Book Review: Apologetics Beyond Reason by James Sire

Apologetics Beyond Reason ventures into nontraditional territory when it comes to classic apologetics. Although I’m familiar with Sire’s other work and have valued greatly from his other writings, the title grabbed my attention. Coming from the analytic tradition, I was intrigued how one might get “beyond reason” when defending the Christian faith without also utilizing reason. What I found was a robust apologetic method and one that will likely resonate more with a [post] post-modern/existential culture than more traditional approaches. While apologetic models typically fall within rational or evidential spaces, Sire’s presuppositional touch (see the post Apologetic Taxonomy) coupled with his push toward the “intuitive” will add valuable insights in  the toolbox of Christian apologists. This book deserves a wide and careful read.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (12/12 - 12/19)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis - 2.99 on Kindle
• When the Lights Go Down: Movie Review as Christian Practice - 3.03
• Worldview Conversations: How to Share Your Faith and Keep Your Friends - 2.99
• Five Views on Apologetics - 2.99

WEEKLY LINKS:
• Top 5 Books for Christmas Giving
• Christmas Apologetics Resources
• Biola Apologetics Events 2015
• Why Naturalism is Simply Unbelievable
• An Interview with Joel Furches
• Book Review: Grand Central Question
• History Testifies that Jesus Worked Miracles
• Christmas Resources from a315.co/16hHISg
• Were the Gospel Authors Really Present? (Video)
• The Resurrection is Central to the History of Jesus
• Is Our Universe Simply the Winner of a Universe Lottery?
• The Fact the Other Side Can Make a Case Doesn’t Mean It’s True
• How Can Pastors Equip Their Churches To Defend The Faith? (Video)
• Astronomer Guillermo Gonzalez lectures on intelligent design and habitability
• New from Frank Turek: Stealing from God: Why Atheists Need God to Make Their Case

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

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Read Along Index: The Gospel in the Marketplace of Ideas

This is the chapter study index for the Read Along project for the book The Gospel in the Marketplace of Ideas: Paul's Mars Hill Experience for Our Pluralistic World by Paul Copan and Kenneth D. Litwak.

[Podcast Feed RSS | Podcast in iTunes]
Click to subscribe to the audio.

• Introduction & Author Interview
• Chapter 1: Welcome to Athens
• Chapter 2: Was Paul's Speech at Athens a Mistake?
• Chapter 3: Paul's Athens
• Chapter 4: Our Athens
• Chapter 5: Paul's Speeches in Acts
• Chapter 6: Paul's Audience
• Chapter 7: Paul's Gospel for the Educated
• Chapter 8: The Art of Persuasion
• Chapter 9: Acting on the Truth
• Chapter 10: Going to Our Own Mars Hill

Thanks for Reading Along.

10 Apologetics Books for Giving

Last year you may have read the post Top 5 Books for Christmas Giving. Well, here's a revised list... of ten books. Keep in mind, this is no definitive list of "best apologetics books." This is a list of books that I feel would be the best to choose from for giving to people who have varying interest in apologetics. This list is split into three groups. Group one is for people who you want to reach apologetically. Group two is for people who are new to apologetics. Group three is for the person who is an avid apologist. And the number one book fits all three categories.

Three Books to Reach Out Apologetically

10. The Ambition by Lee Strobel - Not straight apologetics. It's a novel. But it's a great novel. The content doesn't preach either, but the themes are appropriate to open the door for further conversation. Finally, this book may provide an open door for the reader to explore other books by Strobel.

Terminology Tuesday: Monism

Monism: Any antidualist philosophy that appeals to one unifying principle to explain all that is. In response to the metaphysical questions "How many things are real or exist?" monism answers, "Only one reality or thing" or "One kind of thing with many different things within that category" (attributive monism). In effect, monism allows for no distinction between God and creation.1

1. Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki & Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), p. 80.

"Why I am a Christian" Testimony by David Wood

Former atheist David Wood (of Acts 17.net) shares his testimony about how he became a Christian. The video explains why he left atheism and surrendered to Jesus as Lord and Savior. Hear Apologetics 315's interview with David Wood here: Audio / Transcript.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (11/28 - 12/05)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• Christianity's Dangerous Idea by Alister McGrath - 2.99
• When the Lights Go Down: Movie Review as Christian Practice - 3.03
• Worldview Conversations: How to Share Your Faith and Keep Your Friends - 2.99
• Five Views on Apologetics - 2.99
• Four Views on the Historical Adam - 2.99

WEEKLY LINKS:
• Why the Historicity of Jesus Matters
• Daniel Dennett's Self-Creating Universe
• Video: Moral Argument - Peter S. Williams
• 10 Things That Apologists Should Know Something About
• The Benefits of Apologetics: a reasonable Christian faith
• New study: Saturn’s orbit keeps Earth in the circumstellar habitable zone
• Article: Ten Principles When Considering Alleged Bible Contradictions
• What the Earliest Non-Biblical Authors Say About Jesus (Free Bible Insert)

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

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Book Review: Questioning the Bible

The Bible's authority is constantly under attack in today's culture. It is important that Christians prepare themselves to address the challenges for their own faith and for overcoming intellectual challenges in their evangelistic efforts. Jonathan Morrow's new book Questioning the Bible: 11 Major Challenges to the Bible's Authority (Kindle and Paperback) aims to be an introductory resource for the Christian to rise to these challenges at an intellectual level.

The book's 234 pages are divided by the eleven challenges and appendices. Morrow also includes, at the end of each chapter, a three-point summary, questions to spur discussion, and a short list of resources for more in-depth research into the challenges and their resolutions. This review will provide a chapter-by-chapter summary and conclude with the reviewer's overall impression and recommendation.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (11/14 - 11/21)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• How to Argue like Jesus - 0.99
• Christianity's Dangerous Idea by Alister McGrath - 2.99
• When the Lights Go Down: Movie Review as Christian Practice - 3.03
• God's Battalions by Rodney Stark - 2.99
• Faith and Its Critics: A Conversation - 1.99
• Worldview Conversations: How to Share Your Faith and Keep Your Friends - 2.99
• History, Law and Christianity: The Evidence for a Historical Jesus - FREE

WEEKLY LINKS:
• Seven Days That Divide the World
• The Historical Argument for God
• Approaching academic life as a Christian
• 2013 Mt. Airy Apologetics Conference Audio
• Video: Science and Religion...Conflict, Myth
• 3 Considerations for the Ontological Argument
• What If You Can't Be Reasonable Without Faith?
• Can We Answer Every Skeptic’s Question? (Video)
• 2014 Mt.Airy "Defending the Faith" Conference Audio
• How Heretics Help Establish the Historicity of Jesus  
• What is the unborn? A look at the scientific evidence
• Morality Relies Upon God's Character, Not Simply His Commands
• Tips for Sharing Your Faith #4 - Avoid Smokescreens and Dodges
• The importance of having a narrative when confronting the assumption of naturalism

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

• 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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Terminology Tuesday: Syncretism

Syncretism: The attempt to assimilate differing or opposite doctrines and practices, especially between philosophical and religious systems, resulting in a new system altogether in which the fundamental structure and tenets of each have been changed. Syncretism of the gospel occurs when its essential character is confused with elements from the culture. In syncretism the gospel is lost as the church simply confirms what is already present in the culture.1

1. Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki & Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), p. 111.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (11/07 - 11/14)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• Alive: A Cold-Case Approach to the Resurrection - 1.99
• A To Z With C. S. Lewis by Louis A. Markos - 0.99
• Did Jesus Rise From the Dead? by WL Craig - 1.99
• History, Law and Christianity: The Evidence for a Historical Jesus - FREE
• How to Argue like Jesus - 0.99
• If God, Why Evil? by Norman L. Geisler for 1.99
• Christianity's Dangerous Idea by Alister McGrath - 2.99
• When the Lights Go Down: Movie Review as Christian Practice - 3.03

WEEKLY LINKS:
• The Problem of Good
• The Argument from Desire
• What Really is Apologetics?
• Has Science Explained Away God?
• Were the Gospel Authors Biased? (Video)
• Tips for Sharing Your Faith: #1 - Slow Down!
• Moral Relativism and the Reformer’s Dilemma
• Former atheist professor shares her journey to faith
• Learning Logic by William Lane Craig now Available!
• Debate Video: William Lane Craig vs. Richard Carrier
• Why Do Two People See the Same Evidence Differently?
• 5 Threats Of Demanding Certainty To Change Your Beliefs
• Article: 14 Ways I Teach Apologetics to my 5-Year-Olds by Natasha Crain
• At What Age Should Parents Start Training Kids to Defend Their Faith?
• Debate Video: Does the Christian God Exist? J.P. Moreland vs Clancy Martin
• Video: William Lane Craig Interviewed by Lee Strobel At Houston Baptist University

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

• 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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Terminology Tuesday: Documentary Hypothesis

Documentary Hypothesis: Also known as the JEDP theory, the documentary hypothesis arose out of the work of nineteenth-century OT scholars K. Graf and J. Wellhausen. They suggested that the Pentateuch (the first five books of the OT) was actually a compilation of the work of at least four separate sources, designated as the J (Jehovah) source, the E (Elohim) source, the D (Deuteronomist) source and the P (Priestly) source. The hypothesis stirred great controversy among conservative scholars who generally accepted Moses as the sole author of the Pentateuch.1

1. Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki & Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), p. 40.

Terminology Tuesday: Docetism

Docetism: In the early church, the teaching that Jesus was fully God but only appeared to be human (taken form the Greek dokeō, "to seem or appear"). Docetist theologians emphasized the qualitative difference between God and humans and therefore downplayed the human elements of Jesus' life in favor of those that pointed to his deity. The early church rejected docetism as an heretical interpretation of the biblical teaching about Jesus.1

1. Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki & Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), p. 40.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (10/17 - 10/24)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• Alive: A Cold-Case Approach to the Resurrection - 1.99
• A To Z With C. S. Lewis by Louis A. Markos - 0.99
• Did Jesus Rise From the Dead? by WL Craig - 1.99
• History, Law and Christianity: The Evidence for a Historical Jesus - FREE
• How to Argue like Jesus - 0.99
• When the Lights Go Down: Movie Review as Christian Practice - 3.03

WEEKLY LINKS:
• Is the Universe Hostile to Life?
• Resources to Help You Respond to Mormonism
• Was the message of the New Testament corrupted?
• Sunday Quote: Ancient Apologetics and the Disinterest of the Modern Age
• J. Warner Wallace: practical advice on becoming an effective one-dollar apologist

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

• 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.

Everyone Has A Worldview…What’s Yours? (Video / Quiz)

Does God Exist? How Did Everything Begin? Who Am I? Why Am I Here? What Happens After I Die? Cabbages and puppies don’t think about this stuff…but people do. Reflecting on the big questions in life is part of what makes us human. Everyone Has A Worldview…What’s Yours? Take the Quiz at www.impact360.org/worldviewquiz

Terminology Tuesday: Dialectic

Dialectic: A process of thinking or argument that involves contradictions and their resolution, sometimes in the form of questions and opposing answers. The term has been used very differently by different philosophers. Plato thought of dialectic as the highest form of reasoning. Aristotle and later medieval philosophers tended to think of dialectic as a formal method of disputation. Immanuel Kant developed a "transcendental dialectic" that attempted to reveal the contradictions into which uncritical reason falls. G. W. F. Hegel developed a dialectical logic, which he saw as providing the formal structure of history as well, seen as the progressive unfolding of the Absolute. This historical dialectic was taken over by Karl Marx and put to use in his dialectical materialism.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 35.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (10/17 - 10/24)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• Alive: A Cold-Case Approach to the Resurrection - 1.99
• A To Z With C. S. Lewis by Louis A. Markos - 0.99
• Did Jesus Rise From the Dead? by WL Craig - 1.99
• History, Law and Christianity: The Evidence for a Historical Jesus 3.99
• Tactics by Greg Koukl - 1.99
• The Christ Files: How Historians Know What They Know about Jesus - 2.99
• Is Your Church Ready?: Motivating Leaders to Live an Apologetic Life - 2.99
• Think Christianly: Looking at the Intersection of Faith and Culture - 2.99

WEEKLY LINKS:
• The Fifth Gospel
• John Lennox: Sharing Hope
• Horus Reads the Internet (Video)
• My Favorite Analogy of the Trinity
• Did Jesus Think Jesus Was God? (Video)
• What Does it Mean to Say God is Infinite?
• Video: Defending the Resurrection of Jesus
• Summary of the Schieber-Giunta Debate (2014)
• What (and When) Were the Earliest Claims About Jesus?
• 2014 Online Apologetics Conference: Women Equipping Women
• Video: Homosexuality- Compassion and Clarity by Sean McDowell
• Does archaeological evidence confirm names, dates and places in the Bible?

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

• 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.

Terminology Tuesday: Jainism

Jainism: One of the religions of India, distinguished from Hinduism by its refusal to accept the Brahmanic Vedas as authoritative. Jainism grew out of the teachings of Mahavira, a fifth-century B.C. contemporary of Gautama (the Buddha). It is distinguished by its emphasis on asceticism and commitment to the principle of harmlessness.1

1. C.Stephen Evans, Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), p. 63.

Book Review: The Bible Among the Myths

It is quite common to hear or see people include the Bible as just another piece of ancient near east mythology that may be rejected as having no applicability to reality. John Oswalt decided to investigate this claim and address it directly in his book The Bible Among The Myths: Unique Revelation or Just Ancient Literature? (promo video). This book comes to me by recommendation of several people, and the introduction alone sparked great excitement to dig in quickly and deeply. This review will be a chapter-by-chapter summary and will include some of my concluding thoughts.

Part 1: The Bible and Myth
Chapter 1: The Bible In Its World
Oswalt begins by providing the historical context. He takes the reader quickly through Greek philosophy, which was based on the idea that something cannot be and not be at the same time (the law of non-contradiction). The Greek philosophers struggled (and lost) for acceptance of this radical idea in their culture. At roughly the same time the Hebrew idea of a single God, who created the universe, (an idea also unique among cultures of the time) was under attack in the mind of the very people who carried the tradition because of the rising military powers, which affirmed contradicting theologies, that eventually overtook the nature of Israel. However, this "set the stage" for Jesus Christ to come on the scene and bring these two culturally independent yet correct understandings of reality together into one consistent worldview that is now known as "Christianity." A single God, who created the universe, is the metaphysical foundation for the law of non-contradiction that his creation (and the rest of reality, for that matter) adheres to. The Christian worldview was necessary for logic and science to fully develop and fully function (seemingly) independently.

Weekly Apologetics Bonus Links (10/03 - 10/10)

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

KINDLE DEALS:
• Alive: A Cold-Case Approach to the Resurrection - 1.99
• A To Z With C. S. Lewis by Louis A. Markos - 0.99
• Did Jesus Rise From the Dead? by WL Craig - 1.99
• History, Law and Christianity: The Evidence for a Historical Jesus 3.99
• Has Christianity Failed You? by Ravi Zacharias - 3.79
• Walking from East to West by Ravi Zacharias - 3.79

WEEKLY LINKS:
• John Lennox in Belfast
• Does Apologetics Work?
• Skills for the Apologist
• RZIM Europe Training Days - January 2015
• Understanding and Answering Islam Conference
• Moral Laws Necessitate a Moral Lawgiver
• Burning Questions - Documentary Series
• There is No “Bible” in the Bible–Really?
• Does Fitch's Paradox Imply an Omniscient God?
• Not God’s Type: An Atheist Academic Lays Down Her Arms
• If you find a discrepancy in the Bible, does that mean Jesus didn’t exist?
• Does Quantum Physics Provide an Exception to Premise 1 of the Kalam Cosmological Argument?

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

• 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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Read Along: Chapter Ten—Going to Our Own Mars Hill

Today we conclude our Read Along with Apologetics 315 project, ending with chapter ten of The Gospel in the Marketplace of Ideas: Paul's Mars Hill Experience for Our Pluralistic World by Paul Copan and Kenneth D. Litwak. (Hear the introductory interview about the book here.) Below you will find an audio intro for Chapter Ten, 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 on the Christian Apologetics Alliance Facebook page here.