Apologetics 315 Podcast

Today's interview is with Alister McGrath, Professor of Theology, Ministry and Education, and Head of the Centre for Theology, Religion and Culture at King's College, London. He talks about his journey out of atheism, his interactions with the New Atheists, the future of atheism, the tone of debate, his new book The Passionate Intellect (Mere Theology in UK), the role of a theology in apologetics, the role of natural theology, collaborative apologetics, advice for Christian apologists, and more.Enjoy.

Today's interview is the second of a series of three short podcasts dealing with the general perception of the Crusades, what the Crusades were, motivations behind them, Augustine's concept of "just war," the atrocities of the Crusades, and their overall outcome.

Today's interview is with Jay Richards, program director of the Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture. (articles by Jay here) He talks about the use of intelligent design arguments in Christian apologetics, understanding the limits of arguments, removing obstacles to the Gospel, "God must have done it" caricatures, the Privileged Planet thesis, the factors needed for a life-sustaining planet, the overlap between the conditions for life and the conditions for discovery, the materialistic worldview and the Copernican principle, pre-Copernican cosmology, earth-like exoplanets, design and constrained optimization, the importance of the moon for life and for science, the benefit of philosophical tools for apologetics, advice for apologists, and more.Enjoy.

Apologetics 315 is happy to welcome Clay Jones for a series of three interviews. Clay is assistant professor at the Master of Arts in Christian Apologetics program at Biola University - and he teaches courses in Theodicy & the Issue of Evil, apologetics research and writing, and defending the resurrection. He has been interviewed in the past on Apologetics 315 on the problem of evil.Today's interview is the first of a series of three short podcasts dealing with some of the attacks against Christianity because of events such as the Crusades, witch hunts, and other historical events. This introductory episode begins to unpack how we as Christians should approach and think through the issues.Enjoy.

Paul Copan tackles tough questions about the Old Testament God, including issues like Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, challenging Old Testament laws, slavery, and the judgement of the Canaanites. He also explores the concept of God's jealousy and unravels ethical dilemmas while debunking misconceptions about God's character.

Today's interview is with Dr. Mark Eckel, Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Professor of Old Testament at Crossroads Bible College in Indianapolis, IN. He is a notable voice in Christian teaching, having written Christian worldview curriculum for schools. He talks about our teacher/student relationship, learning in community, the influence of Francis Schaeffer in his thinking and teaching, what we can learn from Schaeffer today, the balance between generalizing and specializing, the intertwining of apologetics and evangelism, doing cultural apologetics, the mentoring/student relationship, lifelong learning and passion, the discipline of learning and focus, advice for apologists, and more. A rich interview with lots of good nuggets.Enjoy.

Today's interview is with Lindsay Brooks, staff apologist of Apologetics.com. He talks about his work with Apologetics.com, the area of aesthetics (or philosophy of beauty), the nature of beauty itself, aesthetics and arguments from design, the argument from desire, the idea of objective beauty, the difference between beauty and taste, the arts in worship, literary apologetics and music, and advice to fellow Christian apologists.Enjoy.

Today's interview is with Paul L. Maier, the Russell H. Seibert Professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University and a much-published author of both scholarly and popular works. He talks about his background as an historian, the existence of Jesus, his debate with Dan Barker, the pagan myth accusation, ancient sources for the life of Jesus, the historicity of the first Christmas, and more.Enjoy.

Today's interview is with Holly Ordway, professor of English and literature and author of Not God's Type: A Rational Academic Finds a Radical Faith. She talks about her background as an atheist, her encounters with Christians in the past, the influence of literature and poetry, personal influences from others, looking at arguments for the existence of God, counter-arguments against God, psychological explanations, her encounter with Christ, her advice to skeptics and her advice to Christian apologists.Enjoy.

Today's interview is with James Sire, author, lecturer, and Christian apologist. He talks about his background, the impact of The Universe Next Door, defining the concept of worldview, the benefit of understanding worldview concepts, the intellectual life as a Christian calling, the renewal and discipline of the mind, the cultivation of wisdom, thoughts on lifelong learning, the biggest errors of Christian communicators, tips for better communication, apologetics and calling, advice to Christian apologists, and more.Enjoy.