Hitch
The moment it was announced that Christopher Hitchens was sick with cancer, eulogies began spilling into print and from the podium. No one wanted to deny the possibility that he would recover, of course, but neither could we let the admiration we felt for him go unexpressed. It is a cliché to say that he was one of a kind and none can fill his shoes—but Hitch was and none can. In his case not even the most effusive tributes ring hollow. There was simply no one like him.
One of the joys of living in a world filled with stupidity and hypocrisy was to see Hitch respond. That pleasure is now denied us. The problems that drew his attention remain—and so does the record of his brilliance, courage, erudition, and good humor in the face of outrage. But his absence will leave an enormous void in the years to come. Hitch lived an extraordinarily large life. (Read his memoir, Hitch-22, and marvel.) It was too short, to be sure—and one can only imagine what another two decades might have brought out of him—but Hitch produced more fine work, read more books, met more interesting people, and won more arguments than most of us could in several centuries.
I first met Hitch at a dinner at the end of April 2007, just before the release of his remarkable book god is not Great. After a long evening, my wife and I left him standing on the sidewalk in front of his hotel. His book tour was just beginning, and he was scheduled to debate on a panel the next morning. It was well after midnight, but it was evident from his demeanor that his clock had a few hours left to run. I had heard the stories about his ability to burn the candle at both ends, but staggering there alongside him in the glare of a street lamp, I made a mental note of what struck me as a fact of nature—tomorrow’s panel would be a disaster.
I rolled out of bed the following morning, feeling quite wrecked, to see Hitch holding forth on C-SPAN’s Book TV, dressed in the same suit he had been wearing the night before. Needless to say, he was effortlessly lucid and witty—and taking no prisoners. There should be a name for the peculiar cocktail of emotion I then enjoyed: one part astonishment, one part relief, two parts envy; stir. It would not be the last time I drank it in his honor.
Since that first dinner, I have felt immensely lucky to count Hitch as a friend and colleague—and very unlucky indeed not to have met him sooner. Before he became ill, I had expected to have many more years in which to take his company for granted. But our last meeting was in February of this year, in Los Angeles, where we shared the stage with two rabbis. His illness was grave enough at that point to make the subject of our debate—Is there an afterlife?—seem a touch morbid. It also made traveling difficult for him. I was amazed that he had made the trip at all.
The evening before the event, we met for dinner, and I was aware that it might be our last meal together. I was also startled to realize that it was our first meal alone. I remember thinking what a shame it was—for me—that our lives had not better coincided. I had much to learn from him.I have been privileged to witness the gratitude that so many people feel for Hitch’s life and work—for, wherever I speak, I meet his fans. On my last book tour, those who attended my lectures could not contain their delight at the mere mention of his name—and many of them came up to get their books signed primarily to request that I pass along their best wishes to him. It was wonderful to see how much Hitch was loved and admired—and to be able to share this with him before the end.
I will miss you, brother.
Always Question Authority
One of the beginnings of human emancipation is the ability to laugh at authority. ~ Hitchens
Always Question Authority 
That’s quite right, quite right indeed. Well, I won’t press the point to stick then, let’s agree to keep an eye out though, shall we?
Sincerely,
~Tyler
Also, the only comments you linked to on your own blog were written by the same person both times (which I failed to notice the first time around); a person whose gravatar defines them as a Bible believer, where the Bible is the King James Bible…. Is that really the best way of surveying the reaction of the whole religious population in a reflective way?
(Pardon my grammar in the last post, I should have said: “and certainly you are provocative enough TOO (or ~as well) that you are ‘asking for it’…” )
tylerjourneaux,
Do recall, your original request was that I simply “direct [you] to a single negative blog post.”
In Reason,
Madison
Oh, yeah yeah, and you certainly did that. I thank you for that, I was just carrying the conversation in order to help you see my point – I’m not sure if it’s been taken yet. That’s alright though.
… by the way, I also just realized that the entire first blog post is composed by an atheist who is mocking the Christian community by proposing his post as a parody of the Christian community – all of the comments he quotes are either mild, or else (and again) generous. However, you did, I admit, give me one negative blog post, and it was your second link (which itself contains many links to the worst posts around). I’ll accept that – and certainly if you’re happy with that, we could end the conversation here. I was just making a point, after all.
I’m also right. 😛
tylerjourneaux,
Argumentation is not about who is right. It is about finding truth. Once the truth is found, all concerned parties win.
In Reason,
Madison
That’s odd, because I’ve been reading them too. Can you direct me to a single negative blog post? Perhaps you would care to read mine? Perhaps I should link you to the nearly ten others I have read in the past two days? I don’t mean to be cheaky, I just thought I’d point out the obvious; as far as the Christian community is concerned, Christopher was the only one of the four horsemen to win and deserve their genuine affection, at least for the greater part. Perhaps, if you’ve read negative comments, it was through some such medium as youtube, twitter or paltalk? Just a thought – those aren’t really very reflective of any group. Maybe you think I’m wrong? I’d love for you to make your case, if you feel strongly about it, and I will listen.
tylerjourneaux,
As per your request:
http://fallenfromgrace.net/2011/12/17/christopher-hitchens-is-in-hell/
http://catholicinternetwatch.blogspot.com/2011/12/catholics-gloat-over-death-of.html
https://alwaysquestionauthority.wordpress.com/2011/12/16/quote-christopher-hitchens/
https://alwaysquestionauthority.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/quote-richard-dawkins-on-the-death-of-christopher-hitchens/
https://alwaysquestionauthority.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/fischer-god-sent-christopher-hitchens-to-hell-because-he-loved-him/
In Reason,
Madison
Thank you, that was very interesting. I do think it is interesting that the so called Catholic bloggers referenced in your first two links not only ignored (for convenience) the doctrine of purgatory, but also it seems were not shy about committing the sin of presumption (as it is called in the Catholic tradition when you assume that anyone is damned). The reaction to Hitchens was always going to receive it`s negative feedback from the religious community (perhaps especially the poorly educated religious community). However, I suppose I would suggest that we don`t make the mistake of missing just how many Christians had a genuine affection for him, from those he debated with like William Lane Craig (see his podcast recently, for instance) or Dinesh D`souza. Ironically, even one of the first posts in your first link was from pastor rick warren who identifies Hitchens as a friend. The first two links are very interesting, as I said, and I appreciate you sharing these with me, since I hadn’t found them while perusing blogs – though, again, don’t you get the impression that these ‘compilations’ reflect the most inflammatory and stupid (lit. uneducated) of the comments out there?
The other three links you provide are, I think, over-reactive on your part, as they are all links to your blog. Granted, I presume you meant for me to look at the comments – but those negative comments seemed directed at you, and not Hitchens (unless I’m missing something), and certainly you are provocative enough to that you are ‘asking for it’ (unless I’m missing something). As to the video you linked to, I would say that it was probably in poor taste to suggest that thought experiment so soon after Hitchens passed away, but it also isn’t intended to be vicious or do violence to Hitchens at all. It was stupid – but it wasn’t an attack on Hitchens.
Finally (and this is not to be juvenile, but just to share) I thought maybe I would post some of the blog posts that I’ve read about Hitchens from the Christian community now.
http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2011/12/19/why-christians-loved-christopher-hitchens/
http://curiouspresbyterian.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/christopher-hitchens-1949-2011/
said: “It strikes me that Christopher Hitchens was the sort who would loudly proclaim that he neither wanted nor expected any praise from Christians after his death, all the time knowing that he would get plenty of posthumous words of praise from them anyway. And indeed he has: the tributes and comments from Christians have with few exceptions been extraordinarily generous and respectful, even affectionate and kind.”
This one’s a little childish, but still cute in its way (certainly not cruel) http://musingsofthemustachioedstrangers.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/guest-post-christopher-hitchens-meets-god-an-imagined-conversation/
Peter Hitchens and Francis Collins probably wouldn’t count for you I suppose, seeing as they were so close to him anyhow, but you should look both of their reactions up anyways.
http://spectator.org/archives/2011/12/19/on-vaclav-havel-and-chris-hitc
http://www.lifenews.com/2011/12/19/christopher-hitchens-abortion-survivor-post-abortive-father/
http://www.ewtn.com/vnews/getstory.asp?number=117078
There’s also this podcast episode from Craig: http://www.rfmedia.org/RF_audio_video/RF_podcast/Christopher_Hitchens_and_Death.mp3
… hrm, I know I read others, but in any case you get the point. These comments are certainly generous, if not outright affectionate, and they certainly aren’t cruel. In fact, although you did point to interesting sources, I think that the reality is pretty clear that the preponderant majority of the Christian response to Christopher Hitchens have been affectionate care and a genuine feeling of loss at his death.
Perhaps I’ll even link to mine (which is a very poor shot at doing him credit, but I tried)
Indeed, Christopher Hitchens had an amazing ability to make fans even of those he vilified. The Christian community will miss him as well (perhaps more).
tylerjourneaux,
Judging from the plethora of comments I’ve read from the Christian community, I find great difficulty giving any semblance of credence to the claim that the “Christian community will miss him as well (perhaps more).”
In Reason,
Madison