A rock floats in mid-air behind curtains in a mosque in Cyprus, defying gravity on account of the rock’s association with the aunt of the Prophet Muhammad. The late Pope John Paul II makes a signal advance towards sainthood this week because a terminally ill nun has been cured after prayers ask him to intercede from beyond the grave. The waters of the Red Sea part to allow God’s Chosen People to cross in safety.
In comparing the signs, wonders and revelations on which faiths may be based, and the charismatic personalities that have fuelled their rockets, I claim two advantages. The first is that I am myself without faith. We unbelievers can approach the claims of (say) Islam or Christianity, animism or ancestor worship