As we are striving towards a common goal of expressing the reason for the hope that we have, we can come in contact with the seemingly cold nature of reality. Sometimes, it seems like there are things wrong with the world that are extraordinarily hard to reconcile with the nature of God who loves all humanity. I have heard this said about living with a variety of disabilities. … [Read more...]
Ask the Alliance: Did God murder his son?
:::Ask the Alliance #8::: Did God murder his son? Question submitted by Riovesil: Did God murder his son for us or did he give him up for us? Riovesil, thank you for your question. Here are some responses from The Christian Apologetics Alliance: Damoksta: This is such a great question - because any opportunity to discuss why Christ died on the cross is the bread and butter … [Read more...]
Answering Critics with Grace and Logic
I know that when I find certain pieces of content online, it is a lot more fun to skip the article and go right to the comments. Sure, the article may have valuable pieces of information, but the comments seem to be where people really get down to the heart of the issue. Ideally, journalists are objective. Ideally, they present the facts and let you form your own opinion based … [Read more...]
Who needs answers when nobody's askin'?
By Maryann Spikes. This is written to those of you who consider yourselves Christians but think you don't need answers to tough questions because you don't ask them and nobody asks them of you. I am thinking a lot about this and I'd love to hear if you think I am fully understanding where you are at. I want to know why no one is asking you questions, and here are my … [Read more...]
Bad Christian One-Liners
Christians are generally cool people. I like Christians. I’m actually one of them. And yet, sometimes they can say the darndest things. Christianity is arguably the most thought-out faith in existence. The number of philosophers, theologians, and thinkers that have shaped, not only Christianity, but the whole of Western thinking, is beyond the count. Despite this, the number of … [Read more...]
Arguments from Mystical or Religious Experience
[This post is a work in progress as part of the CAA Catechism.] [Add the title only in the title field, not in the body of the post.] Summary in 400 words or less: Individuals have had visions of the divine and other such experiences that could only come from God, especially among those who were adamantly opposed to the faith in the beginning.. This gives credence to the … [Read more...]
Answering Existential Objections
[This post is a work in progress as part of the CAA Catechism.] [Add the title only in the title field, not in the body of the post.] Summary in 400 words or less: Scripture for YouVersion: Short audio/video: Three questions (1 fill-in-the-blank, 1 multiple choice, and one discussion question): References for further reading: Collaboration notes: Collaborators: [Add your name … [Read more...]
Ask the Alliance: How do we explain the OT wars?
:::Ask the Alliance Question #7::: Question submitted by Jacob: "I just read a post about wars and religion, and I agree that religion is often blamed for wars unjustly or misused by those in power to start conflicts. My question is, as a Christian, how do we explain the many wars in the Old Testament where God decimated many peoples and cities? Clearly, those were wars of … [Read more...]
Christmas notes, part 2: Did Messianic prophecy inspire the Christmas story?
One of the favorite targets of destructive biblical criticism is the narrative of Jesus' birth in the first two chapters of Matthew. One distinctive feature of Matthew’s account makes it a particularly tempting target. Matthew’s theological agenda is absolutely overt: over and over in the first few chapters of his Gospel, we get some variation on the phrase, “... all this took … [Read more...]
Christmas Notes, Part 1: Was Jesus Born in Bethlehem?
There is perhaps no story so well beloved as the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. But every year we are told on television or in news magazines that we cannot believe the nativity story, that Matthew and Luke contradict each other, and that “scientific” criticism has dissolved the story of the virgin birth into a pious myth. Why do they say this? Could a story of a virgin birth … [Read more...]