The Story of My Mind; Or, How I Became a Rationalist

Born into a devout Calvinist family, the narrator’s earliest years are shaped by the expectations of a life devoted to the church. Baptized as an infant and guided toward the ministry, his childhood is stripped of ordinary play, replaced instead by constant prayer and dogmatic instruction. This rigid upbringing plants the seed of curiosity, even as it confines his imagination and personal ambitions.

As he matures, the clash between inherited faith and an emerging thirst for reason becomes impossible to ignore. The narrative follows his painstaking struggle against entrenched orthodoxy, culminating in a courageous resignation from his pastoral role—a decision that brings both material hardship and profound inner renewal. Supported by his wife’s steadfast compassion, he embarks on a “second birth,” seeking to rebuild his beliefs on evidence and critical thought. Written as a legacy for his children, the memoir offers an intimate glimpse into the early battles that forged his lifelong commitment to rationalism.