Selected from hundreds of entries to the Theology category of the 2022 John Locke Institute Essay Competition, Chloe (PP, Sixth Form) was awarded third place for her essay, Is Faith Anything Other than Uncertain Belief on Incomplete Evidence?, a study of the emergence of new interpretations of faith in the early twenty-first century. In considering the New Atheist stance that theological beliefs cannot be supported by logical or empirical evidence and are, therefore, meaningless, Chloe explores why such an approach to faith could be deemed as reductionist to a religious believer. She concludes by suggesting that human nature implores us to find meaning beyond simple scientific explanation and, for many, religious faith is essential in providing the foundations to do so.

The John Locke Institute’s annual, global essay competition invites young scholars to show their depth of knowledge and persuasiveness of writing across seven different subjects: philosophy, politics, economics, history, psychology, theology and law, and gives a chance for work to be read and assessed by experts from the University of Oxford. This year more than 8,000 students entered from across the globe. In the Theology category, Chloe was placed behind only students from Australia and the USA, and across all seven categories just three UK students were placed within the top three.

As a shortlisted essayist, Chloe was invited to attend three days of lectures to debate issues surrounding theology, law and economics at the John Locke Institute, Oxford.

Chloe said of winning third prize: “The news came as a shock to me. I had read the essays of previous winners on the website, all of which were incredible, and I never dreamed that I would be able to produce anything of that level. During the awards ceremony, whilst the judges were announcing the names of people who had received a commendation for their essays, I was shivering all over because I thought they had forgotten about me. I’m still in disbelief.

“As someone who grew up in a largely secular background, I had always wanted to know more about the different and diverse worldviews across the globe. Writing to address a question that required in-depth knowledge about religion thus helped me further my understanding of individual religious communities. Putting academics aside, however, I was aware that the topic I had been exploring was extremely poignant and personal, which made writing it all the more meaningful.

“It took me around a month to research and write the essay. Initially, I had spent a week on my first draft, but afterwards I completely redrafted a second version of the essay where I changed my entire stance.”