RamistThomist
Puritanboard Clerk
Moreland, J. P. and Muehlhoff, Tim. The God Conversation: Using Stories and Illustrations to Help Explain Your Faith.
This book isn’t so much “here is a story to use with your technical apologetic argument.” Rather, it’s how to frame it around anecdotes and stories that live in people’s minds. Communication 201, in other words. This might be the best intro to apologetics on the most basic level.
It doesn’t deal with every aspect of “The 5 Ways.” Rather, it focuses on the common talking points between believers and unbelievers.
Technical notes
Defeater belief: assumptions that make accepting the truth of x highly unlikely.
Problem of Evil
Story of a pre-programmed doll that says I love you when a button is pushed. God could have made us like that. No evil. Is that real love?
Religious Pluralism
Weaknesses with the mountain path analogy: it changes the religious figures. How would Mohammed respond? Further, it ignores the contradictions between religions:
Buddhism: No one waits at the top of the mountain.
Hinduism: Thousands of gods and goddesses wait.
Islam: A monad waits for you.
Judaism: The Father of Abraham waits for you.
Christianity: God in Christ waits for you.
We should note, though, that cultures outside of us can have wisdom. Scripture is clear on that.
The Resurrection
Is it a well-planned lie? A good lie has to have a number of traits:
(1) Tell only lies that benefit you.
(2) Don’t mention specific names or places if you can help it.
(3) Find a credible source to back your lie (yet the disciples appealed to women).
(4) Anticipate pesky fact-checkers.
(5) When the lie goes bad, save your own neck. None of the disciples, though, ever “cut a deal.”
Interesting tidbits:
In a debate Abraham Lincoln said he would concede all the points to his opponent, except the most important one. This tactic unnerved his opponents.
This book isn’t so much “here is a story to use with your technical apologetic argument.” Rather, it’s how to frame it around anecdotes and stories that live in people’s minds. Communication 201, in other words. This might be the best intro to apologetics on the most basic level.
It doesn’t deal with every aspect of “The 5 Ways.” Rather, it focuses on the common talking points between believers and unbelievers.
Technical notes
Defeater belief: assumptions that make accepting the truth of x highly unlikely.
Problem of Evil
Story of a pre-programmed doll that says I love you when a button is pushed. God could have made us like that. No evil. Is that real love?
Religious Pluralism
Weaknesses with the mountain path analogy: it changes the religious figures. How would Mohammed respond? Further, it ignores the contradictions between religions:
Buddhism: No one waits at the top of the mountain.
Hinduism: Thousands of gods and goddesses wait.
Islam: A monad waits for you.
Judaism: The Father of Abraham waits for you.
Christianity: God in Christ waits for you.
We should note, though, that cultures outside of us can have wisdom. Scripture is clear on that.
The Resurrection
Is it a well-planned lie? A good lie has to have a number of traits:
(1) Tell only lies that benefit you.
(2) Don’t mention specific names or places if you can help it.
(3) Find a credible source to back your lie (yet the disciples appealed to women).
(4) Anticipate pesky fact-checkers.
(5) When the lie goes bad, save your own neck. None of the disciples, though, ever “cut a deal.”
Interesting tidbits:
In a debate Abraham Lincoln said he would concede all the points to his opponent, except the most important one. This tactic unnerved his opponents.
