"If religion isn't the greatest threat to rationality and scientific progress, what is?" Daniel Dennett, the American philosopher, is not mincing his words ahead of tonight's Guardian/Agora debate.
In a typically combative contribution he adds: "You don't have to be religious to be crazy, but it helps."
His opponent, Robert (Lord) Winston, the distinguished fertility expert well known to British television audiences for his programmes about science and religion, seeks to distinguish between crazy fanaticism and responsible religious belief. For him, atheists like Dennett and Richard Dawkins share the utter certainty of the people they attack.
"In reality, both religion and science are expressions of man's uncertainty. Perhaps the paradox is that certainty, whether it be in science or religion, is dangerous," argues Winston.
The certainty is that it will be an interesting evening.
