Episode 48
Apologetics w/ David Russell from PorA!!!
May 14th, 2021
56 mins 10 secs
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About this Episode
On this episode of CSG Tyler & Noah are joined by special guest David Russell from the "Proselytize or Apostatize" Youtube channel to discuss apologetics and apologetic methodology! Below out show notes so you can follow along with the episode and see somethings that didn't make it into the show!
DEFINITION:
"Apologetics is concerned with the defense of the Christian faith against charges of falsehood, inconsistency, or credulity. Indeed, the very word apologetics is derived from the Greek apologia, which means “defense.” It was a term used in the courts of law in the ancient world. Socrates, for example, gave his famous “apology,” or defense, before the court of Athens. And the apostle Paul defended himself (apologeomai) before the Roman officials (Acts 24:10; 25:8). As it concerns the Christian faith, then, apologetics has to do with defending, or making a case for, the truth of the Christian faith."
WHY DO WE NEED APOLOGETICS?
Unanswered questions are the number one reason people leave the Church
ARE APOLOGETICS NECESSARY IN EVANGELISM?
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT METHODS OF APPROACH USED IN APOLOGETICS?
PREACH THE WHOLE GOSPEL not simply the parts which we personally prefer. I.e. Sin & Hell ~C.S. Lewis
TRANSISTION TO CUMULATIVE CASE
Definition: See 1st Paragraph in FVoA p. 148. See last paragraph p. 151-152 FVoA
WHAT ARE THE "ONTOLOGICAL" & "COSMOLOGICAL" ARGUMENTS?
Ontological Argument:
There is something within the concept of God that guarantees His existence is necessary. Made famous by Anselm of Canterbury 1033-1109
Cosmological Argument:
WHAT IS THE COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENT?
ARE THE ONTOLOGICAL AND COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENTS SOUND? (Unfortunately all philosophers since Kant have agreed that no version of the argument succeeds in making its case as a demonstrably sound argument.)
**Probable Case
WHAT MAKES A "PROBABLE CASE" ARGUMENT INFORMAL/UNIQUE?
A different approach "giving up the search for absolute certainty". ~Paul Feinberg FVoA p. 150
The probable case approach focuses on showing the probability of an argument.
ARE POSTMODERNISTS MORE OPEN TO HEARING PROBABLE CASE ARGUMENTS?
WHAT IS THE DESIGN ARGUMENT?
Teliological/Design Argument:
The argument that the universe exhibits design or order and is best explained as the work of an intelligent designer. Is evolution the rebuttal to the design argument?
CC's Issue With "Traditional Arguments" see p. 150 FVoA 3rd Paragraph
**CC TESTS FOR TRUTH:
See p. 153 FVoA
Consistency - A system of belief must not lead to a contradiction.
Correspondence/Empirical Fit - This test requires that any belief must correspond with reality.
Comprehensiveness - This criterion requires that we prefer theories or systems of belief that explain more of the evidence over those that might account for less.
Simplicity - This test instructs us not to multiply explanatory items unnecessarily. It has also been called Ockham’s razor. If an explanation is both simple and adequate, it is to be preferred.
Livability - For a belief to be true, it must be livable. This is not the same as our second test for truth, correspondence. That test is more theoretical, while livability is practical.
Fruitfulness - Here we ask what the consequences are of holding such a view of reality. Does it produce fruitful consequences? Take two systems of belief, one that holds that reality is totally disorganized and random, while the other holds that reality is characterized by regularities. On this criterion the latter theory will be preferred, as it will make things like science possible.
Conservation - By this I mean that when we find some anomaly to our theory, we first choose solutions that require the least radical revision of our view of the world. Put another way, we seek to modify the paradigm that we are using to understand reality rather than immediately making a radical shift to a new one. It is based in the belief that any system of belief that has reached the position of a reigning paradigm must have a good deal of evidence supporting it. Therefore, it is not wise to abandon it as a first move.
ARE THERE ANY WEAK POINTS IN CC?
WHAT IS SOME ADVICE YOU WOULD GIVE TO SOMEONE INTERESTED IN ENGAGING IN APOLOGETICS OR EVANGELISM FOR THE FIRST TIME? (1 Peter 3:15)
It's ESSENTIAL one understands the fundamentals of the Christian faith BEFORE practicing Christian apologetics.
"The heart of apologetics is not about mastering or memorizing a set of techniques designed to manipulate arguments to get the desired conclusion. It is about being MASTERED by the Christian faith so that its ideas, themes and values are deeply imprinted on our minds and in our hearts."
~Alister McGrath
WHAT IS THE REMEDY FOR POSTMODERNISM?
Biblical Apologetics:
1) Acts 2:14-36 - Peter's Pentecostal Address
2) Acts 7:1-60 - Stephen's Final Address
3) Acts 10:1-48 - Peter & Cornelius
4) Acts 17:16-34 - Paul at Athens in the Areopagus
Notice the difference in approaches between Peter and Paul in Acts 2 & 17!
Church Apologists in History:
1) Justin Martyr 100-165
2) Tatian 120-173
3) Irenaeus 135-200
4) Tertullian 160-230
5) Eusebius of Caesarea 260-340
6) John Chrysostom d. 407
7) Augustine 354-430
8) Thomas Aquinas 1225-1274
9) B.B. Warfield 1851-1921
10) G.K. Chesterton 1874-1936
11) C.S. Lewis 1898-1963
12) Walter Martin 1928-1989
BOOKS TO CHECK OUT:
"Tactics" - Greg Koukl
"Keeping Faith in an Age of Reason" - Jason Lisle
"Five Views of Apologetics" - William Lane Craig (Classical), Gary Habermas (Evidential), John Frame (Presuppositional), Kelly Clark (Reformed Epistemology), Paul Feinberg (Cumulative Case)
"Evidence That Demands A Verdict" - Josh & Sean McDowell
"Presuppositional Apologetics Stated & Defended" - Greg Bahnsen
"A History of Christian Apologetics" - Dr. John Warwick Montgomery
"Mere Apologetics" - Alister McGrath
Check out "Proselytize or Apostatize" here:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOaSz_olYnkqL2OhjiJSy_g