Welcome to Eth, a small planet circling a medium sized star on the far side of this galaxy. It's standing room only in Eth's Great Chamber as the debate of the age is about to take place. Eth's greatest intellectuals are trying finally to settle whether or not God exists.

 Garglefroth Blart, Professor Emeritus of Divinity at Eth's most prestigious university, is involved in vigorous debate with his opponent, Bogubus Donk, the Arch Logos Inquisitor. The audience comprises Eth's finest thinkers.

BLART: I'm here to explain why I, and so many other Ethians, believe that God exists.

DONK: What do you mean by 'God', exactly?

BLART: I'm referring, of course, to a being that is all-powerful.

DONK: Ah yes. God, if he exists, is omnipotent. He can do anything.  But why suppose such a being exists?

BLART: This universe might not have existed. Why does it exist? Why is there something rather than nothing?

DONK: Well, scientists tell us the universe began with a Big Bang nearly 14 billion years ago. The Big Bang explains that

BLART: But that merely postpones the problem, doesn't it? For why was there a Big Bang? The universe has a cause - the Big Bang. But the Big Bang must in turn have a cause, an explanation. That explanation is God. But God, being a necessary being, does not require cause. So you see: God neatly explains why the universe exists. How do you atheists explain it?

There are ripples of approval from the theists in the audience.

DONK: Well, I'm not sure....

BLART: So you can't explain it. But we theists can. That God exists is the best explanation available for why the universe exists. So there's one good reason to believe. And there are others!

DONK: Such as?

BLART: The fine-tuned nature of the universe. If the laws of nature had been only very slightly different, we wouldn't be here. Indeed, life would not have emerged. The universe would have immediately vanished with a pop, or dissipated into a thin, sterile soup. To get life, you need to really fine-tune your universe. The probability of the universe having the Goldilocks property of being 'just right' for life by chance is astronomically low. But of course, if there's a God that wanted to create living things, then that would neatly explain the universe's fine-tuned character. So again, theism provides the best explanation. How do you atheists explain the fine-tuning?

DONK: Er, well...

There is much murmuring around the Great Chamber. It seems to many that Blart is winning this debate hands down. But Donk has a card up his sleeve...

DONK: Let me ask you a question. God is not just all-powerful is he? He has other attributes too, correct.

BLART: Of course. As we all know, God is all-powerful. And he is also all-evil. His cruelty is beyond our comprehension. His malice is without limit. He is the foulest, most cruel and sadistic being imaginable. He created this universe in order to torture every sentient creature in it.

DONK: But that is absurd. Even if there was some sort of cosmic creator or designer responsible for this universe, it's absurd to suppose that being is all-evil.

BLART: Why do you say that?

DONK: Well, why do you suppose he is evil?

BLART: Clearly there must be such an evil being. You would be foolish to deny it!

DONK: Why so?

BLART: Well, can you imagine God - the most evil being conceivable?

DONK: Well, yes I can conceive of there being such a being, I suppose.