Atheism For Dummies (For Dummies (Religion & Spirituality)) by McGowan Dale

Author:McGowan, Dale [McGowan, Dale]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2013-02-20T23:00:00+00:00

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Lying about the dying: Tales of deathbed conversion

Years after the death of Charles Darwin, a story emerged that the agnostic scientist converted to Christianity on his deathbed.

That was to be expected — the story I mean, not the conversion, which never happened. After a famous atheist or agnostic dies, or even a heretic or a member of a minority faith, you can hardly count to ten before someone somewhere claims that the person converted in the final moments. The supposed conversions always seem to occur, rather conveniently, with no one present but the dying person and the storyteller. Because it bolsters the faith of the faithful, and because the best material witness is no longer taking questions, many religious believers are quick to believe and spread such stories. Thomas Paine, Martin Luther, Voltaire, Thomas Edison, Jean-Paul Sartre, John Lennon, and countless others have been subjects of false deathbed conversion tales.

For sheer nerve, though, it’s hard to beat the tale invented by Lady Elizabeth Hope. The British evangelist claimed in 1915 to have heard Charles Darwin renounce evolution and accept Jesus on his deathbed. Fortunately, several of those who were actually present during Darwin’s last days, including his daughter Henrietta and son Francis, were still alive in 1915 to denounce the fiction.

“Lady Hope’s account of my father’s views on religion is quite untrue,” said Francis. “I have publicly accused her of falsehood, but have not seen any reply.”

Henrietta added, “I was present at his deathbed, Lady Hope was not present during his last illness, or any illness. I believe he never even saw her, but in any case she had no influence over him in any department of thought or belief. He never recanted any of his scientific views, either then or earlier.”

When the temptation arises to misrepresent a person’s religious views on his or her deathbed, the Ninth Commandment — the one that prohibits bearing false witness — is often the hardest to keep.

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