The Question of God

The Question of God makes the case that Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis are illuminating and provocative representatives of their respective secular and spiritual belief systems. This four-hour series, which aired on PBS, provides insightful discussion into what drove one man toward a science-based atheism and the other away from atheism towards Christianity. Freud called religion "the universal obsessional neurosis of humanity," while Lewis was perhaps the most popular proponent of faith based on reason. Lewis found "joy in the desiring," and came to believe that "if there is a desire for something beyond this world, there must be a beyond."

The award-winning filmmakers use dramatized scenes of Freud's and Lewis's formative years as well as interviews with biographers and historians. These narrative threads are intercut with roundtable discussions involving writers, scientists, physicians, filmmakers and others who openly share their experiences of faith. The discussions are chaired by Harvard professor Armand Nicholi, who for more than 25 years has taught a thought-provoking course on the influence of these two men on the ultimate question: Does God exist?

Dr. Nicholi states that "Freud and Lewis represent conflicting parts of ourselves - Part of us yearns for a relationship with the source of all joy, hope and happiness, as described by Lewis, and yet, there is another part that raises its fist in defiance - Whatever part we choose to express will determine our purpose, our identify and our whole philosophy of life."