Christian apologetics
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Christian apologetics (
Christian
History
Jewish precursors
According to
Apostolic and post-apostolic period
Christian apologetics first appear in the New Testament (e. g. Paul's preaching on Mars Hill in Acts 17:22-31). During the subapostolic age Christianity was already competing with Judaism as well as with various other religions and sects in the Greco-Roman world. Christian apologetics can be first seen in the ''Preaching of Peter'' (Gospel of Peter), but the first explicitly apologetic work comes from Quadratus of Athens (c. 125 CE) in which he writes a defense of the faith to emperor Hadrian. Only a fragment, quoted by Eusebius, has survived to our day:[3]
But the works of our Saviour were always present, for they were genuine:—those that were healed, and those that were raised from the dead, who were seen not only when they were healed and when they were raised, but were also always present; and not merely while the Saviour was on earth, but also after his death, they were alive for quite a while, so that some of them lived even to our day. (Church History iv. 3. 2)
One of the first comprehensive attacks on Christianity came from the Greek philosopher Celsus, who wrote The True Word (c. 175 CE), a polemic criticizing Christians as being unprofitable members of society.[4][5][6] In response, the church father Origen published his apologetic treatise Contra Celsum, or Against Celsus, which systematically addressed Celsus's criticisms and helped bring Christianity a level of academic respectability.[7][6] In the treatise, Origen writes from the perspective of a Platonic philosopher, drawing extensively on the teachings of Plato.[8][7][6] Contra Celsum is widely regarded by modern scholars as one of the most important works of early Christian apologetics.[7][6][9]
Other apologists from this period are
Middle Ages and Early Modern Period
Anselm of Canterbury propounded the ontological argument in his Proslogion. Thomas Aquinas presented five ways, or arguments for God's existence, in the Summa Theologica, while his Summa contra Gentiles was a major apologetic work.[11][12] Aquinas also made significant criticisms of the ontological argument which resulted in its losing popularity until it was revived by René Descartes in his Meditations.[13] Blaise Pascal outlined an approach to apologetics in his Pensées: "Men despise religion; they hate it and fear it is true. To remedy this, we must begin by showing that religion is not contrary to reason; that it is venerable, to inspire respect for it; then we must make it lovable, to make good men hope it is true; finally, we must prove it is true."[14][15]
Late Modern Period
Christian apologetics continues in modern times in a wide variety of forms. Among Catholics there are
Others include
Terminology and origin
The original Greek
In later use 'apologia' sometimes took a literary form in early Christian discourse as an example of the integration of educated Christians into the cultural life of the
In the 2nd century, apologetics was a defense or explanation of Christianity,
The apologetic historiography in the Acts of the Apostles presented Christianity as a religious movement at home within the Roman Empire and no threat to it and was a model for the first major historian of the Church, Eusebius.[25] Apologetics might also be directed to Christians already within the community explain their beliefs and justify positions.[23] Origen's apologetic Contra Celsum, for instance, provided a defense against the arguments of a critic dead for decades to provide answers to doubting Christians lacking immediate answers to the questions raised. Apologetic literature was an important medium for the formation of early Christian identity.[26]
In addition to Origen and Tertullian, early Christian apologists include
Biblical basis
R. C. Sproul, quoting the First Epistle of Peter, writes that "The defense of the faith is not a luxury or intellectual vanity. It is a task appointed by God that you should be able to give a reason for the hope that is in you as you bear witness before the world."[30] The verse quoted here reads in full: "but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect."[31]
Another passage sometimes used as a biblical basis for Christian apologetics is God's entreaty in the Book of Isaiah: "Come now, let us reason together."[32][33] Other scriptural passages which have been taken as a basis for Christian apologetics include Psalm 19, which begins "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands,"[34] and Romans 1, which reads "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."[35][36]
Varieties
There are a variety of Christian apologetic styles and schools of thought. The major types of Christian apologetics include historical and legal evidentialist apologetics, presuppositional apologetics, philosophical apologetics, prophetic apologetics, doctrinal apologetics, biblical apologetics, moral apologetics, and scientific apologetics.
Biblical apologetics
Biblical apologetics include issues concerned with the authorship and date of biblical books,
Experiential apologetics
Experiential apologetics is a reference to an appeal "primarily, if not exclusively, to experience as evidence for Christian faith."[39] Also, "they spurn rational arguments or factual evidence in favor of what they believe to be a self-verifying experience." This view stresses experience that other apologists have not made as explicit, and in the end, the concept that the Holy Spirit convinces the heart of truth becomes the central theme of the apologetic argument.[40]
Historical and legal evidentialism
A variety of arguments has been forwarded by legal scholars such as
Regarding evidence for the historicity of the Book of Acts, A. N. Sherwin-White states that:
For Acts, the confirmation of historicity is overwhelming. Acts is, in simple terms and judged externally, no less of a propaganda narrative than the Gospels, liable to similar distortions. But any attempt to reject its basic historicity, even in matters of detail, must now appear absurd. Roman historians have long taken it for granted.... The agnostic type of form-criticism would be much more credible if the compilation of the Gospels were much later in time.... Herodotus enables us to test the tempo of myth-making, [showing that] even two generations are too short a span to allow the mythical tendency to prevail over the hard historic core.[47]
Moral apologetics
Moral apologetics states that real moral obligation is a fact. Catholic apologist
Defense of miracles
C. S. Lewis,[51] Norman Geisler,[52] William Lane Craig and Christians who engage in jurisprudence Christian apologetics have argued that miracles are reasonable and plausible wherever an all-powerful Creator is postulated. In other words, it is postulated that if God exists, miracles cannot be postulated as impossible or inherently improbable.[53][54][55]
Philosophical apologetics
Philosophical apologetics concerns itself primarily with
They do not support
to suppose a plurality of "pure acts" or "first causes" or "unmoved movers").These arguments can be grouped into several categories:
- Cosmological argument – Argues that the existence of the universe demonstrates that God exists. Various primary arguments from cosmology and the nature of causation are often offered to support the cosmological argument.[56][57][58]
- Teleological argument – Argues that there is a purposeful design in the world around us, and a design requires a designer. Cicero, William Paley, and Michael Behe use this argument as well as others.[59]
- Ontological argument – Argues that the very concept of God demands that there is an actual existent God.
- Moral Argument – Argues that there are objectively valid moral values, and therefore, there must be an absolute from which they are derived.[60]
- Transcendental Argument – Argues that all our abilities to think and reason require the existence of God.
- Presuppositional arguments – Argues that the basic beliefs of theists and nontheists require God as a necessary pre-condition.
Other philosophical arguments include:
- Alvin Plantinga's argument that belief in God is properly basic, reformed epistemology.[61]
- Pascal's wager,[62] is an argument that posits that humans all bet with their lives either that God exists or that he does not. Pascal argues that a rational person should live as though God exists.[63][64]
In addition to arguments for the existence of God, Christian apologists have also attempted to respond successfully to arguments against the existence of God. Two very popular arguments against the existence of God are the hiddenness argument and the argument from evil. The hiddenness argument tries to show that a perfectly loving God's existence is incompatible with the existence of nonresistant nonbelievers. The argument from evil tries to show that the existence of evil renders God's existence unlikely or impossible.
Presuppositional apologetics
Presuppositional apologetics is a
Van Til drew upon but did not always agree with, the work of Dutch
Clark held that the Scriptures constituted the axioms of Christian thought, which could not be questioned, though their consistency could be discussed.[65] A consequence of this position is that God's existence can never be demonstrated, either by empirical means or by philosophical argument. In The Justification of Knowledge, the Calvinist theologian Robert L. Reymond argues that believers should not even attempt such proofs.
Prophetic fulfillment
In his book Science Speaks, Peter Stoner argues that only God knows the future and that Biblical prophecies of a compelling nature have been fulfilled.[67] Apologist Josh McDowell documents the Old Testament prophecies fulfilled by Christ, relating to his ancestral line, birthplace, virgin birth, miracles, death, and resurrection.[68] Apologist Blaise Pascal believed that the prophecies are the strongest evidence for Christianity. He notes that Jesus not only foretold, but was foretold, unlike in other religions, and that these prophecies came from a succession of people over a span of four thousand years.[69]
Origins apologetics
Many Christians contend that science and the Bible do not contradict each other and that scientific fact supports Christian apologetics.[70][71] The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that "The question about the origins of the world and of man has been the object of many scientific studies which have splendidly enriched our knowledge... These discoveries invite us to even greater admiration for the greatness of the Creator."[72] The theologian and mathematician Marin Mersenne used celestial mechanics as evidence in his apologetic work,[73] while Matteo Ricci engaged in scientific apologetics in China.[74] In modern times, the theory of the Big Bang has been used in support of Christian apologetics.[75][76]
Several Christian apologists have sought to reconcile Christianity and science concerning the question of origins.
One of the most influential examples[78] of a Christian-evolutionary synthesis is the work of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, which was intended as apologetics to the world of science,[79] but was later condemned by the Catholic Church.[80]
Creationist apologetics
Creationist apologetics aims to defend views of origins such as Young Earth creationism and Old Earth creationism that run counter to mainstream science.
Young Earth creationists believe the Bible teaches that the Earth is approximately 6,000 years old, and reject the scientific consensus for the
Old Earth creationists believe it is possible to harmonize the Bible's six-day account of creation with the scientific consensus that the universe is 13.8 billion-years-old and Earth is 4.54 billion-years-old. Old Earth creationists, such as astrophysicist
Major colleges and universities offering Christian apologetics programs
School | Location | Program | Comments | Degrees awarded | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Biola University | La Mirada, California, US | Christian Apologetics | Certificate, M.A. | [89] | |
Central India Theological Seminary | Itarsi, India | Christian Apologetics | M.Th., Ph.D. | [90] | |
Clarks Summit University | South Abington Township, Pennsylvania, US | Biblical Apologetics | M.A. | [92] | |
Colorado Christian University | Colorado, US | Applied Apologetics | Certificate, Bachelors, MA | [93] | |
Denver Seminary | Colorado, US | Apologetics and Ethics | M.A., M.Div. with Emphasis | [94][95] | |
Hong Kong Centre for Christian Apologetics | Hong Kong | Christian Apologetics | Certificate in Christian Apologetics | [96] | |
Houston Baptist University
|
Houston, Texas, US | Christian Apologetics | M.A.A. | [97] | |
Lancaster Bible College | Lancaster, Pennsylvania | Christian Apologetics | M.A. | [98] | |
Morling College | Sydney, Australia | Christian Apologetics | M.Div | [99] | |
New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary | New Orleans, Louisiana | Christian Apologetics | M.A., M.Div., D.Min., Ph.D. | [100] | |
Oklahoma Wesleyan University | Bartlesville, Oklahoma | Christian Apologetics | M.A. | ||
Westminster Theological Seminary | Philadelphia, US | Apologetics | Doctoral, Masters, Certificate Programs | [101] | |
South African Theological Seminary | Johannesburg, South Africa | Apologetics | Th.M. | [102] | |
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary | Louisville, KY | Apologetics/Apologetics & Worldviews | M.A., Ph.D. | [103] | |
Southern Evangelical Seminary | Charlotte, North Carolina | Apologetics/Scientific Apologetics | Certificate, MA, M.Div., D.Min. | [104] | |
Global Life University/Ratio Christi Philippines | Pasig City, Philippines | Christian Apologetics | Certificate, M.A. | [105] | |
Gimlekollen NLA College | Kristiansand, Norway | Communication, worldview and Christian apologetics | Certificate, Bachelor | [106] | |
Liberty University | Lynchburg, Virginia, US | Christian Apologetics (M.A.), Bible Apologetics (B.S.) | B.S., M.A. | [107][108] |
See also
- Christian existential apologetics
- Christian philosophy
- Christianity and Theosophy
- Ecumenical apologetics
- Evidential apologetics
- Faith and rationality
- List of Christian apologetic works
- Religious epistemology
References
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- ^ Dulles, p. 297 ff.
- Vatican City State. p. 1. (The admonition is dated 30 June 1962).
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- ^ "Biola University". Retrieved 16 July 2014.
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- ^ "Denver Seminary Program Information". Retrieved 21 September 2014.
- ^ "Denver Seminary Program Information". Archived from the original on 6 June 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
- ^ "Hong Kong Centre for Christian Apologetics". Archived from the original on 4 December 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ "Houston Baptist University". Archived from the original on 4 October 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
- ^ "Lancaster Bible College". Retrieved 26 January 2024.
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- ^ "My SATS". Retrieved 25 July 2014.[permanent dead link]
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External links
- Media related to Christian apologetics at Wikimedia Commons
- Detailed summaries of each chapter of many famous books concerning science and faith (archived 24 May 2020)