Understanding Deconstruction

Rhett is disillusioned. Simply put, he no longer believes in the God he was taught to believe in. More specifically, he no longer believes in the Church who taught him to believe in God. Rhett is not alone among people his age. The only difference between him and hundreds of thousands of middle-aged millennials with doubts about their faith is that Rhett co-hosts a podcast that reaches hundreds of thousands of listeners per episode. Rhett McLaughlin is one half of the YouTube duo Rhett and Link, whose podcast Ear Biscuits is a litmus test for the thoughts and feelings of aging millennials. Rhett and Link are better known for their YouTube channel Good Mythical Morning (a daily show essentially about eating wacky foods and having silly reactions), but use the Ear Biscuits podcast to have serious conversations about life and offer their perspective on the world. 

Four years ago, Ear Biscuits dropped an episode in which Rhett explained his experience of deconstructing his Christian faith. Deconstruction is an intentional process of taking apart your faith piece-by-piece to see which pieces you believe and which ones you reject. Imagine someone breaking down a Lego sculpture, laying out all the pieces on the floor, and then slowly rebuilding them into something else. For many young Christians (like Rhett), deconstruction is the gateway to agnosticism. But for many others (like David Crowder), deconstruction is an important step that helps believers refine their faith and rebuild it stronger than ever. 

For Rhett, deconstruction grew out of nagging questions that would bombard him every time he read the Bible. He couldn’t square much of the Old Testament with modern science, and he began to wonder if the gospels were really true. He read stacks of books by Christian apologists (Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel, etc.), but found that he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. He briefly turned to what he calls “California Christianity,” which is slang for progressive Christianity, but the final nail in the coffin for him was the lack of empathy and concern for the poor that seemed to mark much of evangelical Christianity. If Christians didn’t have the same priorities as Jesus, he didn’t see a point in remaining one. 

I had my own mild experience with deconstruction while I was in college. I decided to read a few popular atheist manifestos to see if their arguments held any water. I nervously made my way through Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion and watched Christopher Hitchens debate Alister McGrath online. I gathered some compelling arguments for atheism, but I ultimately found them less compelling than the person of Jesus. This experience tested my faith, but it also helped me build a much stronger foundation for it. 

Even though deconstruction is a term popularized by millennials, it isn’t a new concept. My favorite deconstructionist in the New Testament is Nicodemus. Like so many folks my age, Nicodemus is forced to question his upbringing in his search for truth. He comes to Jesus at night because he knows his questions are taboo among the religious establishment. He isn’t sure what to keep and what to tear down in light of the stumbling block that is Jesus. 

Jesus meets him where he is and invites him into the sacred mystery of faith. Scripture doesn’t make it clear whether Nicodemus ever became a follower of Jesus, but it does make it clear that he could never completely take his eyes off Him. He stands up for Him in front of the Sanhedrin, and helps Joseph of Arimathea pay for His funeral expenses. Like Rhett and the thousands of young Christians who are wrestling with truth, Nicodemus longs to build his life on something solid. For them, rebuilding means tearing down first. 

Let me offer two suggestions for walking with young believers as they navigate deconstruction. First, welcome this process. Young adults who are sorting through deconstruction care deeply about truth and authenticity. In a world that seems to care less and less about either of these things, we should celebrate these people. I have a deep respect for the students in our campus ministry who take their faith seriously enough to question it. It is my firm conviction that Jesus meets us in our doubts. 

Second, recognize that every person’s deconstruction experience is unique. Some people are disappointed with the Church, while others have a hard time accepting the core doctrines of Christianity. Nothing aggravates folks my age more than someone trying to put us in a box. The best thing you can do for a friend, child, or grandchild who is deconstructing their faith is to listen. 

It’s important to keep starting conversations with them about faith, but these need to function more like wise counseling sessions than interrogations. Winning an argument doesn’t guarantee you will restore a soul. 

As we sit at the table and listen to our friends wrestle with God, may we bring huge helpings of grace and humility with us. I pray that as we help them articulate their questions, Jesus (who is Truth Himself) will embrace them. 

~RH

(Endnotes)
1 This episode is one of their most popular, garnering over 3 million views on YouTube. I would highly recommend you add to that number and listen to the entire episode. The title is “Rhett’s Spiritual Deconstruction,” and can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qbna6t1bzw&t=3941s
2 You can find Nicodemus’s story in John 3:1-21, 7:45-52 and 19:38-42.
Tim Jackson and his wife Kate serve as full-time campus ministers at Lock Haven University in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. They have two sons.