Read Along: Ch2—Are Science and Christianity at Odds?

Today we continue with Chapter Two in the Read Along with Apologetics 315 project. This is a chapter-by-chapter study through the book Is God Just a Human Invention? And Seventeen Other Questions Raised by the New Atheists by Sean McDowell and Jonathan Morrow. (Hear an interview about the book here.) Below you will find an audio intro for Chapter Two, a brief summary of the chapter, a PDF workbook with questions for the chapter, and some notable quotes. You're also encouraged to share your comments and feedback for each chapter in the comment section below. Feel free to interact!

Pro-Life Ethics MP3 Audio by Scott Klusendorf

In this audio, bio-ethicist Scott Klusendorf presents a talk at a Gordon College convocation, receiving a standing ovation for his pro-life case. For more pro-life resources, go here.

Full MP3 Audio here.

Listen.

Bruce Little Interview Transcript

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Bruce Little. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello this is Brian Auten of Apologetics 315. Today's interview is with Dr. Bruce Little. He is the Associate Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He's also the author of A Creation-Order Theodicy: God and Gratuitous Evil. The purpose of our interview today is to learn a bit more about Dr. Little and his work, discuss the topic of evil and theodicy and seek his advice for Christian apologists. So Dr. Little, thanks for doing this interview.

BL: My pleasure, Brian.

BA: Would you mind telling our listeners a bit more about yourself and your background?

Terminology Tuesday: Nihilism

Nihilism: The rejection of objective moral values and structures, literally "nothingism." The nihilist is a skeptic about moral traditions and obligations and does not regard them as binding. A distinction should be made between the attitude of the reluctant or sorrowing nihilist, who finds nihilism terrifying but true, and the celebrative nihilist, who view nihilism as liberation from oppressive rules. Friedrich Nietzsche sometimes described nihilism as a fate that haunts Western culture. At other times, he seems more celebrative in his calls for the construction of a new morality. For those who believe morality requires a transcendent basis, Nietzsche is seen as a guide pointing beyond nihilism.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 82.

Apologist Interview: Randal Rauser

Today's interview is with systematic and analytic theologian Randal Rauser. Randal is the author of a number of books with theological and apologetical themes, including his latest: The Swedish Atheist, The Scuba Diver, and Other Apologetic Rabbit Trails. He talks about his background and work, the "tentative apologist," theology, apologetics, and philosophy, his approach to apologetic interaction, authoring a book with John Loftus, his latest book, skills apologists should master, common pitfalls, developing relationships, and how to be a better theologian. Check out Randal's blog here.

Full Interview MP3 Audio here (36 min)

Enjoy.
Subscribe to the Apologetics 315 Interviews podcast here or in iTunes.

St. Augustine on the Gospel

"If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don't like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself."

- St. Augustine of Hippo

Book Review: Mapping the Origins Debate: Six Models of the Beginning of Everything by Gerald Rau

Most Christians have questions about Genesis in relation to science. As I’ve studied the first chapters hundreds if not thousands of times, my perspective has changed quite a bit. I grew up in churches that most likely accepted an old earth, but said little to nothing about evolution. Despite the claims of internet atheists to the contrary, I think this is probably the experience of the majority of evangelical churchgoers in America. These issues simply are not central in most sermons or Bible studies.

Yet, when I was seventeen years old and became more serious about my faith, I picked up a copy of Henry Morris’s The Genesis Record at a local bookstore. The book fascinated me because it intertwined scientific issues into its discussions of Genesis. Most Bible studies I had attended or read only focused on moral and theological issues. Young Earth Creationism (YEC) quickly became my perspective. In older message boards and chat rooms, I started using this information to argue against atheists who largely held to a naturalistic evolutionary (NE) perspective. For them, God never intervenes because they claim He doesn’t exist.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (04/05 - 04/12)

Here are this week's recommended apologetics links. Enjoy.

• Apologetics Audiobook Directory

• A Response to the Zeitgeist Movie

• Biola on the Road: Apologetics events

• 16 Facts Relevant to the Resurrection

• An Abductive Thomistic Cosmological Argument

• Cheap on Kindle: C.S. Lewis—The Four Loves

• Ravi Zacharias video: "Why I'm Not An Atheist"

• Four Poor Reasons for Rejecting the Resurrection

• “Love Wins” by Rob Bell- A Brief Review and Study Guide

• Challenge Response: The Gospels Aren't Eyewitness Accounts

• Craig Blomberg on the historical reliability of the New Testament

• William Lane Craig lectures on failure in the Christian life

• Response to Claim That ID Theory Is An Argument from Incredulity

• Bible Contradictions - Why Responding "Show Me Some" Doesn't Work

• Gary Habermas: five reasons to believe Jesus rose from the dead

• Could you convince people that chocolate chip cookies are the best cookies?

• Heaven: Biblical Answers to Common Questions by Randy Alcorn for $0.52 on Kindle

Apologetics 315 is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit. Would you support us monthly?

• Shopping via Amazon? If you use this link, a bit of your purchase goes to fund Apologetics 315. Thanks for those of you using the link, as it helps Ap315.
Canada here. UK here.

• Would you like to help with interview transcription? If so, contact Ap315 here.

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For daily post links, please follow on Facebook.

Read Along: Chapter One—Is Faith Irrational?

Today we begin our new Read Along with Apologetics 315 project. This is a chapter-by-chapter study through the book Is God Just a Human Invention? And Seventeen Other Questions Raised by the New Atheists by Sean McDowell and Jonathan Morrow. (Hear an interview about the book here.) Below you will find an audio intro for Chapter One, a brief summary of the chapter, a PDF workbook with questions for the chapter, and some notable quotes. You're also encouraged to share your comments and feedback for each chapter in the comment section below. Feel free to interact!

Douglas Groothuis Defense of Natural Theology MP3

Christian Philosopher and apologist Douglas Groothuis presents a lecture on A Defense of Natural Theology.
Full MP3 audio here.
Original media source here.
Enjoy.

Peter S. Williams vs. Christopher Norris: Does God Exist?

In this debate, Organised by the Christian Union and the Atheist Humanist & Secularist Society, Professor Christopher Norris of Cardiff University and Peter S. Williams debate the question: "Does God exist?" Watch the video on YouTube, or download the MP3 audio here. Enjoy.

Terminology Tuesday: Truth

Truth: That which corresponds to or adequately expresses what is real. Most philosophers have conceived of truth solely as a property of propositions. The most common account of propositional truth is the correspondence theory, which holds that a proposition is true if and only if it corresponds to the way things are. Rival accounts include the coherence theory, which views truth as the property of a proposition that is part of the most coherent system of propositions, and the pragmatic theory, which defines true propositions in terms of their usefulness in making predictions and dealing with reality. Ordinary language and the Bible use the term truth more broadly. Thus we speak of true friendship and truth in a relationship.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 118.

Philosopher Interview: Max Andrews

Today's interview is with Max Andrews. Max is a graduate student from Liberty University, whose research is in philosophy of science and religion. He talks about his background and education, his interest and research in multiverse theory, the fine-tuning argument, Liberty University, advice for Christians studying apologetics, his Sententias blog, the development of the Christian mind, and applying apologetics.

Full Interview MP3 Audio here (50 min)
Enjoy.
Subscribe to the Apologetics 315 Interviews podcast here or in iTunes.

G.K. Chesterton on Arguing with the Madman

"If you argue with a madman, it is extremely probable that you will get the worst of it; for in many ways his mind moves all the quicker for not being delayed by things that go with good judgment. He is not hampered by a sense of humour or by clarity, or by the dumb certainties of experience. He is the more logical for losing certain sane affections. Indeed, the common phrase for insanity is in this respect a misleading one. The madman is not the man who has lost his reason. The madman is the man who has lost everything except his reason."

—G. K. Chesterton
Orthodoxy (New York: John Lane Co., 1909), p. 32

Review: Warrant: The Current Debate by Alvin Plantinga

Before summarizing Warrant: The Current Debate (henceforth WCD), it is helpful to understand, in broad outline, Plantinga’s Warrant trilogy[1] as a whole. In WCD, Plantinga surveys various naturalistic versions of warrant and, by examining scenarios in which the conditions for warrant posited by a given theory of warrant are met but knowledge is still lacking, teases out what the missing ingredients are. In the next volume (Warrant and Proper Function) Plantinga fleshes out his proposed definition of warrant and examines its adequacy by applying it to a baker’s dozen of our cognitive faculties (including memory, perception, and testimony). Along the way he notes that several of the aspects of his version of warrant fit better with theism than with naturalism. In the final volume (Warranted Christian Belief) Plantinga examines the role of warrant in theistic belief in general and Christian belief in particular.

In the introduction to WCD Plantinga lays his cards on the table: he is an externalist in epistemology. All kinds of subtle qualifications to the definitions of internalism and externalism can be found in Plantinga’s work, but the basic idea is that an internalist with respect to warrant is concerned with how things go with an individual ‘downstream from experience’. For example, an internalist may be most concerned not with what is going on in the environment external to the individual, but what is internal and (to some extent) under the control or present to the awareness of the individual. An externalist, as might be expected, places more emphasis on states of affairs which are external to the individual or outside the control or awareness of the individual. (Again, these are imprecise terms. At various places throughout WCD, Plantinga encouragingly notes the ambiguities and the need for multiple examples before a given definition in this area becomes clear). And, of course, there are multiple varieties and subvarieties of both internalism and externalism.[2]

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (03/29 - 04/05)

Here are this week's recommended apologetics links. Enjoy.

• ISWA University

• Get the NIV and FSB FREE

• Why Did Jesus Need to Die?

• John Lennox: Website Updated

• The Problem of Internet Atheists

• A Moral Argument Against Darwinism

• Is Christianity Too Good to be True?

• Why did Jesus have to die? 50 reasons

• Come to Unbelievable? The Conference 2013 - Video

• 14 Evidences for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

• Dr. Tim McGrew Grassroots Apologetics Training Videos Faith

• We Can Corroborate the Gospels without Verifying Every Detail?

• William Lane Craig and J.P. Moreland on Empty Selves in the Church

• William Lane Craig debates James Crossley on the resurrection of Jesus

• Ten Basic Facts about the NT Canon that Every Christian Should Memorize: #5

• William Lane Craig and atheist Daniel Dennett discuss cosmology and fine-tuning

Apologetics 315 is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit. Would you support us monthly?

• Shopping via Amazon? If you use this link, a bit of your purchase goes to fund Apologetics 315. Thanks for those of you using the link, as it helps Ap315.
Canada here. UK here.

• Would you like to help with interview transcription? If so, contact Ap315 here.

Get these sorts of links and more by following on Twitter.
For daily post links, please follow on Facebook.

Do You Want to Read Along?

Last year Apologetics 315 did a Read Along project with the excellent apologetics textbook Christian Apologetics by Doug Groothuis. (The index can be found here.) It was only 700+ pages.

Then we tackled a second, shorter book, under 300 pages, just 18 chapters: Is God Just a Human Invention: And Seventeen Other Questions Raised by the New Atheists by Sean McDowell and Jonathan Morrow. (Hear the interview with the authors here and book review here.)

Due to a number of requests, we will be restarting this Read Along this month for a second time around!

Why choose this book? For a number of reasons:
First, the quality of the content is excellent. The authors have a wonderful ability to distill key ideas concisely without sacrificing depth. Second, the size is right. The chapters are a manageable size and the book isn't overwhelming. The diversity of content keeps it fresh, while staying relevant to key apologetic topics. Third, it introduces the reader to the key voices on the apologetic landscape. It also provides helpful pointers to key resources for further reading. This is a great place to get started down the right path in dealing with each particular issue. Finally, this book covers the kind of issues that we deal with everyday in conversation, on the internet, and as we grapple with the issues ourselves.

So what's the plan? For those who did the Read Along previously, you'll see that things will flow the same way: Audio will be provided each week with chapter summaries, a PDF study guide, and a place to discuss the reading online.

Okay, so when do we start? We'll start next Friday. In the meantime, you can pick up the paperback or the Kindle version of the book so you'll be ready to start.

Looking forward to reading along with you again!

Sean McDowell and Michael Shermer Dialogue Videos

In this series of unscripted videos by SAVN.tv, Sean McDowell and Michael Shermer talk about the Fine-Tuning of the Universe, Objective Morality, and the Evidence for God. The conversation was hosted by Cross Examination, a show produced by The Salvation Army to stimulate thinking and discussion:

• Objective morality and God: Part 1

• Objective morality and God: Part 2

• The Fine-Tuning of the Universe

• Does atheism or theism better explain the universe?

• Evidence and God

Watch all the videos on one page over at Thinking Matters.
Enjoy.

Ellis Potter Interview Transcript

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Ellis Potter. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello, this is Brian Auten of Apologetics 315. Today, I’m speaking with Ellis Potter. Ellis is the pastor of the International, English-speaking Church of Lausanne in Switzerland and former member of L'Abri Fellowship. He was born in California and was a Zen Buddhist for many years before becoming a Christian. And he has lectured and preached all over the world but his main area of ministry work has been in Eastern Europe for the last 20 years.

Today I will be asking Ellis about his conversion from Buddhism, his interaction with Francis Schaeffer and his approach to Apologetics. So thanks for speaking with me today, Ellis.

EP: Glad to be with you, Brian.

BA: So before we talk about your story - What sort of ministry work are you currently involved in?

EP: Currently I am pastoring the church in Lausanne. I live in Basel and it’s a 3-hour commute but I only work 20% for the church. I go two weekends a month and one of the reasons for that is because my work involves a lot of travel and I go as you said to Eastern Europe and in a couple weeks I am going to go to Australia and I will go to Norway in October and in December to Romania and in January to Hawaii and there are a lot of places to go and I lecture and preach in churches and lecture at universities and in schools of various Christian organizations.

BA: Now there are a lot of different things we could talk about today and lets start with your past experience with Zen Buddhism. You were a Buddhist monk and you got acquainted with Francis Schaeffer's work at L'Abri and you ended up converting to Christianity. Now could you tell our listeners about your overall journey?

Terminology Tuesday: Agnosticism

Agnosticism: The position that neither affirms belief in God (theism) nor denies the existence of God (atheism) but instead suspends judgment. It is helpful to distinguish the "modest agnostic," who merely claims to be unable to decide the question of God's reality, from the "aggressive agnostic," who claims that no one can decide the question and that suspension of judgment is the only reasonable stance.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 9.

Free: Essential Apologetics PowerPoint Series

In partnership with The PowerPoint Apologist, Apologetics 315 is offering a series of 12 Free PowerPoint presentations, released monthly. These cover 12 essential topics in apologetics. These are free to download, modify, and use for your own apologetics presentations. (However, please retain the final two slides featuring the PowerPoint Apologist and Apologetics 315 resources.)

The second in the series is "Why Believe Anything?"
Download it here. Slideshare link here.
Enjoy.