Hitchens has accomplished something quite deft in his book God is Not Great. Take a pre-modern reading of the Bible. Call that interpretation "religion". Show how ridiculous it is. Repeat as necessary.
Money quote from Atlantic Monthly interview
Interviewer: Reform Jews do believe that the Bible was written by humans. Should Reform Judaism still be called a religion?
Hitchens: Well, that’s honestly what I wonder, whether it should be in that case, or whether it’s just a social club. There, I almost sympathize with the people who say, “Well, it’s not heresy, but it’s just another name for hedonism or believing whatever you like.” I’m okay, you’re okay—that’s not a religion. Religion is saying that you know the mind of God and you want to obey His revealed commandments, on pain of losing your soul, at least. People who really live their lives in fear of that—God-fearing, as they used to say—I can respect. People who are somewhere between Unitarianism and Reform Judaism—it just seems weak-minded to me. Why bother?
So, what Hitchens is saying is: Believe the Bible was dictated word-for-word by God = foolish. Believe the Bible is more complex than that = "seems weak-minded to me". Nice of him to ignore fifty-plus years of hermeneutics.
Sounds like the work of a hack.
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