Finding Faith in a Skeptical World [Paperback]

Chet Galaska (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 21, 2008

The book is written by a former atheist who became a Christian after several years of questioning our society's common perceptions regarding Christianity. Some chapters deal with matters of faith such as prayer, redemption, salvation and sin. Others address issues like Christian hypocrisy, why bad things happen, miracles, and the Christian view of war. Some are about the seemingly contradictory relationship between science and religion that are discussed in chapters on scientific peception, creation and evolution. Other subjects, like the sometimes cruel and violent history of Christianity, "Born Agains" and the Christian view of the Jewish people don't fit neatly into any category. The common denominator is that each addresses an issue that can be misunderstood and create a distorted, unfair and negative view of the faith. "Finding Faith in a Skeptical World" is written in an understandable, interesting and down to earth way in brief chapters.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Triad Press (October 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0981676707
• ISBN-13: 978-0981676708
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #340,016 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars [...], June 21, 2009

By 

C. Moxley "She Lives" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Finding Faith in a Skeptical World (Paperback)

Finding Faith begins with the account of Galaska's conversion from atheism to Christianity after which he takes us through a light course in Christan apologetics, beginning with the question, "Who is Jesus?" There is a chapter on prayer, one on forgiveness, redemption and salvation, satan, sin, the Bible, hypocrisy, creation, miracles...He seems to have the major bases covered. He even tackles historic atrocities committed by the church.

In short, Finding Faith reads like a Christian apologetics for folks who don't know a lot about Christianity. It sets out to correct negative misconceptions about the faith. And Galaska does a good job of it. His writing is clear and simple to understand, yet he doesn't talk down to the reader. He tackles a good number of the world's criticisms about Christians with factual information in a way that the world simply does not have an opportunity to hear very often. He takes on the most commonly held misconceptions about Christianity and adds a few others of interest as well.

On the subject of Galaska's audience, people who have made up their minds to worship themselves and their functional gods probably won't read beyond the preface. The beginning of the book is a bit slow and churchy. I don't know that your typical unbeliever would get past that long enough to give the book much of a shot. In my opinion, the book would need a much stronger hook to get an atheist into the meatier chapters. I do know, however, that God is God and He can use anything He chooses to lead someone to saving faith. I wouldn't be at all surprised if He uses Finding Faith repeatedly to that end or, I should say, that beginning.

Finding Faith is well-researched. One complaint I tend to have with apologetics written for unbelievers is that the authors frequently include biblical text references in with their content. To an unbeliever, this referencing can be off-putting since they tend to discount biblical teaching out of hand. Rather than interjecting scriptural and bibliographic references throughout, Galaska includes pages at the end of the book with the references to support his writing, allowing the reader access to that information without it becoming a possible distraction. In light of Galaska's target audience, I see the method he chose as quite effective.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Simple and Practical, June 1, 2009

By 

Mocha with Linda (Texas, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Finding Faith in a Skeptical World (Paperback)

The short chapters and down-to-earth style of writing make this an easy read. Based on the author's former experience as an atheist, it is aimed, as the title suggests, toward those who are skeptical of the claims of Christianity. I would suggest using this book as a springboard for conversation rather than just giving it to an unbeliever without follow-up. The book has many good points but its simplicity results in it being simplistic at times. There were a few places I felt could be misunderstood, as I initially disagreed with some statements but then realized upon closer reading that his choice of words simply skated precariously close to the edge of that disagreement. However, the book is not intended to be a deep theological thesis but a practical discussion of faith and its relation to a host of common questions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great defense of faith for beginners, May 28, 2009

By 

Christina Lockstein "Christy's Book Blog" (Oconto Falls, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Finding Faith in a Skeptical World (Paperback)

Finding Faith in a Skeptical World by Chet Galaska is a first rate primer on the problems of faith. Galaska, a former atheist, comes at finding faith from the point of reason, explaining why belief in God makes sense. It's a tough argument in a world that has come to value relativism and turns to science for explanations for everything. Creation vs evolution, the crimes of Christians, the existence of Hell, all of these are difficult questions for those who consider faith to overcome. Galaska's book is perfect for them and for those who have recently come to faith. I've read many of these books, I understand that there isn't enough room for the author to address each of these issues in depth, so he provides some of the basic arguments for each of these and in the back gives resources for those interested in more resources. Some of his anecdotes are very powerful, especially the story about his son and a Golden book, and I appreciated his metaphor of a prism to viewing faith. It's a great kickstart to conversations about faith, especially for youth.