Apologetics?
A lady in my church has requested that I recommend a book on apologetics. She has been recommended Van Til’s book and Elmer Towns book on Core Christianity. I don’t have a book specifically on apologetics. My guess is that Van Til’s book may be a little “heady” for her. I don’t tend to trust Elmer Towns, just being frank. She says that the reason for this request is so that she can effectively defend the faith that she wants to share with others. She mentioned a book she had read called, “Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus.”
Any recommendations? She has retired from teaching elementary education, so she is educated.
One candidate would be Scott Oliphint’s Covenantal Apologetics. Presuppositional approach in the Van Til tradition.
JSB
Van Til is extremely difficult stuff. Greg Bahnsen is in the same tradition but is a lot more accessible for us mortals.
Please don’t give them Van Til. English wasn’t his first language, and his book is kind of difficult. Greg Bahnsen’s Always Ready is probably the best presuppositional one out there. Oliphant’s book is also excellent. You could also try John Frame’s Apologetics to the Glory of God.
A really short, but really practical book is by Greg Koukl, entitled Tactics. I would really recommend this book for practical insights on talking to people. It’s really helpful.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
A Shot of Faith to the Head by Mitch Stokes is a worthwhile read, although I would classify it as “Reformed Epistemological” rather than “Presuppositional.”
Then there is Bahnsen’s magnum opus — Van Til’s Apologetic: Readings and Analysis. This is an advanced and lengthy work but If you want to understand presuppostional apologetics, this is the book to read.
Not sure exactly what you are looking for in the category “book on apologetics,” but if she is looking more for a “user level” apologetic book, she might try “I Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist” by Geisler and Turek. I used this one with my daughters as part of our homeschool curriculum. That book was quite accessible to a non-theologian.
Dave Barnhart
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