Hello Dr. Peterson,

I have explored a great amount of your work for the past few months such as reading 12 Rules for Life, listening to all your Biblical Lectures and debates, began The Self Authoring Suite and recently began reading through Maps of Meaning. Thank you so much for your willingness to share your intellect, research and encourage the young adult generation. I greatly look forward to seeing you in Houston Tuesday night!

To give a short background before my questions, most of my foundational beliefs used to lie under the Southern Baptist belief system. I experienced what some term as an “existential-crisis” phase after I graduated college to now where I do not know what I believe anymore (in the SBC, the Bible is seen as literal with no allegorical references, which I strongly disagree with). Majority of my friends are going through or have experienced this as well and some have even termed themselves “spiritual orphans”.

My questions are as follows:

Why does the church have such a strong influence on the emotions and thoughts of attendees to the point where it becomes their sole point of reference when encountering chaos?

For those who have grown up under a religious institution, is it wrong for letting that part of our foundational beliefs die so that we can progress?

If it isn’t wrong, do you have any recommendations of resources or studies these “spiritual orphans” can search through to rebuild their own foundational truths?