Apostasy in Narratives

An Analysis of Motives of Apostasy Based on Biographical Interviews

Abstract

This article is devoted an analysis of the motives underlying the decision to apostatize, understood as the formal resignation from membership in the Roman Catholic Church in Poland. The study is based on the analysis of narrative discourse derived from material collected through interviews comprising thirty‑five conversations. This approach enabled the identification of seven dominant motives that led individuals aged 18 to over 50 years old to submit a declaration of withdrawal from the Church in their local parish. Through content analysis and narrative structure analysis, the study identified communicated meanings that reflect both individual experiences and broader shared discursive resources. The collected data provided insight into the identity processes accompanying departure from an organization with which they had been connected—to varying degrees—throughout their life. One of the primary factors emerging from the narratives was the need to express opposition to institutional patterns imposed during childhood. Additionally, respondents also expressed a desire to be heard and to engage in reflective self‑positioning during the conversations, signalling a conscious need to share personal thoughts and experiences. The reasons for apostasy discussed in this article amy be divided into internal and external factors. Internal factors include emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and moral motivations, while external factors encompass social, political, and institutional reasons.