Apologetics

[Evfimy]

the fundemental beliefs of Christianity are under attack by Mason's, Gnostics, Atheists and Jews. I see this all the time on internet blogs and forums.

I believe Orthodox Christians should be aware of this and learn how to defend their faith.

The books below were written by evangelical and/or protestant scholars but I still recommend them.

Recommended reading:

JESUS IS GOD

Putting Jesus in His Place: the Case for the Deity of Christ, by Rob Bowman (deityofchrist.com)

On the Incarnation, by Athanasius

Jesus as God: The New Testament Use of Theos in Reference to Jesus, by Harris

HISTORICAL JESUS:

The Historical Reliability of the Gospel's, by Craig Blomberg.

The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ," by Gary Habermas (garyhabermas.com).

Websites on Historical Jesus:

http://www.bede.org.uk/jesusindex.htm

http://www.tektonics.org

www.garyhabermas.com

http://www.christiancadre.org/topics/hi ... jesus.html

ON JESUS' RESURRECTION:

The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus, by Gary Habermas and Mike Licona

Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus, by William Lane Craig.

www.RisenJesus.com

DYING AND RISING GODS (Pagan Parallel theory) REFUTED

The Riddle of Resurrection, by Mettinger

Myth Became Fact, by C.S. Lewis

The Gospel and the Greeks, by Ronald Nash

The Case for the Real Jesus, edited by Lee Strobel

JESUS IS MESSIAH

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, by Aldred Edersheim

Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus (four volumes) by Michael Brown

INTRODUCTION TO CHURCH HISTORY

The Christian Tradition (five volumes), by Jaroslav Pelikan.

SHROUD OF TURIN

The Shroud and the Controversy: Science, Skepticism, and the Search for Authenticity, by Stevenson and Habermas

NEW TESTAMENT DATING AND MANUSCRIPTS

A General Introduction to the Bible, by Geisler and Nix.

APOLOGETICS (General)

The Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics," by Norman Geisler.

The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict, by Josh Mcdowell.

[Evfimy]

It appears some of the links are no longer valid. I apologize.

[GOCPriestMark]

It appears some of the links are no longer valid. I apologize.

The links all work now.

(I suggest caution to everyone when reading non Orthodox materials.)

[Evfimy]

Yeah, some of the arguments for the existence of God as found in such books as "The Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics" used scholastic type (Thomistic) forms of argumentation. I know Orthodoxy is not Thomistic (Thomas Aquinas), but I personally think his arguments for God are very good.

[Pravoslavnik]

Evfimy,

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  I have a few books to add to your list.  They are written by heterodox authors, but have a great deal of useful historical (and scientific) information.

1) The Real Jesus; The Truth of the Traditional Gospels and the Misguided Quest for the "Historical Jesus" by Luke Timothy Johnson, a Professor at Emory University. This scholarly book offers a very well-written critique of the entire history of Protestant "higher criticism," since the time of the Tubingen school, and some of its popular, modern proponents--Walter Bauer, Helmut Koester, Elaine Pagels, and Bart Ehrman, etc...

2) What Can We Know About Jesus? A concise, scholarly monograph by Howard Clark Kee, Professor Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania, which summarizes the available historical data about the Lord--a useful antidote to all of the speculative, nonsensical theories circulating in the world.

3) The Blood and the Shroud, by Ian Wilson is a well-written compendium of much of the scientific data about the Shroud of Turin. It presents a definitive refutation of the theory of Walter McCrone (still circulating in skeptical circles) that the Shroud image was a painting. This book does not have the latest information on the section of the Shroud that was carbon-dated in 1988, indicating that the fabric used in the carbon-dating was a medieval "patch" sewn into the Shroud after it was burned. (I don't recall whether you referenced the www.shroud.com website.)

[joasia]

No none-Orthodox "theologian" can explain the truth of Christianity except one who is Orthodox. There is a spiritual and mental depth of faith that they (non-Orthodox) do not experience.

Reading their books will only incorporate wrong theology. A non-Orthodox cannot explain the full truth because it only comes from Orthodoxy. And the explanation of a non-Orthodox is flawed.

[Pravoslavnik]

"No none-Orthodox "theologian" can explain the truth of Christianity except one who is Orthodox. There is a spiritual and mental depth of faith that they (non-Orthodox) do not experience.

Reading their books will only incorporate wrong theology. A non-Orthodox cannot explain the full truth because it only comes from Orthodoxy. And the explanation of a non-Orthodox is flawed."

Joanna,

Whether we can learn anything that is true and potentially useful from the heterodox depends, I should think, upon the subject matter. Are you saying that we cannot learn anything about history, science, mathematics, etc., from people who are heterodox? For example, since "apologetics" is involved in a wide array of scientific and historical matters relating to Christianity, can we truly not learn anything of apologetic value from heterodox scientists, historians, or philologists? If not, could you recommend a good Orthodox commentary on the scientific data concerning the STURP commission for the Shroud of Turin, or historical data on the Tubingen school of "higher" text criticism?

Many thanks,

Pravoslavnik

"I waited patiently for Joanna, and she may or may not have heard me..."