Our Insanely Unethical Plan to Become Missionaries

In 2015, while still attending a Christian university, we planned to become evangelical Christian missionaries. We’d move to Utah and aim to convert Mormons. How we planned to do this was extremely unethical. Missionary work is already ethically problematic, but when you add Christian counseling to the mix, things get even worse. We're happy to be ex-evangelical today.

More on our school’s ridiculous beliefs:
Awful Things We Believed at My Evangelical University

Our deconversion story:
What was it like to leave Christianity as a married couple?

-------------------------------------------SUPPORT-------------------------------------------

Dr Bart Ehrman courses (affiliate links):

“Other Virgin Births”:

“The Unknown Gospels”

“Did the Resurrection of Jesus Really Happen?”

“Did the Christmas Story Really Happen?”

-------------------------------------------FOLLOW-------------------------------------------

-------------------------Resources for atheists in need-------------------------

This video contains 100% therapeutic grade skepticism.*

*This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA

[jadeterrain]

A therapist I had was a pastor's wife and I didn't even know until like six months in when she mentioned it off-handedly. I was pretty anti-religion at the time (I'm still an atheist but I was kind of a raging anti-theist then) and I was shocked because she had never argued with me about my criticisms of Christianity. It not only made me raise my standards for healthcare professionals (as she told me, "I'm here to help you achieve the life YOU want to live"), but it also made me realize I could have intimate conversations with deeply religious people without it turning into an argument.

[jaromchristensen]

Exmormon here, turns out your channel ended up doing a LOT more good for me as a Mormon in Provo Utah than your mission ever would have!

[Reverend_Salem]

I am glad that my therapist is an atheist.

mainly because i have ptsd related to religious trauma.

[prabahadas]

Just another assurance you have an international audience :) - well wishes frm an Indian atheist

[spinnwebe_]

A movie producer could option this as a Mormon horror series. You’d follow a Mormon protagonist through several episodes, watching him get more suspicious, until episode 6 where he breaks into his therapist’s office, and while he’s riffling through documents with a flashlight, he says “oh my God, he’s…a CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY”

[unamejames]

Several people have proudly told me about their successes evangelizing. Prisoners, kids, grieving people, immigrants, and so on. They go after people who are struggling with other problems so they're not able to resist.

[FREAKE_DJ]

I went to a Christian university and had a Christian counselor there, and was deconverting at the time, but he did what any good professional counselor should - listened to me, validated what I was going through, saw that holding on to my faith was detrimental to my mental health, and fully supported me when I announced I was no longer a Christian. This is the model of what a Christian counselor should be like - realising that Christianity doesn't work for everyone, especially if it's causing serious depression and anxiety.

[byron]

Wow! That is amazing that you stayed together with the transition from Christianity to atheism. I was engaged to a Christian girl when I was about 20 and when I became an atheist it ended our relationship.

[kinoko]

This is extremely interesting. This goes to show how susceptible we are to the power of suggestion. The fact that we're consistently looking for things to explain what we don't understand in addition to our emotions makes it hard to clearly navigate such situations. I'm glad you made it out okay.

[narum.]

Everytime when I´m watching a video from you, I´m a bit more relieved that I was born to a mostly atheistic/ open minded family.

[Albinojackrussel]

It's interesting that you describe these as coincidences, but these guys were at your college because they knew there would be a lot of individuals in the position you were in. That's not a coincidence that they then met someone of the demographic they were actively searching for.

Edit to add: a few people in the comments are suspecting foul play on the part of the recruiters and that they'd secretly been told to approach Drew or even that the only space by them was specifically kept clear for Drew. I don't think that's the case at all. I'm pretty sure their meeting was not some compiracy. I'm just trying to say that these people came to an environment relatively rich in people like Drew specifically looking for people like him. How many people did they talk to that day that had different majors? I would guess a lot. It's not really a surprise that one person they spoke to had what they were looking for.

[CentralPALocos]

Man, this reminds me of how I thought I was “called” to missions a few years ago when I was 17 (deconstruction came not long after, thankfully)

[broccolipathing]

Just another assurance you have an international audience. Best wishes from a Turkish agnostic.

[mr_ekshun]

woah woah woah, reading the description before watching and I see you planned on coming to Utah to convert Mormons?? As an exmormon living in Utah, It's wild to think of things flipped on their head like that. I can't even imagine trying to convert Mormons as a missionary for another faith. I'm really intrigued to watch this now!

[chriswilkins]

Drew, Taylor, thank you so much for sharing this; it is inspiring. I am an ex-evangelical atheist in England (my particular poison was a group called the Navigators, which I encountered in my student days). I remember being told a (surely mythological) story of the reaction of a person being proselytized: "If I believed what you guys believe, I'd crawl over broken glass to tell everyone". This fable was used to encourage us to be bold in our evangelism and (I guess) not to worry too much about the ethics of how we we were being taught to behave. I am so glad that you found your way safely to a better way to treat other people. Whatever we believe, basic respect for humanity requires that we not manipulate or exploit the vulnerabilities of others.

[roeliethegoat]

Ohhh I'm early! Can't wait for this story. I have regular moments where I go: how did I think this behaviour was normal and moral when I was still a Christian?

[not_you_i_dont_even_know_you]

Oh man. I do not miss the days of second guessing every impulsive thought to test if it was From The Lord. I'm much more at ease now that I understand that coincidences happen 😂

[austinluther]

As an atheist who was raised secular in a community where acceptance of religious diversity was the accepted norm, the stories you two tell of your religious past are mind-blowing.

I really appreciate how you do your best to explain the emotions and thoughts behind these experiences. It really helps me to try to understand believers and to be compassionate and empathetic.

I remember learning about missionaries as a kid and thinking that was an old historical practice from hundreds of years ago that no one did anymore. I think I was about 13 or so when I discovered that missionaries are still very much a thing. And I was shocked because it seemed so immoral.

[kimberlywolfenheart]

In high school I was an agnostic. I asked a Christian if it was okay to lie to people to "save" them and get them to turn to Jesus. She said yes. That has colored my views of Christians who believe in conversion ever since.

[Jeremyggarcia]

I am a Christian and I just want to say that I appreciate your videos and your channel. It’s always good for me to watch your videos so I can have an open mind to both sides, religion and atheism. much love for you all ❤️