Science vs. Religion: Christopher Hitchens debates Rev. Al Sharpton

This is a lively debate held in May 2007 moderated by Slate's editor-in-chief, Jacob Weisberg between Christopher Hitchens, the author of "God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything," and the civil rights activist, Baptist minister and politician, Reverend Al Sharpton. Often humorous, this stimulating discussion on faith and religion is peppered with zingers and penis jokes. I suppose if you put two dudes that enjoy hearing themselves talk on a stage together, allusions to male genitalia are bound to seep into the discourse. Strange as it may sound, it appears that both parties were more "of the same mind" on religion than they were at odds with each other. And necessarily so. Since neither can definitively prove nor disprove the existence of God, and neither wishes to convert the other, the debaters essentially stick to presenting the pros and cons of religion. Sharpton attempts to refute or at least discredit Hitchens' central argument that "God is not great." He makes his strongest arguments in favor of faith (not of religion) while his opponent, with characteristic vigor, condemns the abuses of the holy orders and scriptural misinterpretation, citing them as the primary causes of religious fanaticism and society's maladies. Sharpton makes a curious distinction between religion and scripture. Hitchens draws a line between morality and religion (he believes our notions of right and wrong are guided by a survival mechanism: we are innately moral because human beings are social creatures who desire to contribute to a larger community which ensures their personal survival.) In effect, both sides present reasonable arguments in regard to their respective subjects (Sharpton on the constructive impact that faith has historically had on society, and Hitchens on religion's destructive influence in the world), but neither fully engage on the same subject at the same time. Altogether, it is a thoughtful and entertaining meeting of minds. Incidentally, it did not escape me that the man advocating the position of secularism is wearing white while the man of God (ordained at age 9!) is in black. Just an observation.