In Toronto, Christopher Hitchens (suffering from cancer) and Tony Blair (suffering from Middle East diplomacy) debate the role of the faithful in history:Hitchens fueled the debate by criticizing religion for blocking peace in the Middle East, perpetuating poverty by subjugating women as inferior and causing numerous conflicts including the genocide in Rwanda – a country he says "is the most Christian country in the world, and one which many of the people who committed the crimes are now hiding in the pulpit."
Blair acknowledged that religion has been used to lead people to commit indescribable acts, but it has also led people to commit acts of goodness.
"Health care in Africa has been delivered by those motivated by their religion ... The abolition of slavery was achieved by combined secularism and non-secularism. At least accept that there are people who are doing great things because of their faith," he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment