Pump up the volume OR Link to complete unedited debate: 128.83.78.9 This is a MUST WATCH.
Q&A part VII of the Hitchens vs. Turek debate at VCU, VA. Full debate: www.vimeo.com Hitchens repeats a strong anti-theist point: if you do a moral deed “for god” it is done for a reward or out of fear but not out of empathy or solidarity -it thus abolishes morality, individual choice etc. Tureks stupidity (or the credulity of his followers) forces this repetition upon us, his point about the immorality of materialism is old as well. I would guess it is a (corrupted) version of the “argument from despair” against naturalism: humans are supposedly not able to live decently without a “cosmic meaning of life”. Also cringeworthy is Tureks announcement that he stops believing in Christianity if the body of Christ is discovered (!?). en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
Some of my favorite clips of the Htich on various topics. Sorry about the volume changes, I pieced this together from other youtube clips. Part 1 of 2
Complete video at: fora.tv Oxford University theologian Alister McGrath debates atheist author Christopher Hitchens on whether the goals of mainstream religions can be separated from those of their extremist “fringes.” This is part three of a three-part excerpt. Part one: www.youtube.com Part two: www.youtube.com —– Poison or Cure? Religious Belief in the Modern World: A debate, dialogue, and discussion with Christopher Hitchens and Alister McGrath. The Ethics and Public Policy Center and the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University host a debate between writer Christopher Hitchens and Oxford University professor Alister McGrath on the role of religious belief in the modern world. Christopher Hitchens is an author, journalist and literary critic. Now living in Washington, DC, he has been a columnist at Vanity Fair, The Nation and Slate; additionally, he is an occasional contributor to many other publications. He is most recently the author of “God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything” (2007) and editor of “The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever” (2007). Alister McGrath is a biochemist and Christian theologian born in Belfast, North Ireland. He currently enjoys the title of distinction “Professor of Historical Theology” granted by the University of Oxford. He has written extensively on history and theology, including “In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a …