Friday, May 22, 2009

Atheist Richard Dawkins dodges Debate Challenge

Ray Comfort, author of the Amazon.com’s best seller, You Can Lead an Atheist to Evidence, But You Can't Make Him Think – is offering $20,000 to Richard Dawkins (probably the world’s most famous atheist) simply for Dawkins to appear in a public debate on the issue of the beginnings of the universe with him.

However, it seems Prof Dawkins would rather keep his tirades against God to his website and circle of atheist fans. Dawkins first claimed he will not join the debate as it would only give “credibility to the opponents” and again that as far as the origin of the Universe is concerned, “the debate is over”.

However even ardent fans of Dawkins are beginning to question the rationale of rejecting the opportunity of picking up an easy $20,000 (which could be donated to charity) just by turning up to articulate the position you are famously noted for. Phrases such as “ weak sauce”, “a total cop-out”, “arrogant” etc are freely being used on blogs discussing the challenge. Dawkins later said he would do the debate only for $100,000 – which only further put holes in his earlier argument that he was refusing the debate on points of principle.

As seen on Ray’s blog, Atheist Central (http://raycomfortfood.blogspot.com/), scientists far more eminent than Dawkins had not hidden their raw contempt for atheism. Samples:

“In view of such harmony in the cosmos which I, with my limited human mind, am able to recognize, there are yet people who say there is no God. But what makes me really angry is that they quote me for support of such views” – Albert Einstein

“Atheism is so senseless” – Isaac Newton

Explaining his motivation for making the $20,000 offer, Ray explains:

"All I want [is] for people...to be open-minded, if they're sitting on the fence, to realize that it's very easy to prove God's existence. …You cannot have a creation without a creator, you cannot have a painting without a painter. Everything made shows us there was a maker."

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