Christopher Hitchens on Christianity

“I would say that if you don’t believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ and Messiah, and that he rose again from the dead and by his sacrifice our sins are forgiven, you’re really not in any meaningful sense a Christian.” - Christopher Hitchens

Christopher Hitchens died this past week. He was one of the outspoken provocateurs of a group of people that came to be known as the Angry Atheists. Hitchens was a highly skilled writer and talented debater for his various causes, which were many, beyond just his anti-religious views.

The above quote occurred in the context of a discussion about various Christian perspectives, some of which, coming from modernist positions, believed Jesus was special but not supernatural. Hitchens rightly observes that if you don’t believe in the supernatural, you really can’t be a Christian.

This week we celebrate the miracle of the Incarnation. The miraculous birth of God as a human being in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. This is a most spectacular idea, indeed.

Very many people have trouble believing such things. I suppose Christopher Hitchens was at the front of the line. I, myself, would have trouble believing anything as remotely possible as a virgin birth if it were not for another miracle: the Resurrection. The Resurrection makes sense out of everything else, including the Incarnation. The Resurrection had to happen because without it explaining the rise of the early church becomes impossible.

So, this week, as we look to the Babe of Bethlehem, let’s keep our minds on the Risen Lord of the Garden Tomb and thank God for miracles.