Beyond Opinion: Living the Faith We Defend »

A definitive master work from the world's leading Christian Apologist.

Respected apologist Ravi Zacharias was once sharing his faith with a Hindu when the man asked: "If the Christian faith is truly supernatural, why is it not more evident in the lives of so many Christians I know?" The question hit hard, and this book is an answer. Its purpose is to equip Christians everywhere to simultaneously defend the faith and be transformed by it into people of compassion.

In addition to writing several chapters himself, Ravi Zacharias brings together many of today's leading apologists and Christian teachers, including Alister McGrath and John Lennox, to address topics present in the very future of worldwide Christianity-from the process of spiritual transformation to the challenges posed by militant atheism and a resurgent Islam.

Destined to become a classic, Beyond Opinion is a touchstone that will affect Christians around the world.

Publishers Weekly

Zacharias (The Grand Weaver) brings together many of today's leading apologists (who are also colleagues at his Ravi Zacharias International Ministries) for a relatively concise treatment of major apologetic themes, including the existence of God, the problem of evil, the exclusive truth claims of Christianity and evidence for the universe's intelligent design. Writers explore Eastern religions, conversational apologetics and the challenges postmodern thought presents to accepting Christianity. Not all the entries here are equal-a stronger edit might have given the whole more cohesion and kept some essayists from straying a bit-but some are impressively readable. Oxford professor Alister McGrath covers atheism with grace, and Zacharias himself tackles the problem of evil simply and clearly in a short 30 pages. Underlying the whole is a sense of compassion, that apologetics is not solely about establishing truth claims but about understanding listeners' deep needs and what their current philosophy provides them. The subtitle is unclear-this is really a standard apologetics manual rather than a book about living out the Christian faith (an idea which Zacharias perhaps should develop elsewhere). But readers will find this helpful and comprehensive, smart and kind . (Jan.)

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An Apologetic for Apologetics   Ravi Zacharias     xi
Giving an Answer
Addressing the Difficult Questions
Postmodern Challenges to the Bible   Amy Orr-Ewing     3
Challenges From Atheism   Alister McGrath     21
Challenges from Youth   Alison Thomas     40
Challenges from Islam   Sam Soloman     60
Challenges from Eastern Religions   L. T. Jeyachandran     79
Challenges from Science   John Lennox     106
Addressing the Questions behind the Questions
Conversational Apologetics   Michael Ramsden     137
Broader Cultural and Philosophical Challenges   Joe Boot     152
Existential Challenges of Evil and Suffering   Ravi Zacharias     178
Cross-Cultural Challenges   I'Ching Thomas     209
Internalizing the Questions and Answers
The Trinity as a Paradigm for Spiritual Transformation   L. T. Jeyachandran     231
The Role of Doubt and Persecution in Spiritual Transformation   Stuart McAllister     253
Idolatry, Denial, and Self-Deception: Hearts on Pilgrimage through the Valleys   Danielle DuRant     272
Living Out the Answers
The Church's Role in Apologetics and the Development of theMind   Ravi Zacharias     303
Conclusion
Apologetics for Today   Ravi Zacharias     331
About the Contributors     339
Notes     343