Physics education research, electronic materials, and the musings of Christopher Moore, Ph.D.

My boyfriend and I are having a debate -  I say that thunder and lightning are the same thing as they occur at the same time, however we only hear thunder after seeing lightning because of the difference between the speed of sound and the speed of light. Although he understands the concepts, he still maintains that thunder and lightning are different things because sound and light are different mediums.

What is the general consensus on this topic?