Get to know 100 Christian apologists. Most are current. Some are dead. A couple are very old. Some are not popular. They range from world-class philosophers and thinkers to internet and radio apologists. But all have made an impact with their works and ministries. They are in alphabetical order. (This is not a top 100, and theologians and church fathers have been left out.)1. Kerby Anderson - VP of International Society of Christian Apologetics.
2. John Ankerberg - Founder of Ankerberg Theological Research Institute; Great podcast.
3. Greg Bahnsen - the late great presuppositional apologist. Debated Gordon Stein.
4. Andy Bannister - London School of Theology / Oxford Centre for Christian apologetics.
5. Francis Beckwith - noted philosopher and apologist, especially in the area of ethics.
6. Ken Boa - relational evangelism, discipleship, apologetics.
7. Darrell Bock - Research Professor of NT Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary.
8. Joe Boot - apologist, educator, author and pastor.
9. Robert Bowman - noted apologetics and theology teacher (Biola)
10. Justin Brierley - host of Unbelievable? on Premier Christian Radio, UK.
11. Kyle Butt - staff at Apologetics Press and editor of Discovery magazine. Debated Barker.
12. Ted Cabal - general editor of The Apologetics Study Bible.
13. Charlie Campbell - itinerant apologist and head of AlwaysBeReady.com.
14. Edward John Carnell - was a prominent and influential Christian theologian and apologist.
15. G.K. Chesterton - famous author, philosopher, theologian, apologist.
16. David K. Clark - apologist with notable books; teaches at Bethel Seminary
17. Gordon Clark - Christian philosopher, apologist, and theologian. Contemporary of Van Til.
18. Kelly James Clark - notable philosopher of religion, author; Calvin College.
19. Gene Cook - host of UnchainedRadio; reformed pastor and apologist. Owns a pit bull.
20. Paul Copan - Philosophy and ethics; noted apologist and author.
21. Winfried Corduan - Christian philosopher of religion; noted author.
22. Steven B. Cowan - Associate director of Apologetics Resource Center; Areopagus Journal
23. William Lane Craig - philosopher, theologian, apologist; Debater par excellence.
24. William Dembski - philosopher of science and mathematician; ID theorist.
25. William Edgar - Professor of Apologetics Westminster Theological Seminary; jazz pianist.
26. Lenny Esposito - founder of ComeReason apologetics ministry.
27. C. Stephen Evans - philosophy of religion; apologetics; great author. Baylor.
28. Paul D. Feinberg - the late philosopher of religion and apologist; author.
29. Harold Felder - founder of GivingAnAnswer apologetics ministry.
30. Phil Fernandes - Christian philosopher, apologist, debater. Tremendous audio resources.
31. John Frame - Reformed Theological Seminary; reformed apologist; Van Til expert.
32. Norman Geisler - prolific author of over 70 books; Classical apologist.
33. R. Douglas Geivett - Professor of Philosophy Talbot Department of Philosophy / Biola
34. Simon Greenleaf - legal scholar famous for his book Testimony of the Evangelists.
35. Douglas Groothuis - Christian philosopher, author, teacher.
36. Shandon L. Guthrie - philosophy, apologetics, atheism, comparative religions, ethics.
37. Gary Habermas - the world's foremost expert on the resurrection of Jesus.
38. Hank Hanegraaff - today's Bible Answer Man.
39. Craig Hazen - director of Biola's Christian Apologetics program.
40. J.P. Holding - founded Tektonics apologetics website; author.
41. Anthony Horvath - Athanatos Christian Ministries and online Apologetics Academy.
42. Phillip E. Johnson - one of the key leaders of the Intelligent Design movement.
43. Walter Kaiser - scholar, writer, educator, and distinguished Professor of Old Testament.
44. Timothy Keller - urban pastor and apologist noted for his clear communication.
45. Greg Koukl - apologist and president of Stand to Reason; excellent radio program.
46. Peter Kreeft - professor of philosophy at Boston College, noted apologist.
47. John Lennox - philosopher of science, mathematician, Oxford debater of Dawkins.
48. C.S. Lewis - famous author, lecturer, apologist; Narnia books, Mere Christianity.
49. Gordon Lewis - philosopher and theologian; author of Testing Christianity's Truth Claims.
50. Mike Licona - historian and apologist; authority on the resurrection of Jesus.
51. Bruce Little - philosopher noted for work on the problem of evil and theodicy.
52. Paul Little - late apologist and author noted for his simple style and easy communication.
53. David Marshall - world cultures, outspoken against new atheism.
54. Walter Martin - most famous for his Kingdom of the Cults book; the original Answer Man.
55. Stuart McAllister - Scottish itinerant cultural apologist with RZIM.
56. Josh McDowell - famous for Evidence that Demands a Verdict.
57. Sean McDowell - worldview youth minister / itinerant apologist.
58. Alex McFarland - itinerant apologist targeting young people, teens.
59. Timothy McGrew - philosophy, historical apologetics, resurrection, probability.
60. Alister McGrath - Oxford professor of theology, author and opponent of new atheism.
61. Chad Meister - philosopher of religion, ethics, logic; apologist, author; Bethel College.
62. Angus Menuge - Concordia University professor of philosophy.
63. Stephen Meyer -philosopher of science, intelligent design theorist, author.
64. Albert Mohler - president of SBTS, worldview cultural commentator, author, radio host.
65. John Warwick Montgomery - perhaps the most famous evidentialist apologist.
66. J.P. Moreland - Christian philosopher, noted author, apologist.
67. Jonathan Morrow - blogger, author and Christian worldview apologist.
68. Ronald Nash - Professor Philosophy and Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary
69. Randall Niles - itinerant and multimedia apologist.
70. David Noebel - founder of Summit Ministries and worldview apologist.
71. Scott Oliphint - Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology WTS
72. Amy Orr-Ewing - Director of Training of the Zacharias Trust.
73. Craig Parton - trial lawyer and noted Lutheran apologist.
74. Alvin Plantinga - world-class philosopher; reformed epistemology, philosophy of religion.
75. Doug Powell - excellent multimedia apologist at SelflessDefense.
76. Michael Ramsden - European Director of Zacharias Trust, speaker for RZIM.
77. Fazale Rana - PhD biochemist with Reasons to Believe.
78. Ron Rhodes - author and apologist founder of Reasoning from the Scriptures.
79. John W. Robbins - reformed apologist, founder of Trinity Foundation.
80. Mark D. Roberts - pastor, author, speaker, blogger. Emphasis in NT / Gospels.
81. David Robertson - Scottish pastor famous/notorious for his Dawkins Letters.
82. Hugh Ross - astrophysicist apologist and old Earth creationist; founder Reasons to Believe.
83. Kenneth Samples - reformed philosopher, theologian, apologist with Reasons to Believe.
84. Francis Schaeffer - famous late cultural apologist, author, philosopher; founder of L'Abri.
85. Mary Jo Sharp - author, apologist, debater; founder of Confident Christianity.
86. James Sire - influential worldview author, apologist, and speaker.
87. Matt Slick - founder of CARM.org, one of the best apologetics encyclopedias on the web.
88. R.C. Sproul - notable theologian, author, and classical apologist.
89. Don Stewart - prolific author, apologist, and host of the Bible Explorer.
90. Lee Strobel - journalist famous for his Case for Christ series of books; popular apologist.
91. Richard Swinburne - world-class Oxford philosopher of religion; author.
92. Frank Turek - itinerant apologist and founder of CrossExamined; debated Hitchens.
93. Cornelius Van Til - the most famous presuppositional reformed apologist.
94. Jim Wallace - cold case detective, pastor, and apologist; excellent podcast.
95. James White - theologian, author, prolific debater, and reformed apologist.
96. Dallas Willard - Christian philosopher; notable works in philosophy, discipleship,
97. Peter S. Williams - Christian philosopher; notable works countering Dawkins
98. Douglas Wilson - presuppositional apologist; number of atheist debates (Hitchens, Barker)
99. N.T. Wright - Bishop of Durham; notable work on the resurrection.
100. Ravi Zacharias -perhaps today's most notable international cultural apologist.
52 comments :
Brian,
Awesome stuff! Thanks you!
Godspeed
I would add "has the best resource of articles on historical apologetics" for J.P. Holding (seriously, there are probably 1000-2000 of them right now).
Oh and I would also add Glenn Miller from the Christian Thinktank.
Some other notable omissions:
Nancy Pearcey
Don Johnson (debated Robert Price)
Brian, this is totally nuts. Where do you get the time to prepare all of this stuff. Dude!
yossman,
I find it more productive than watching TV. : )
David Wood & Nabeel Qureshi, MD from Acts 17.net as well. They are the most prolific debaters anywhere. There blog is http://www.answeringmuslims.com
Roger Sharp
Confident Christianity
Thank you for the additional apologists. I had to stop at some point; 100 seemed a fair stopping point -- knowing I would undoubtedly neglect some good ones. Thanks for adding to the list.
Brian,
This is a great resource! Thank you for taking the time to compile it and add the links as well! Very impressive. I have posted to Facebook and to Two Chix Apologetics (Facebook) as a permanent link.
Roger Sharp
Confident Christianity
amazing list. I have never seen anything like this before. thanks.
That must have been a lot of work - though these must be going around, we just linked to 100 living philosophers of religion on our blog.
This was a very useful list. It is amazing to know how many have dedicated their lives to the defense of the Christian faith.
An important apologist that should be here is Johnson C. Philip based in India. You can see him at
http://creationwiki.org/Johnson_C._Philip
He has authored more than 70 apologetics related books and has published more than 7000 articles.
He is not widely known in the western world because his work is confined to the non western world.
Hi there
Looks like a good list. Many I do know, most I don't. Would just like to point out though that N T Wright is not the Archbishop of Canterbury (yet!), he is the Bishop of Durham.
I'm glad I stumbled across your blog :)
Catachresis,
Thanks for pointing out that mixup! It has been fixed.
Lovely cat, by the way!
Great list. But I think you forgot someone... ;-)
Dave Hunt and his ministry along with T.A. McMahon - www.thebereancall.org
I like them the most.
I am surprised that Stephen T. Davis is not on the list. He is generally regarding as one of the top evangelical philosophers of religion in the world. Right up there with Plantinga, Swinburne, Craig, and Moreland.
Great post! Had to take a ton of time. If you were to rank the top ten for lay people, who would you select? How about the top ten for deep thinkers/students/professors/pastors? I listed some of the top apologetics books specifically designed to refute the "new atheism" here: http://bit.ly/66bhmT Bob
Dr. Michael Brown of ICN Ministries is another solid one, particularly for issues related to Judaism and Messianic Christianity.
I appreciate your work bro!
This stuff is really helpful for a rookie like me.
I just found your blog by googling "Christian apologetics," and I must say I find this very helpful. I'm a volunteer for Matt Slick's Christian and Apologetics and Research Ministry, and I can tell you've been into this for a while. Much longer than I. Thank you very much. God bless you.
Walter Martin was a true champion of the faith.
Dave Hunt is good too!
I know you had to stop somewhere but are you familiar with John Polkinghorne? He quite possibly possesses the most brilliant living mind when it comes to science and religion.
Thanks for building a great site!
Please add Jonathan Sarfati, New Zealand chemist and creation apologist. See his webpage with Creation Ministries International for his impressive credentials and accomplishments: http://creation.com/dr-jonathan-d-sarfati
Dr. Walter Martin, author of "Kingdom of the Cults". I took a class from him.
I did not see Professor John Lennox in the list. Hes very good.
I think the list should be expanded to top 500 Christian Apologist. I am thankful for this list and I will share it with everyone.
I am thankful for this list. I think that this list should be expanded.
Thanks, I will use this resource in my own endeavors.
Have you heard of Frank Pastori? I highly recommend him to this list. Thank you for your work!
I was surprised (and dismayed) to see Dallas Willard being considered as an "apologist."
May I add Dr. Kenneth G. McLeod to this list? A Well Reasoned Faith.
I my opinion the best apologists are Dinesh D' Souza, William Caig and Frank Turek!!! Check them out first before any other!
May God riohly bless you all - apologists of God - Jesus. May God the Holy Spirit use you all to persuade and convince people about who Jesus Christ really is and lead them to Him the Son of God - the greatest apologist of all time who can save souls and give eternal life!!!
What about Watchman Nee?
Why not scratch a couple out of your list (such as Willard and Caner) and add these two below?
Ken Ham
http://www.answersingenesis.org/events/bio.aspx?speaker_id=2
Sye Ten Bruggencate
www.proofthatgodexists.or
Hello Elaine,
May I ask why you think Dallas Willard's name should be removed from the list?
Godspeed
Excellent choices, but where are the women?
Dr Walter Martin. Phenomenal
Love the list. Thought I would note William P. Alston. This guy was on the front lines in epistemological debates with atheist. Absolutely brilliant philosopher who received respect for his philosophy even within secular camps.
You should also add Prof Craig S. Hawkins to your list of apologist. Founder of AIM (apologetic Information Ministries) and was Dr. Walter Martians right hand man.
Why some dead apologists and not others? You wisely included CS Lewis & GK Chesteron who are must haves, but Blaise Pascal, William Paley, & Thomas Aquinas have more cred than many of the living apologists already on your list. Also, Dr. Paul Maier is top shelf -- he's still alive though. For what it's worth I'm in favor of expanding to 200 when you have nothing better to do (smile).
I think Dr. Francis Collins deserves to be on the list. Dr. Collins is famous for leading the Human Genome Project and is currently the Director of the National Institutes of Health. He is also the author of The Language of God, an account of his conversion from atheism to Christianity (along with many fascinating aspects of his life).
Thanks, Brian. Hopefully Gene Cook's pit bull is not also unchained.
You guys should've included JP Holding of tektonics.org.
I'd add the guys over at Triablogue - Steve Hays (whom others like John Frame have recommended and cited in their publications), Jason Engwer, etc.
An anonymous comment above asked for more women. I might suggest Dorothy Sayers.
I very much feel professor Hawkins is a genius as to apologetics. He is on kkla. In los angeles 10 pm to midnight. I like all of the believers on the show. Good people.
Yes, this list should at least be expanded to 150 so as to include those apologists that people took the time to recommend here in the comments.
David H. Glass and "Atheism's New Clothes" caught my attention, and it has been getting good reviews.
I found Nancy Pearcey's "Total Truth" and "Finding Truth" to be top knotch.
Anything from Jonathan Wells, a Phd Biologist, speaks to me directly, since I personally am really big on science. He is particularly focused on exposing the Lies of Evolution, which only helps the case of Christian apologetics.
So many great ones, and so little time to get to them all.
Ever the ever were place in such an order, quite the order it would be!
Larry Taunton with Fixed Point Foundation does excellent work.
What an awesome list. Thanks for sharing! If you get the chance, check out - www.christianevidence.net - I'd recommend adding it to your list! :)
David Wood is kind of William Lane Craig for Muslims. A great debater for atheists too. He is blessed and brilliant.
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