I think it is safe to
say that most Christians cannot stand the mere mention of Christopher
Hitchens. Such a “dogmatic” atheist such
as he is surely a byword in Christendom.
Secretly, many are probably glad that he is dead and scoff sarcastically
about the great atheist going to “meet his Maker.” The Christian community easily becomes
uncomfortable when formidable men like him begin making their rounds in the
world and many would merely write him off as a man beyond all good. But, while I don’t at all agree with the
atheistic claims of such a man as Hitchens, I can’t help but admit that
I—unlike perhaps most evangelicals—hold a great deal of admiration for him.
Hitchens was not like
most atheists. He seemed to have a clear
cut understanding of much of religion, especially Christianity. While I personally don’t believe he
understood certain theological concepts very well, he knew religious history,
religious texts, and religious beliefs extraordinarily well—more than most
religious people, perhaps. He relied as
heavily on the Bible as any Christian might (though, of course, for very
different purposes). So his objections
to Christianity are not based on ignorance but on careful study.
His conclusions were
much the same as every atheist’s. He
attacked the Bible and Christianity from science, of course, claiming that
science disproved Christianity, that the two were incompatible. However, his main attacks were not scientific
(after all, he was not a scientist). Rather,
he attacked from what might be called “the Argument of History”. In his definitive book, god is Not Great, Hitchens bases most of his attacks on religion
from historical and present day religious corruption worldwide. His argument is that “religion poisons
everything”—that the root of much of evil is religion itself. He claims that the “bigoted” notion that one
has found the exclusive and conclusive rights to “truth” leads religious people
to become self-centered, self-exalting, and ultimately corrupt. Thus, the religious person becomes the exact
picture of wickedness contained in passages like Psalm 10. Psalm 10 speaks of those who deny God as
oppressing the poor and crushing the helpless out of an attitude of
arrogance. This is a picture of atheism. However, the irony is that in the modern
world it is the religious people who are arrogant, oppressive, and
corrupt. While this is not true of all
religious individuals (indeed, I believe Hitchens generalizes far too much in
his book), it is certainly a fact backed up by analysis of historical and
present-day world events.
This is why I admire
Hitchens so much. Whether Christians (or
any religious people for that matter) like to admit it or not, he is spot on in
his argument. Religion is corrupting and poisoning the
world. While this should be expected
from those counterfeit religions of the Devil (all false religions), it is even
so with true Christianity. The Christian
religion is far too often corrupted, leading to all kinds of hurt and oppression. Hitchens even provides examples of Protestant
Christians engaging in blatantly immoral behavior leading to the degradation of
society. In part, I believe that
Christopher Hitchens is a blessing from God to the church. He—and other fundamental atheists like
him—should serve as a wake-up call to Christians. The Argument from History is
valid—Christianity is becoming wicked, evil, and corrupt, in a word:
pagan. Christians must wake up to this.
It must be noted that
the Christianity too often portrayed in history is not true, Biblical Christianity. Biblical Christianity will not corrupt
society—it would certainly unnerve society (as long as society remains pagan),
but “corruption” is a relative term unless it finds its objectivity in an
absolute, namely God. Therefore, it
cannot be said that the label “Christian” today is living up to the standards
set by the Bible or by God. And while
the worldwide community of Christianity can never entirely be fixed (there will
always be wolves amongst the sheep), true, Bible-believing Christians ought to
take a hint from Hitchens’ message. Much
of Christianity today is far too worldly.
Political and national Christianity is replacing spiritual Christianity;
social conformity is replacing true charity and morality. Christians are no longer merely in the world, they are fast becoming of it.
The hinge point rests on where one finds their personal worth and
glory. If one finds it in God—the
fountain of true glory—then one will live for God, rather than for self, which
will lead to honorability and righteousness.
If one finds it in the self—which is feeble—then one will live for the
self and often seek to oppress others in the ever increasing search for
personal glory. This is the difference
between true disciples of Christ and other religious people. Don’t consider it strange that I say we must
join with the late Hitchens in acknowledging that religion is quickly
corrupting the world. However, true
Christianity is not like the whole of religion.
True Christian faith leads to selflessness, not selfishness, and reliance
upon God, which results in anything but corruption. A life lived in obedience to God rather than
obedience to one’s natural desires will purify the world rather than desecrate
it.
This point was debated
by Christopher Hitchens and an opponent of his, Presbyterian pastor Douglas
Wilson, in their collaborative book, Is
Christianity Good for the World? Their
own collective journey, quite an interesting one, is chronicled in the
documentary: “Collision of Lives”. Douglas Wilson
is a formidable Christian apologist in his own right. Hitchens himself admits that Wilson is a step
up from most evangelicals he gets, a good match for the much beloved
atheist. After contacting Hitchens
during an online debate, the two began touring nationwide, filming television
programs and participating in public debates.
Their relationship was one of genuine friendship; Wilson himself seemed
truly saddened after Hitchens’ death.
Both present the excellent arguments for both cases.
Hitchens was wrong in
his assessment of true religion.
However, his rage over the abuse of religion—even corrupted
Christianity—in the world is righteous and just. There is much Christians can learn from this,
even from an atheist.
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