Theological throwdown, Examiner style!!

Hugh and I hashing out our differences in the religion & spirituality octagon...

Everyone loves a good East Coast/West Coast showdown...and everyone loves a good Christian/Atheist debate...so what would happen if we combined the two?? A really great series of articles, that's what!

I want to let everyone in the Dojo know about a really exciting feature that I'm going to be involved in: A series of dialogues/debates with a fellow examiner on issues of faith and religion!

Hugh Kramer is the LA Atheist examiner who's not afraid to speak his mind on issues of religion, God--or lack thereof--and culture. He's also a really nice guy with a great sense of humor and a friendly disposition. I've read many of his articles and commented occasionally on his insight and reasoned responses.

After talking with him via email, we've decided that it would be great to do a series of dialogues/debates on various hot-button topics or questions where we can honestly, passionately and straightforwardly challenge one another...without it devolving into name-calling and empty sound-byte rhetoric.

I love dialoging and debating with those who disagree with me and always have fun, many times even developing deep friendships with my "opponent"; so I'm really excited about this opportunity with Hugh. So everyone, take some time to browse Hugh's articles in order to get a feel for where he's coming from. (And feel free to leave good comments on them when you read!) Then, get ready for some great discussions!

As for format, he and I will correspond via email and then once we've settled on a topic, we'll both post our exchange, along with our own final thoughts, in our respective articles (so you'll want to read BOTH posts to get the full picture!).

Hopefully this will generate excellent conversation, deeper thinking, profound questions, and a spirit of civil debate among friends who differ significantly in worldviews. So, stay tuned over the next couple of weeks...and if you have suggested topics, share them with us and we may end up using them in our articles!

Blessings (or as Hugh would say, "Reasoned Greetings"!),

JMS
National (!) Methodist Examiner