...EVIDENTIAL APOLOGETICS Michael V. Galarneau Jr. Introduction to Apologetics APOL 500 September 9, 2012 Contents Introduction 1 Summary of Evidential Apologetics 1 Critique of Evidential Apologetics 2 Proponents of Evidential Apologetics 3 Conclusion 3 Bibliography 4 Introduction Apologetics has a long history within Christianity. The term, itself, comes from the Greek word apologia which is found in 1 Peter 3:15 giving apologetics a biblical origin. Peter’s call for believers to “make a defense (apologia)” is the heart of Christian Apologetics. The idea is that, in the face of unbelief and persecution, Christians need to be ready to defend or argue for their belief in Christ. Put a little more plainly, apologetics is “defending Christianity in the context of an unbelieving and skeptical world.” Apologetics comes in many forms or styles that can by generally categorized as one of two differing styles: positive apologetics (“presents the truth of Christ”) or polemics (“proclaims the errors of all other systems”). Within the two styles of apologetics, there are many different approaches to or uses of them. This paper will focus on just one of the many Apologetic Methods: Evidentialism, with the purpose of providing an analysis of the evidential approach to apologetics. Summary of Evidential Apologetics Evidential Apologetics is a form of positive apologetics that is actually a sub-genre of the Classical...
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...Cornelius Van Til has been regarded as one of the most influential Christian philosophers in apologetics. He is well known for revitalizing the traditional method of apologetics to a presuppositional method for defending the faith. Although he was born in the Netherlands, he grew up on a farm in Indian. In 1922 he graduated from Calvin College, in 1925 he graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary with a ThM, and in 1927 he received his PhD from Princeton University. He later taught at Westminster Theological Seminary for forty-three years and became a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church from the 1930s to his death in 1987. Van Til was instrumental in showing the Christian how not to give up ground to the unbeliever in apologetics....
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...Apologetics A couple of months ago, being pretty ignorant, I had to ask myself, “what exactly is Apologetics.” After a little research and a few lectures from my Professors, I learned that “it is the defense of Christian faith, usually on intellectual issues.” (Horton 640). There are many arguments that can be used in order to defend the faith, however, I will focus on four arguments, ontological, Natural Theology, accuracy of scriptures, and personal miracles. First is the ontological argument. “Human beings almost universally acknowledge that there is something, or someone, beyond themselves and that in some way, or ways, they are responsible to that something or someone (Railey/Aker 40).” This shows that the human race recognizes the fact that we are not alone in the universe and we are to some extent dependent on something supernatural. Secondly is the appeal of Natural Theology. We can look all around at the beautiful things on this earth and we can see that it must have had divine intervention from some one or thing. “Creation, with its infinite variety, beauty, and order, reflects a God who is infinitely wise and powerful.” (Higgins 69). Thirdly is accuracy of scriptures. “The Bible is internally consistent even though it was written over a period of some 1,500 years, about 1450 bce to 100 ce, over 40 generations by more than 40 different authors.” (Marino bibliology 4.1.1.3.) “Discovery after discovery has established the accuracy of innumerable details, and has...
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...Angelology and Satanology One night while reading a book, a close friend of mine named Anna called me with specific questions pertaining to a television documentary that she was watching called “God vs. Satan.” She was concerned with the commonly wrong way that dualism and the idea that God and Satan are two eternal and equal forces struggling for all eternity. Her argument was that if this way of thinking were not true, then it must be that God created evil since it is well known that Satan is evil and God created Satan. I immediately explained to her that God did not create evil and that He cannot coexist with evil at any level and here is why: I began by explaining that what she is referring to is called religious dualism. Religious dualism is known as the belief that there are two opposite powers of good and evil that is operating in the universe. [1] The documentary specifically talked about the biblical revelation that the two sides of religious dualism are God versus Satan. Religious dualism is unbiblical since nowhere in Scripture can we find teachings that the universe consists of opposites, nor does it teach that Satan and God are equal and opposing forces. God, as we find in Scripture, is infinitely more powerful than Satan and will deliver punishment to Satan by eventually casting him into hell. This in itself proves the common misconception of dualism false and could not be done if they were equal and opposing forces. I then posed the question that if God...
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...Samuel George Submitted by: Sunil K. Rajan, M. Div. – III ------------------------------------------------- Date: November 10, 2011 1.0. Introduction Paul Tillich (1886-1965) was a major figure in twentieth-century theology. After holding several academic posts in Germany, he and his family moved to the United States in November 1933. He subsequently held teaching positions at Union Theological Seminary, Harvard Divinity School, and the University of Chicago Divinity School. The author of several well-known books, he is possibly best remembered for his three-volume Systematic Theology. The present paper is an attempt to give a summary of Tillich’s theological method of correlation and offer an evaluation. 1.1. Summary of Method In his Systematic Theology, Tillich undertakes this mediating task by exhibiting a correlation between religion and culture. Tillich begins by contrasting “kerygmatic” theology with “apologetic” theology. Kerygmatic theology “emphasizes the unchangeable truth of the message (kerygma) over against the changing demands of the situation.” The relation between the two, he suggests, is like the correlation between “questioning” and “answering” in a conversation. Although Tillich maintains that the statements of apologetic theology must be based on the kerygma, his real concern is using what he terms “the ‘method of correlation’ as a way of uniting message and situation.” When properly used, he says, this method “correlates questions and answers, situation...
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...1. Apologetics- Being able to defend the faith. 1 Peter 3:15 Apologia-Greek word “defense’ 2. Atheism-The lack of belief in a god and/or the belief that there is no god. The position held by a person or persons that 'lack belief' in god(s) and/or deny that god(s) exist. 3. Circular argument- argument in which the conclusion of an argument is one of its premises; argument assuming something that would ordinarily not be assumed by someone who didn’t believe the conclusion 4. Coventalism- or Covenant theology; is an interpretive framework for understanding the overall flow of the Bible, focusing on the covenants God made. 5. Deduction-A system of logic, inference, and conclusion drawn from examination of 6. Dispensationalism-a method of interpreting the Bible that divides history into periods of time called “dispensations.” 7. Empiricism-The belief that real knowledge is only acquired through sense experience. 8. Epistemological Dualism-Knowledge consists of a mind that knows and ideas that are known. 9. Epistemology--The branch of philosophy that deals with knowing and the methods of obtaining knowledge. 10. Ethics-Study of right and wrong, good and bad, moral judgment, etc. 11. Evidential Apologetics-An apologetic approach emphasizing individual facts and arguments, including: archaeology, effects on society, historical evidences, miracles, prophecy, and the uniqueness of Christianity and/or Scripture. 12. Faith-Acceptance of ideals...
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...APOLOGETICS APPLICATION PAPER: Examining the Atheist Belief and Defending the Christian Faith Rhonda Rigsby APOL 500 7/7/13 Target Audience The selected target audience for this paper is atheists. Atheists are defined as “a person who denies or disbelieves the existence of God or gods”, according to the Random House College dictionary. The first order of business within the atheist argument is that atheism is not a belief at all. Many Christians cringe when they hear the word atheism or that someone is an atheist, while some become angry, others consider it an opportunity to convert a lost soul. Statistics have shown an increase in atheism, which was predicted in the bible, and many tend to think that atheists all come from a scientific background and that as many as ninety-five percent of scientists are atheists. A study by Curry concludes differently reporting that seven percent of scientists are Christians and twenty-one percent are agnostic, while seventy-two percent report they do not believe they have a personal god.However, during this study it appears some skewness existed in the sense people were asked if they believed that God was affective and communicates with mankind. With this a part of the equation, most based their response on the fact they did not think God, if they believe He does exist, actually tried to communicate with mankind. At the end of the study, they concluded that thirty four participants actually were atheists...
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...LIBERTY UNIVERSITY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AN ESSAY SUBMITTED TO DR. MATT SANDERS FOR MASTER’S OF THEOLOGICAL STUDIES PROGRAM BY MARCUS CAMPBELL MAY 2013 I. Introduction 2 II. Categories of Attributes 2 III. Incommunicable Attributes of God 5 A. Sovereignty 5 B. Aseity 7 C. Immutability 7 D. E. Eternity (Eternality) 9 F. Omnipotence 10 G. Omnipresence 11 H. Infinity 11 I. J. IV. Communicable Attributes of God 12 A. Holiness ...
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...Study Guide: Lesson 3 The Importance of Philosophy for Christians Lesson Overview In our last lesson for this module/week, we examined why developing the philosophical mindset is important for people in general. In this lesson, we want to ask that question specifically for Christians. What value does philosophy have for Christians? We will begin by examining the biblical basis for developing a philosophical mindset. We will discuss the biblical mandate for philosophy and three elements in fulfilling that mandate. We will then survey a number of roles that philosophy functions for Christians. Finally, we will examine the role that the Bible plays in doing philosophy. Tasks Read and take notes from chapter 3 of Philosophy: Critically Thinking about Foundational Beliefs, “What Athens has to do with Jerusalem: The Importance of Philosophy for Christians.” As you read, make sure you understand the following points and questions: • Know the historical and literary background to Col 2:8. Paul starts this passage off with a Greek term “blepete” meaning “beware” or “be on your guard.” Then follows this with a strange phrase that literally means “to be carried off as booty” but here is probably meant more like “kidnap” The literal wording here is actually “philosophy and vain deceit” knowing the historical and literary context of this passage one can see that Paul is not condemning philosophy in general. He is contrasting two kinds of philosophy: one that is based...
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...Professor Oliver Putz Religion and Ecological Crisis March 6th, 2015 Anastassja Cooper Rethinking Christian Theology Summary The question twice repeated in John F. Haught’s text “The Promise of Nature” is why we should care about the natural world. The answer that he gives us is that, should we be Christian, is it is within the doctrine; but within the perspective of Christian thought, he gives us three distinct approaches that justify caring about the natural world: The Apologetic, the Sacramental, and the Eschatological approaches. The Apologetic. The Apologetic is the closest to the original doctrine as possible, a rather recent occurrence within the church and a hardly mentioned part of the article. This method looks for scriptural passages...
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...Whitworth Jr. Dr. C Fred Smith Apologetics 500-D01-LUO April 1, 2015 * What do you think is the best apologetic method and defend your view. * The relationship between faith and reason * A comparison between the evidentialist, presuppositionalist, and experimentalist strategies. In my view, the best argument in apologetics is the evidentialist method. This method argues that the most significant historical events in Christianity- particular the resurrection of Jesus are matters that can be established through proper historical argumentation, even apart from any prior arguments for the existence of God. Instead of trying to prove the existence of God through some form of rational proof, the evidentialist attempts to prove the existence of God through the truth of scripture and then using that truth to prove the existence and nature of God. To do this the evidentialist has to successfully defend his understanding of past events and his interpretation of texts and historical theories and ideology. The evidentialist also assumes a shared view of experiences, scientific theories, and the general rules of logic when engaging a skeptic, and there has to be some shared study and common ground of the nature and philosophy with the unbeliever to have a meaningful discussion. One of the advantages of being an evidentialist you can argue both for theism and for Christian theism at the same time without recourse to an elaborate natural theology. For instance, you can begin...
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...This essay will define the theological methodology embodying the Wesleyan Quadrilateral and some key components of how comprehensible his argument that evangelical theology is the ‘drama of gospelizing’. Included are some key areas where the Wesleyan Quadrilateral mirrors to a great extent many similarities of Birds theology and some differences. WESLEYAN QUADRILATERAL The term ‘Wesleyan Quadrilateral’ devised by Albert Outler in the 1960’s, with its fourfold reference, is a good deal more refined and ‘preserves the primacy of Scripture, profits from the wisdom of tradition, accepts the disciplines of critical reason and its stress on the Christian experience of grace, and gives it a pragmatic experience.’ These four sources lead a believer to be a worshiper and to serve God with maturity. (After all, worship is the ultimate goal of God’s Mission.) Primarily, Scripture serves as the primary source for theological reflection and is the foundation and centrepiece for the other three sources. Secondly, Tradition is considered as an experience of the witness of development and growth of faith through the nations and various cultures but notwithstanding the writings of the early church fathers. Wesley also maintained that right reason and interpretation would never result in inconsistency. Oden supports this statement, adding, until one has a right mind set and understanding is attained divine matters cannot be apprehended. Yong and Wesley agree in part on the basic Spirit grounding...
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...upbringing and different walks of life, both come up with a theology understanding that will help them, and they draw closer to God, and to teach others to do the same thing. God made men in own likeness, but with different understanding of scriptures are to be applied to ones’ walk with God. In this essay, one will be able to grab a hold of both Moltmann’s and Pannenberg’s theology and see which theology will be suitable to their own understanding of theology, by comparing and contrasting the theologies of Moltmann’s and Pannenberg’s Comparing the Theologies of Moltmann and Pannenberg Jürgen Moltmann followed the theology of eschatological because of the new teachings...
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...BOOK CRITIQUE of The Advancement: Keeping the Faith in an Evolutionary Age L. Russ Bush APOL 500 (Summer 2013) Introduction to Apologetics Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Edwin S. Krzyzek (ID# 25767621) June 16th, 2013 Introduction The scales of theology have shifted. The balance of human epistemology has shifted from a higher creator to cosmic accident. The vast majority of history has shown humans to be theistic; the most recent dot on the string of time has been that of naturalism. Where Christianity has dominated western thinking for so long, it now finds itself in the minority voice of reason. Even Christians themselves have taken to blending their views to remain contemporary. L Russ Bush addresses this proliferation of naturalism in The Advancement. Brief Summary Bush produces an eight chapter discourse on the evolution, propagation and fallacy of a view that espouses inevitable naturalistic progress. One that believes biological life and humans in particular are evolving into a constant state of improvement. That believes science to be the replacement of God. Bush coins this worldview, “the Advancement”. Bush says that Christian stability has been replaced by naturalisms unstable relativity. Meaning no longer has meaning. Truth itself is subjective and new is always better. Bush begins by introducing a number of pre-modern and modern philosophers. Bush succinctly steps us through the evolution of this modern thinking and contrasts...
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...In: Religion Topics The Advancement BOOK CRITIQUE of The Advancement: Keeping the Faith in an Evolutionary Age L. Russ Bush APOL 500 (Summer 2013) Introduction to Apologetics Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Edwin S. Krzyzek (ID# 25767621) June 16th, 2013 Introduction The scales of theology have shifted. The balance of human epistemology has shifted from a higher creator to cosmic accident. The vast majority of history has shown humans to be theistic; the most recent dot on the string of time has been that of naturalism. Where Christianity has dominated western thinking for so long, it now finds itself in the minority voice of reason. Even Christians themselves have taken to blending their views to remain contemporary. L Russ Bush addresses this proliferation of naturalism in The Advancement. Brief Summary Bush produces an eight chapter discourse on the evolution, propagation and fallacy of a view that espouses inevitable naturalistic progress. One that believes biological life and humans in particular are evolving into a constant state of improvement. That believes science to be the replacement of God. Bush coins this worldview, “the Advancement”. Bush says that Christian stability has been replaced by naturalisms unstable relativity. Meaning no longer has meaning. Truth itself is subjective and new is always better. Bush begins by introducing a number of pre-modern and modern philosophers. Bush succinctly steps us through...
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