I don’t that even Mr.Hitchens is much tougher than Jesus the Christ as He continue to excoriate the religious leaders of His day.

 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too. 

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness. (All texts from NLT)

Is it any wonder that Jesus was so reviled by the religious establishment?

I have not had a chance to read all of Mr.Hitchen’s book as of yet. I suspect that we will ultimately agree on a few points but disagree on the main point. I do believe that God is great. I also believe that religion can poison everything. Jesus came to fulfill the law and provide a way for me (and you) to be reconciled to God. Jesus provides the opportunity for a relationship with God through faith and grace. The Pharisees, like many of the religious leaders that Hitchen’s criticizes, controlled by demanding legalistic works and by fear of punishment.

So why don’t the followers of Jesus communicate the grace of God more effectively? That is too often the heartbreaking shortcoming of the church. We have allowed pride and lack of understanding of the grace of God to short circuit our message. And we, like the religious leaders of Jesus day, often don’t practice what we teach. G.K.Chesterton wisely made this observation. “Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.”

One of Christopher Hitchen’s desires is that we (the religious folks) leave him alone. Fair enough. One of the other things that Jesus made clear is that following Him is a choice that cannot be coerced. So I will not attempt to force my beliefs on Mr.Hitchens or anyone else. In fact, I cannot.

Hitchens certainly has the right to articulate his beliefs in this great nation of ours that allows such expressions. I will not attack his beliefs nor him. I wish Hitchens could have been a bit less vitriolic in his arguments. It will not surprise Mr.Hitchens that his polemic does not change my view. It might surprise him that we do share one thing in common. Religion can poison everything. You don't have to look past the daily news to see examples of that. Our huge disagreement is that my relationship with Jesus has changed my life in ways that I cannot ascribe to my own efforts. So I shall choose to disagree gracefully with Hitchens on the big point. I still believe God is great. His grace is amazing. Jesus is my savior and Lord. I believe it more today than ever.

Dave Burchett is an Emmy Award winning television sports director, author, and Christian speaker. He is the author of When Bad Christians Happen to Good People and Bring'em Back Alive: A Healing Plan for those Wounded by the Church. You can reply by linking through daveburchett.com.