Jesus Doesn't Live Here Anymore

by Skipp Porteous

A nationally prominent first-amendment advocate and authority on the religious right tells of his break with fundamentalism and the growth of intellectual and moral freedom.Skipp Porteous was "saved" at the age of eleven by people who thought they were doing him - and God - a favor. Their actions sent him on a long, arduous inner journey. Porteous embraced fundamentalism because it provides simplistic solutions - the Bible purportedly contains answers for everything - and, like millions of others, he needed to believe that he had found the one true religion.A leave of absence became his first step in walking away. Removed from the extreme fundamentalist viewpoint, with its narrow world view, his mind cleared. Reason and logic emerged, and for the first time in his life he was free and happy.In Jesus Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Porteous explains how he was deceived into becoming a born-again Christian; what he endured for so many years; how he got out; and finally, why he fights so hard against the movement today. Using the knowledge he has obtained in monitoring the religious right, he also outlines in detail what we can expect from the movement in the next decade.

313 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1991

Reviews

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A FORMER PENTECOSTAL PASTOR EXPLAINS HIS DEPARTURE

Skipp Porteous is the former publisher of 'The Freedom Writer,' a national newsletter that defends the separation of church and state, and has also served as National Director of the Institute for First Amendment Studies, Inc. He wrote in the first chapter of this 1991 book, "As the national director of the Institute for First Amendment Studies, Inc., one of the groups actively engaged in battle with the radical religious right, I am called upon daily to draw from my past years of experience as a Fundamentalist Christian and Pentecostal minister. Although I wouldn't want to do it again, I'm glad I experienced what I did. Perhaps my story will help others avoid the pitfalls to which I fell prey along the way." (Pg. 25)

He notes, "Ric introduced me to Fred Price, a former Jehovah's Witness who converted... Fred, a tall, handsome black, had also discovered [Kenneth] Hagin's teachings and was very excited about them. I found this interesting, because, by-and-large, black Christian theology bordered on the primitive and folksy. Now, here was this guy Price, ready to take the teachings of a particularly extreme white evangelist into the black community. Crossovers like this were rare." (Pg. 107)

He suggests that at a Billy Graham crusade, "The actual number of new converts at the altar was as little as one-half of one percent. This is because most of the people who came down were volunteer ushers and altar counselors, backslidden Christians who felt inspired to give it another try, admirers who wanted to see Billy Graham up close, and Christians who dragged unsaved friends and relatives to the altar." (Pg. 117)

He observes, "While Pentecostal preachers often lash out against homosexuals, the prevalence of gays in Pentecostal church music departments is commonplace. Not only was our current pianist gay, several lesbians sang in the choir at my other church... and a number of gays have made the successful transition from church choirs to secular pop music. No, homosexuality didn't seem to bother God." (Pg. 119)

After leaving the ministry but still in the church, he recalls, "No longer a pastor, I didn't have to work at keeping my flock inspired. The absence of sermon and Bible study preparation allowed me to open my mind. This process turned out to be my first step in walking away. Having to feed the sheep had been my own source of spiritual food. Born-again Christians have to work hard at keeping their religious experience fresh... The pump must be kept primed." (Pg. 158)

This book will be of ongoing interest to skeptics, atheists, agnostics, and freethinkers of all types.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good memoir/activist book about a former Pentecostal pastor who 'saved souls" for years before leaving the faith and embracing what he calls "humanism." I was fascinated by his portrayal of all the "tricks" the leaders did to manipulate people into "accepting Christ" - they use emotional manipulation and rhetorical traps to get people to think the way they wanted them to. I found out that Billy Graham was once a door to door salesman and was a great salesmen, and he took that into his "ministry." Apparently, less than 1% of the people at his "Crusades" were "saved." - the huge alter calls are faked by having staff come up to make people think the crusade is successful. Everything from the music to the way the pastor speaks is geared towards manipulating people and "selling' the gospel.

Porteous also talked about the incredible amount of hypocrisy and fanaticism he saw in the churches he ran. In the end of the book he details what happened to some of the other pastors he worked with and many of them committed crimes or had sex scandals.

I do wish that he had talked more about his intellectual journey away from Christianity. It seemed he went from fanatical christian to nonbeliever abruptly and it doesn't' really explain his mental process.

The rest of the book was a bit outdated as he attacked Christian leaders who aren't around anymore, but it was still interesting.