Does God Exist : William Lane Craig vs. Christopher Hitchens

 

Topic: The existence of God (cosmological, moral, and fine-tuning arguments vs. the problem of evil and religious harm)

Debaters: Dr. William Lane Craig (Christian philosopher) vs. Christopher Hitchens (atheist author, "God Is Not Great")

Held at Biola University in 2009, this is one of the most-watched apologetics debates ever recorded. Craig opened with five arguments for God's existence: the origin of the universe (Kalam cosmological argument), the fine-tuning of physical constants, objective moral values, the historical resurrection of Jesus, and the possibility of religious experience. Hitchens did not attempt to rebut each argument point by point; instead he argued that even if a "designer" existed, nothing points specifically to the God of the Bible, and that organized religion has caused disproportionate harm throughout history. The debate is valuable less for a decisive winner than for showing the contrast between a structured philosophical case and a rhetorical, moral-outrage style of atheism.