When I was a devout evangelical I resented Mr. Hitchens. Now, as an apostate for over 20 years, I look with admiration and tremendous respect and find myself cheering him on. His intellect and command of language still inspire me.
He is the reason I was able to break away from non-denominational Christianity as well. It always seemed a bit off to me but it was only after hearing Christopher lay out standards of evidence that I realized there was literally no evidence for a God at all, and making the jump from that to a specific religion was an even larger jump without evidence. He was a great man.
Fantastic story. I’d like to know the foundations for resentment. Indeed I find it difficult to understand why people of faith find it hard to at least respect someone opposing religion, even from another religion. Imagine there are a lot of factors besides societal norms, group norms, education and age. I’d very much like to hear and understand, that I might better understand others cheers g
He would’ve been incredible to have these past two years. Could you imagine what points he would’ve made about our insane world and it’s leaders lol would’ve been incredible
Christopher Hitchens has provided me through his books and lectures with more consolation, Wit and knowledge than any Church ever did, in my opinion the very best orator/humanist of modern times, may his voice continue to educate for centuries to come.
he is a fool........... (*** GOD IS REAL AND CAN BE PROVEN IN A COURT OF LAW!!! The biologically immortal organisms that lack senescence are already extremely great proof for God and his design but if you want more..... The 3 main forms of evidence that would be acceptable and legitimate in a court of law for the existence of God would be..... "Life after Death experience studies where people witness a creator God- " iands.org/resources/education/recommended-reading.html " " time.com/68381/life-beyond-death-the-science-of-the-afterlife-2/ ", .......... Multiple Studies on the effectiveness of prayer from multiple religions involving a creator God like in the book "The Divine Matrix by Gregg Braden" " www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_13?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=divine +matrix+gregg+braden&sprefix=divine+matrix%2Cstripbooks%2C195&crid=3BXKVNJABO9OK " along with other such studies proving a positive co-relation, ...... Positive co-relation to prayer in a peer reviewed study.......... jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/485161 ............ and scientific facts mentioned in the Bible before their human discovery by a divine influence, www.eternal-productions.org/101science.html ....... For example….. 1. The singing stars. Job 38:7 declares the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy. It sounds like a bit of Bible poetry but not much more. After all, stars shine, not sing, right? Well, it turns out scientists have been able to convert patterns from start light into audio wavelengths, according to Discovery News. The “amount of hiss” in the audio reportedly allows scientists to measure the surface gravity on a star and gauge where it is in its stellar evolution. 2. Weight of the winds. In Job 28:25, we are told that God weighed out the wind. This one may be no more self-evident to us than it was to an ancient Israelite reader of this text. But, we know from modern science that air, since it does have mass, weighs something. You might be surprised to know how much though: an estimated one ton of air is weighing down on shoulders, according to this science site (which explains that we don’t feel it because the air is exerting its force in all directions). This is pretty basic stuff for modern scientists, but it’s quite a credit to the inerrancy of Scripture that the author of Job got it right so long ago (approximately in the second millennium BC). 3. A massive fountain of water deep beneath the Earth!!! Genesis 7:11 "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened." www.thesun.co.uk/news/2242110/scientists-discovered-water-from-biblical-great-flood-in- worlds-deepest-hole/ www.express.co.uk/news/weird/733026/Russia-science-Kola-borehole-Noah-floodwater-Bible- Genesis-theory-of-12 creation.com/oceans-of-water-deep-inside-the-earth "Scientists dig the world’s deepest hole - and find ‘water from NOAH’S FLOOD’ at the bottom The revelation also reportedly "disproves the myth" that the earth is made up of dry rocky layers" All these would stand the scrutiny of a judge and jury for the case of a creator Gods existence and the legitimacy of the Christian Faith!!! But I am feeling generous so I will give you two more great forms of evidence, how about this book where a forensic officer who is atheist studies and researches the Bible to see if it proves a historical Jesus and if he was murdered wrongfully? Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels www.amazon.com/Cold-Case-Christianity-Homicide-Detective-Investigates/dp/1434704696, afterward he became Christian!!! Also, why don't you just pray to God yourself and ask him if he is real? What more can I say??? Then you would have personal evidence and proof of Gods interaction yourself..... I mean, there is actually way way way more evidence for God than this but it either would go over your head or you would not understand it properly and you would question it, but this is really solid evidence and proof I have given you up above that would hold up in a court of law........... if you decide to RUN from it, at least admit to yourself that is what you are doing........ Do you believe your life, body, family and the ground you walk on are all a gift or something else? If you believe they are all something else then what do you think they all are then?***)
Rarely will you find another 54 minutes so cogent, so articulate, so beautifully put together. This is an hour that invigorates the mind. I will always be grateful for Christopher Eric Hitchens.
He is ignorant, please do not be an atheist! (*** GOD IS REAL AND CAN BE PROVEN IN A COURT OF LAW!!! The biologically immortal organisms that lack senescence are already extremely great proof for God and his design but if you want more..... The 3 main forms of evidence that would be acceptable and legitimate in a court of law for the existence of God would be..... "Life after Death experience studies where people witness a creator God- " iands.org/resources/education/recommended-reading.html " " time.com/68381/life-beyond-death-the-science-of-the-afterlife-2/ ", .......... Multiple Studies on the effectiveness of prayer from multiple religions involving a creator God like in the book "The Divine Matrix by Gregg Braden" " www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_13?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=divine +matrix+gregg+braden&sprefix=divine+matrix%2Cstripbooks%2C195&crid=3BXKVNJABO9OK " along with other such studies proving a positive co-relation, ...... Positive co-relation to prayer in a peer reviewed study.......... jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/485161 ............ and scientific facts mentioned in the Bible before their human discovery by a divine influence, www.eternal-productions.org/101science.html ....... For example….. 1. The singing stars. Job 38:7 declares the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy. It sounds like a bit of Bible poetry but not much more. After all, stars shine, not sing, right? Well, it turns out scientists have been able to convert patterns from start light into audio wavelengths, according to Discovery News. The “amount of hiss” in the audio reportedly allows scientists to measure the surface gravity on a star and gauge where it is in its stellar evolution. 2. Weight of the winds. In Job 28:25, we are told that God weighed out the wind. This one may be no more self-evident to us than it was to an ancient Israelite reader of this text. But, we know from modern science that air, since it does have mass, weighs something. You might be surprised to know how much though: an estimated one ton of air is weighing down on shoulders, according to this science site (which explains that we don’t feel it because the air is exerting its force in all directions). This is pretty basic stuff for modern scientists, but it’s quite a credit to the inerrancy of Scripture that the author of Job got it right so long ago (approximately in the second millennium BC). 3. A massive fountain of water deep beneath the Earth!!! Genesis 7:11 "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened." www.thesun.co.uk/news/2242110/scientists-discovered-water-from-biblical-great-flood-in- worlds-deepest-hole/ www.express.co.uk/news/weird/733026/Russia-science-Kola-borehole-Noah-floodwater-Bible- Genesis-theory-of-12 creation.com/oceans-of-water-deep-inside-the-earth "Scientists dig the world’s deepest hole - and find ‘water from NOAH’S FLOOD’ at the bottom The revelation also reportedly "disproves the myth" that the earth is made up of dry rocky layers" All these would stand the scrutiny of a judge and jury for the case of a creator Gods existence and the legitimacy of the Christian Faith!!! But I am feeling generous so I will give you two more great forms of evidence, how about this book where a forensic officer who is atheist studies and researches the Bible to see if it proves a historical Jesus and if he was murdered wrongfully? Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels www.amazon.com/Cold-Case-Christianity-Homicide-Detective-Investigates/dp/1434704696, afterward he became Christian!!! Also, why don't you just pray to God yourself and ask him if he is real? What more can I say??? Then you would have personal evidence and proof of Gods interaction yourself..... I mean, there is actually way way way more evidence for God than this but it either would go over your head or you would not understand it properly and you would question it, but this is really solid evidence and proof I have given you up above that would hold up in a court of law........... if you decide to RUN from it, at least admit to yourself that is what you are doing........ Do you believe your life, body, family and the ground you walk on are all a gift or something else? If you believe they are all something else then what do you think they all are then?***)
It nice that so many people miss and feel the absence of Christopher Hitchens, I think the best way to pay tribute to your personal thankfulness for him is to learn from his example. Then implement what you have learned from his example in your everyday life. Get ready for a hard journey, though a worthy one. The greatest good is being served.
All Hitchens vids on youtube are appreciated. Long after his passing, he continues to educate (and fascinate), with his intelligence and ability to articulate insightful thoughts... on all topics. The commandments were fish in a barrel.
hugh jorgan I couldn't agree more. Just like so many free thinkers before him, he proves that logic and thoughtful criticism is timeless, and that as long as there is religious belief there will be a strong resistance to it.
Safdar Shah ಠ_ಠ .......... I don't like to judge by appearances, or small snippets of information, but I'm gonna go out on a limb & guess that you subscribe to the Koran & that your presence here is neither desired nor appreciated if you won't/can't think/speak for yourself. Simply stating " That doesn't make him right!" doesn't make you anymore correct then Hitch, especially when Hitch laid out a well articulated/thought-out argument. Please, upload your own hour long video based on your beliefs, & share them with anyone(if anyone) who agrees with your point of view. Good day.
Hey Lloyd. Two "L's" are laughable. A Professor is not only someone working in a university, but one who also professes the truth. Thanks for calling me stupid. That shows your own narrow-mindedness. We do have choices in the English language. The English language is not rigid as you suggest.
@juli (***The biologically immortal organisms that lack senescence are already extremely great proof for God and his design but if you want more..... The 3 main forms of evidence that would be acceptable and legitimate in a court of law for the existence of God would be..... "Life after Death experience studies where people witness a creator God- " iands.org/resources/education/recommended-reading.html " " time.com/68381/life-beyond-death-the-science-of-the-afterlife-2/ ", .......... Multiple Studies on the effectiveness of prayer from multiple religions involving a creator God like in the book "The Divine Matrix by Gregg Braden" " www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_13?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=divine +matrix+gregg+braden&sprefix=divine+matrix%2Cstripbooks%2C195&crid=3BXKVNJABO9OK " along with other such studies proving a positive co-relation, ...... Positive co-relation to prayer in a peer reviewed study.......... jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/485161 ............ and scientific facts mentioned in the Bible before their human discovery by a divine influence, www.eternal-productions.org/101science.html ....... For example….. 1. The singing stars. Job 38:7 declares the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy. It sounds like a bit of Bible poetry but not much more. After all, stars shine, not sing, right? Well, it turns out scientists have been able to convert patterns from start light into audio wavelengths, according to Discovery News. The “amount of hiss” in the audio reportedly allows scientists to measure the surface gravity on a star and gauge where it is in its stellar evolution. 2. Weight of the winds. In Job 28:25, we are told that God weighed out the wind. This one may be no more self-evident to us than it was to an ancient Israelite reader of this text. But, we know from modern science that air, since it does have mass, weighs something. You might be surprised to know how much though: an estimated one ton of air is weighing down on shoulders, according to this science site (which explains that we don’t feel it because the air is exerting its force in all directions). This is pretty basic stuff for modern scientists, but it’s quite a credit to the inerrancy of Scripture that the author of Job got it right so long ago (approximately in the second millennium BC). 3. A massive fountain of water deep beneath the Earth!!! Genesis 7:11 "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened." www.thesun.co.uk/news/2242110/scientists-discovered-water-from-biblical-great-flood-in-worlds-deepest-hole/ www.express.co.uk/news/weird/733026/Russia-science-Kola-borehole-Noah-floodwater-Bible-Genesis-theory-of-12 creation.com/oceans-of-water-deep-inside-the-earth "Scientists dig the world’s deepest hole - and find ‘water from NOAH’S FLOOD’ at the bottom The revelation also reportedly "disproves the myth" that the earth is made up of dry rocky layers" All these would stand the scrutiny of a judge and jury for the case of a creator Gods existence and the legitimacy of the Christian Faith!!! But I am feeling generous so I will give you two more great forms of evidence, how about this book where a forensic officer who is atheist studies and researches the Bible to see if it proves a historical Jesus and if he was murdered wrongfully? Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels www.amazon.com/Cold-Case-Christianity-Homicide-Detective-Investigates/dp/1434704696, afterward he became Christian!!! Also, why don't you just pray to God yourself and ask him if he is real? What more can I say??? Then you would have personal evidence and proof of Gods interaction yourself..... I mean, there is actually way way way more evidence for God than this but it either would go over your head or you would not understand it properly and you would question it, but this is really solid evidence and proof I have given you up above that would hold up in a court of law........... if you decide to RUN from it, at least admit to yourself that is what you are doing........ Do you believe your life, body, family and the ground you walk on are all a gift or something else? If you believe they are all something else then what do you think they all are then?***)
37:49 We can keep and admired and like religious art, architecture, and music while they while apreciating they were created under illusions we don't need to share... man, man, even today The Hitch never ceases to amaze me.
Great lecture. Hitchslapping the commandments! Thanks for posting. I second @BarronGrimm's sentiment and say that his voice and reason are sorely missed.
Yep! I love it that although I'm now atheist I was brought up fundamentalist christian and in debates/discussions/arguments with christians I almost invariably know more about the bible than they do! They really hate it when I say "But that's not what the bible says" or "where does it say that in the bible?" My favourite is that god created the world in 7 days: No, the bible says 6 and he rested on the 7th day, which is why as a child I wasn't allowed to read anything other than the bible on Sundays or do anything that was fun.
Im not sure if he helps my intellectual maturity or hinders it, because since I've been listening to this great man, I found myself copying and quoting him often...... He might not like it, but he will live eternally in my heart! Praise Jesus and pass the biscuits!
Total badass. We have his books - how offensive others want to destroy books and history. Not just today, but throughout history. If religion was sure of itself, it would be able to stand up to scrutiny and not fear it.
Out of all of Hitch's debates and videos on here, I think this one has the most thoughtful and interesting audience questions. A shame there are so few.
When I was 8 I was told in sunday school to be quiet and only listen. My crime was, that I asked why God was walking around in the Garden of Eden, when we were told that God is everywhere and in spirit form.
You'll get to see hitch again on the very day you lose your life . The problem of coarse is you'll be both in such torment it won't matter ...that is unless you get your heart right in time .
Science teaches abiogenesis as if it's true. It's not Science teaches that evolution is true. It isn't, no evidence of any missing link. Just look at Dawkins very own charts. The missing link is always blacked out. How interesting Intelligent design Are you saying that it's more logical to believe that if you throw every part of a truck outside, in x amount of time, that nature will put it together in working order? Or that it's more logical that intelligence, did it? Everything I just stated.......requires a faith to believe in a miracle, a fairy tale that has absolutely no evidence. I'll wait while you come up with a ridiculous excuse without evidence to back it up.
@@user-fb2jb3gz1d to quote Hitch himself: "You give me the awful impression of someone who hasn't read any of the arguments against your position ever" Read more books! Not just the one that was read to you as a child by your parents.
@@Markielee72 I welcome reading. I do alot of it I have several of hitchens books because I used to be an atheist. I really enjoyed hitchens. Then I grew up. I realized, as an atheist, that hitchens did not know the Bible. He was interpreting it, according to Hitchens, not according to the bible. Watch more of his debates and you'll see him get owned of topics then in a later debate, he will still use that same fallacy, in hopes that the debater doesn't catch it. Hitchens dodges answering and will strawman when he gets cornered. I've learned that if you have truth, there is no need to resort to such tactics. Hitchens is good for the uneducated atheist. Dillahunty is another atheist that is good for the uneducated atheist. I suggest reading up on guys like Robert Price or Richard Carrier. Guys who actually have PhDs in their field of study. Wait........but not Richard Dawkins, that dude is a major idiot. You should try reading also
I look at him as a preacher.preaching the good word of Atheism.the audience are his parishioners.but they are there of their own free will and not drawn there by a commanding entity or by obligation. R.I.P. Hitch.
darin demark I myself on-line got the epithet "atheist evangelist" hurled at me. After due though .. a few minutes .. I concluded that I could be proud of it. An evangelist is etymologically a bearer of good news. The really good news is that the God of the Jews, Muslims, and Christians does NOT exist.
"Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live". That one line was used to justify the torture and burning alive of hundreds of thousands of people, many of them young girls, for over three centuries; whereupon the Church conveniently absorbed all of their land and property. Imagine if that line had been part of our ten commandments, even to this day? And we had to recite it seriously in church? Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, The Wizard of Oz, it would have all been burned, along with their authors. The Old Testament is also a complete hypocrisy, as there is a segment where some traveling "prophets" were trying to discern information about their ancestors, stopped by the home of a known witch, and bullied that witch to reveal their ancestral line, with the promise that they "wouldn't kill her" if she cooperated. They cooperated, and presumably spared her life. Which means they broke God's own commandment, after this witch demonstrated her ability to perform witchcraft. It also points up the irony that they had to use this method to get their information, instead of God or an angel. But hey, it was the Old Testament. You could have it every way you wanted, if you were God's chosen.....
The ten commandments are the hysterical believings,of a group of desert tribes and those desert tribes have stored up more misery for mankind than any other group of people in the history of the planet and they're doing it to this day. Stephen Fry
xerox1959 "I am a lover of truth, a worshipper of freedom, a celebrant at the altar of language and purity and tolerance. That is my religion, and every day I am sorely, grossly, heinously and deeply offended, wounded, mortified and injured by a thousand different blasphemies against it. When the fundamental canons of truth, honesty, compassion and decency are hourly assaulted by fatuous bishops, pompous, illiberal and ignorant priests, politicians and prelates, sanctimonious censors, self-appointed moralists and busy-bodies, what recourse of ancient laws have I? None whatever. Nor would I ask for any. For unlike these blistering imbeciles my belief in my religion is strong and I know that lies will always fail and indecency and intolerance will always perish." - Stephen Fry
Mr. Fry what your looking is peace true peace. I recommend for you to give Billy Meier a chance because he teaches in logic, common sense, and rational. Don't focus on the beam ships or extraterrestrials but on what he teaches. The contact reports for example, and the corroborations. If you have a tiny bit of curiosity I deeply , whole heartedly recommend it!
I dispute that, I think it was the followers of Karl Marx, and the ideology they developed...but then, of the hysterical Desert Tribes, I would say it is the hysterical Arabs you need to watch out for, the Jews are forbidden to push theirs.
The three "commandments" that christians need to follow to lead happy lives: Thou shalt always be honest and faithful to the provider of thy nookie. Thou shalt try real hard not to kill anybody. Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself.
Romans 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God has showed it to them. 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: HERES YOUR SIGN . 【✞ REPENT THE BEGINNING IS NEAR ✞】 ♥ ↑ → ♚ † ↑ ← CHOOSE WISELY → †◄♥►✞
Fetish is the wrong term, it is reserved for sexual activities. I don't understand how anyone with all of his senses can watch and listen to Hitchens and not become a huge fan of his wisdom, wit and skillful delivery.
It is always inspiring to watch christopher. The world will of course one day catch up with him intellectually and religion will become something we used to do like burn witches or worship the sun. However i wonder what evil will we have to endure before people wise up. When you have an infection . Which would you prefer , 3 hail marys and an our father. Or penicillin.
When thinking of modern “witch burnings,” couldn’t one see something of an eerie parallel in the burning of the Branch Dravidians compound in Waco, Texas - seen all over media live as it happened; we all being spectators of this public burning.
There are so few people of his intelligence today, and none that have an international following. Hitch had a command of language that is seldom if never seen today. Language today has devolved to the lowest common denominator, expressly conjugated for the likes of Twitter. But that we could find someone else who has such knowledge today. Alas, the more we are connected, the less we connect.
Nobody mentioned the fact that the prelude to the First commandment invalidates the lot. "I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee up out of Egypt, out of the House of Bondage." He certainly did not do that for me or my ancestors, who were Celts and maybe Vikings and Saxons. Nor for most of the inhabitants of North America. And probably not even for the Jews.
Nobody mentioned that because that's not the contents for that commandment. It was only for the Israelites. Not everyone else You may not believe in the Bible. But you can't make up stuff that is not in there. That's like saying princess Leia messed around with JFK before she got with Hans Solo. You can't do that. I expect common sense from an atheist. Just shows that's just a myth
@@brainboosteredu.3928 interesting that you ask that I have done a lot of research, getting into the science of things, like biology, mathematics and even computers. And of course, more biblical studies. I've been in many discussions even got a YT video about a comment I made on a christian channel and I got that professor Dave to comment I now make fun of atheists........it is so ridiculous to even consider the thought that there isn't a good/creator. When you get into the science of things ........the atheist answer is literally stupid. I wish I could go back and talk with atheists that I didn't have the answers to. Though today, I have developed a harsh attitude due to the stupidity of people....who don't want to admit their flawed logic. I don't play games, do tactics or whatever.........i have no patience for that crap. If you got the truth, then speak it or get to stepping and for god's sake...... shut the hell up. But yeah...... atheists are stupid
wheelie w Who created the mind that created his mind? And who created the mind that created the mind that created that mind? And who created the mind that created the mind that created the mind that created the mind that created the mind that created that mind? Ad infinitum, ad nauseam.
wheelie w You mean his lifetime of education? Yeah, good job Educating yourself Hitch, you are an inspiration to us all. Way to recognize wheelie. Unless you meant something else...
That is correct. Killing in war (including children) was perfectly fine with god. Even sacrificing your own children was perfectly OK, as long as it was for him. ;-)
At 46:30 ish, help from the divine is not random: those who seek out modern medicine have a far greater chance of being subject to a healthy dose of divine intervention, if you catch my drift.
December the 15th 2011 - the day the world became a much dumber place. I often wonder if his family ever read through these comments. I hope they do to realise, as if they didn't already, how much he is loved and missed in equal measure. I 'pray' that Christopher knew it as well.
For those who would fear that removing religion would leave a massive hole in human culture, I say, it is not beyond the wit of wo/man to fill that void a plenty. The chances of the us falling into a similar pit of hateful ideas that the ancients did must surely be less.
Hitchens' legacy will be to challenge the dishonesty in not only religion, but every aspect of human interaction in which Trust is involved, which is mostly everything.
The mistranslation of Alma to Virgin has had far reaching consequences, as “religious” scholars have over the centuries warped and twisted and reinvented reality to fit into their erroneously conceived images
21:00 “thought crime” The powers that were/be don’t want you to even think it. If you can think it, you can then understand the mechanisms of evil and defend against it. Of course, the powers that were, and still be, don’t want you to have the wherewithal to defend yourself.
At 30 minutes we get the truth of the entire scam, the best summary of what really happened. Man created many gods, not the other way round; No mystery at all.
He invented every thing, right?? So, the seventh day he just had to try his new invention, beer. And that was the end of that day, lost in golden bubbles.
It was on the seventh day that He was going to make mankind peaceful and have insight. He decided that it would be more fun with conflicts. Divine Reality TV.
I dont understand why you have to impose the word fetish. The name of the channel is basically a dedication to this great man, and i would expect nothing else when i visit a channel by that name. The uploader may have several channels, this being only one of which, to which he uploads many different kinds of videos. I am just glad that there are people like this uploader, who take the time to make sure that hitchins' videos like this one are available for people like you and me to watch.
Spongebob0911 Then again : When at last the Dick Cheney t' the Devil goes down, There's nothing will serve him but Satan's own crown. Then saith Satan "Thy head shall wear my Crown, never. Thou'rt maybe as wicked, but not quite as clever." ..... Belloc, I think.
Christopher has done a great job as a journalist to discredit the composition of the bible. We need a unbiased forensic researcher to map the whole bible and highlight the discrepancies/ misconceptions
That is actually a commandment, just in your own words Treat others as you want to be treated. So if you want to be treated as an a-hole, I guess that gives the ok to be one.
He is also quoting some the reasons many churches have walked away from fundamentalism and choose to follow Jesus and ignore the old ways or the old covenant. I particularly like the graven image quote because the Amish are particular in this. Anyhow one should always question what one knows and those sources but not censor his belief based on what is most rational to a group but on what is rational to the individual even if the end is a religion, atheism or otherwise.
Boo hoo, make the most of the only life you have, and engage as much as you can with those you love and who may miss you - accept and operate on the fact.
Christopher Hitchens, being a self-desribed anti-theist, did not wish this to be true, actively despised the idea of an afterlife, and thus I am happy of its fictional status for him and for all of us. If this whole affair continued ad infinitum our lives truly would have no savor or worth. Ephemerality is that which invests life with its pungency. Anyhow, he was not a man with a pinched ego, he knew of the fondness of many for him on the way out.
There was one error in Christopher's history of law giving. Babylonian King Hammurabi's code was published (inscribed on stone) only about 350 years before the decalogue and not 1000 years before as Christopher said.
