Julia Sweeney: How Does A Person Go From Believer To Atheist?

Part 3 of the TED Radio Hour episode Believers and Doubters.

About Julia Sweeney's TEDTalk

Enlarge this image

"I felt so lucky to be Catholic and I loved the Catholic school and I loved the nuns ... then when it came to the belief part of it I was always a little bit skeptical" — Julia Sweeney

James Duncan Davidson/TED

When two young Mormon missionaries knocked on performer Julia Sweeney's door one day, it puts Sweeney on a quest to completely rethink her own beliefs.

About Julia Sweeney

Julia Sweeney is an actor and writer best known for her four-year run on Saturday Night Live and her solo shows. Her recent piece, Letting Go of God, traces a spiritual journey that takes an unexpected turn toward science and ends with atheism.

Her book, If It's Not One Thing, It's Your Mother, is about parenting and being parented. She performs regularly with Jill Sobule, telling stories alongside Jill's songs, in their "Jill and Julia Show." [Copyright 2019 NPR]