A&E: Blasphemy at the Free Library

Who is more intimidating: God or Christopher Hitchens?

Ever wondered what goes on in the mind of a confirmed Jewish atheist, ex-Socialist and one of our nation's most compelling contrarians? Find out this coming Tuesday at the Free Library when our own editor in chief, Larry Platt, picks the prodigious brain of Christopher Hitchens in an interview about Hitchens's book, God Is Not Great: How Religion

Ever wondered what goes on in the mind of a confirmed Jewish atheist, ex-Socialist and one of our nation's most compelling contrarians? Find out this coming Tuesday at the Free Library when our own editor in chief, Larry Platt, picks the prodigious brain of Christopher Hitchens in an interview about Hitchens's book, God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything. More than just a denouncement of religion, the book is an in-depth exposé of what many have pieced together already: organized religion is rife with paradox. As a prolific writer, contributing editor at Vanity Fair and one of the nation's leading public intellectuals, Hitchens is not one to avoid controversial issues or an opportunity to perk up the public's ears with his scathing candor. He has published over 15 books including The Missionary Position, offering a — albeit un-PC — critical glance at the saintly image of Mother Teresa. Join us as Hitchens discusses the most recent addition to his canon of criticisms, a book that he says he's been “writing all his life.” Bear witness as Platt and the author contribute to the American discourse on religion — a dialogue Hitchens feels is too polite for its own good. Since the event’s sold out, the Free Library is also offering a live jumbo-screen simulcast, where you can be as impolite as you like.

8 p.m. May 22nd, $6 to $12, Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street, 215-567-4341; library.phila.gov.