ELYRIA — Neither side won.

But neither side lost either as Lorain County Community College students debated a centuries-old question Friday — does God exist?

The debate over God’s existence brought out more than 80 people to watch two pairs —Christians Josh Centarri and Jordan Ladikos and atheists Aaron Weaver and Christopher Burns — discuss the topic.

Robert Beckstrom, dean of the Division of Arts and Humanities at LCCC, moderated the hour-and-a-half discussion, which was presented in the form of two cases, the case for God, and the case against.

“From an academic standpoint, significant ideas were debated in a civil fashion,” he said afterward. “At the same time, they were intensely critical of each other’s positions, and that’s what should happen in an academic setting. It took a lot of courage.”

One by one, each side presented its case.

Faith was questioned by evidence and some of the universe’s natural elements were scrutinized and explained.

“How do I know God exists?” Centarri, 17, of Oberlin, asked himself. “Check out the sun, the moon and the Grand Canyon … A painting has a painter, a building has a builder — it’s kind of a no-brainer.”

Weaver, 20-year-old president of the student group Campus Activists for Atheism, countered that erosion should be credited for creating the Grand Canyon, and questioned how faith and evidence can even be in the same sentence.

“When my opponents discuss faith as evidence,” he told the audience. “It’s an inherent contradiction.”

Weaver said afterward that he and Centarri often conduct civil “micro debates” on campus, and when the chance came to hold a real debate in the hall of College Center, he and Burns jumped at the opportunity.

“We were geared to make this discussion,” he said. “Understanding, researching and spreading knowledge —that’s what we’re here to do.”

Ladikos, 20, of Avon Lake, echoed his opponent’s thoughts, and said the opportunity of speaking in front of so many people was an experience.

“It wasn’t a battle to be won or lost, but to challenge people to think about things,” he said. “(The atheists) were brilliant people to work with, and I’m glad we got to debate against them. We all learned a lot.”

Contact Stephen Szucs at 329-7129 or sszucs@chroniclet.com.

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