Dr. David H. Stone - Rockford, IL

From Catholic to Atheist to Born Again

I wasn't "born into" a Biblical worldview. I was raised in a very traditional Roman Catholic family, detoured into atheism as a teenager, was challenged by reasonable arguments to consider the truth of the Gospel, became a Christian, and finally settled on a solid Biblical foundation. Over the years I have come to recognize and validate that the word of God is fully trustworthy, consistent, and perfect, both theologically and scientifically.

As I grew up in a large Roman Catholic Church on the south side of Chicago I was fully engaged in religious activities, but had never carefully examined the foundations of my beliefs. In short, I was an eager churchgoer and would have professed to be a loyal Catholic youth. Through grade school I was educated by nuns in our church's private school and I served regularly as an altar boy. I can still remember one of the long Latin prayers I used to recite.

I certainly wasn't a born again Christian, however. I trusted that some combination of canned prayers, active service within "The Church," and avoidance of "big" sins would earn me a ticket to heaven. I didn't realize that ALL sins are "big" (mortal) enough to earn hell: "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." (James 2:10)

There were two powerful forces working against my belief system. Even though all in my extended family were religious churchgoers, my dad was a skeptic. He took delight in pointing out inconsistencies in church doctrine and in the bloody history of what has often purported to be Christianity — most notably the Inquisition. What I didn't realize was that true Christians were always on the receiving end of persecutions. If you have studied the subject at all, you are aware of competing versions of history. The RCC claims to be the founder and keeper of the Christian faith, claiming a line of papal succession back to the apostle Peter. These claims are easily found to be specious, but you'll have to decide which historians are telling you the truth. (It's not hard to figure out.) For a short review of who the Christians were and how they fared since New Testament times, you should access The Trail of Blood, by J.M. Carroll, which can be found online. I also recommend David Cloud's book, History of the Churches, (wayoflife.org). Validating history will also help you discern among the confusing variety of present-day branches of Christendom, so you can avoid teaming up with the wrong (unbiblical) crowd.

The second force was the culture of evolutionism in which I was immersed. I spent considerable time in the museums in Chicago, which have always been completely saturated with evolution as the naturalistic explanation for life. Additionally, everything I was exposed to in literature and the media that touched the subject of origins was evolutionary. I didn't know then that I'd been sold a "story," but that all the scientific evidence pointed overwhelmingly to Biblical creation, as recorded in Genesis. In the 1960s there were a very few books on creation out there, but I certainly hadn't noticed any. The Roman Catholic Church is perfectly happy to endorse evolution, the theistic variety, and so I found no encouragement there to question what the culture was preaching about origins. Why does the RCC endorse evolution? They are content to undermine the word of God, including the book of Genesis, because they embrace a philosophy of replacing Biblical truth with their own traditions and papal pronouncements.

As a precocious 13-year-old, and at the insistence of my mother, I brought a flock of questions to the smartest priest my family could find. We spent an hour together one Saturday afternoon discussing the origin and meaning of life and the universe. I had even prepared a "white paper," four single-spaced typed pages that laid out my version of a mechanistic universe, void of free will. After all, if physics and chemistry explain everything, then wither free will? He couldn't give me an answer for any of my concerns. That unsatisfying meeting confirmed my decision to be an atheist. Who needed God? "The Church" didn't make sense, especially in lieu of its bloody history, and everything in the universe could be explained by atheistic evolution — it seemed.

I was a miserable atheist for the next three years. No one in my life was even aware of my agony. I was a "straight-A" student and enjoyed playing varsity sports. I had it made in the shade. Inside, the story was very different. What point is there to life if we are just animals and death means the end of it all? At the depths of my depression, God had mercy on me and sent me a friend who was a Christian. He and his family embraced me and answered my arrogant questions with kindness. They gave me some books to read that convinced me that I didn't "know it all." Importantly, I saw the love of Jesus in their lives and a purpose lacking in mine. That gave them high marks for credibility in my eyes, so that I was encouraged to grapple with the issues. Their consistent Christian behavior and testimony were not capable of converting me, of course. My mind had to change. But this family's care opened the door for me to look critically at the evidence. Which worldview made more sense of life and the universe?

It took me about four months to realize that the Bible is absolutely true – scientifically, logically, historically, prophetically, and above all . . . personally. Namely, God's word convicted me of my sinful life and my need for the Savior. In a flash I realized that if the Bible is true, I'd be crazy to defy God. It's not enough to "know" the truth. I had to repent from the specific sins of my daily life and the arrogant attitudes of my mind and heart, trusting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. As Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 5:17, old things passed away and I became a new creature. I was born again and haven't been the same since.

I certainly did not return to the RC Church. They had never told me how to be saved . . . God's only way, through Jesus Christ by grace through faith . . . and they continue to deceive multitudes by teaching a sacramental, works-based religion. My heart breaks for the deception that has gripped the hearts and minds of precious Catholic people. I work hard to try to reach them with the Gospel whenever anyone will give me an opportunity.

I didn't entirely understand how to reconcile evolution with my new faith . . . the scientific culture that I so admired was completely saturated with naturalism . . . but I had great determination to do so. I knew that the evolutionary paradigm and the historical record of Genesis chapters 1 to 11 are implacable enemies. So I began to study the subject over the next few years. Finally I concluded that true science is perfectly consistent with the Bible. I could accept the truth of Genesis — most notably a six-day creation and a literal worldwide flood — without compromise. I figured out that hybrid positions like theistic evolution were offenses both to God and to scientific reason. Theistic evolutionists attempt to peacefully coexist with atheists. But there is no communion between light and darkness (2 Corinthians 6:14). God reveals Himself in the Bible as the source of life and goodness. Man brought sin into the world (Genesis 3, Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21). That's why we need the Savior (1 Corinthians 15:21-22, Romans 6:23). When God pronounced his creation "good" (Gen 1:31), He meant it!

As I studied the literature on origins I was impressed that there were fatal weaknesses in the arguments for evolution. These discoveries excited me because my spirit (and the Holy Spirit inside me) seemed to cry out for a simple trust in the word of God. I became convinced that evolution as an explanation for life and the universe itself is impossible.

As an ex-religious-Catholic, an ex-atheist, and for the last forty-three years a Bible-believing Christian – on the battlefield of ideas and contending against the world's varied philosophies – I am happy to face-off my Biblical worldview against all-comers. There is only one system that works consistently to explain observational science, history, politics, the multiplicity of religions, and the nature of man . . . and that is the revelation of the Creator, Jesus Christ, through His word. All other man-made systems are rife with mysteries and contradictions.

The Lord has blessed me in this life with a wonderful wife, our three (now adult) Christian children, and a career that includes 20 years of service as an officer in the U.S. Air Force (Lt Colonel, retired). God also gave me the ability to earn a Ph.D. in laser physics, which I have been able to use in a second career by leading a large research team at a major aerospace contractor, and then teaching for nine years as an engineering professor at a state university. The more I learn, the more I am impressed and awestruck at the brilliance of God's perfect word and the glory of His creation.

God has also increasingly burdened me with the need to share the Gospel with the lost and to stir up Christians to do likewise. Six years ago we were blessed to "give up the paycheck" and go full-time in street evangelism in northern Illinois, especially Chicago and Rockford. We have been able to average handing out about 1,000 tracts per week and we share the Gospel verbally with everyone who will listen. I encourage you to contact us through our website, truthreallymatters.com, which includes a number of articles on how you can very practically share the Gospel in a careful, Scriptural manner.

I praise God that my faith continues to grow stronger as He teaches me more and more. The glorious truth of the Bible seems more vibrant every year. The glories of God's creation speak volumes toward the truth of God's design and handiwork. The bottom line is: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge." (Psalm 19:1-2). If you do not know the Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ, as Savior, God, and Friend, I implore you to repent from your sins, call upon Him for salvation, and live for Him every day that He gives you on this earth.

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