Purpose of Hitchens’ Writing
In god is not Great, Christopher Hitchens is attempting to not just make a case against Christianity, but against religion is general. Throughout this book, he claims that religion both kills and poisons our societies. Hitchens attempts to do so by trying to “prove that the usefulness of religion is in the past, and that its foundational books are transparent fables, and that it is a man-made imposition, and that it has been an enemy of science and inquiry, and that it has subsisted largely on lies and fears, and been the accomplice of ignorance and guilt as well as of slavery, genocide, racism, and tyranny.” Overall, these are the cases that Hitchens attempts to prove throughout his book, but ultimately he also says that he will settle for the reader not agreeing with himself, because he did his job in making the reader aware of these claims. The author approaches these topics in various ways such as giving examples which he believes show how religious people engage in child abuse or pointing out what he views as inconsistencies in the Bible, Koran, and Pentateuch. Through these general points that Hitchens is attempting to prove, we can see that he is an atheist, but also that he has morals . This can be seen simply when he says that although he is not going to set himself up “as a moral exemplar”, but then goes on to explain what he would do should he be put in the situation of even being accused of child abuse. By doing this, it is evident that Hitchens views himself as a moral person.
Points Hitchens is Attempting to Prove
One important claim that Christopher Hitchens makes in god is not Great, which I had honestly been unaware of, is that religions are “not just amoral, but immoral.” Hitchens attempts to prove this claim through giving examples of the immorality that he sees within religious groups as a whole. First, he claims that “religion professes a special role in the protection and instruction of children.” However, we fail to practice what we preach according to Hitchens. He then goes on to list the areas where the religious have abused or mistreated their children in the past. For example, he tells of Mormons and Muslims giving their underage daughters away in marriage, Catholics of condoning homosexual child rape by priests, and Christians denying their children medical care. As Christians, I think this is a vital topic to be aware of as we go about caring for the children around us. It should cause us to question whether we are taking the child’s best interest at heart. However, regarding morals overall, Christians need to be aware that others are making claims that religion is immoral simply so that they know that their lives are being watched and their choices are being seen by those around the world, including Christian opposers. As we grow in awareness of this, hopefully, Christians will choose to be more faithful to the words and commandments that we personally claim to adhere to and thus change the minds of our critics regarding the morality of our religion.
Another point that Hitchens attempts to make is that religions, including Christianity, are man-made. In one chapter which Hitchens titles “Arguments from Design”, Hitchens attempts to show problem that exist within the Christian view of design in general. Specifically, in one section Hitchens attempts to prove his point that religion is mad made and that a god does not exist by pointing towards what he views as inconsistencies and issues with the writing of Genesis. Of his claims in this section, Hitchens implies that if there is a god who is all-knowing and also inspired the writing of the book of Genesis, there would be mentions of aspects of creation such as dinosaurs and germs, for example. In regard to much of the Bible as a whole, however, Hitchens seems to imply that the Bible was seen as a source of comfort and answers prior to scientific discoveries being made. However, now that science has explanations for the origin of creation, “we no longer have any need of a god to explain what is no longer mysterious.” Overall, he claims that if religion were truly invented by an all-knowing god, as Christians claim, the Bible as a whole would possess more information regarding life and aspects of scientific creation. Christians today should know this claim so that they can be prepared to support their faith with knowledge.
Problems Evident in Hitchens’ Case
One issue that I found in Hitchens’ case against religion is that he uses extreme examples to prove his points. These examples that he gives are ones that only a few members of followers of these religions would condone. For instance, when Hitchens explains how the religious abuse children, he gives the example of the Catholic priests who molested underage boys. While this has been an ongoing problem within the Catholic Church for some time now, most Catholics do not approve of these priests’ actions. Even within the past few months, “an increasing number of Catholics are calling on the church to clean house.” We can see that the average Catholic is tired of this trend in priests and that they do not support it. Throughout god is not Great, Hitchens gives more extreme examples to prove his points in various religions: mainly Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. As a result, I see this as a major problem in Hitchens writing. He does this because it does seemingly help prove his point of the immorality within religions. However, I do not believe that it is valid for Hitchens to base the beliefs of the many on the actions of the few.
Another issue that I have found with Hitchens’ case is that he ridicules but does not offer evidence against some of the cases which he is discussing. In addition, he fails to account for the whole Bible story Christians believe. One example can be found in the chapter titled “Arguments from Design.” During this chapter, one of the claims that Hitchens makes is that there are creations that are designed in ways that seem abnormal, with the example of the human eye given. Hitchens states that it seems more likely that the human eye has evolved than been created by an intelligent designer, because he sees no intelligence behind its design. In this, Hitchens fails to remember that from a Christian’s perspective, God is the all-powerful Creator therefor he does not sit within what people view as normal. Hitchens does not tell me why God is not the Creator but points out what he views to be flaws in God’s design. I see this as a major problem simply because He is offering what he believes to be proof around the sub-categories (that the eye was created abnormally), but not for the big picture (that there cannot be an intelligent designer). I think Hitchens probably does this for many reasons, but mostly because he can find proof in the little things, but not in the big. As a result, he avoids the big issues, such as the existence of a creator, and rambles on about the smaller issues that fail to prove anything.
How I was Challenged
Honestly, the section of god is not Great that challenged me the most was in the second chapter, which is titled “Religion Kills”. Hitchens begins this chapter by painting a picture of Christianity in which he describes God as creator and all-knower. Hitchens describes God as caring for us and Christians as obeying His commandments, which allows us entrance into Heaven. Continuing on, he offers a question, which I think is directed at Christians in particular: “Why does such a belief not make its adherents happy? It must seem to them that they have come into possession of a marvelous secret, of the sort that they could cling to in moments of even the most extreme adversity.” Hitchens goes on to describe how melancholy Christians can be in both worship services, but also in life in general, and that we only become excited when we seek power in the world or are arguing about religious issues with others.
Personally, as I read this part of Hitchens’ book, I began to question myself over when I was last joyful simply because of the Gospel story and for no other reason. He brought into perspective how marvelous the God that I serve is. Since reading this, I have been challenged to view the seemingly simple stories in the Bible with more of a sense of awe and wonder. As I have done this, I have also seen a development in my thinking outside of Scripture as well. For example, I have been able to find more joys in the everyday simple things. From here on, I would like to continue in these practices and praying that God would develop in me an excitement for Him, His Word, and His world. After all, if Christians are not excited about the Gospel and its message, how will we be able to persuade others to be excited about it?