29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fast Facts and Answers on a Plethora of Subjects, December 24, 2008
This review is from: The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics: Surveying the Evidence for the Truth of Christianity (Hardcover)
This is one of the better introductory works that deals with
apologetical issues. Contextually, each contribution is stacked
and packed with useful information and facts. The content in each
article is tight with few wasted words.
The subject matter is organized alphabetically from abortion to
Zoroastrianism. This volume contains over 175 articles, each no
more than three pages in length, by such notable Christian leaders
as: John Ankerberg, Norman Geisler, Randall Price, Gary Habermas
and others.
This reference book deals successfully with social questions (abortion,
suicide and homosexually), world religions (Islam, Buddhism), doctrinal
issues (Trinity, the soul, exclusiveity of salvation), philosophical
problems (evil, the existence of God) to name a few. Articles dealing
with the subject of UFO's, cults and the occult, church fathers, doctrinal
errors and Christian philosophers are also included.
I found this volume to be a useful user friendly reference work
which surveys many of the important questions asked today. This book
would be an excellent place to start with in order to grasp and
understand the basic facts and issues of each subject. A select
bibliography is listed after each article for further research and
study.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
It's decent. You'll come back to it for quick reference., April 4, 2010
I think this work largely accomplished what it set out to do, be a quick reference to popular issues in apologetics. I don't know if I like this being called an encyclopedia though, this fits more into a category like "Holman's QuickSource Guides" (Doug Powell's is excellent by the way). One of it's strong points is it's breadth of subject matter. From Plantinga's Reformed Epistemology to the analogy of being to mentioning the UFO cult the Nuwaubians (it's about time!), this book has a taste of just about everything you wouldn't possibly think of. And don't let Ergun Caner's name disuade you; he may be highly unpopular but the rest of the Liberty University faculty that contributed to this work are pretty cool guys (I had them for professors). So if you're looking for something that gets to meat with out alot of bones on a wide range of subjects, this is your book.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Compelling Comprehensive Apologetic Resource, October 12, 2009
This review is from: The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics: Surveying the Evidence for the Truth of Christianity (Hardcover)
This offering provides a wide-ranging new resource as a valuable tool for the mature pastor or for those with little background in apologetics. Some of the church's most gifted minds contribute to this laudable and persuasive volume. This includes bestselling author Josh McDowell, philosopher Norman Geisler, Baptist Seminary Academician Albert Mohler, David Noebel, Resurrection expert Gary Habermas, Dillon Burroughs, popular TV apologist John Ankerberg, and more. 150-plus entries make this a compelling source of some of the finest evidentialist scholarship available.
History, cultic groups, Church Fathers, epistemology, ethics (including modern genetic topics), Messianic prophecy, philosophy, atheism, and many other contemporary apologetic issues are discussed and the Christian position vividly defended.
The two drawbacks I found:
1. Considering that it is an encyclopedia, most of the subjects are not dealt with in depth (the great majority of the subjects are analyzed with painstaking precision, but space limits the length available. Additional books are suggested for further study on various topics).
2. Since the majority of the entries overlook epistemic issues, the reader is left with a highly probable apologetic. I prefer certainty that is found in undermining the non-believer's epistemic rights and privileges that are involved in pondering, discussing, examining, and debating all evidence, ideas, and asserted perspectives.
Those (both evidentialists and presuppositionalists) who place this comprehensive work on their bookshelf will appeal to it frequently. Notwithstanding my apologetic bias, I heartily recommend this hardback.
The Necessary Existence of God: The Proof of Christianity Through Presuppositional Apologetics
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