Former Protestants or ex-Protestants are people who used to be
Protestant for some time, but no longer identify as such. This is a list of people who were, but no longer are, followers of
Protestant churches. It is organized by what church they left; when applicable, the religion they joined is mentioned. As implied it is limited to those who left Protestantism for a non-Protestant faith and so does not include those who switched from one Protestant denomination to another.
Baptists
William Marrion Branham – former Baptist minister, became a Pentecostal, but later became a non-denominational Christian Evangelist and preacher.[1][2][3]
Keith Ham (a.k.a. Swami Kirtanananda; 1937–) – son of a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, Ham met ISKCON founding guru A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in New York City in 1966. After Prabhupada's death, Ham assumed leadership of ISKCON, claiming to be the sole successor to Prabhupada. He was later expelled after various criminal charges were brought against him.[6]
Adam Neuser, a
Calvinistpastor originally from
Gunzenhausen in the
Duchy of Bavaria, itself a part of the
Holy Roman Empire. He gained notoriety as the presiding priest of the Protestant congregation of the
Church of the Holy Spirit in
Heidelberg,
the Palatinate (also within the
Holy Roman Empire). As a consequence of a time of transition within the Calvinist Church in the late 1560s, Neuser joined a faction within the Church known as the Antidisciplinists, led by the
Swissphysician and
theologian,
Thomas Lüber (Erastus). As a part of the Antidisciplinists, Neuser began to doubt standard Calvinist theology, especially the concept of the Trinity. He became an apologetic of Antitrinitarianism, writing a series of letters criticising the doctrine of the
Trinity. Neuser even went so far as to write to the
Ottoman SultanSelim II where he maintained that should the Ottomans ever push their
empire as far northwest as
Germany, he would find support from its inhabitants, persecuted by the hyper-Catholic Habsburgs. The Palatinate Court found him guilty of blasphemy by denying the Divinity of Christ, and he was subsequently imprisoned. However, Neuser not only managed to escape with the help of his friend and fellow
theologianSimon Grynaeus, but he was also able to make his way to the
Ottoman Empire. After arriving in
Constantinople, Neuser recited the
Shahada and thus converted to
Sunni Islam. Neuser eventually became a
government official of the
Ottoman Empire at the behest of the
Sultan.[citation needed]
Peter E. Gillquist, former regional director for
Campus Crusade for Christ, converted to
Eastern Orthodoxy. The initial impulse was his attempt to re-establish primitive Christianity, a faith formation which would go back to the very beginnings of the church. Researching the historical foundation of the faith, Gillquist with his colleagues concluded that
Eastern Orthodox Church is that very unchanged, historical Christian formation they had sought. He organized the
Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC) in 1979, and in 1987 Gillquist led seventeen parishes with 2,000 members into
Eastern Orthodoxy.[14]
Alfred Bloom, a professor of Religion and was raised as Evangelical Christian, was promoting Evangelical Christianity when encountered the concept of
Amida Buddha and eventually converted to
Buddhism. He was also a pioneer of
Jōdo Shinshū studies in the English-speaking world.[15]
Lutherans
Louis Bouyer – Lutheran pastor who converted to Catholicism.[16]
Arnold Schoenberg – Austrian and later American composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School. Born as a Jew he converted to Lutheranism for mainly cultural reasons only to later re-embrace Judaism.[citation needed]
Johann Peter Spaeth – raised Roman Catholic, later converted to Lutheranism, and became a Lutheran theologian, he later left Christianity entirely and embraced Judaism.[citation needed]
Ola Tjørhom – Norwegian theologian, converted to Catholicism.[25]
Ajahn Viradhammo (Vitauts Akers) – convert to
Buddhism and senior western disciple of
Ajahn Chah, also the founder & abbot of Tisarana Buddhist Monastery.[27]
Capers Funnye – converted to Judaism; he is the first African-American member of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, serves on the boards of the
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs and the American Jewish Congress of the Midwest, and is active in the Institute for Jewish and Community Research; he is also the cousin of Michelle Obama[citation needed]
Margaret Noble (1867–1911) – daughter of a minister of the Wesleyan Church in North Ireland (a branch of Methodism), she was a fervent Christian as a child, desiring to become a missionary to India. In 1895, Noble met Swami Vivekananda in London, converted to his version of Hinduism and was renamed "Sister Nivedita." Moved to India where she worked for nationalist causes and wrote several books, most notably, Kali The Mother.[33]
Asher Wade – ex-Methodist pastor; he converted in 1978 to Orthodox Judaism after studying the history of the holocaust.[34]
David N. Weiss – former Presbyterian minister David Weiss (born in a secular Jewish household) returned to Judaism and is now a successful screenwriter living in Los Angeles. He has been the screenwriter for several films, including Shrek 2, Clockstoppers, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, and Rugrats in Paris: The Movie. He has also been the screenwriter for some TV series.[40]
^Harrell, David (1978). All Things Are Possible: The Healing and Charismatic Revivals in Modern America. Indiana University Press.
ISBN0-525-24136-1.
^Duyzer, Peter M. (2014). Legend of the Fall, An Evaluation of William Branham and His Message. Independent Scholar's Press.
ISBN978-1-927581-15-5.
^Weaver, C. Douglas (2000). The Healer-Prophet: William Marrion Branham (A study of the Prophetic in American Pentecostalism). Mercer University Press.
ISBN978-0-253-20221-5.
Former Protestants or ex-Protestants are people who used to be
Protestant for some time, but no longer identify as such. This is a list of people who were, but no longer are, followers of
Protestant churches. It is organized by what church they left; when applicable, the religion they joined is mentioned. As implied it is limited to those who left Protestantism for a non-Protestant faith and so does not include those who switched from one Protestant denomination to another.
Baptists
William Marrion Branham – former Baptist minister, became a Pentecostal, but later became a non-denominational Christian Evangelist and preacher.[1][2][3]
Keith Ham (a.k.a. Swami Kirtanananda; 1937–) – son of a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, Ham met ISKCON founding guru A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in New York City in 1966. After Prabhupada's death, Ham assumed leadership of ISKCON, claiming to be the sole successor to Prabhupada. He was later expelled after various criminal charges were brought against him.[6]
Adam Neuser, a
Calvinistpastor originally from
Gunzenhausen in the
Duchy of Bavaria, itself a part of the
Holy Roman Empire. He gained notoriety as the presiding priest of the Protestant congregation of the
Church of the Holy Spirit in
Heidelberg,
the Palatinate (also within the
Holy Roman Empire). As a consequence of a time of transition within the Calvinist Church in the late 1560s, Neuser joined a faction within the Church known as the Antidisciplinists, led by the
Swissphysician and
theologian,
Thomas Lüber (Erastus). As a part of the Antidisciplinists, Neuser began to doubt standard Calvinist theology, especially the concept of the Trinity. He became an apologetic of Antitrinitarianism, writing a series of letters criticising the doctrine of the
Trinity. Neuser even went so far as to write to the
Ottoman SultanSelim II where he maintained that should the Ottomans ever push their
empire as far northwest as
Germany, he would find support from its inhabitants, persecuted by the hyper-Catholic Habsburgs. The Palatinate Court found him guilty of blasphemy by denying the Divinity of Christ, and he was subsequently imprisoned. However, Neuser not only managed to escape with the help of his friend and fellow
theologianSimon Grynaeus, but he was also able to make his way to the
Ottoman Empire. After arriving in
Constantinople, Neuser recited the
Shahada and thus converted to
Sunni Islam. Neuser eventually became a
government official of the
Ottoman Empire at the behest of the
Sultan.[citation needed]
Peter E. Gillquist, former regional director for
Campus Crusade for Christ, converted to
Eastern Orthodoxy. The initial impulse was his attempt to re-establish primitive Christianity, a faith formation which would go back to the very beginnings of the church. Researching the historical foundation of the faith, Gillquist with his colleagues concluded that
Eastern Orthodox Church is that very unchanged, historical Christian formation they had sought. He organized the
Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC) in 1979, and in 1987 Gillquist led seventeen parishes with 2,000 members into
Eastern Orthodoxy.[14]
Alfred Bloom, a professor of Religion and was raised as Evangelical Christian, was promoting Evangelical Christianity when encountered the concept of
Amida Buddha and eventually converted to
Buddhism. He was also a pioneer of
Jōdo Shinshū studies in the English-speaking world.[15]
Lutherans
Louis Bouyer – Lutheran pastor who converted to Catholicism.[16]
Arnold Schoenberg – Austrian and later American composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School. Born as a Jew he converted to Lutheranism for mainly cultural reasons only to later re-embrace Judaism.[citation needed]
Johann Peter Spaeth – raised Roman Catholic, later converted to Lutheranism, and became a Lutheran theologian, he later left Christianity entirely and embraced Judaism.[citation needed]
Ola Tjørhom – Norwegian theologian, converted to Catholicism.[25]
Ajahn Viradhammo (Vitauts Akers) – convert to
Buddhism and senior western disciple of
Ajahn Chah, also the founder & abbot of Tisarana Buddhist Monastery.[27]
Capers Funnye – converted to Judaism; he is the first African-American member of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, serves on the boards of the
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs and the American Jewish Congress of the Midwest, and is active in the Institute for Jewish and Community Research; he is also the cousin of Michelle Obama[citation needed]
Margaret Noble (1867–1911) – daughter of a minister of the Wesleyan Church in North Ireland (a branch of Methodism), she was a fervent Christian as a child, desiring to become a missionary to India. In 1895, Noble met Swami Vivekananda in London, converted to his version of Hinduism and was renamed "Sister Nivedita." Moved to India where she worked for nationalist causes and wrote several books, most notably, Kali The Mother.[33]
Asher Wade – ex-Methodist pastor; he converted in 1978 to Orthodox Judaism after studying the history of the holocaust.[34]
David N. Weiss – former Presbyterian minister David Weiss (born in a secular Jewish household) returned to Judaism and is now a successful screenwriter living in Los Angeles. He has been the screenwriter for several films, including Shrek 2, Clockstoppers, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, and Rugrats in Paris: The Movie. He has also been the screenwriter for some TV series.[40]
^Harrell, David (1978). All Things Are Possible: The Healing and Charismatic Revivals in Modern America. Indiana University Press.
ISBN0-525-24136-1.
^Duyzer, Peter M. (2014). Legend of the Fall, An Evaluation of William Branham and His Message. Independent Scholar's Press.
ISBN978-1-927581-15-5.
^Weaver, C. Douglas (2000). The Healer-Prophet: William Marrion Branham (A study of the Prophetic in American Pentecostalism). Mercer University Press.
ISBN978-0-253-20221-5.