Controversy? What controversy?
The issue is not whether or not there is a god. There may very well be a god, after all, that is just another unproved hypothesis as to how the universe got here, and about how it is managed. It might even be true.
No, the question should be IF there is a god, just what do we know about him, and how do we know what we know? "Is there a god?" is a perfectly valid and reasonable question to ask. Claiming to know the answer in exquisite detail is not reasonable at all.