"I Want Nothing More"

Regrettably, the world lost a fabulous writer this week. Christopher Hitchens died from complications of esophageal cancer. A self-avowed "anti-theist", he exemplified a philosophy much admired in our postmodern world: carpe diem, seize the day.

A writer, speaker, and political/religious polemicist, he penned several books, one titled "God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything". He also debated Christians such as William Lane Craig, Douglas Wilson, Frank Turek, and Dinesh D'Souza.

Though I disagreed with Hitchens' position on God, I was taken with his incisive wit, intelligence, and affable demeanor. When the topic wasn't religion, he wrote with poignancy and insight. His Vanity Fair essays are a ramble through a park or a teeth-rattling roller coaster ride. He was one of the best writers of our generation, in my opinion--but only when the topic was not religion or faith.

He lost his stride when God became the focus of Hitchens' pen. Then he descended into vociferous ranting where emotion overcame his considerable intelligence. He penned provocative sentences lacking his signature eloquence. He blurted statements in debates which garnered chuckles from his atheist fans, but which were unfocused and easily refuted by his Christian debate partners.

Why would a man considered the best of the "new atheists" fumble when the topic turned to religion? In sharp contrast to his Christian debate opponents, his anger percolated just beneath the surface, often bubbling over into red-faced blather.

I reflected on this when he passed away.

It is said that we all have a god (or a God). Mr. Hitchens' god, I believe, was life itself, and he defended that god when challenged. He is not alone. Life-worship is such an insidious cultural phenomenon that it passes unnoticed, in the way the sky is blue or rain is wet. Pithy sayings like "live life to the fullest" or "life is not a dress rehearsal" advance the notion that our life is not only precious, but worthy of veneration. We run after gratification because life is short, and we deserve whatever comfort, ease, or pleasure we can get. This is our postmodern philosophy.

Mr. Hitchens said this on the subject: "Life on this earth, with all its mystery and beauty and pain, is then to be lived far more intensely: we stumble and get up, we are sad, confident, insecure, feel loneliness and joy and love. There is nothing more; but I want nothing more." – The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Non-Believer, 2007 (Emphasis mine.)

The end of his life proved his words. He clung to every day. Willingly he entered into treatments which caused extreme suffering, including a radiation rash which caused agony that no painkiller could touch. He lost the ability to speak. He lost a third of his weight. But every day he asked to be propped up to write. Our culture admires this white-knuckled grip on life. To many, Christopher Hitchens is considered a hero for his "will to live".

In contrast, the Bible says:

"Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow."--Psalm 144:4

"Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble."--Job 14:1

"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?"--Jesus Christ, Matthew 16:26

I regret that Mr. Hitchens never overcame his disdain for religion to meet the living Christ, who calls us to die to ourselves, set aside life-worship, and find soul-deep gratification in Him. Dying to self in Christ paradoxically yields abundant and eternal life.

Tragically, Mr. Hitchens did not accept Christ, at least to my knowledge. I pray fervently that his wife and three daughters will, and take comfort in the fact that Christopher Hitchens had many Christian friends. Christians can offer wisdom, hope, comfort and truth for those who white-knuckle through this transient life, no matter how shiny its baubles or how temporarily tantalizing its pleasures.

Finally, my deepest condolences to Mr. Hitchens' family. I am truly sorry for their loss.