“Beyond Opinion: Living the Faith We Defend” (Ravi Zacharias ed.)

This anthology begins with “Challenges from …” various quarters, such as postmodernism, atheism, eastern religions, and science, followed by sections that are harder to characterize, except that everything in the book is about apologetics.  Not every contribution is great, but overall the book is certainly worthwhile, and received positive reviews from J.P. Moreland and William … [Read more…]

“The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O’Connor” (Sally Fitzgerald ed.)

This is a wonderful collection of letters, and a long but very enjoyable read.  The letters reveal that the famous Georgia author was a charming, funny, sensible woman, very Christian and very Catholic.  They end sadly with her untimely death. I noted that she praised C.S. Lewis’s book on prayer and his Miracles (572).  And there … [Read more…]

Timothy Keller, “Encounters with Jesus”

The author, a Presbyterian pastor in Manhattan, is one of the great living Christian apologists and writers; my sense is that if you want to read one book by him, one that is most foundational in its apologetics, it would be The Reason for God.  The book I discuss on this post is very good, … [Read more…]

C.S. Lewis, “Surprised by Joy” (audiobook)

I had read this book before, so these are just some thoughts on listening later to the audiobook: There is surprisingly little on Christianity per se.  It covers his early life through his conversion, but ends there.  He first became a theist, and the book really focuses on that rather than his becoming a Christian … [Read more…]

“Letters of C.S. Lewis” (1966 ed.)

In this collection, I noted the Christian reading list in this letter excerpt (page 345): The first real work of the Gospels on a fresh reader is, and ought to be, to raise very acutely the question, “Who or What is this?”  For there is a good deal in the character which, unless He really … [Read more…]

C.S. Lewis, “The Pilgrim’s Regress”

These are just a few notes I made; as a fan of just about everything Lewis wrote, I’m hesitant to post something so limited on an extended work of his, fearing that someone might think this is all I thought noteworthy.  With that caveat, here’s what I happened to jot down: I thought important this … [Read more…]

A Dozen Thoughts on Evangelism

Here are some thoughts on effective evangelism, from someone who may or may not be an especially effective evangelist:  You need to have good answers to obvious questions like:  (1) Why does God let children die of cancer?  (2) Why are good people who don’t believe in Jesus sent to Hell? On the other hand, … [Read more…]

Random Additional Thoughts on Pascal’s Wager

There can be both selfish and unselfish reasons for wanting to be good and wanting to be godly.  They are not inconsistent and may not even be that distinct. *** Faith and love can both be cultivated.  Whether we’re considering when they’re beginning or when they’re already extant, it’s romantic but foolish to think otherwise. … [Read more…]