David Fitzgerald is the author of Nailed; Ten Christian Myths That Show Jesus Never Existed at All, and The Complete Heretic’s Guide to Western Religion Book One: The Mormons and is now working on a third. His very titles are what you might call combative until you hear David so sweetly call them provocative. His topic is one we all know about, or think we do, yet atheism, as it is turns out, is more complicated than you might realize. David is a an atheist on the hunt for truth about Jesus. He wants people to think.
Raised as a devout Baptist by parents who live a life strongly based on that faith, David never questioned one precept. He was happy in his religious life, content with his beliefs and a thoroughly cheerful, emotionally open fellow. Then one day he had a conversation with a young woman who told him something he never knew about another religion. One simple fact, and that was all it took for David to realize he did not know enough about enough. So he started to question, read, and research and follow the trail of truth he could find. His goal was simple enough, to get to the truth about the life, times and accomplishments of Jesus. The goal may be simple, but the path to knowledge takes some careful mapping.
To listen to David talk, with his usual extreme intelligence, openness, and light-hearted good humor about his journey on the route to demonstrable knowledge is a lesson in too much to describe here. I invite you to do yourself the favor of hearing David talk about life as an atheist in his own words and voice. He is still happy in his (non)religious life, content with his new beliefs and still a thoroughly cheerful emotionally open fellow.