- Cambridge
“What is your idea of earthly happiness? To be vindicated in my own lifetime.”
— Christopher Hitchens #Hitch-22: A Memoir#
via Christopher Hitchens quotes
The snowstorm began early morning and was in full force during my walk to work. Slushy, big flakes clung to my red umbrella as the familiar voice of Christopher came into my head. He has an unusual crescendo at the end of his sentences. His punctuations are clipped, especially if he believes that a truism has been gifted to his reader. Revelling in his intellectualism and debating dexterity, he is a quintessential wordsmith. Words fall liberally from his lips and reach their target with wrenching accuracy. He is honest and has no patience for hypocrisy and ignorance, both of which he believes are in great supply. While he deplores religion, he chose Philippians 4:8, a favourite passage of mine, to be voiced at his father’s funeral. He specified the King James Version, for all others, in his estimation fall short of the glorious writing style of the KJV. (He definitely states his opinion)
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. “
So at the end of day 7, I find I have no quarrel with Christopher. I also deplore hypocrisy and ignorance. And I also take pleasure in the books, authors and poets he refers to with great satisfaction. But that is another discussion.
On The Road Book Club 
Rebecca/Becky. I had to smile! You know your father always calls you Rebecca. Have you ever heard him say: Becky? I thought your comments “very insightful” so I meant it as a compliment. Yes, I agree, Ruth, we need to hear from you. Your comments would be equally insightful. Miss you, Ruth.
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Thanks, Ruth, for joining the book club. I love technology – using WordPress.com saves trees and offers spellchecks as an added benefit. By the way, a heathen is a person who does not acknowledge “your god.” To be honest, I never even looked up the definition before tonight. The difference between atheist and heathen is subtle – just a couple of words. Thanks for being a “loyal follower.” How about a “loyal contributer?”
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Love your comments, Frances! May I call you Frances after all of these years of calling you mom? Actually, Christopher said that his name gave him two personas: Chris and Christopher. It reminds me of Anne of Green Gables, where Anne insisted that her name be spelled Anne with an “e”. Closer to home, there is a difference between “Rebecca” and “Becky.” We spend our lives trying to understand who we are, let alone a divinity. Having only completed about 30% of Hitch22; I have yet to reach the passage where Christopher clearly elucidates how he has come to know, with certainty, that there is no God. Christopher is often quoted as saying, “what can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof.” Using that same logic, I can easily ask any atheist: prove there is no God. The definition of atheist is unambiguous: Someone who denies the existence of God. Denying is one thing, declaring there is no God is quite another. Setting aside faith, from a purely rational perspective, it is rather foolish to state what cannot be proved. It becomes an academic debate, rather than a religious squabble. In the end, the Psalmist should indeed have the last word: “The fool has said in his heart there is no God.”
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Who am I to comment on this outstanding piece?–great writing, Rebecca!! First of all, I don’t know much about atheism, I understand there are different kinds (traditional and broad, Muslim atheists, the list is lengthy). I looked up atheist–wow what an abundance of information. Atheism is very popular these days. Atheists are listed by surnames from A to Z, there are MANY including Woody Allen, Madalyn O’Hair, Barack Obama, Sr., David Suzuki and on and on. Atheists have been around for millennia–the Psalmist said: The fool has said in his heart there is no God.” He didn’t say the fool was a bad person. I don’t believe Christopher is a bad person–I believe he is too smart for his own good!(Hmmm?) Anyway,I believe his conclusions are very wrong, however, his argument is not with me–it is with our God. God is loving and merciful, this I know because he redeemed me! He loves Christopher, of that I have no doubt. I will leave it between the two of them. Thank you for sharing his writing, it has been a good experience–wish we all had time to read all such books that give us pause and make us think. Let us remember, we Christians believe in One True God, but as someone has said. We often live as if we didn’t believe in God.
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Rebecca,
Wonderful piece…You are an excellent writer.
So glad I’m finally ‘on’to your site.
xo
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