Nathan Phelps (born November 22, 1958) is an American-born Canadian author, LGBT rights activist,[1] and public speaker on the topics of religion and child abuse.

Although he attended a local public school,[5] beyond that his life revolved around his father's Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), which adjoined their family home[6] inside a walled compound.

[2] Attendance at scheduled sermons was strictly enforced, and after-school time was largely committed to raising money for the Church through selling candy.

[9] Phelps describes his father as "deeply prejudiced",[6] violent,[10] and abusive,[6] and gives accounts of receiving extended beatings with a leather strap[2] and later with a mattock handle.

[7] In great fear of having his escape interrupted by his abusive father,[14] Phelps made a clandestine nighttime getaway[6] in an old car he had bought specifically for this purpose, with little plan or preparation beyond this.

[18] After leaving WBC, Phelps undertook various jobs before reuniting with his older brother Mark, and in 1978 they established a printing company together in Prairie Village, near Kansas City.

"[20]In the 20 years following his departure, Phelps tried to find a milder form of Christianity, and raised his own children in an Evangelical church, but his doubts only grew as he continued studying religion.

At the Reason Rally in Washington on March 24, 2012, he told that the events of 9/11 finally brought him to disbelief: "Then, one sunny September morning, the illusion of a personal God that I tried so hard to believe in, exploded over the skies of Manhattan.

Even as the ashes and ruin of this horrific act of blind faith settled over New York, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania, I watched people across the country scrambling to that same irrational altar for their answers.

"[21]In addition to this, Phelps identifies both his experience reading Michael Shermer's book The Science of Good and Evil[7] and the birth of his first child[9] as turning points in his worldview.

[29][30] He emphasises his work raising awareness of child abuse related to religion and its legal status[7] and has published articles on this topic.