Sunday, April 21st, 2024 at 2:00 PM
For April’s Meetup, we are going to focus on something a bit different for us!
God or Atheism? It’s a question almost all of us have contemplated at some point in our lives.
For most of human history, religions were the source of how and why the universe and humankind came to be. Over time, this seems to have shifted. In 2004, Sam Harris published The End of Faith, which was followed by Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion and Christopher Hitchens’ God Is Not Great.
Over the last 20 years, the number of people claiming to be atheists has increased while membership in most faiths has declined. Recently Christians have been arrested in London for praying silently or for preaching or singing hymns in the street (although Islam seems to be exempt from this governmental scrutiny). Most politicians and celebrities who follow a faith tend to do so quietly, or hide it completely.
Ricky Gervais, in his stand-up shows, compares the belief in God to believing in Santa Claus and faeries, but Ayaan Hirsi Ali converted to Christianity in 2023, Peter Hitchens is now a committed Christian, and some well-respected scientists like Stephen C. Meyer and John Lennox make a scientific claim for God. Jordan Peterson believes that modern Western culture itself could not have developed without the bedrock of the Christian faith.
So, what IS the more rational position in 2024, atheism or belief in God?
We will look at this challenging topic from various sides and will welcome contributions and questions from believers, atheists and agnostics alike! Come have your faith (or lack thereof) challenged!
Join CCC Manchester for stimulating and fresh conversation and debate! We’re a friendly, welcoming bunch, and many folks even choose to stay well past 4pm to continue the discussion! Grab a drink at the bar and come upstairs for some lively, open and honest chat. All good faith opinions will be welcomed and respected. We don’t charge for our events but we do ask for a small cash donation on arrival to help pay for the room and Meetup membership.