​Father Stephen Jones – Catholic Priest

Father Stephen Jones is uniquely qualified to be a member of this story because of his family situation. Namely, he has one. Ordinarily, priests are not permitted to marry or have children, but due to a Pastoral Provision approved by Pope John Paul II in 1980, Jones was allowed to convert from Anglicanism to Catholicism and become a priest. He was ordained in 2010 and is now the Director of Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Jefferson City.

Jones, 40, and his wife Kerri, 35, have three children: two sons, Colman, 10, and Fisher, 3; and one daughter, Dwyn, 7. Jones said he believes that the rise of the Nones in America has been caused by an increase in people who feel they are not being spiritually fulfilled. He said he believes, however, that religious affiliation is “a pendulum” and will in time, swing back.


Greg Lammers – Founder of the Columbia Atheists 

Greg Lammers was born into a Christian household, but began questioning his faith in eighth grade when he couldn't rationalize why “a good and great God would allow such pain and suffering.” Even though it wasn’t until his early 20s that he started identifying as an atheist, when he looks back on his childhood, he said he was “hoodwinked and scammed, and vowed never to be scammed again.” 

Lammers, 40, and his Catholic wife, Katie, 35, have two children who they've agreed to raise without religion. Their oldest, Henry, is 6 years old and their daughter, August, is six months old. Lammers said he partially attributes the increase of Nones to Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. He said their anti-religion books helped people realize “faith isn't a justified position. You can't believe in spite of proof.”