Video of the dialog

Here are links to the video that I took at last week's dialog:

• Part 1
• Part 2
• Part 3
• Part 4
• Part 5
• Part 6
• Part 7

Sorry that it took so long to get posted, and that it's in seven parts.  I didn't know that YouTube has a 15 minute limit per video and I couldn't find another way to host the full 1.5 hour dialog.
The quality isn't quite professional from my personal recorder, but it's certainly watchable.
Enjoy!

As Promised, a Response to the Entropy Question

• Hillary – One of the laws of science states that entropy (disorganization) continually increases. How does this align with evolution?
  
  
  I believe that this is the question that was asked of me that I blanked out on. I had seen this discussed before, but could not come up with a response for the life of me. I'll blame it on the nerves of being in front of over 700 people. As a chemical engineer, I'm so ashamed that I blanked on the thermo question, but for some reason I was thinking about it differently than how it was asked. I'm trying not to beat myself up too much.
  
  
  The second law of thermodynamics only applies to a closed system, which is not what the Earth is. Energy is introduced to the Earth from the Sun. In a whole system, there may be a localized decrease in entropy, while the overall entropy for the entire universe increases. This is why we can actually see increased organization on Earth. From the standpoint of entropy, what is the difference if God did it or if it happened by a natural phenomenon? Either way, energy is introduced that increases order. In the case of evolution, this takes place bit by bit in tiny increments over long periods of time, eventually adding up to big differences.
  
  

Reflections on the Evening

I left last night feeling very happy - so many people thanked me and I felt very welcome and accepted. I truly never expected 714 people to come to such an event. Thank you all for your kind hospitality. As my evening went on, I started to rehash things in my mind. I began to doubt whether I said the right things. I started to think of different ways I wish I would have answered questions and the times I wish I had spoken up more or questioned something Jay was saying. It was a very fine line to walk - between dialogue and debate. When in doubt, I decided to let it go in the spirit of the event, though it was often difficult to do so. I didn't want to seem like I was trying to pick a fight or turn it into a debate. Not surprisingly, many of the atheists I talked to wished that I had been more aggressive - pointing out the things that many of us were thinking. What did surprise me was feedback from some Christians saying the same thing. In the end, the goal was mutual understanding and respect - not for everyone in the room to hear every atheist argument out there or to convince anyone that I was right. Still, I can't help but worry that I may have let the audience down by not presenting my side many of the times I disagreed but kept quiet.

One thing that has really bothered me that I let go was the discussion of good works done in the world. Though I agree that the many schools built around the world by Christians have educated thousands of underprivileged children, especially girls, and that there have been many hospitals built by Christians that have served many, I don't think that Christians are the only ones who do good. The Peace Corps is a great example - it is, by definition, a secular volunteer organization. As a returned volunteer, of course, it is close to my heart. Each volunteer makes a significant impact during a two-year service as he or she fully integrates with the community and works with the local people to meet the needs they themselves identify. Many atheists are very charitable and like to help others, but this has historically been difficult to see. Many non-religious people even donated to Christian-run charities. The Foundation Beyond Belief is a recently-formed charitable foundation to highlight non-theistic generosity and to help us to find and support worthy non-proselytizing charities. I have personally donated and am thrilled to see this moving forward successfully.

I also wish that I had made it more clear that the reason I don't believe is that it does not match up with my reason and evidence-based understanding of the world. (The actions and behavior of people did not cause me to abandon faith.) Not so long ago, people were certain that illness was caused by demons or as punishment from God. We now understand the effect of viruses, bacteria, and genetic defects on our health and have modern techniques for healing or treating those illnesses. People also used to think that witches could cause bad weather that could ruin ones crops. We now understand meteorology, even if the weather forecast is not so accurate. There have been so many things that we used to think were supernatural that we now know are natural. I have not experienced any miracles, and I do not believe that just because one has difficulty explaining something that the answer must be "God did it." As our understanding of the natural universe increases rapidly, it seems that the answer may be just a few years down the road. I can wait rather than filling in the blanks for now.

ALL the questions!

Here are all of the questions that we received during the discussion.  I was going to try and sort them by ones that got asked and ones that didn't, but many of the questions are similar and there's not a great way to separate them.
Also note that these are exactly as we received them and we didn't make any attempt to edit them.  The ones with time stamps are from SMS, and the ones without are the ones from cards.
There were a lot of very good questions that we didn't get to in the time that we had. . .

• Hillary~what do you believe about truth.... is it absolute or relative? 8:01 PM
• Why is christianity so hostile to homosexuals but so accepting of adultery? ( remarriage after divorce is adultery) 7:10 PM
• To pastor: how do you explain the contridictory nature of the bible? Jesus said the apocolypse would happen in his generation. Genesis has 2 creation stories e 7:15 PM
• tc. 7:15 PM
• Why is the church such a supporter of the prolife movement when the bible does not consider a fetus as alive? Life begins at first breath biblically (genesis, j 7:20 PM
• ob, exodus) 7:20 PM
• What of the notion that men should suffer on earth to recieve utopia in heaven? 7:21 PM
• What about the concept that extreme claims (god) require extreme evidence? 7:22 PM
• C.s. Lewis claimed that jesus claims mean that he was either christ, or a liar, or insane. Couldnt he have just been wrong? 7:24 PM
• Biblically speaking, wouldnt christmas be closer to easter? Why celebrate a pagan holiday as christs birth? 7:25 PM
• Can't The bibles historical evidence be likened to spiderman comics having real new york buildings? 7:41 PM
• The pastor meantioned he believed abortion is wrong. Why? What is the biblical basis for that statment? The bible refers to first breaths being the start of lif 7:43 PM
• e and refers to the loss of a fetus as being far lass important than the loss of a woman in leviticus. 7:43 PM
• Adultery includes being remarried. Most protestists will allow for remarriage of divorcies 7:51 PM
• The anthropic principle aplies to these 'luck' concepts. 7:57 PM
• Why is that some (not all) Christians believe in Diansours? There is proof so why is it so contravercial? Leading into evolution, is that why 6:54 PM
• What are your views about pantheism? 7:04 PM
• Do you think a lot of people believe or try to believe so they feel like they won't go to hell? Or teach their children religion to try to help their mor 7:07 PM
• al views? 7:07 PM
• Hillary: how do you handle people (family members) that judge you because of you lack of faith? Hoe do you stop them from judging you? 7:54 PM
• how do u think the world will end? if not, then why? 7:44 PM
• how do u justify abortion? 7:54 PM
• hillary: christians believe the purpose of life revoles following God, what do you believe the purpose of humans being here? 6:50 PM
• hillary: if this is all we have in life, why try to make a difference since it doesn't mean anything? what does it matter? 7:15 PM
• hillary: if Jesus' followers were writing their own verisons of history why didn't they make themselves look better? don't you find it odd they make the 7:52 PM
• mselves look so imperfect? 7:52 PM
• For both: Why would Christ's disciples, or anyone else, falsely write the Gospels? 7:52 PM
• Pastor Jay, is the earth truly 6000 yrs old? Gen 1 7:52 PM
• Pastor Jay: Do you believe "non-believers" all end up in hell regardless of the amount of good deeds performed and having good values and strong moral compass? 7:51 PM
• you have talked about both of your beliefs on the begining of the world, but what about the end of the world, what do both of you belive? 7:50 PM
• Hilary regarding moral compass. If u base morals on golden rule how do u explain wars and people in prison who have commited horrific crimes 7:15 PM
• If !esus can't turn water into wine can evolution turn water into wine? 7:49 PM
• For Hillary. If you lived in darfur could you have the same joy? 7:05 PM
• For Hillary do you think the disciples. Would die for such beliefs 7:49 PM
• For Hilary- Is abortion bad for our society or is it part of natural selection? 7:45 PM
• Do you think the world will end? How do you think the world will end? 7:45 PM
• to pastor jay: how do you believe dogs could have now ended up with all of these breeds? 7:03 PM
• to hilary are there any ground rules to being an athiest? 7:12 PM
• to hillary .can you give an example in nature where by some process you can gain information... 7:44 PM
• What do u think about the idea that religion and science cannot survive without each other? i thnk there is so much extermism b/c of focusng on seperating thm 6:49 PM
• 7:07 PM
• Christianity is just a ploy to make peole feel okay about being poor while high ranking christians take the wealth...discuss. 7:13 PM
• Why dont you have a smaller church and use the money for chairity 7:42 PM
• How do athiests find moral guidance 7:43 PM
• as an atheist, what do you believe will happen to you when you die? 7:05 PM
• as an atheist, what do you believe will happen to you when you die? 7:36 PM
• how old do you believe the world is? and why? -Matthews 7:41 PM
• How has man evolved here on earth and how long has the world been here? 6:23 PM
• Both hilllary and pastor Jay his long has the earth been here? And how did people apear here? 6:56 PM
• Both hilllary and pastor Jay his long has the earth been here? And how did people apear here? 7:41 PM
• elieve we go? 7:34 PM
• ? For hilary she keeps saying there are no guide lines for an atheist then how do you no what you are doing is right? then when we die where does she b 7:34 PM
• ? For both how do they believe we were formed or created? 7:38 PM
• Q4 hillary: if people have empathy & R kind, how do u explain murders,abuse,etc? 7:37 PM
• to both people: do you believe in moral absolution? why or why not? rok out: \m/ 6:52 PM
• in regards to hillary's basis for moral beliefs: why are humans different from animals in regards to their morals? 7:08 PM
• hillary: what do you believe in regards to the orgin of the old and new testament documents? 7:24 PM
• to both parties: who do you belive jesus is (pastor jay) or was (hillary) 7:36 PM
• For Hillary: What do you believe about the other six parts of evolution besides micro-evolution? Richard Dawkins thinks aliens seeding life plausible. W 7:33 PM
• Hillary: What do you believe about other six parts of evolution that deal with origins? Richard Dawkins thinks aliens seeding life plausible. What about you? 7:35 PM
• FWD: Hillary- if your morality is based on the society you live in what if you reside in an evil society? Putting your upbringing aside how could one kn 7:34 PM
• ow right from wrong? 7:34 PM
• For Hillary - When you look at how complex the universe is and how the earth is so perfectly situated to sustain life. When you look at the human body, 6:58 PM
• the complexity of its make up, DNA, intelligence and the fact that we cannot find life anywhere eles, how do you explain all this? Do you really believe 6:58 PM
• this all happened by chance? 6:58 PM
• Hillary - Do you believe Jesus existed? If yes, why do you believe he was not the son of God? 7:24 PM
• For Hillary - forget about your belief for a moment. If it was possible for a place like heaven to exist, would you want it to? If yes, who would be al 7:33 PM
• lowed in? 7:33 PM
• How did the dinosaurs die? 6:18 PM
• both: what do you think about abortion and stem cell research? 7:31 PM
• For Hillary - how do you feel about those who fight to have religeous symbols removed from public places such as a crech from a city hall because it goe 7:30 PM
• s against their anti religeous beliefs? Do you support those views. 7:30 PM
• for evolution why dont we see middle man monkies? Ell oh vee ee <3 6:32 PM
• hilary keeps saying she doesnt believe in god so she doesnt believe in any god or any other belief that has a god right? then what does she believe in 7:29 PM
• if she doesnt believe in a god? 7:29 PM
• How do you believe fossils are made? 7:30 PM
• Do you believe creation should be taught alongside evolution in science class in school? 6:33 PM
• If creation should be taught in school, should science be taught in church? 6:57 PM
• Jay, do you understand the concept of circular logic (e.g. the bible is proof of god, and god provides credibility for the bible)? 7:22 PM
• Would you elect an atheist to public office? Why/why not? Please comment on separation of church and state. 7:28 PM
• Where do you draw your sense of purpose from? What is your purpose? (Question for both) 6:53 PM
• Question for both- how do you deal with things that you've done that are wrong, selfish, or hurt other people? 7:27 PM
• You say that you do not believe in god, but do you believe in jesus christ? And if so; why is jesus christ not credible, and how can you believe in jesus 7:26 PM
• but not god? 7:26 PM
• How is it possible to look at historical and archaeological evidence and still deny that things the Bible states as truth is false? 6:53 PM
• Hillary-what purpose do you believe you exist for on this earth? 7:06 PM
• Do you believe that Jesus existed....gif so what do you believe about him? 7:22 PM
• What do you base your morals on? 7:25 PM
• For hillary: What, if anything, do you think created the earth and if so, how did it get there? 6:56 PM
• When your outside and you see nature and the seasons changing, do you ever think that it could be created by more than random chance? 7:08 PM
• For hilary: does it bother you that you have nothing to look forward to when you die? 7:25 PM
• Question for pastor jay- You say you believe in a god-the god of christianity- of abraham and isaac-but how do you know that this is the right god? Islam 6:34 PM
• believes in god-and they are as sincere as you are in their belief. What makes your god the right one? 6:34 PM
• Does the idea of the big bang fit into christianity? Can god use "evolutionary" things to do his work and creation? 7:05 PM
• Subject-jesus- there is proof that jesus lived exisited and many have differebt viewpoints. So when he died where did he go? If he is in a grave where is 7:25 PM
• the grave? 7:25 PM
• If you don't believe in Christ, do you say Merry Christmas or Merry Xmas? 7:24 PM
• Pastor jay: why do u say god accepts everyone and to tell ppl about jesus, but yet u preach that he already knows who's goin to heaven and who's not 6:39 PM
• Pastor jay: why do u say god accepts everyone and to tell ppl about jesus, but yet u preach that he already knows who's goin to heaven and who's not 6:39 PM
• Jay: how do u feel about movies with demons and ghosts, etc. Do u believe they're bad to watch 7:24 PM
• Define Agnostic Atheist? 6:47 PM
• What are the key proofs that underpin your beliefs? 7:05 PM
• Do you believe that man has a nature at birth and if so, do you believe it is good or evil? What's the implication of your view for society? 7:11 PM
• What factually distinquishes Christianity, beyond Christ's words, from all other world religions? 7:24 PM
• Where did turtles come from? ,=,e turtle 6:26 PM
• For pastor jay: do you believe in microevolution? ,=,e turtle 7:00 PM
• For hillary: what do you believe about jesus? ,=,e turtle 7:23 PM
• Hillary, in absence of belief in God, what is the basis for your morals and beliefs? 6:53 PM
• Hillary, did you have a true belief in Jesus when you were younger? Do you think your experience in the Catholic church (man's creation) and it's practi 7:22 PM
• ces destroyed your faith? 7:22 PM
• Pastor Jay - Isn't the Hindus opinion on reincarnation equivalent to Christians' opinion on gays? 7:20 PM
• To become an athiest, do you have to consciously denounce God-Christ and Salvation thru grace? 6:57 PM
• Do you accept someone telling you that they will pray for you? (If you do,don't you believe in prayer?) 6:58 PM
• For pastor Jay: how do we deal with passages in the Bible that seem to portray God as acting in an evil way, or commanding the Israelites to do acts of g 7:11 PM
• enocide, etc? 7:11 PM
• For Hillary: is there one or a few things that the Church could do that could improve the dialogue between christians and athiests? Is there one that wou 7:19 PM
• ld affect you? 7:19 PM
• hilary, you said you hope God would understand your not fearing him or not beliving in him. how can you say that when you dont believe in him? why ar 7:19 PM
• e you hoping in him if you dont believe in him? you cant have it both ways. 7:19 PM
• Hillary: Have your atheistic beliefs ever been tested by a life theatening event? 7:18 PM
• if this life iis all we have why does it matter what we do? where do u think the concept of unfair or fairness comes from? ( for hilary) 7:18 PM
• Have jay answer allllll questions, both sides comment on every question! thanks, k. 7:17 PM
• Hillary: Do you believe in Heaven and hell? If so who goes to which place? 6:52 PM
• Hilary: do you believe anything in the Bible 7:16 PM
• For Hilary: If natural selection is true, and if people in society would compromise moral standard to "win" in the group. What is your opinion for a pers 7:15 PM
• on competing in that group? 7:15 PM
• What was the convincing evidence that has landed u on ur current belief. 7:04 PM
• Pastor J. What is ur thought on these events. 7:15 PM
• hillary- if you dont believe in heaven and when you die you cease to exist, then are you afraid to die? 7:15 PM
• Pastor jay what is the coolest answer to prayer or miracle you have witnessed that proves to you God is real? 7:15 PM
• How can evolution explain the complexity of certain organs like the eye? 6:57 PM
• Pastor Jay: how do you explain certain organelles of the cell having their own DNA like the mitochondria and Chloralplasts 7:02 PM
• Hilary: how do you explain the concience of humens compared to other mammels or animals? 7:14 PM
• How can evolution be true if it is not possible for creatures to aquire new genetic material only lose it ? 6:57 PM
• If god gave us the ablity to reason and understand the world around us why is such a pivital point of christianity that it is not scientifically proveable 7:12 PM
• Hillary : how do you cope with trials and struggles in life when you don't have God to fall back on and help you through 7:12 PM
• If you don't believe in heaven or hell, why do you think you are here on the earth? If we don't end up anywhere in the end, then what's our purpose? 7:10 PM
• For Jay: What is the point of trying to be a christian if people are predisposed to go to heaven? 7:10 PM
• For her, do you celebate CRISTmas and why 7:08 PM
• Hillary: how do differenciate right from wrong? 7:07 PM
• Who do you believe Jesus is? 6:32 PM
• If evolution is only a theory why should the public schools teach it to children as facts? 6:54 PM
• What is secular humanism? 7:06 PM
• If god is so loving and wants all to go to heaven then why even create the possibility of sin I.e. The fruit tree? 7:06 PM
• for hillary....what do u believe happens when u die? so many have reports of near death experiences that speak of reality after physical death....how 7:06 PM
• do u square this? 7:06 PM
• for hilary: what is your purpose in life if once you die you are "no longer"? 7:06 PM
• The findings of homo erectus in africa 6:39 PM
• Veiws on homosexuality 6:47 PM
• Why is it god doesn't talk to us anymore like he did with moses on mt. Sineh 7:00 PM
• How come there are no more prophets like elijah and paul 7:01 PM
• do atheist believe in the immaculate conception? Why or why not? Evidence? 6:56 PM
• What do atheists believe is the true meaning or purpose in life? 6:59 PM
• When do you believe life begins? 6:57 PM
• Can you give evidence of evolution (molecules to man) or creation? 6:55 PM
• If evolution is true, why are there not half species? 6:57 PM
• For both, what is your motivation or hope in life? Or What is the meaning of life, or specifically your life? 6:55 PM
• do you fear God?-- for hillary 6:31 PM
• Hillary: do you ever fear that you're wrong? 6:38 PM
• hillary: have you read any books from Christian authors? which ones? 6:54 PM
• Q for both: What books/films/websites do you recommend for further research? 6:54 PM
• For Hil. In the absense of a diety, how would an atheist view the origine of the universe and purpose of the universe? Is it important for there to be purpose! 6:54 PM
• Why won't god heal amputees? 6:29 PM
• If God is omnipotent, why does he not just show himself to all of us, all at once, thereby ending this game of free will and temptation? 6:51 PM
• Please speak to the question of death and it's realities 6:41 PM
• Every worldview must address the concept of meaning. What is/are the foundational principle(s) underlying meaning in your worldview? 6:41 PM
• since The bible has been translated so many times how can we still take it literal if it has been interpreted by man? 6:40 PM
• Which do you believe takes more faith--atheism or Christianity 6:40 PM
• If evolution is still happening and transformation is true then why dont we see it today ? for ex monkeys turnning into humans? 6:30 PM
• If there is no God, then what is the purpose of life? 6:29 PM
• Pastor Jay – Do miracles happen today?
• Can you give an example of where some process in nature you gain true information?
• You claimed to be “pro-life” How do you reconcile that with Biblical concepts of life? Leviticus strongly implies that a fetus is not a person. Also Job and Genesis refer to “first breath” not conception.
• How did matter come from nothing? It goes against early laws.
• For the Atheist – Since Jesus was a historical person he said the greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. Do you accept that message from him as a teacher? Do you love your neighbor?
• For both – How did the earth evolve and how old is the earth. And how did man show up.
• Hillary: How do you reconcile the fact that Isaiah prophisied some 500 years before Christ was born all the events that would occur, and they happened just as He said they would.
• Hillary – Do you believe in faith? Do you have faith in anything? Do you have faith that one day there will be scientific proof one day concerning the creation of earth?
• Jay – How do you know for sure that every translation of the bible is “God-breathed”? (not just credibility in historical referenies) *NIV... *NLT... *KJV...
• You stated earlier that your doubts were increasing and you realized “wow I'm not a christian” and that was scary for you. Why was it scary?
• What must you use to cut down the mightiest tree in the forest?
• For Hilary – What are your beliefs on abortion? Do you believe in the sanctity of life? Consequences to the action?
• Re Jesus as God Why did (does) a large portion of Jewish Community not accept christ as the Messiah??
• Jay – How do you know you aren't a part of an elaborate way of controlling people? By using our inevitable fear of death and what happens to us afterward for a certain advantage.
• Pastor Jay, you have had a lot of cool miracles/”God” stories/ answer to prayer that you have openly talked about in church Sunday, what is the coolest God story that you have heard of or witnessed?
• Hilary – What is your greatest fear in life?
• What question would you ask of the other to change their belief?
• Pastor Jay, Do you think a christian being “yolked” together in marriage with an atheist is a recipe for disaster?
• Q1 You have openly described your religious up bringing. Would your views be changed if your life experiences were switched?
• Q2 What do you teach your children?
• For Hilary – Do you believe Jesus was insane, a demon, or the Son of God?
• For Hilary – Have you considered the beliefs of Calvinism and that God has not called you to him?
• What makes natural selection and adaptation Evolution?
• For Pastor Jay Childs, When God told Abraham that he must kill his son to prove his love for God, do you think he repented or apologized to Abraham for terrorizing Abraham with this request once he changed his mind?
• If we have such a short life span how did the monkey change to man?
• For Pastor Jay – Back to the question of “How can you account for all the people who have died that have never heard the Gospel of Jesus?” - Is there evidence in scripture for God holding you accountable for what you know???
• Jay – What is your opinion on gay rights/marriages?
• Hilary, you explained that you derrive your morals from a sense of empathy that developed through evolution. My question is this: what does it matter if we obey this sense of empathy or not? Where is the value in morality?
• If there is not a God what do you think man would do if there were no religion to worship God?
• How do you explain this: If the Holly Spirit is the one that convinces people to repent, why people that he doesn't convince go to hell?
• Do you believe in evolution, and if so, how can you prove it.
• Did your scientific “beliefs” preceed your religious “beliefs” and visa versa.
• You say that you do not believe in god, but do you believe in Jesus Christ? And if you do believe in Jesus, why would he not be credible, and how with that view could you believe in Jesus but not god?
• Hilary – How do you explain the conscience of humans compared to other mammals or animals?
• Both – In the beginning... what?
• Hillary – Where does altruism come from? Ie why would a stranger risk life for another?
• To Hillary: Do you believe that people are inherently good? If so, how do you explain the evils in the world?
• Is evil real? What is the cause of evil?
• Hillary – One of the laws of science states that entropy (disorganization) continually increases. How does this align with evolution?
• The laws of thermodynamics indicate everything degrades, knowing that the human genome has shown continued deterioration how can we believe in evolutionary principles with mutations?
• Jay – As a Christian, I think you believe in the Bible as the inspired word of God. However, it is still written by men, who are imperfect. Studies have shown that there are many different versions of the Bible based on translation and error. Isn't it possible some of the stories were added by man alone? How do you reconcile that, if you have a somewhat literal interpretation of the Bible, as it sounds like you do?
• Both – With the upcoming mid-term election, do you think it is right/fair for candidates to use their religious beliefs and values as a reason to vote for them.
• When this is over you are going to have A lot of people praying for u! How does that make you feel?
• To become an Athiest – do you have to consciously denounce God – Christ and Salvation than grace? Do you accept someone telling you – that they will pray for you? (If you do don't you believe in prayer)?
• To Hilary – are their any ground rules to being an atheist?
• Hillary and Pastor Jay – 1) Do you celebrate Halloween? why: why not? Then, 2) Do you celebrate Christmas: why: why not?
• Pastor Jay – What caused you to believe in Jesus as the only way to God?
• Hilary – In your search of defining your beliefs what sacred texts did you read?
• Hillary – How much real research have you done about God, and what God is about through reading out of the Bible?
• Hilary: Have you read CS Lewis – Mere Christianity – (an interesting book written by a former atheist)
• To Hilary – You said you saw some things while in the Peace Corps that made you think that things weren't right that helped lead to your belief as an Athesist. Can you elaborate more on these and why you thought these events weren't right. (Relative to our beliefs being formed from what we hear, read, and see) Jay – how would you look at these events.
• If you do not believe in God or Heaven, what is the purpose of your life? If you are the product of evolution – isn't your existance an accident thus y
• Hilary & Pastor Jay – What do you think the purpose of Life is?
• Hillary: Do you believe you have a soul? Yes or no: Where will you be in 100 years?
• Both – What is the purpose of your life?
• Even if there is no proof that God exists, What do you make of “Pascal's Wager” : If you place your bet with God, you lose nothing. If you place your bet against God, and you are wrong, you lose everything.
• Hillary – do you ever have fears or doubts about if there is a God, and if so what if there is … do you ever fear that there really is a hell?
• Question for both: What in this life brings you both joy and peace?
• Pastor Jay – Out of all the world religions out in the world, How do you know that you are Right?
• Hilary – What is the difference between being and atheist v.s. just not being religious.
• Hilary – Why would you advertise yourself as athiest when your clearly the definition of agnostic?
• Hilary – Explain the definition of Agnostic-Atheist. You are contradicting yourself.
• What do you make of hundreds of millions, if not billions of humans who have already died at this time in history who were never able to experience the grace of your God or accept Jesus as their savior? If they get into heaven, then why do I have to struggle for decades with the moral and ontological questions? If they don't get in to heaven, where is the justice in that? Examples include infant deaths, miscarriages, severe mental incapacity, or simply living at a time and place where there was no opportunity to hear the “word.”

Hilary's and Pastor Jay's book recommendations

One of the questions that was asked was:

Pastor Jay, if you could recommend just two books for people who would like to know more about Christianity, what would they be?
Hilary, same question, what books can someone read to challenge their thinking if they haven’t read about atheism before?

They both listed three books, and here they are:
Hilary:

1. "End Of Faith" by Sam Harris
2. "God Is Not Great" by Christopher Hitchens
3. "Religion Explained" by Pascal Boyer

Pastor Jay:

1. "Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis
2. "Knowing God" by J.I. Packer
3. "The Grand Design" by Stephen Hawking

Wow, great turnout and lots of questions

Hello all,
Thanks to the 714 people who came out to see Hilary and Pastor Jay have a friendly dialog.  Also, thanks for the 60 note cards and 75 text messages (many with multiple questions).  I think we got to about half of the questions in the 1.5 hours of discussion.  I'll be getting all of the questions together and posted soon (hopefully later tonight).

There may also be some video and audio available.  Stay tuned for that too.
Finally, a huge thank you to both Hilary and Pastor Jay.  They did a great job, and I know it wasn't easy for either, but I think it was worth while for both.  Thanks!

Purpose of this blog

This blog is intended to be a place where we can post information about the friendly dialog with an Atheist and a Christian that will be taking place at Midland Evangelical Free Church on October 24th, 2010.
The event will be recorded on audio and video, and I intend to post links to those recordings here for people to be able to review and comment on.
In the interest of total transparency, I also intend to post all of the questions that weren't asked during the event.
We could put most of this stuff on Facebook or the Church's website or some combination of other online places, but this seemed to be a good idea for a one-stop place which can also allow for comments to be posted.