Christopher Hitchens died today. I haven't read a lot of him, mostly essays that appeared in the Atlantic over the time that I subscribed to that publication. I enjoyed them. I don't remember any of them particularly like I do the piece about autism by John Donvan or the incredible book review by Caitlin Flanagan that I can't quite recall, but I never passed Hitchens by because he is Christopher Hitchens. His essays carried a certain weight, almost a shot across the bow, simply because they carried his name in the by-line. He was more than just a prominent atheist, he was anti-religion's wittiest voice.
I read those essays because I wanted to see what the fuss was about, mostly. Not all of them were about anti-religion, not even most of them were. I didn't read God Is Not Great, though, because it seemed like too much of an affront. I could guess the content, though -- religion in general and Christianity in particular is bad because it is exclusive, cruel, misogynistic and anti-intellectual. I say this with a dose of irony, specifically because I don't know the man; I only know about him. I contend that the same was true for him; he didn't know God, he merely knew about Him, or rather, thought he did. If he really did, it would be hard to make the mistake of saying that God is not great, let alone writing a book about it. If I addressed those incorrect assertions about Christianity I think appear in his book, I would be a simple hypocrite, attacking straw men that may not be accurate representations of the work with which I disagree. So I will not, aside from saying that if those opinions are held about the teachings of Jesus Christ they are categorically in error.
I think it's easy to get tied up in concerns like that with people like Hitchens, and get frustrated because he is calling me stupid. He isn't saying it to me personally, but the accusation is, nonetheless, very personal. I think in the greater sense we Christians owe Mr. Hitchens a debt of thanks for reminding us that our work is not done. It is very easy for us to live in places where there are churches all over town and think that the most important thing for our spiritual development is to remember to bring the green bean casserole to the church social. People like Hitches show us that it is not. We have a lot of work to do for our lives to look like Christ's did. If we live in a world where Christians behave in a way that a book called "God Is Not Great" can be published and not be a comedy, we are failing.
We are not showing what grace looks like. We are not showing what service looks like. We are not showing what humility looks like. We are not showing what love looks like. It is not easy to hear that we are failing, but that's what Hitchens's life is: a neon lit billboard exclaiming that it is easy for people to look at Christians and not see Christ.
And that's a shame, because our message is so powerful. It is the message of unfailing hope, that the creator of everything cares enough to sacrifice His son to relieve us of the burden of sin. In return, we are simply to get to know Him, love Him (which would be inevitable if you truly do the former), and love others. If that's not great, I don't know what is.
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