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==Death==
==Death==
Christopher Hitchens died on December 15, 2011. The media has reported that the cause of his death was pneumonia, a complication of oesophageal cancer.<ref>Minzesheimer, Bob. "Writer Christopher Hitchens dies at age 62." USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2011-12-16/obit-hitchens/51999910/1</ref> The cancer was likely caused by his heavy drinking and smoking.
Christopher Hitchens died on December 15, 2011. The media has reported that the cause of his death was pneumonia, a complication of oesophageal cancer.<ref>Minzesheimer, Bob. "Writer Christopher Hitchens dies at age 62." USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2011-12-16/obit-hitchens/51999910/1</ref> The cancer was likely caused by his heavy drinking and smoking.
===Atheism and Hitchens' cancer===
The possiblity that Hitchens' unfortunate death from cancer could have been directly or indirectly influenced by his [[atheism]] remains open. In the indirect sense, it is known that the atheistic philosophy of the objective meaninglessness of life correlates with vices and mental unwellness. Atheists and secular Americans are known to have higher rates of drug abuse{{Citation needed}}(which in a broad sense could include smoking and drinking as well), and regular churchgoers are known to have much lower rates of mental illness and depression {{Citation needed}}. The depression that sometimes persists alongside atheism could have conceivably influenced him to use harmful matericalistic pleasures like tobacco and alcohol as a coping mechanism {{Citation needed}} , since an avowed atheist like Hitchens would not decide to seek spiritual health, attend a Christian church or look for "answers" in the Bible. This provides reason to speculate that atheism influenced Hitchens' bad habits {{Citation needed}}, which lead to his cancer and death.
Whether Hichens' cancer death was influenced in any direct sense remains more uncertain. While a Christian should not speak directly for God, the Bible does show that, in specific instances, God has been known to punish sinners and the unrepentant with disease.<ref>http://bible.cc/acts/12-23.htm</ref> The Bible has also made it clear that those who wish evil on others deserve no better themselves, and as Hitchens praised the sad and gruesome death of Rev. Jerry Falwell, the possibility of divine retribution remains as well depending on a Christians interpretation of God's word and actions.
On the flip side, God has been shown to bestow mercy on those who are sick and seek His help. The many stories of [[Jesus]] healing the blind, crippled, and ill are the first examples. Even during today's times, there have been claims of modern day miracles as well, such as the possible "curing" of a person's cancer by a Roman Catholic priest, through the power of prayer - something which Hitchens likely rejected to his deathbed. <ref>http://www.fox2now.com/news/ktvi-cancer-cure-miracle-vatican-071510,0,6569863.story</ref> Again it would be presumptuous for a Christian to speak directly on God's behalf, as is Hitchen's most obvious [[hell|eternal fate]] according to the Bible (for only God knows for a fact whether or not he repented on his deathbead) nevertheless the possibilities are a good topic of discussion among Christians and non-Christians alike.
==External links==
==External links==