Last month my school hosted a public debate between the FAAK club (Freethinking Atheist Agnostic Kinship) at Capistrano Valley High and the Apologetics Club of my Christian school (CVCS). It was amazing! We are working on getting the video to post later. But you will find the article below interesting and well worth the read. In our era of increasingly vitriolic rhetoric, this was a wonderful example of how to dialogue on important topics without buying into the postmodern sentimentality that “we’re all right.”

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FAAK, Capo Valley Christian School hold friendly debate to benefit Invisible Children

By Rachel Hatch
Opinion Editor

On Tuesday, May 26, the Freethinking Atheist Agnostic Kinship (FAAK) joined The Apologetics Club of Capo Valley Christian School in a debate hosted at CVCS.

During the debate, senior FAAK members Arya Bograhty, Amir Chini and Doug Kalagian as well as Jarrod Butler, Jesse Harris and Colleen Stoop of the Apologetics Club discussed topics including the origin of the universe, morality, and the evidence for and against Christianity.

Sean McDowell, the head of CVCS’ Bible Department, emceed the debate. He opened the event by stating that both sides should be praised for their “passion for ideas.” McDowell continued, commending FAAK and the Apologetics Club for their willingness to sit down and engage in a “respectful discussion.”

The two clubs came together to represent both sides of the debate, but more importantly to raise funds for the group “Invisible Children” which gives aid to children affected by civil war in northern Uganda.

Nearly 300 people attended the debate, raising over 800 dollars for the organization. The auditorium where the debate was held, CVCS’s “Sanctuary,” was almost entirely full, speaking volumes about the audience’s enthusiasm for the subject.

Although the debate was conducted in a friendly matter, the theological disparities between FAAK and the Apologetics Club were apparent from the start.

For instance, Butler claimed that before the universe began “there was nothing, therefore there must be an intelligent designer.” Kalagian responded that the existence of a god is “a possibility, but it is definitely not the only possibility.” He continued by joking that an “18-legged, glittering unicorn of truth” could have created the universe.

Harris stressed his belief that “theism forms a solid ground for morality,” but Chini questioned this by then asking why society’s morals are constantly changing.
During the later part of the debate, audience members had the opportunity to ask both clubs questions like “Where did ‘God’ come from?” and “Why is it better to believe in skepticism than ‘God’?”

The audience had an overall positive reaction to the debate, with applause filling the auditorium several times during the event. When the debate was over, members of the audience walked onstage to congratulate students from FAAK and the Apologetics Club. Parents of CVCS students made up a large part of the audience because of the “home court advantage,” but several Capo students were also in attendance.

Chini reflected on the debate, later saying “we just went in there and wanted to have fun. We didn’t take ourselves too seriously.” Kalagian also had an enjoyable time, but described some of the Apologetics’ arguments as “humorous” and “predictable.”

Harris of CVCS also stated that “it’s a beautiful thing when a Christian club and a freethinking, atheist, agnostic club can debate essential issues of life in a friendly manner for the sake of a charity. It’s a rarity!”

McDowell is pleased with how the event was conducted and invites future members of FAAK to participate in debates with CVCS.