Atheism is chic, it's cool, it's the latest craze. The bookstores are chock full of authors declaring that "G-d Is Not Great," that G-d is a "Delusion," that you are a moron if you believe in the Deity.
The secular press, of course, loves these books, and the reviews are largely admirable. Some of the books are also selling very nicely, as it's been a long time since atheists had much to cheer about.
Polls show that about 90 percent of Americans believe in G-d, but that leaves 30 million folks who just say no to a higher power. If only one percent of that group buys a certain anti-G-d book, you have a best seller.
But the atheist chic trend is not just on the page, Hollywood is involved as well. According to the book "Celebrities in Hell," a number of big stars may be aligned with the universe, but not with the force that some believe created it.
The book quotes the following:
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George Clooney: "I don't believe in heaven or hell. I don't know if I believe in G-d."
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Angelina Jolie: "There doesn't need to be a G-d for me."
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Carrie Fisher: "I love the idea of G-d, but it's not stylistically in keeping with the way I function."
Indeed. Believing in G-d is not very stylish in mainstream media circles these days.
The question then becomes is there anything wrong with that? After all, we have freedom from religion in America -- the Constitution makes it clear that no power in this country has the right to impose religion on anyone.
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So the atheists have clear sailing, and I say: Thank G-d.
That's because people of faith should be challenged and think about their beliefs. Critical thinking in all areas makes the mind sharper, and your philosophy stronger.
Thus, I was looking forward to debating the most successful of the atheist authors, Richard Dawkins, who wrote the best seller "The G-d Delusion." Dawkins basically says that science can explain everything on earth, and no one has any direct evidence there is a G-d.
But I stopped him in the fourth round with this right hook: "(the earth) had to come from somewhere. And that is the leap of faith you guys (atheists) make, that it just somehow happened."
Dawkins replied: "You're the one who needs a leap of faith, the onus is on you to say why you believe in something ... you believe in, presumably, the Christian G-d Jesus."
"Jesus is a real guy," I said. "I know what he did. I'm not positive that Jesus is G-d, but I'm throwing in with him rather than throwing in with you guys, because you guys can't tell me how it all got here."
"We're working on it," Dawkins said.
"When you get it," I shot back, "maybe I'll listen."
But the atheists will never get it. The universe and the earth is so complex, so incredibly detailed, that to believe an accidental evolutionary occurrence could have exclusively led to the nature/mankind situation we have now, is some stretch of the imagination. I mean, call me crazy, but the sun always comes up, while man oversleeps all the time.
So bless you, Richard Dawkins, and all the other non-believers. As long as they don't attack people of faith, I have no problem with them. As my eighth-grade teacher Sister Martin once said: "Faith is a gift."
But not everybody gets to open the box.
