I often hear that we Catholic-school students are sheltered, that we do not see the wide spectrum of different cultures and opinions that exist in public schools. I don’t know who came up with this idea, but I invite him to visit my lunch table. 

I debate all sorts of topics with my companions, and I am always surprised by the range of their views. One day we broached the subject of God and religion, both of which were immediately condemned as figments of cavemen’s imaginations. They harangued me for unquestioningly accepting the pronouncements of the Church instead of thinking for myself.

It is not that atheists believe there is no God; it is merely that their evidence threshold has not been met. They are unconvinced. I can accept this as a philosophical position, and I do not doubt the intelligence of those who hold it. After all, the ranks of atheists include such giants as Bertrand Russell and Karl Marx. However, many atheists do not have this same respect for us believers. In fact, some of them have told me that religion is simply a means of controlling the ignorant masses and of explaining things we are too stupid to understand logically.

The atheists say there is not enough evidence, but that depends on what evidence is. While the natural world may tell them there is no God, it tells me just as clearly that there is. I can find God in the transcription of DNA or in the operation of the solar system, and I call this proof because I cannot believe such things developed by accident. It is an atheist’s right to disagree, but it is not his right to dismiss me as a gullible simpleton.

That tendency is blatant snobbery. An atheist is a man, not an enlightened sage. If he is so sure of his position, surely he will condescend to defend it in free discussion. As it is, many simply wave the fly-swatter of ad hominem attack, a weapon much less sophisticated than anything I would expect from people with the learning that they profess to have. Any time a Christian asserts his beliefs in public, he is called a fanatic and an idiot. If he is from the South, he is not only an idiot but a hillbilly to boot.

Religion, like all worthwhile subjects, must be discussed by people who treat each other as equals. A victory in an argument is won by being the most cogent, not the most slanderous. Participation in a debate requires openness to learning from one’s opponent and appreciating his ideas. From the saddle of a high horse one cannot smell the roses that grow along the road.