Part 1/5 - The Intelligence Squared Debate Christopher Hitchens

Aired 11-7-09 on BBC World

Is the Catholic church a force for good in the world?

"It stands up for the oppressed and offers spiritual succour to billions say the Church's supporters. But what about the Church's teachings on condoms, gays and women priests, ask the detractors."

Speaking for the motion, Archbishop John Onaiyekan and Ann Widdencombe MP. Speaking against the motion, Christopher Hitchens and Stephen Fry.

• Category

  Education

[nogodism]

Like computer viruses, successful mind viruses will tend to be hard for their victims to detect. If you are the victim of one, the chances are that you won't know it, and may even vigorously deny it.

The patient typically is impelled by some deep, inner conviction that something is true, or right, or virtuous: a conviction that doesn't seem to owe anything to evidence or reason, but which, nevertheless, he feels as totally compelling and convincing. Doctors refer to such a belief as 'faith'.

[nogodism]

GOD , is a creation of man , and exist only in the minds of men , no other creature on this planet , cares about a GOD , a BIBLE , a CHURCH or a HEAVEN . If tomorrow all men would vanish off the face the earth (GOD WOULD BE DEAD) . And earth with all its little creatures , and the universe with all its stars , moons , planets would continue and evolve as it has for billions and billions of years

[atee12321]

No, it's a model on which Western society based itself on... It's called the Dark Ages. It's something which we somewhat (but not totally) seperated from. It's called Renaissance and Enlightenment. And soon, they'll fully detach from the Western world as the "New Zeus believers".

[Ryan Jeanes]

his grace? what the fuck does that mean?

[gourabnaiding]

Fucking

[Pink3h]

Maybe you could have given people the source ;]

"The Viruses of the Mind" by Richard Dawkins (if this page is correct)

vserver1.cscs.lsa.umich.edu/~c­rshalizi/Dawkins/viruses-of-th­e-mind.html

[ThePreparedCitizen]

That explains why the democrats and liberal progressives continue the destroy the country and our prosperity under their idealism while the country falls apart around them.

[tolethom]

I think the debate started biased. How shallow it is to evaluate such a complex and old institution as the Catholic Church with a yes or no question... Anyway, christianism is an inextricable part of the Western society´s cultural formation.

[nogodism]

All of the falsification of the old testament has in fact been Proven, at the hands of Israeli Archaeologists, who, one needn't really point out, had every reason in this world (and "next" presumably), to find otherwise.

They tried their best to find ONE scrap of evidence to show 40 years "wandering" by 2,500.000people and 200,000 sheep

Nothing found, but now to their credit, all admit Moses never even existed.

No moses, No god. Simple. Proven by Israeli Archaeologists, over the last 150 years.

[nogodism]

Creationism isn't only about denying science. It's about wanting to be special, about feeling lost without the notion that some external hand guides their lives. The problem is not only that Evolution and Cosmology conflicts with their bible: the problem is that it makes them just another evolved animal life form. Like ALL of us on this tiny planet.

"Come unto me as children". I would not let a child anywhere near ANY of them. Would You?

[Ryan Bonner]

u from the bible belt?

[MeBubbleHead]

Your dog doesn't get a soul you do. Eternal life from the Astronaut King Jehovah Elohim not really the God that created the universe but the only God (Father) that is giving a gift of eternal life. They invented life after death with organic computers, when we create computers that can be hot wired to the brain we will find eternal life but they already did that millions of yrs ago.