Paul Blanshard

Paul Beecher Blanshard (August 27, 1892 – January 27, 1980) was a controversial author, lawyer, atheist, secular humanist, and outspoken critic of Catholicism. Paul and his twin brother Brand Blanshard were born in Fredericksburg, Ohio. Their parents were from Weston, Ontario. Orphaned at a young age, they were raised by their paternal grandmother. She moved to Detroit when the boys were teens. After graduation from Detroit Central High School, b... more

Paul Beecher Blanshard (August 27, 1892 – January 27, 1980) was a controversial author, lawyer, atheist, secular humanist, and outspoken critic of Catholicism. Paul and his twin brother Brand Blanshard were born in Fredericksburg, Ohio. Their parents were from Weston, Ontario. Orphaned at a young age, they were raised by their paternal grandmother. She moved to Detroit when the boys were teens. After graduation from Detroit Central High School, both youths attended the University of Michigan from 1910 to 1914. Descended from three generations of Protestant ministers, Blanshard followed university by attending seminary. His theological instruction, however, produced an intellectual reaction. Paul submitted to ordination having already quietly experienced apostasy. Within one or two years he made public his renunciation of Christianity. Blanshard's humanistic and socialist political values started him off in a career with labor relations and union organizing. By nature and personality... less