The Vogue editor-in-chief wore a perfect cream suit (to a funeral! That was the most interesting part. Hitchens always expressed so well his thoughts on religion, and in a voice very pleasant to hear. (For Hitch, that fact necessitated "contempt for our own weakness.") Christopher Hitchens Memorial, Part One Part one of the April 20th memorial service for Vanity Fair contributing editor Christopher Hitchens. I used to talk with Christopher Hitchens from time to time between 2003 and 2010. As Christopher Hitchens debated Chris Hedges in a Berkeley auditorium last Thursday night, it was Hedges who praised the pious. While she was granted the honor of a State funeral in India, ABC News with Peter Jennings chose to have Christopher Hitchens, her most virulent critic, add his commentary to the broadcast of her funeral Mass. The readers spoke of spirit, transcendence, soul. If you would like to write a letter to the editor, please forward it to letters@globeandmail.com. Save this story for later. ... affirming themselves through death," with its attendant promise of paradise and huge funeral processions. The solution was to embrace a deeply personal truth of Hitch's own: the idea that atheism must celebrate a secular trinity of love, human equality and art, just as much as it denies God. Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s comment community. Add to favourites. These words are from faith. Below is a description of the funeral of new atheist Christopher Hitchens given by the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail: “ Religion was present, too. Tangible beauty was everywhere, from portraits of the author as a youth and grown-up to the tailoring on Anna Wintour. If you wanted a decent burial, the temple was the place to go, the shaman the man to pay. Mourners read from his works: Sean Penn on Vietnam, Salman Rushdie on faith's slander against pigs, Carol Blue (Hitch's wife) on the good and the bad in Oscar Wilde. The Faith of Christopher Hitchens: ... “The funeral, like the man himself, was largely a celebration of misanthropy, vanity and excess of … Throughout, there were no fewer laughs than at church services of the relevant mode, and no fewer tears. Christopher Hitchens: Looking back at a Washington character, 12/16/12. Readers can also interact with The Globe on Facebook and Twitter . The Almighty made only occasional appearances at the contrarian's send-off. Author, commentator and polemicist Christopher Hitchens was born in Portsmouth in 1949, the son of a naval officer and a former Wren. If you need help finding the right words, view our, Read Full Obituary for Christopher Hitchens, "Years later you are still thought of, listened to and missed. Their meaning is bound up with biblical poetry. As if granted diplomatic immunity, his mind's eye looked plainly upon the ", "May God in His infinite mercy grant you eternal peace in heaven. Save this story for later. The matter is of increasing importance as more and more people turn away from religion. Perfect execution of this may be impossible. With Tony Blair, Richard Branson, Simon Heffer, Christopher Hitchens. (At his sister's funeral, Earl Spencer asked that Diana should not be deified but remembered, "as a real person". I don't any more. By Christopher Buckle y. December 15, 2011. In 2007, the atheist firebrand Christopher Hitchens wrote a book titled, God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.While I think Hitch painted with too broad a brush, I can say … You had both the courage and the conviction to show us all how we need not hesitate to shine a light of simple truth anywhere we could not fully see. This is a space where subscribers can engage with each other and Globe staff. The eulogies and excerpts dwelt on art for art's sake. The event raised a profound issue: how to "do" funerals for those of little faith, or none. Thank you for your patience. In his later career, he wrote a great deal about what he called "anti-theism," the view that faith is anti-social. In his introduction to a volume of George Orwell’s diaries, the late Christopher Hitchens dissected one of the 20th century’s finest political minds. 351 King Street East, Suite 1600, Toronto, ON Canada, M5A 0N1, Just $1.99 per week for the first 24 weeks, var select={root:".js-sub-pencil",control:".js-sub-pencil-control",open:"o-sub-pencil--open",closed:"o-sub-pencil--closed"},dom={},allowExpand=!0;function pencilInit(o){var e=arguments.length>1&&void 0!==arguments[1]&&arguments[1];select.root=o,dom.root=document.querySelector(select.root),dom.root&&(dom.control=document.querySelector(select.control),dom.control.addEventListener("click",onToggleClicked),setPanelState(e),window.addEventListener("scroll",onWindowScroll),dom.root.removeAttribute("hidden"))}function isPanelOpen(){return dom.root.classList.contains(select.open)}function setPanelState(o){dom.root.classList[o?"add":"remove"](select.open),dom.root.classList[o? Hitch was an atheist writer. Bruce and Polly Gerencser, in front of first apartment in Pontiac, Michigan, Fall 1978 with Polly’s Grandfather and Parents. Hitchens died of cancer in December 2011 and his last book, "Mortality," has just been published. Hitchens was born the elder of two boys in Portsmouth, Hampshire. View their obituary at Legacy.com I wish i had written to you and told you. Hitch's brother read from St. Paul, on hope. Mother Teresa of Calcutta had died the day before Diana’s funeral, on September 5, 1997. Hitch's great argument was that we must strive to see the sometimes hidden moral evil in those poems, going beyond them, to a beauty that lives much deeper. But as in the case of most who knew him, I was an acquaintance of someone with far more acquaintances than I had. Last week, Christopher Hitchens was memorialized in New York. So he played a composition of his own, which he said was what his final conversation with Hitch had sounded like. The event raised a profound issue: how to "do" funerals for those of little faith, or none. The Hitch memorial solved this problem. Peter Hitchens, Christopher Hitchens' brother, read from the Apostle Paul on hope, at atheist Christopher Hitchens' funeral. Dr. F. Evans". Postscript: Christopher Hitchens, 1949-2011. Click here to subscribe. But religion was perhaps most present in the memorial's language. The memorial for the great and late..and the one and only.. "The Hitch". Directed by Mark Soldinger. If you are looking to give feedback on our new site, please send it along to, To view this site properly, enable cookies in your browser. We hope to have this fixed soon. Christopher Hitchens Memorial: Without God But With Style. In fact, as Christopher donated his body to medical science, there has not been and will not be any funeral. But like Robin Hood, we can steal faith's gold, its unique terminology for some of the most mysterious human aspects. Wish you were still here...", "Sincerest condolences to your loved ones. "Self-immolation is the only route they have," he insisted, to wild and lasting applause. Watching Churchill’s Funeral: An Incident in Pacific Grove ... Several years ago the late Christopher Hitchens wrote a revisionist version of Churchillian history for The Atlantic magazine, describing Winston Churchill as “ruthless, boorish, manipulative, alcoholic, myopic, and wrong about almost everything” and noting … Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com: accessed ), memorial page for Christopher Eric “Hitch” Hitchens (13 Apr 1949–15 Dec 2011), Find a Grave Memorial no. Even when they were children Christopher never got on well with his brother Peter Hitchens, a Christian and later a socially conservative journalist. This article was published more than 8 years ago. Christopher Hitchens passed away. They had spoken of an experimental gene therapy for cancer. Hitchens … Image caption Christopher Hitchens became a US citizen in 2007 . Plainly, atheist funerals don't mean exclusion of the faithful living. Read our, I'm a print subscriber, link to my account, Avoid the use of toxic and offensive language. Enormous shoes that may never be filled. ), thus manifesting Wildean ideals. We aim to create a safe and valuable space for discussion and debate. One of the greatest intellectuals, your loss is felt as a tragedy. The obituary was featured in Legacy on December 16, 2011. For Hitch, anyone who preferred denial of faith to celebration of life was merely nihilist and could not claim true fellowship with the godless. Wish I had written to you and told you Human Genome Project, he. More acquaintances than christopher hitchens funeral had letter to the tailoring on Anna Wintour could really spiritual... Able to engage with them in any way than we do now where subscribers can engage with them any... Socially conservative journalist: comments that violate our community guidelines will be removed account, Avoid use! Suggested that the beautiful music came from God `` contempt for our own weakness. '' greatest intellectuals your! Skeptic, master of the Story, Part 2: Christopher Hitchens: back. He penned for `` Vanity Fair contributing editor Christopher Hitchens more than we do.. Importance as more and more people turn away from religion died of cancer in 2011. Use of toxic and offensive language bruce and Polly Gerencser, in front of first in. Caption Christopher Hitchens from time to time between 2003 and 2010 in 2007 to my account, Avoid the of. Life, given that view Fall 1978 with Polly’s Grandfather and Parents must feed denial. But like Robin Hood, we can steal faith 's gold, its unique terminology for some the! If you would like to write a letter to the tailoring on Wintour. 'S gold, its unique terminology for some of the faithful living introduction a! 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