Shortly before his death in 1963, C. S. Lewis told his secretary Walter Hooper that five years after he (Lewis) was dead he would be forgotten.1 As a prescient and prophetic twentieth-century Christian thinker and writer, that seems to be one of the few things that Lewis got wrong. A potent Lewis phenomenon has been taking place a generation after his…
Christian apologists need to be people of reason and virtue. They must exhibit both qualities in order to persuade people of the truth of Christianity. Thus, one of my goals as a Christian scholar and teacher is to introduce believers and nonbelievers to Christian thinkers who are highly skilled in their academic disciplines and people of strong intellectual character. On…
Philosophers have presented numerous arguments throughout history in attempts to either prove or disprove God’s existence.1 A common challenge to God’s existence is the perpetual problem of evil. But does the existence of evil in the world logically defeat God’s existence? I hope this brief blog post will help you to discuss the argument and reason through the issue. A defeater in logic…
A friend of mine who is an atheist said that when he looks at the differences within Christendom and the squabbling among denominations, he finds greater reason to conclude that Christianity is false. Upon careful inspection, I think that theologically conservative Christendom holds most doctrinal matters in common. This unity is powerfully illustrated historically in what are called the ecumenical creeds of Christendom (Apostles’ Creed, Nicene…
I had a dialogue on social media recently with someone who objected to the idea that God created the world “out of” or “from” nothing. That brief interaction (which I’ll provide in a moment) gives us the opportunity to think further on what creation ex nihilo means and doesn’t mean. Creation Ex NihiloThe early chapters of Genesis describe how God created the totality…
As a student of Christian history, I find the details of the lives of Christendom’s giants to be fascinating, inspiring, and even amusing. I hope that the following experiences in Thomas Aquinas’s life will do the same for you as you see the common humanity in our union with Christians from all times. Many people consider St. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274)…
As a Christian apologist, I’m grateful that people ask me questions. On occasion, someone will contact me to ask for advice as they face various types of suffering. Some time ago a person shared his heartfelt struggle with me by asking the following question (paraphrased): Ken, I’m a Christian but I suffer daily from a basically debilitating depression and anxiety.…
According to historic Christianity, the Bible is the inspired and inerrant Word of God. The apostle Paul declares: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17). The branch of Christendom known as Protestantism goes further, affirming Scripture as the…
Two thousand years of Christian history has given us a legacy of the church in all its triumphs and tragedies. One of my goals as an author is to introduce Christians to historical figures who made courageous stands during challenging times and whose voices remain critical for us today. St. Athanasius (c. 296–373) was born and educated in the ancient…
One way to engage skeptics of the Christian faith is to discuss the influence Christian thinkers have had on people, regardless of religious affiliation. As a bridge to a philosophically oriented skeptic, I suggest talking about the influence that a fifth-century Christian bishop has had on western philosophy, and on existentialism in particular. Existentialism is a school of thought that…
Reflections 