blog presents the following summary of Anne Rice’s recent Facebook posts regarding her faith:
Legendary author Anne Rice has announced that she’s quitting Christianity.
The “Interview with a Vampire” author, who wrote a book about her spirituality titled “Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession” in 2008, said Wednesday that she refuses to be “anti-gay,” “anti-feminist,” “anti-science” and “anti-Democrat.”
Rice wrote, “For those who care, and I understand if you don’t: Today I quit being a Christian … 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.”
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However, by clicking through to the full blog post on CNN’s Marquee blog adds the following quote from Rice (which she posted soon after her comments above) which changes the tone entirely:
“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,” Rice wrote. “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.”
So what Rice has decided to reject is the modern Christian church/community, not the Jesus of the Bible. As a Christian, and presumably one of those in that “infamous group” that Rice riled against, I’m glad that she doesn’t want to be “anti-gay, anti-feminist, anti-science and anti-Democrat” because I am none of those either. And so why would she and I want to be associated with a group of those who are?
On the other hand, it’s difficult to imagine a lone-ranger Christian who never has any community with others and never has the opportunity to serve together. Are there truly no like-minded individuals with whom Rice can share community with? Does she imagine that she is the only one who perfectly “gets it” and all others are “quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious” and not worth her time? Maybe those people are the most in need of help.
I was once told that if I ever found a perfect church, that I shouldn’t join it, because I’d ruin it. I wonder if Rice imagines that she is never “quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious”? Unfortunately I admit that I am all of the above, at least sometimes. These after all are not uniquely Christian problems; they are human problems. And the human longing for intimacy can’t be fulfilled alone. So I understand Rice’s frustration, but I do hope that she won’t give up her search for authentic community which can work together with her to seek positive change in the world.
What have your experiences with Christians and/or church been like? (If our recent post “Why are Christians jerks?” is any indication, those experiences may be quite negative.) Also feel free to contact us if you would like to receive a reply but have comments you’d rather not share publicly.
Hi Jason, I see your point and agree. The church is the body of Christ and to disdain His body is no small thing. As sinners there is no doubt that we mess things up and hurt one another, but God has designed us for relationship and we are a family in Christ.
For Anne Rice to say she’s ‘quitting the church’ is in itself to me anti-Christian, because the Church is the body of Christ and Jesus is the head. Hence you might say all you like how much of one you are, but it would be like trying to get connected to broadband internet with a 56K modem. You can try to be a lone super-Christian all you like, it doesn’t mean you are one. She’s being prideful and very judgmental by saying ‘I don’t want to be anti-this or that’, not all Christians are that way and some are. Such generalities are disparaging and its bad enough to receive an overabundance of insults, but worse by someone who claims to be of the faith. There’s no perfect Church, period. Get over yourself Anne Rice.
Cody, there is more evidence that Christ lived and died than there is that Napolean fought the battle at Waterloo, and yet no one ever doubts whether or not that happened.
Andrew you said it so very well…..each person on the earth has a choice to make and they will be only be held accountable for what they chose, not whether or not others did or didn’t.
Cody no one has ever been able to deny the evidence that Jesus existed as there is evidence that Christ was and did exist. All the major religions don’t deny that Christ existed however the change the meaning of his existence on earth. The purpose of Christ’s existence is to set us free from the very things that have been mentioned. As it is stated in John 8: 32 ” Then you will know the truth, and the truth will sit you free”.
The mistake that many Christian make is trying to force their belief’s on others instead of allowing the holy spirit to guide there lives so others can see evidence of God in them they wish to not allow the spirit to guide them and over compensate by saying this is what someone needs to do! Christs command to Christians is quite simple to love your neighbor as yourself. It is your choice if you wish to accept Christ as my only responsibility is live in Christ like manner and offer you the opportunity to accept Christ then I have done as Christ asked me to. If you choose to not do so then when you stand before him after you die then you can’t say to Christ I did not know how to become a Christian and Christ will say you were shown the way and you choose to not accept me.
APG, you clearly forget that opinions are not harmless. Tyrants of the past used religious interpretation in order to disease the world with their presence. People who let scripture lead their lives have nothing in their life. They will follow someone else’s rules without question and, as evident in the turmoil in the East, kill and die for them.
People are people. People are flawed. When we start realizing that we’re all in this together, instead of being pompous jerks saying “We’re the best shindig to join” then we can get over a lot of problems that have been frankly polluting our planet for the last 2+ millenia.
As for the person who used AD as evidence, AD was invented around 500 – 800 AD. Not exactly evidence of Jesus’ existence.
You are right APG that everyone is entitled to believe as they would like. However if you read the entire article above it makes it clear that she hasn’t quit following Jesus at all, but instead says that “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,” Rice wrote. “But following Christ does not mean following His followers.”
Cody, it’s interesting that you say that merely believing in Jesus’ message just alludes to the Golden Rule. It is in fact much more than that if you read what the Bible actually says about it. As for whether or not he existed, today’s date is actually evidence that he did….it’s May 24, 2011, AD which means Anno Domini, in the year of our Lord, as opposed to BC, Before Christ.
Cody — no offense, but, I feel that it is NOT appropriate for you to tell her what to believe or to force your OPINIONS of Jesus (or how she should respond to Jesus) on anyone.
(Such thinking is along the same lines of paternalistic-imperialism that caused colonization, chattel-slavery, sexism, racism, etc. and so on.)
Everyone is entitled to believe as they would like — and Ms. Rice is no different.
Merely believing in Jesus’ message just alludes to the Golden Rule, which infamously is “borrowed” by many religions, Christianity being no different. She should follow her conscious, not Jesus. Jesus more than likely did not even exist. But what people made him into was this lucrative, almost perfect human being. But we also must realize that that idea of perfect was almost 2000 years ago.
Culture evolves, we need to lead ourselves now. Sexism is wrong. Homophobia is wrong. Racism is wrong. All of them oppress people like you and me. We need to lend a hand rather than hold it back.
.
If I could meet her in person, I would
love to say “Thank you Anne Rice –
for so very articulately stating what
I have felt in my heart for years” !!!!
One’s ‘Faith-in-Christ’ should IN NO WAY
be tied into the man-controlled ‘Religion’
that so many refer to as “Christianity”
(especially that apostate, psuedo-religious
political-movement called ‘evangelicalism’)
It took me forever to realize that my
relationship with God (as established
through Christ Jesus, God The Son) was
IN NO WAY dependent on the apostate
psuedo-religious movement sweeping
America in the name of the “church”.
If Christ were walking the earth today,
a lot of these same “religious” types
would be the first to demand that He
be ‘crucified’ — and based merely on
who He chose as FRIENDS (women,
gays, foreigners, immigrants, the poor,
the rejected, the downtrodden, the rich,
men, old, young, happy, sad, and so on).
The “evangelicals” (not to be mistaken
for TRUE FOLLOWERS of Christ) and
other “church” types have essentially
hijacked the Christian ‘Faith’ in order to
turn it into a mammon-worshipping,
power-mongering, “Religion” of hate.
These people are more akin to a system of
ANTI-CHRIST (i.e. “against”-Christ) than
to anything tied into WHO CHRIST IS.
Their evil has reached such profound levels
that even people who know and love Christ
are turned off from them and their words
(again proving these “church” types are
really nothing more than anti-Christ,
self-righteous Pharisees and are not
even remotely related to Jesus Christ).
Never again will I waste my time stepping
into the psuedo-religious social-club that
is known as “church” or associate myself
with the political-clique that is known as
‘christianity’ — because FROM NOW ON
– I realize that I do NOT “need” either
in order to have a relationship with MY
LORD JESUS CHRIST (in fact, those
two entities were actually ‘interfering’
with my relationship with God)
THROUGH CHRIST — GOD HAS OPENLY
EXPRESSED HIS LOVE TO ‘EVERYONE’
(no matter if rich, poor, gay, straight, male,
female, sickly, healthy and so on) — AND
CHRIST (not the so-called”church”) IS
‘THE DOOR’ and ‘WAY’ TO GOD!!
ALL ARE WELCOME TO APPROACH AND
TO ENTER THROUGH ‘THE DOOR’ TO GOD!!
NO ONE IS REJECTED BY CHRIST !!!
JESUS LOVED AND LOVES EVERYONE !!!
LET’S ALL TRY TO REMEMBER
THE BIBLE VERSE OF ‘JOHN 3:17’:
“For God did NOT send His Son
into the world – to condemn
the world, BUT that the world,
THROUGH HIM, might be SAVED !!!!”
JESUS CHIST – and *not* the institution known
as “the church” or the religion called “christianity”
— IS THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE!!!
LIKE MANY OTHER PEOPLE – I AM DONE
WITH THE CHURCH & WITH CHRISTIANITY
– AND FROM HERE ON OUT – MY FOCUS IS
ON (AND FAITH IN GOD RELYS IN) JESUS
CHRIST AND JESUS CHRIST ALONE !!!
.
Our goal is to “…go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” Mat 28:19
It is God who makes us “…more authentic and psychologically mature” – if we truly want him to.
The Church’s responsibility is be an example of God’s love for the world – which we have to admit has done a bad job, historically speaking.
Jesus exposed how the Pharisee’s pranced around in their holy robes, praying for the sake of being seen doing it, and utterly ignoring the Saviour that was amongst their midst, he did not have the *benefit* of our modern psychology to aid in His understanding. The Pharisee’s of today don’t have the benefit of the Son of God needing to expose them, we have the holy spirit and the gift of discernment to guide us.
If your Church does not take the Bible as the inerrant word of God then it is creating a class of Pharisees. If it is not preaching the idea of unconditional love or it is not teaching the disease of sin, then it is doing each and every member a disservice.
Amen to what Donna, Michael, Paul, and Spinner have said. god bless you
Daily we have to evaluate ourselves, our actions, our thoughts, and our motives so as we are able to stay on the narrow path. Ignoring our sinful nature is tantamount to ignoring the red light you encounter at the intersection because you are only thinking about the great parking spot you’re going to find at the mall.
Paul, this is so right! I have discovered that I don’t have to worry about the “don’ts” of Christian religion because I am deeply in love with the author and creator Jesus Christ. I am so busy doing the things that His love inspires in me that I don’t have to worry about what I shouldn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t do. I don’t have the time or the inclination to sit in judgment on others. I am too busy listening to the lover of my soul as He takes me to a closer place with Him.
The changes from the inside out are all the difference in the world! I want to tell the story of the love of God and the freedom that comes from having Jesus in my heart and the Holy Spirit as my guide, comforter, counselor. I’ve never been this free!
To echo what Charles Pearson says, Timothy Keller in his book The Prodigal God does a great job putting his finger on one of the main differences between religion and Christianity: ‘Religion operates on the principle of “I obey, therefore I am acceptable to God”. The basic operating principle of the gospel is “I am accepted by God through the work of Jesus Christ – therefore I obey.” Christianity is less a religion and more a relationship with the living God. When we believe in Christ (by placing our faith in Him) and receive Him as our Savior (which saves us from our own selfishness, the allure of the temporal world, and the enemy of our souls, Satan) and Lord (by giving control of our lives to the all-knowing God who loves us and has a wonderful plan for our lives), God changes us from the inside out. We gradually become more like Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, our Counselor, Comforter and Guide Who gives us the power to live the Christian life. Be being in a right relationship with our Creator, we can live in right relationship with each other.
We have a movement in Christianity where sin is not considered because it hurts peoples feelings. I believe it is a response to the hatred that the Church has silently supported against particular groups (homosexuality in particular) – that which Ann has zeroed in on.
But what happens is they are not prepared for conviction upon themselves and the discernment that we get towards other. They interpret it as wrong, blame those around them, and walk away.
If it wasn’t for the conviction of sin in me (homosexual for 10 yrs, drugs, pornography, masturbation, anger, violence, self-righteousness, etc) I would not be active in seeking Gods will. Thank God no one hid my sins away from me – that would be the biggest disservice I could think of,
Lets hope that Ann will not quit. It is too easy to quit.We have to take on the challenges and hard things and let the Lord take us through them. All men and women are sinners in God’s eyes. We have to pray for all men and women that the Lord will deliver them from sin, that may take time ….. a lifetime. Why would anyone want to quit when Our Lord has offered such a wonderful gift of Eternal Life in his presence. The hard thing is that there is only one true religion…. that’s christianity [ not an institution] all other religions are man made.That’s hard to accept.It’s hard to have to say it.
Paul,
Amen! You know it!
While Anne Rice is disassociating herself from the often disfunctional church of today, her later comment clarifies that she is still a Christ-follower. The “Christian” label has gathered a lot of negative baggage because of people who claim to be true believers but aren’t (proven by their bigoted or hateful words and deeds). True believers are far from perfect (I’m living proof of that) but when we mess up, the Spirit lets us know, reminding us of the truth in the Bible and lived out in Jesus life. Our response should be to ask forgiveness when we’ve wronged someone else. In other words, being in a right relationship with God through the forgiveness He initiated through Jesus death on the cross for our sins, means we seek to be in right relationships with those around us. When necessary we should ask for forgiveness of others and/or offer forgiveness to others. If Christians were grace dispensers more of the time, more people would experience God’s love and want to know about our wonderful Savior.
I agree with this article by Darren Hewer. I think he expressed clearly the danger of renouncing fellowship with other believers in Jesus Christ. I am a spirit-filled Christian who also is not “anti” any particular group. I am PRO Jesus. Pro scripture. I have found less than perfect people in my church. I am grateful because I, too, am imperfect. I pray to become more like Jesus and that others will see Him in me even though I fail sometimes to reflect Him who died to set me free. I pray Anne Rice will not become “anti-Christian.” I pray she will continue to find more of Jesus in her life and heart and that the Lord will reveal himself to her in a mighty way.
I leave all of the “antis” to God.
I speak from both sides. I was an out and proud homosexual for 10 yrs. Thankfully God gave me the tools and the opportunity to renounce my sexual dysfunction. If you believe that you can’t help it so why fight it, then the world will be overrun with alcoholics, drug addicts, thieves, and blasphemers.
On the other hand, the Christian church has to take responsibility for the hatred and loathing that has been pushed upon the homosexual. No wonder they turn to each other in lust instead of Christ in fellowship.
Hello,
We as Christians can not do anything in the flesh. Everything must be done in the power of the Holy Spirit which indwells in all Christians. Before we do anything get right with the Father through prayer. Live a life worthy of your calling and be thankful for everything. Pray for all those who do not know the Lord for their selves.
Dear Harriet White
No one can say that they have not sinned
And I don’t say they have not sinned
I have just said “…one cannot consider all gays as sinful”
I could emend: “All humain beeings are sinful, including gays. But gays are not more sinful than non-gays. May be sometimes more if they rape someone, may be less if it is someone honest that doesn’t practice homosexuality though he feels gay”
Anyway, for me a human being is not allowed to judge about the sins of other people
We human being can judge the acts (that spoil other people) of other human beings (Justice is made in this purpose), but we cannot judge the sins
Jesus said: “Rendez à Dieu ce qui est à Dieu, et à César ce qui est à César”
Litterally: “Human justice works for terrestrian life but God Justice is between God and each individual human beings”
So let our justice punish or rather neutralize those who act badly against other people in our society and let God judge the sins and sinful people (it means all of us, except Jesus-Christ)
Enzo: But – who can say that they have not sinned? Really?
Jesus came not to judge but to love. (John 12:47)
How can people know God if they are judged and not loved?
If you love unconditionally it has more power, it speaks volumes to the other person. Too many churches deter people from God’s love because of the judgemental and critical attitudes they have.
So if your friend reads horoscopes should you treat her the same as you would a ‘gay’ person?
I don’t think being gay is right, but how you approach people can influence their perspective on God greatly.
Are we looking at our own planks or the specks in others eyes? Does God measure the sin, or are we all just the same, regardless of the ‘level’ of sin.. I know the answers to those questions, but it seems to me that so many Christians become self righteous and act more like the pharisees, which makes it impossible for the average ‘sinner’ to feel loved by what they perceive to be God in the first place.
Yes, the biggest thing that puts people off christianity is unfortunately Christians. I can understand the author’s viewpoint. The more people speak about this then maybe things will change and Churches will want to exhibit grace, and offer it out to others, like God did to them once upon a time..
Hi Enzo,
Thanks for your perspective. I understand where you are coming from and in the past I’ve been afraid to share the fact that I believe that homosexuality is a sin for that very reason. I am a sinner as well. While I am not homosexual- other types of sin have riddled my life and I am not trying to “cast stones” for that reason. However, to claim that something is not a sin when scripture is very clear that it is, is dangerous for us as Christians. When we start compromising in one area our faithfulness to scripture, it makes it easier to compromise in other areas as well. As Christians we are also called to not be ashamed of our faith and of the gospel and all that it says.
As far as people being born gay- I don’t really agree. I believe that people are born predisposed to homosexuality just as people are predisposed to additions and other types of sin- but I believe it can be overcome by belief in and following of Jesus Christ. I watched my friend become a homosexual after being raped and emotionally abused by many men. I think similar stories of emotional damage cause homosexuality more than we know. However, I also believe there is healing in Jesus and I am currently trying to help my friend see this as well.
Sorry. There was a bug:
“Even if the Bible says it is a sin, one can understand all gays are sinful”
should be replaced by:
“Even if the Bible says it is a sin, one cannot consider all gays as sinful”h
Thanks
Hello
I am hetero
So I cannot be suspected to defend gay people
I just want to say that gay or not gay, there is good people and ugly people in both camps
I think it’s the same in any group of people, in any Community
The problem is when a Community stigmatize an heterogenous(!) group like gays
Even if the Bible says it is a sin, one can understand all gays are sinful
Most of them (if not all) have not chosen to be gay
Have you chosen to be hetero?
Jesus-Christ said: “The one that has never sinned can throw the first stone”
Who are those people that lead christianity and that have never sinned?
They allow them to ban the gays
It means they feel better, higher, purrer than the gays?
I would like to know exactly how they behave in their whole life to see if they really never sin
Even the one that has never sinned (Jesus-Christ) has never banned the gays
Now, for anti-feminism, anti-science and anti-democrat, when we see how some churches/religions behave we could think we are still living during Middle Ages
I agree with almost all of this article. However, scripture does say that homosexuality is a sin, and I think its extremely important- particularly in our society where it is becoming so rampant- to be clear on where we stand as Christians. Now is not the time to compromise. I know homosexuals and I love them and respect them as people and creations of God, but I hate their sin because I believe it tears them away from God. I think its important for us, as followers of Christ, to be clear on this issue.
I think alot of people are quitting christianity. Just look at the republicans.