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UK Atheist Finally Agrees to Debate William Lane Craig


An atheist in Great Britain has finally agreed to debate noted philosopher William Lane Craig on the existence of God, but it’s not Richard Dawkins. With Dawkins still AWOL, the head of the British Humanist Association has stepped in to vindicate the honor of atheists everywhere:

Toynbee steps in where Grayling & Dawkins fear to tread

New Atheists urged to put their mouths where their money is

President of the British Humanist Association (BHA), Polly Toynbee, has agreed to debate the existence of God with eminent Christian Philosopher, William Lane Craig, when he visits the UK for a tour of speaking engagements in October.

Leading British atheists Richard Dawkins and A.C. Grayling have both flatly refused to debate with Craig, who was recently described by Sam Harris as “the one Christian apologist who seems to have put the fear of God into my fellow atheists”.

Accepting the invitation Toynbee, whose award-winning journalism is frequently critical of religion, has said she would be “glad to debate” with Craig. Their debate, which will take place in London, is expected to attract a capacity audience.

Meanwhile between them, Dawkins and Grayling have produced a litany of excuses for declining to debate. Dawkins now claims that he has “no interest” in the subject, despite putting the question of the existence of God firmly into the public domain in his best-selling book, The God Delusion. Fellow Oxford academic and atheist philosopher Dr Daniel Came recently wrote to Dawkins warning him that his refusal of a one-to-one debate with Craig was “apt to be interpreted as cowardice”.

Read the full account here.

John G. West

Senior Fellow, Managing Director, and Vice President of Discovery Institute
Dr. John G. West is Vice President of the Seattle-based Discovery Institute and Managing Director of the Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. Formerly the Chair of the Department of Political Science and Geography at Seattle Pacific University, West is an award-winning author and documentary filmmaker who has written or edited 12 books, including Darwin Day in America: How Our Politics and Culture Have Been Dehumanized in the Name of Science, The Magician’s Twin: C. S. Lewis on Science, Scientism, and Society, and Walt Disney and Live Action: The Disney Studio’s Live-Action Features of the 1950s and 60s. His documentary films include Fire-Maker, Revolutionary, The War on Humans, and (most recently) Human Zoos. West holds a PhD in Government from Claremont Graduate University, and he has been interviewed by media outlets such as CNN, Fox News, Reuters, Time magazine, The New York Times, USA Today, and The Washington Post.

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