Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Today I spoke with Colten Barnaby, who placed his faith in Jesus as a child but ultimately deconverted as the truth claims of Christianity fell apart.
We touched on many topics, including:
• Growing up heavily indoctrinated in the Oneness Holiness Pentecostal Christian worldview and culture.
• Being groomed from a very young age to carry on the heritage of being a Pentecostal Pastor.
• Feeling shaken up as a teenager as he realized that his homeschooling education had been extremely deficient and therefore other kids knew a lot more than him, leaving him wondering what other crucial information he didn't have that other kids did.
• Realizing that the early church fathers interpreted theology vastly different than the theology he'd been taught.
• Starting to see religion as a form of make-believe.
• Understanding that many religious people prove during times of desperation and fear that they don't actually believe what they claim to believe.
• After deconstructing some beliefs, expecting that in the future he might rethink and deconstruct other beliefs as well.
• Wrestling with the "problem of evil" and its implications.
• Going through a long process of trying to salvage the Christian worldview, but ultimately fully deconverting.
• Doing the hard work of healing from religious trauma and being truly kind to ourselves.
Many thanks to Colten for sharing his story!
_________________________________________
Colten's interview with Brady Goodwin on @ichapod
youtube.com/watch?v=4x5Bcn0UZZQ
_________________________________________
Connect with Colten!
coltenbarnaby.substack.com
IG
@coltenbarnarby
@askthenextquestion
Podcast called "Ask the Next Question"
YouTube:
@AskTheNextQuestion
@coltenbarnaby1
_________________________________________
Your support for my channel, Harmonic Atheist, is very needed and appreciated!
One-time donations:
PayPal: paypal.me/harmonictim
Venmo: @harmonicatheist
CashApp: $HarmonicAtheist
GoFundMe: gofundme.com/f/help-tim-stay-full-time-on-harmonic-atheist
Monthly donations:
patreon.com/harmonicatheist
You can also "Join" the Harmonic Atheist YT channel to get access to perks, which will be coming soon:
youtube.com/channel/UCrPKXNg9PAL6bROvsaUFvAA/join
Thanks!
--Tim
_________________________________________
Want to create live streams like this? Check out StreamYard: streamyard.com/pal/d/4917726076600320
(FYI - using that link does help support me )
_________________________________________
If you are facing emotional distress, please call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.
_________________________________________
Ending music by Kazuya / Eyal Raz, "Friends"
artlist.io/royalty-free-music/song/friends/2825
youtube.com/watch?v=4qbqNO6DdAQ
_________________________________________
In this powerful interview, Colten Barnaby shares his journey from growing up as a third-generation Pentecostal preacher’s kid to questioning everything he was taught about faith, theology, and truth itself. Raised in the Oneness Holiness movement, Colten dives into the intense world of fundamentalist Christianity—speaking in tongues at age five, evangelizing as a child, and studying theology at Oral Roberts University—until one honest question began to unravel it all.
Join host Tim Mills on Harmonic Atheist as they explore how one good question can ignite an entire deconstruction journey, leading from certainty to freedom, and from indoctrination to awakening.
Deconstruction, deconversion, ex-Christian, leaving Christianity, Pentecostal deconstruction, religious trauma, faith journey, Oneness Pentecostalism, Oral Roberts University, ex-pastor story, atheist interview, Harmonic Atheist, Colten Barnaby story
Today I spoke with Colten Barnaby, who placed his faith in Jesus as a child but ultimately deconverted as the truth claims of Christianity fell apart.
We touched on many topics, including:
• Growing up heavily indoctrinated in the Oneness Holiness Pentecostal Christian worldview and culture.
• Being groomed from a very young age to carry on the heritage of being a Pentecostal Pastor.
• Feeling shaken up as a teenager as he realized that his homeschooling education had been extremely deficient and therefore other kids knew a lot more than him, leaving him wondering what other crucial information he didn't have that other kids did.
• Realizing that the early church fathers interpreted theology vastly different than the theology he'd been taught.
• Starting to see religion as a form of make-believe.
• Understanding that many religious people prove during times of desperation and fear that they don't actually believe what they claim to believe.
• After deconstructing some beliefs, expecting that in the future he might rethink and deconstruct other beliefs as well.
• Wrestling with the "problem of evil" and its implications.
• Going through a long process of trying to salvage the Christian worldview, but ultimately fully deconverting.
• Doing the hard work of healing from religious trauma and being truly kind to ourselves.
Many thanks to Colten for sharing his story!
_________________________________________
Colten's interview with Brady Goodwin on @ichapod
youtube.com/watch?v=4x5Bcn0UZZQ
_________________________________________
Connect with Colten!
coltenbarnaby.substack.com
IG
@coltenbarnarby
@askthenextquestion
Podcast called "Ask the Next Question"
YouTube:
@AskTheNextQuestion
@coltenbarnaby1
_________________________________________
Your support for my channel, Harmonic Atheist, is very needed and appreciated!
One-time donations:
PayPal: paypal.me/harmonictim
Venmo: @harmonicatheist
CashApp: $HarmonicAtheist
GoFundMe: gofundme.com/f/help-tim-stay-full-time-on-harmonic-atheist
Monthly donations:
patreon.com/harmonicatheist
You can also "Join" the Harmonic Atheist YT channel to get access to perks, which will be coming soon:
youtube.com/channel/UCrPKXNg9PAL6bROvsaUFvAA/join
Thanks!
--Tim
_________________________________________
Want to create live streams like this? Check out StreamYard: streamyard.com/pal/d/4917726076600320
(FYI - using that link does help support me )
_________________________________________
If you are facing emotional distress, please call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.
_________________________________________
Ending music by Kazuya / Eyal Raz, "Friends"
artlist.io/royalty-free-music/song/friends/2825
youtube.com/watch?v=4qbqNO6DdAQ
_________________________________________
In this powerful interview, Colten Barnaby shares his journey from growing up as a third-generation Pentecostal preacher’s kid to questioning everything he was taught about faith, theology, and truth itself. Raised in the Oneness Holiness movement, Colten dives into the intense world of fundamentalist Christianity—speaking in tongues at age five, evangelizing as a child, and studying theology at Oral Roberts University—until one honest question began to unravel it all.
Join host Tim Mills on Harmonic Atheist as they explore how one good question can ignite an entire deconstruction journey, leading from certainty to freedom, and from indoctrination to awakening.
Deconstruction, deconversion, ex-Christian, leaving Christianity, Pentecostal deconstruction, religious trauma, faith journey, Oneness Pentecostalism, Oral Roberts University, ex-pastor story, atheist interview, Harmonic Atheist, Colten Barnaby story
