Frontman of Christian rock band reveals he no longer believes in God and explains how he lost his faith after spending a year questioning the Bible, Christian culture and his upbringing as a pastor's son
- Jonathan Steingard, the lead singer for Hawk Nelson, has renounced his faith
- Steingard shared his decision in a lengthy Instagram post last Wednesday
- He explained that it wasn't something that he decided overnight and said he had been questioning God, the Bible and his upbringing
The frontman of a Christian rock band has revealed on social media that he no longer believes in God.
Jonathan Steingard, the lead singer for Hawk Nelson, renounced his faith last Wednesday in a lengthy Instagram post.
Steingard said that he has been 'terrified to post this for a while - but it feels like it's time to be honest'.
'After growing up in a Christian home, being a pastor’s kid, playing and singing in a Christian band, and having the word "Christian" in front of most of the things in my life — I am now finding that I no longer believe in God,' he wrote.
Steingard explained that it wasn't something that he decided overnight and said he had been questioning God, the Bible and his upbringing.
Jonathan Steingard (pictured in May 2017), the lead singer for Hawk Nelson, renounced his faith last Wednesday in a lengthy Instagram post. The singer said he has questioned God and the Bible for at least a year
'After growing up in a Christian home, being a pastor’s kid, playing and singing in a Christian band, and having the word "Christian" in front of most of the things in my life — I am now finding that I no longer believe in God,' he wrote
'Firstly, I simply can no longer avoid it. Processing this quietly felt right when I simply had doubts, but once they solidified into a genuine point of view, it began to feel dishonest not to talk about it,' he wrote.
'Secondly, I have had private conversations with trusted friends about my doubts, and discovered to my absolute shock that they are shared by nearly every close friend my age who also grew up in the church.
'Thirdly, I've got a whole lot less to lose now. The band isn't playing shows or making new music at the moment, and we've found other work and careers to focus on for the time being. In order to make sure I'm able to keep providing for my family, that h ad to be the case before I could be totally honest - and that fact is one of the issues I have with the church and Christian culture in general.'
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He went on to explain that growing up, church 'wasn't a part of our life...it was our life. When you grow up in a community that holds a shared belief, and that shared belief is so incredibly central to everything, you simply adopt it'.
'Everyone I was close to believed in God, accepted Jesus into their hearts, prayed for signs and wonders, and participated in church, youth groups, conferences, and ministry. So I did too.'
Steingard said he participated in the aforementioned events even though sometimes he felt 'uncomfortable'.
'Everyone I was close to believed in God, accepted Jesus into their hearts, prayed for signs and wonders, and participated in church, youth groups, conferences, and ministry. So I did too.' Steingard said he participated in such events even though sometimes he felt 'uncomfortable'
When he was 20 years old, Steingard joined Hawk Nelson. In 2012, he became the lead singer and main songwriter for the Canadian group.
In his post, Steingard explained that there are many things about the Christian culture that makes him uncomfortable.
'If God is all loving and all powerful, why is there evil in the world? Can he not do anything about it? Does he choose not to? Is the evil in the world a result of his desire to give us free will? Ok then, what about famine and disease and floods and all the suffering that isn't caused by humans and our free will? If God is loving, why does he send people to hell?
Steingard said many people have told him to consult the Bible to help answer his questions, but he says that reading the Bible only amplified them.
'Suffice it to say that when I began to believe that the Bible was simply a book written by people as flawed and imperfect as I am - that was when my belief in God truly began to unravel.
When he was 20 years old, Steingard (pictured front center) joined Hawk Nelson. In 2012, he became the lead singer and main songwriter for the Canadian group
Steingard said for the last year that he has mentioned his battle with depression publicly and his struggle with Christianity 'is what really kicked that off'. He's pictured with his wife, Jessica, and their daughter
'Once I found that I didn't believe the Bible was the Perfect Word of God - it didn't take long to realize that I was no longer sure he was there at all. That thought terrified me. I began to ask myself, "What now?"'
Steingard said for the last year that he has mentioned his battle with depression publicly and his struggle with Christianity 'is what really kicked that off'.
Toward the end of his post Steingard said: 'I'm open to the idea that God is there. I'd prefer if he was. I suspect if he is there, he is very different than what I was taught.'
Following the post, the singer received an outpouring of support from other Christian artists, including Tenth Avenue North singer Mike Donehey, who wrote: 'Man I love that you shared this. You know I’m always around to talk about our belief in God or lack thereof. Love you and always will.'
Matt Hammitt, the former lead singer of Sanctus Real, responded: 'To echo so many others here, I have nothing but love in my heart for your old friend.'
