Dr. Mike LiconaWatch the debate
› In person: 6:30-9 p.m. Friday, Benwood Auditorium on the UTC campus, Fifth and Palmetto streets› Online: Watch video streaming of the debate at www.interfaithdebates.com
Two leading religious scholars will debate Friday night whether Jesus died and was resurrected from the dead as the son of God as Christians believe or whether he was a prophet who was not crucified, but was raised bodily to heaven by God without dying as Muslims believe.
Dr. Mike Licona, an associate professor of theology at Houston Baptist University and president of Risen Jesus Inc., and Dr. Shabir Ally, president of the Islamic Information and Dawah Centre International in Toronto, Canada, will debate the question “Jesus: Resurrected or Rescued?” from 6:30-9 p.m. Friday at the Benwood Auditorium on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga campus.
Friday’s debate over the resurrection of Jesus comes just five days after the Christian celebration of Easter on Sunday. The community debate is similar to an interfaith forum in October when Ally debated Christian scholar Dr. David Wood on whether the Quran and the Bible are books of peace or not.
The debates are organized by Bassam Issa, president of the Islamic Society of Greater Chattanooga; Ben Graham, senior pastor at Grace Baptist Church; and local entrepreneur John Brandon.
The debate is free and open to the public and a question-and-answer session will follow the debate. A suggested offering of $5 upon entrance will go to Ally and Licona for their participation.