Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP) described “New Atheists” as early twenty-first century atheist authors promoting atheism. The “New Atheist” label for these critics [that include Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, and Christopher Hitchens] of religion and religious belief emerged out of journalistic commentary on the contents and impacts of their books. A … [Read more...]
Lost Scriptures of the New Testament?
In a previous blog, I discussed the textual integrity of the documents which comprise the new testament, and addressed the often-raised claim that the new testament has been substantially edited over the intervening centuries with doctrines being added and removed at the church’s will. As I argued in my previous blog, such ill-informed assertion is pure fantasy. Another … [Read more...]
Do Christians Commit the Fallacy of Composition?
When I debate atheists, from time to time I point out when they commit some of the standard logical fallacies. The genetic fallacy probably comes up as often as any other. This occurs when you incorrectly assume that by proving the origin of a belief, you have thereby disproven the validity of that belief. For example, atheists often claim that morality is merely the … [Read more...]
A Look at Bart Ehrman’s Objection: The Earliest Christians Did Not Think Jesus Was God
By Eric Chabot, Director, Ratio Christi, The Ohio State University I have been reading through Bart Ehrman’s “Did Jesus Exist? The Historical Argument for Jesus of Nazareth. I could not agree with Ehrman more on several points he makes in the book on the problem with the Jesus Mythers. However, there are still some areas of disagreement. I will address one of them in this … [Read more...]
External Evidence for Pauline Authorship of Ephesians
I was recently visiting a church on a beautiful Sunday morning when the pastor made an assertion in her sermon to which I felt I should respond. She stated that Paul did not write the book of Ephesians. In fact it allegedly was not written for 100 years or more after Jesus' death, at which time an unknown author attached Paul's name to the letter in a practice that this … [Read more...]
Review: Seven Days That Divide the World by Dr. John Lennox
In Seven Days that Divide the World: The Beginning According to Genesis and Science, John Lennox addresses the science and theology relevant to the age-of-the-earth debate. This is a controversy that continues to escalate within the church, as young-earth advocates claim that acknowledgement of biblical authority and inspiration requires a young-earth interpretation of … [Read more...]
Has The New Testament Been Substantially Edited Since It Was First Penned?
This is one of the most frequently-asked questions I encounter when attempting to explain to people the massive evidence which stands in support and corroboration of the Christian worldview. I probably actually get this question more frequently from the Muslim/Islamic community than I do from atheists, agnostics and other non-believers. The reason for this is not hard to see. … [Read more...]
Did Muhammad Properly Understand the Trinity?
In a recent post, I explained and defended the historical Christian concept of the Trinity. In this blog post, I want to consider the conception of the Trinity held by the writer of the Qur'an -- whom I presume to be Muhammad -- and examine whether this individual properly understood the view he so strongly repudiated. Firstly, let's briefly recap. What is the historic … [Read more...]
What Really Happened at Nicea?
For many years, the council of Nicea has been the subject of much confusion among laypeople. The misapprehensions which have come to be associated with the council of Nicea have, in part, been fuelled by popular fictional novels such as Dan Brown's notorious The Da Vinci Code. No matter what group you are dealing with in your apologetic exploits (including atheists, Muslims, … [Read more...]
What We Can Learn From Jehovah's Witnesses
Almost everybody has been visited at home by Jehovah's Witnesses, and most people probably wouldn't hesitate to call the group crazy. It's difficult to reach any other conclusion when they start conversations with, "Do you think God punishes people with natural disasters?" Nonetheless, I've found that when given an opportunity to speak, they're willing to discuss their beliefs, … [Read more...]