Sparring partners

Peter Kreeft thinks that the participation of the new atheists is good because they, at least, behave as though the questions are worth debating:

In the past year or so, there has been a spurt of books, such as The God Delusion, assailing the idea of faith? What do you attribute this to? How serious do you see this?

I don’t know. Maybe it’s collusion. Certainly, atheists are panicking: Religion was supposed to dry up and disappear, according to their “progressive enlightenment” theory. But it isn’t. I welcome them to the public square. They usually believe in objective truth, and so are more honest than many religious believers who fear such arguments. They are the sparring partners we need to box with to put on muscle.

Insight Scoop | The Ignatius Press Blog: Peter Kreeft on Socrates, atheism, Jesus, and more