Apologetics Beyond Reason by Jim Sire - EXCERPT

8122019 Apologetics Beyond Reason by Jim Sire - EXCERPT

httpslidepdfcomreaderfullapologetics-beyond-reason-by-jim-sire-excerpt 120

James W Sire

APOLOGETICS

BEYOND REASONWHY SEEING REALLY

IS BELIEVING





APOLOGETICSBEYOND REASON

WHY SEEING REALLY

IS BELIEVING

James W Sire

Copyrighted Material wwwivpresscompermissions



InterVarsity Press

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Email emailivpresscom

copy104862610486249830891048628 by James W Sire

All rights reserved No part o this book may be reproduced in any orm without written permission rom

InterVarsity Press

InterVarsity Pressreg is the book-publishing division o InterVarsity Christian FellowshipUSAreg a movement o

students and aculty active on campus at hundreds o universities colleges and schools o nursing in the United

States o America and a member movement o the International Fellowship o Evangelical Students For

inormation about local and regional activities write Public Relations Dept InterVarsity Christian Fellowship USA 983094104862810486241048624 Schroeder Rd PO Box 98309510486329830971048629 Madison WI 10486299830919830951048624983095-98309510486329830971048629 or visit the IVCF website at wwwintervarsity

org

Scripture quotations unless otherwise noted are rom the New Revised Standard Version o the Bible copyright

9830899830971048632983097 by the Division o Christian Education o the National Council o the Churches o Christ in the USA Used by

permission All rights reserved

While all stories in this book are true some names and identiying inormation in this book have been changed to

protect the privacy o the individuals involved

Tis book and Echoes o a Voice (Cascade 104862610486249830891048628) were completed at nearly the same time Tese two books contain

similar sometimes identical commentary on two o Hopkinsrsquos poems (ldquoGodrsquos Grandeurrdquo and ldquoI wake and eel the

ell o darkrdquo) and Virginia Woolrsquos novel Te Years Tis and some urther similar casual commentary is necessary

to the arguments o both books Wip and Stock Cascade Books (983089983097983097 West 1048632th Avenue Suite 983091 Eugene OR 98309798309510486281048624983089)

and InterVarsity Press have granted permission or this minor overlap between the books

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ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-1048628104862410486291048629-983095 (print)

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Printed in the United States o America As a member o the Green Press Initiative InterVarsity Press is committed to protecting the environmentand to the responsible use o natural resources o learn more visit greenpressinitiativeorg

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Sire James W

Apologetics beyond reason why seeing really is believing James W

Sire

pages cm

Includes bibliographical reerences and index

ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-1048628104862410486291048629-983095 (pbk alk paper)

983089 Apologetics 1048626 Christianity and the arts I itle

B9830899830891048624983091S1048629983094983095 1048626104862498308910486281048626983091983097mdashdc1048626983091

1048626104862498308910486281048624983089104862698309410486291048629

P 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628 983089983091 9830891048626 983089983089 9830891048624 983097 1048632 983095 983094 1048629 1048628 983091 1048626 983089

Y 9830911048626 983091983089 9830911048624 1048626983097 10486261048632 1048626983095 1048626983094 10486261048629 10486261048628 1048626983091 10486261048626 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628




Tere is everything

Tereore there is a God

Either you see this or you donrsquot

Blessed are your eyes or they see

and your ears or they hear

ruly I tell you many prophets and righteous people

longed to see what you see

but did not see it

and to hear what you hear

but did not hear it

mdashJesus to his disciples (Matthew 1048625104862710486251048630-10486251048631)




CONTENTS

Preace 983097

Acknowledgments 983089983089

983089 he Past as Prologue 983089983091God Adumbrations in Many Daily Forms

983090 Wondering About God 983090983091

An Argument rom Reneacute Descartes and Stanislaw Lem

983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God

983092 Secondary Worlds 983093983091

An Argument rom Literary heory

983093 Bright Wings and Wobbling Lighthouses 983095983091

An Argument rom Gerard Manley Hopkins and Virginia Wool

983094 Night houghts and Day Dreams 983097983097

An Argument rom Francisco Goya

983095 Meeting the Unexpected 983089983090983091

An Argument rom Jesus

Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE

o see a world in a grain o sand

And a heaven in a wild flower

Hold infinity in the palm o your hand

And eternity in an hour

W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo

M983161 983142983154983145983141983150983140983155 983144983137983158983141 983156983151983148983140 983149983141 I 983144983137983158983141 983137 G983151983156983144983145983139 983149983145983150983140 Irsquod call it Baroque

I see connections between some rather odd things and ideas I am an invet-

erate and unrepentant punster People groan their discontent as I interrupt a

blossoming discourse with an off-topic pun Only my daughter Ann can best

me in verbal twisting So while I will try not to indulge in displays o verbal

talent in this book I may find connections you will wonder about Blake the

poet wished to see the universe in a grain o sand Me too

My major thrust in this book is to come alongside you point and say

ldquoLook Look careully Listen closely Do you see Do you hearrdquo Tere are a

million signposts pointing toward the specific truth o God in Christ Irsquove

seen many o them But God is speaking to you too Look and see Listen

and hear

So this book is an eclectic apologetics It mixes and matches various ap-

proaches to its subject It contains a strange blending o autobiography and

argument It includes eccentric allusions to and arguments rom the obscure




1048625983088 APOLOGE ICS BEYOND RE ASON

(to most American readers) Stanislaw Lem to the obtuse (to too many

readers) Gerard Manley Hopkins and rom the bare minimalism o Matsuo

Bashō to the absurd chicanery o Lewis CarrollOne important part o this eclectic argument is almost unique to apolo-

getics literature It has played a major part o my own developing under-

standing o both my Christian worldview and the reasons it is true I will

ocus on the role o literature (and in broader terms the arts) rom a

Christian point o view But perhaps itrsquos not unique Te ollowing syllo-

gisms also underlie the approach o Francis Schaeffer though I strongly

doubt that he would agree with the ormulationTe essence o the argument is this

Tere is literature



Or more universal and primary

Tere is everything



Both o course are takeoffs on this syllogism rom Peter Kreef and Ron

acelli

Tere is the music o Johann Sebastian Bach

Tereore there must be a God

You either see this or you donrsquot852017

On the surace o it all these syllogisms look absurd Tey donrsquot seem to

embody reason at all Surely they suggest a leap No not a leap o aith but

a leap beyond reason to sudden intuitive direct perception o reality Seeing

really is believing So is hearing




ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

M983157983139983144 983151983142 983156983144983145983155 983138983151983151983147 983145983155 983137983157983156983151983138983145983151983143983154983137983152983144983145983139983137983148 and there is no end to

those who have played a part in itmdashthat is in the development o my

understanding o Christian lie theology and apologetics philosophy and

literature and literary criticism In act everyone in any o these fields whom

I quote or cite has been influential in one way or another O course too my

amilymdashrom even beore my grandather Paul Louis Eugene Sire came to

the United States rom Switzerlandmdashhas played a role or both act and

myth are involved But itrsquos high school teachers like Lavonne Johnson and

college proessors like Lewis McNew at Washington State Donald Clark

and Ed Costello at the University o Missouri and Arthur Holmes at

Wheaton College (Illinois) whose names are not cited in this book who have

been chie among my academic mentors

As or amily it is o course my wie who deserves the most recognition

I suspect that lots o male writers acknowledge their wives or their own

saetyrsquos sake When I say that without her help my manuscripts would neverhave gotten past the first readers in ten dozen publishing houses I am not

exaggerating Well not much She was a typesetter or many years Her

prooreading eyes and sense o rhetorical propriety are stellar She will have

read this beore it goes off to press Tanks Marj

Publisher Jim Nyquist and editors Steve Board and Jim Hoover have seen

to it that my work has gotten published in years past And now editors

Andrew Le Peau and especially Brannon Ellis have been the shepherds Itrsquosa delight or me that Ruth Goring had her hand in this book at the very end

shersquos my avorite copyeditor What a great crew there has been at InterVarsity

Press since I joined them in 10486251048633852022852024





It is embarrassing terribly dishonoring to mention all these men and

women and not first to have thanked God But I donrsquot quite know how to

thank him in public So I will just say praise God in whom we live and moveand have our being




1

THE PAST AS PROLOGUE

God Adumbrations in Many Daily Forms

Consolers cannot always be truthul But very ofen and almost daily I

have strong impressions o eternity Tis may be due to my strange expe-

riences or to old age I will say that to me this does not eel elderly Nor

would I mind i there were nothing afer death I it is only to be as it was

beore birth why should one care Tere one would receive no urther

inormation Onersquos ape restiveness would stop I would miss mainly my

God adumbrations in the many daily orms

M983154 A983154983156983157983154 S983137983149983149983148983141983154 983156983151 D983154 G983151983158983145983150983140983137 L983137983148 983145983150 S983137983157983148 B983141983148983148983151983159rsquo983155 M983145983155983156983141983154 S983137983149983149983148983141983154rsquo983155 P983148983137983150983141983156

ldquoG983151983140 983137983140983157983149983138983154983137983156983145983151983150983155 983145983150 983156983144983141 983149983137983150983161 983140983137983145983148983161 983142983151983154983149983155rdquo 852017 this could be the

subtitle to this book Itrsquos what Mr Sammler wants Mr Sammler an elderly

Jewish reugee rom World War II in Poland walks and thinks his way

through the streets o New York He has not given up on immortality But

hersquos willing to live with what he most wants to keepmdashhis ldquoGod adumbra-

tions in the many daily ormsrdquoI am not so willing to give up immortality I rest mysel in the hope o

glory ldquoChrist in yourdquo as the apostle Paul said Indeed the presence o Christ

signaled those God adumbrations Mr Sammler so enjoyed





Mr Sammler was old So am I Mr Sammlerrsquos lie was messymdashmuch

messier than mine But mine has been messy enough In act no human

lie even in retrospect or sub species aeternitatis ever looks straight andnarrow And because o that neither does any effective apologetic or the

Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155

I will begin my story and the story o this book with the slightly revised broad

definition o apologetics that opened my Little Primer on Humble Apologetics

Christian apologetics lays beore the watching world such a winsome em-bodiment o the Christian aith that or any and all who are willing to ob-

serve there will be an intellectually and emotionally credible witness to its

undamental truth1048626

Tis notion o apologetics serves or both seekers and believers Ten I

added this

Te success o any given apologetic argument is not whether it wins converts

or strengthens the aith o any given believer but whether it is aithul to

Jesus Te reasons that are given the rhetoric that expresses these and the

lie o the apologist and the larger community o aith must then demon-

strate their truth

Tis definition is broad based It says nothing about which reasons count

and which sorts o rhetoric are useul In this book I want to say something

about both You will not find here either an exhaustive catalog o proper

reasons and reasoning or a demonstration o proper rhetorical principles

Rather I have ocused on a small eclectic collection o both

T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155

One background or this book is the history o apologetics and its range

rom complex argument to direct perception rom elaborate scholarly

tomes to brie conversations with riends rom the rhetorical orms o auto-

biography novel poetry drama and essay to blogs radio spots and Youubeclips Irsquom an old guy but I still remember a brie radio drama rom the Na-

tional Council o Churches broadcast sometime in the 104862510486331048629983088s or 852022983088s I

present it rom memory it the sidebar




he Past as Prologue 10486251048629

Tis ad o course ocuses on getting a hearing or the gospel but simple

as it is it contains an implicit apologetic

Judeo-Christian apologetics is as old as Job and as new as the latest clever

tweet or Youube clip For the purposes o this book most o the history in

between can be lef to others But one sectionmdashthe past seventy years or

somdashis highly relevant to what I am trying to accomplish now

I grew up in an age when most thoughtul people placed confidence in

reason not just in commonsense everyday reasoning but in reason as a path

to sure knowledge both the abstract knowledge o philosophy and theology

and the earthbound knowledge o science I read the major Christian apolo-

gists then popular with thinking Christians Tey included philosophically

oriented theologians like Carl F H Henry Edward John Carnell and Bernard

POPULAR APOLOGETICS

A visitor from a nearby church knocks on the door of a house of a neighbor

ldquoGood afternoon sirrdquo he says to the man who answers the door ldquoIrsquom John

Buck from the big church down the street First Church of the Resurrec-

tion Irsquod like to invite you to join us in worship next Sunday Itrsquos at 930 and

wersquod love to have yourdquo

ldquoHmm Next Sunday you say Well Irsquoll be golfing thenrdquo

ldquoNo problem We meet every Sunday to sing and get to know each other

Itrsquos interesting and sometimes even fun especially when you stay after

the service for coffee and donuts How rsquobout the next Sunday Irsquod be glad

to walk down with you and your family and introduce you to some pretty

nice peoplerdquo

ldquoOh that wonrsquot work either Our family is leaving for vacation on the

Friday before thatrdquo

ldquoOh sure I understand How rsquobout when you get backrdquo

ldquoWell Irsquoll be pretty tied up getting our new ad campaign going at work

Thatrsquoll involve several weekendsrdquo

ldquoAnd after thatrdquo

ldquoGosh I could be dead by that timerdquo

ldquoThatrsquos rightrdquo





Ramm philosophers like Gordon Clark Gordon Lewis and Arthur Holmes

and literary scholars and writers like C S Lewis and G K Chesterton

Along the way I also read the work o those they inspiredmdashNorman GeislerAlvin Plantinga Nicholas Wolterstorff William Lane Craig J P Moreland

Ronald Nash and later Alister McGrath Lee Strobel and im Keller As editor

or InterVarsity Press I oversaw the publications o rationally grounded apol-

ogists like Douglas Groothuis Clark Pinnock and several clever ollowers o

Lewis and Chesterton (like Peter Kreef and Paul Chamberlain) Except or

Lewis and Chesterton and to a lesser extent the work o their ollowers the

evangelical apologists o the 10486251048633852022983088s and afer usually took on the limitationsimposed by the modern acceptance o the autonomy o human reason While

they well knew that the human ability to reason requires a firmer oundation

than the naturalism that was inherent in this assumption they wanted to start

on a common ground Te ground they chose was the trust that modernity

placed in the ability o reason to reach true conclusions

Teir rationalist reasoning took several orms Some o their arguments

began with principles that many people took as sel-evident added other

truths (principles and empirical evidence) and argued with sophistication or

the existence o God the deity o Jesus the historical reliability o the narrative

accounts in Scripture and the resurrection o Jesus Tey addressed intel-

lectual objections to their arguments and answered tough questions arising

rom the traditional Christian aith (the problem o evil epistemological rela-

tivism alternative claims o other religions the challenges o science etc)

Sometimes they turned challenges on their head arguing or instance that

the results o modern sciences such as the physics o astronomy make the

notion o a personal Creator more likely than any alternative explanation

For those in our culture who put their trust in human reason these apol-

ogetic approaches have worked well Many Christians today read and benefit

rom them Without them thoughtul Christians would have too ew re-

sources to analyze the clever arguments and glossy liestyles presented by

our culturersquos media its pundits its raudulent experts and its passionate

prophets o health and wealthBut many in our postmodern world have come willy-nilly to distrust

reason and the arguments o the modern Christian rationalists now seem

irrelevant doubtul lieless Te approaches o C S Lewis and G K Ches-





terton avoided this ate by clever and imaginative grasps o the paradoxes o

the human condition Te value o human reason or them was to permit a

conclusion to be wrested rom within a ramework o paradoxes It tookaccount o the human desire or simplicity tied the reader in knots and then

showed how Christian aith both accounted or the knots and then un-

tangled them Teir work has attracted readers rom across the intellectual

spectrum rom the simple to the sophisticated

But highly sophisticated rational apologetics itsel is limited to those who

can understand it I or example donrsquot understand why the kalam cosmo-

logical argument succeeds1048627

I suspect that there are legions o intelligentpeople like me Irsquove pondered the argument I think I understand it but I

keep seeing objections I donrsquot think have been answered O course the

problem could well be my own inability to grasp the argument rather than

a weakness o the argument itsel In any case the kalam argument doesnrsquot

work or me

Tere is another limitation in many arguments Christians use to prove

the rationality o belie in God Te God who is ldquoprovedrdquo is only a tran-

scendent impersonal God maybe a Creator but not necessarily personal

Only a God whose existence is important to human understanding or

human flourishing is worth troubling about Te arguments may support

deism as a worldview but be silent about the existence o a ully biblical God

O course such arguments can be stepping stones to a uller argument or

the God o the Bible And thatrsquos no small matter

Actually some o my own arguments o a less sophisticated type lead first

to the existence o a vague transcendence on which urther arguments can

build So take my criticism o the kalam argument with a grain o salt We

must grant value to arguments or the existence o the transcendent God

even i not the ully biblical God

Tere are many sophisticated arguments that I do understand not by any

means completely but well enough to be satisfied that they support a

Christian worldview I am not complaining about rational apologetics as

such but about what ofen seems to be assumed by many who use itmdashto witthat it is a highly effective approach and should work even i it doesnrsquot852020

In the late 10486251048633852022983088s and 1048631983088s a new sort o apologetics arose rom the lectures

and publications o Francis Schaeffer Instead o arguing rom so-called sel-





evident principles he began by recognizing the role o culture especially

painting and literature He identified the presuppositionsmdashthe unstated oun-

dation o cultural artiacts values and ideasmdashthat were either assumed orpromoted by literature and painting Ten he showed how those ideas ailed

to account or the rich abric o human being and human lie what in the

104862510486331048631983088s he could still call ldquothe mannishness o manrdquo Working rom the Bible

down and rom the culture up he understood the mindset o the counter-

culture and showed the proound relevance o Western culture to our under-

standing o God Schaeffer wanted to show that the God who is really there is

not any o the gods o the daymdashthe mystical constructs o emotion and desireOn the one hand Schaeffer like Carl Henry relied on the ability o the

human mind to reason rationally He justified this by explaining the biblical

oundation or human reason human beings are made in the image o God

and even in their allen state retain the ability to reasonmdashnot rom the

inside out but rom the outside inmdashrom Scripture and Godrsquos revelation in

nature He insisted that there was such a thing as ldquotrue truthrdquo but moderated

that with the notion that one can know some but not all o such truth His

was a chastened rational apologetic a version o presuppositionalism that

spanned the gap between modern rationalism and the birth and then the

burgeoning o postmodernism

Working to and rom the existentialists C Stephen Evans in his first

book crafed an approach paralleling Schaefferrsquos852021 And Os Guinness ex-

panded Schaefferrsquos approach with his recognition o the value o thinking

in the categories o sociology as well as philosophy1048630 oday moreover

there are apologists who take a humble stance concerning the value o

rational argument Some o this movement can be seen I hope in the

books I have written

A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148

Now let me turn to my own place in the story o recent apologeticsmdasha mini-

autobiography via bibliography852023 I offer it as a retrospectivemdashwhere my

mind or good or ill has been It partly explains why I am finally willing tosay that everything points to God Te view may be eclectic and eccentric

You judge You use your reason the good sense God has given all o us Ah

but do it kindly please





My early books were largely grounded in modern rationalism but as I

lectured and wrote I came to see two thingsmdashthe growing ailure o argu-

ments to move students and others toward Christian aith and the risingpossibility o doing apologetics with attention to why people today actually

do become Christians

My first book to strike a chord with readers was Te Universe Next Door

A Worldview Catalog (104862510486331048631852022) It came rom twelve years o teaching world

literature rom Homer to Camus and English literature rom Beowul to

Virginia Wool I learned the notion o worldview rom Donald Clark at the

University o Missouri where I studied and taught rom 104862510486331048629852024 to 104862510486338520221048628 Tebook that emerged combined a history o worldviews with a host o illustra-

tions rom the great literature o the world I used the definition and com-

parison o worldviews to show the superior ability o Christianity to explain

our experience and thus offered an apologetic or the Christian worldview

How to Read Slowly (104862510486331048631852024) explained how to read literature ldquoworldview-

ishlyrdquo that is how to detect and evaluate the views o reality explained by or

adhered to by authors Tis book was not an apologetic in itsel but it was

a step toward understanding the apologetic character o literature And

Scripture wisting (10486251048633852024983088) deriving rom my rustration with wild and ofen

oolish misreadings o the Bible by those promoting a heretical Christianity

or alternative religion belongs to a subspecies o more scholarly works o-

cused on the correct reading o Scripture

Meanwhile Te Universe Next Door was well received by a wide group o

readersmdashstudents teachers and apologists Even some teachers who were

not Christian used the book or its labeling and descriptions alone From

this success came many invitations to speak to university and college stu-

dents and aculty in North America and eventually in Eastern Europe afer

the Berlin Wall came down1048632

As a speaker I was largely an apologist A book orm o several o my argu-

ments emerged in Chris Chrisman Goes to College And Faces the Challenges

o Relativism Individualism and Pluralism (104862510486331048633852019) Te book ollows the first-

year college experience o Chris my version o a naive (arenrsquot all ldquoreshmenrdquonaive) evangelical Christian It reflects my growing awareness that the cat-

egories o sociological analysis can illuminate or apologists a uller picture

o the culture(s) we address than those o mere intellectual analysis





One o my lectures given first in the 10486251048633852024983088s under the title ldquoWhy Should

Anyone Believe Anything at Allrdquo became a standard o my speaking are

Some years later it morphed into Why Should Anyone Believe Anything at All (1048625104863310486331048628) an expanded version o the talk Tat book is still my best shot

at an apologetic covering the major issues aced by people today Its method

is a bridge between modernist and postmodernist apologetics Given as a

talk it assumes that those listening have not thought much about why they

believe whatever it is they believe In the course o a dialogue with the au-

dience I try to demonstrate that they actually do not act as i different belies

different religious conceptions are equally true Tey actually act as i theybelieve because their own belie is truemdashtrue in the sense that the opposite

o that belie cannot be true Many o the audience came to see this In any

case the sponsors must have thought so because this became the talk I was

most invited to give

My approach was to return students rom a postmodern model o reality

to a model o reality that takes truth seriously Eventually I wanted people

to see that the Christian worldview better explains the character and value

o rational thinking (as in science) than what they had absorbed by osmosis

rom their experience in the classrooms o the nonscience disciplines and

in their lie in the dorms852025

wo books ollowed Habits o the Mind Intellectual Lie as a Christian

Calling (852018983088983088983088) again stressed the importance o clear thinking that is also

humble and deeply emotional Vaacuteclav Havel Intellectual Conscience o Inter-

national Politics (8520189830889830881048625) exemplified the practical value o worldview analysis

in understanding and assessing the contributions o key cultural figures as

expressed in their philosophical and literary works Tis book became a

distinct apologetic when it concluded that the stunning ethical insights and

practices o this great thinker dramatist political dissident and activist

could be better undergirded by a Christian conception o God than by his

notion o the Horizon o Being

By the turn o the century worldview analysis had become both widely

used by thoughtul Christians and widely criticized or being overly intel-lectual When David Naugle wrote his massive history o the worldview

concept he argued that worldviews are rooted in personal commitment a

matter o the heart more than being a mere matter o the intellect In





Naming the Elephant (8520189830889830881048628) I ocused on this proound insight and I revised

my early definition o worldview to reflect it

Afer this I returned to write two tightly ocused works o apologeticsWhy Good Arguments Ofen Fail (852018983088983088852022) could be subtitled ldquothe conessions

o a ailed apologistrdquo It was a call to combine excellent reasoning with ex-

cellent rhetoric A Little Primer on Humble Apologetics (852018983088983088852022) outlined what

I take to be my mature understanding o apologetics8520171048624 It contains the defi-

nition o apologetics that I quote above In short I see apologetics not so

much as argument as a call rom Christians to all others to look to see to

grasp by whatever means at their disposal the truth o the Christian aithand ollow up by a commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior852017852017

Deepest Differences A Christian-Atheist Dialogue (8520189830889830881048633) coauthored

with Carl Peraino an atheist and retired cancer researcher is a perect il-

lustration o two series o rational arguments that ailedmdashmy own and my

opponentrsquos We each then explain rom our own point o view why we had

ailed to change the otherrsquos mind Te result does not bode well or reasonrsquos

effectiveness More recently my memoir Rim o the Sandhills Why I Am Still

a Christian (8520189830881048625852018) has been published as an ebook (Kindle and Nook)

As the present book is published so is my Echoes o a Voice (Cascade

85201898308810486251048628) Te two books are similar and different Te present book ocuses on

the wide variety o good arguments and evidence or Christian aith in lit-

erature and elsewhere Echoes o a Voice a larger tome singles out signals o

transcendence delving deeply into their nature and to the varying ways they

have been interpreted within the rameworks o different worldviews8520171048626

A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161

As the brie history o apologetics suggests and the flow o my own changing

mind shows apologetics is messy Our multicultural world has ormed us

in diverse ways We are eclecticmdasheach o us a bit o this a bit o thatmdashbut

still one unique person We live together with deep differences Our lives

are not under the control o the intellect alone Feeling and desiring uel

who we are what we value and how we behave We are a messy people aallen people and that messy allenness poses a challenge to those who

engage in apologetics

Still we can ask among all the ways apologetics can be done is there a





best way Te answer is clearly no Here are our simple reasons First what

can be known about God his character and his intentions or us is massive

beyond our capacity to grasp Second the content o the Christian aith isso rich so complex so variegated so deep that it too is beyond human

grasp Tird human beings the recipients o this knowledge are so complex

so variegated so proound that no single approach will succeed in ad-

dressing them Finally all o usmdashapologist and apologeemdashare allen Add

allenness to finitude and we can see that effective apologetics can result

only when the Holy Spirit becomes active in both the sender and the receiver

o the messageEvery approach possible short o trickery terror and subliminal coercion

can be the best Te contextmdashculture ethnicity education gender age sit-

uationmdashwill serve to make the task messy Still the goals will remain the

same to lay ldquobeore the watching world such a winsome embodiment o the

Christian aith that or any and all who are willing to observe there will be

an intellectually and emotionally credible witness to its undamental truthrdquo

Success in any argument is never under the control o the arguer and it

should not be In the final analysis God inspires the work o the apologist

and then uses it as he wills8520171048627

So messiness in apologetics is a given Te book that ollows is an illus-

tration It emphasizes neither deductive arguments rom principles nor in-

ductive arguments rom data Both sorts o rationality appear in the ol-

lowing account but they do not characterize the overall approach Te

message is a story the messenger is wrapped up in pilgrimage that too is

a story My own movement rom a first encounter with striking signals o

transcendence through a typical evangelical experience o salvation and on

to the development o a richer understanding o the aith and the reasons

that both keep that aith rom being blind and demonstrate the depth o a

aith that is intellectual emotional and practicalmdashall o that is story So too

you and every other reader o this book are in a story that is encompassed

by the story o creation all redemption and glorification And either yoursquoll

see this or you wonrsquot o see this is to believe it






WHY SEEING REALLY

IS BELIEVING

James W Sire




InterVarsity Press






InterVarsity Press





org















ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-1048628104862410486291048629-983095 (print)

ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-9830979830941048628983097-983091 (digital)



Sire James W


Sire

pages cm




B9830899830891048624983091S1048629983094983095 1048626104862498308910486281048626983091983097mdashdc1048626983091

1048626104862498308910486281048624983089104862698309410486291048629

P 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628 983089983091 9830891048626 983089983089 9830891048624 983097 1048632 983095 983094 1048629 1048628 983091 1048626 983089

Y 9830911048626 983091983089 9830911048624 1048626983097 10486261048632 1048626983095 1048626983094 10486261048629 10486261048628 1048626983091 10486261048626 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628




Tere is everything







but did not see it


but did not hear it





CONTENTS

Preace 983097





983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God









Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161














































WHY SEEING REALLY

IS BELIEVING

James W Sire




InterVarsity Press






InterVarsity Press





org















ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-1048628104862410486291048629-983095 (print)

ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-9830979830941048628983097-983091 (digital)



Sire James W


Sire

pages cm




B9830899830891048624983091S1048629983094983095 1048626104862498308910486281048626983091983097mdashdc1048626983091

1048626104862498308910486281048624983089104862698309410486291048629

P 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628 983089983091 9830891048626 983089983089 9830891048624 983097 1048632 983095 983094 1048629 1048628 983091 1048626 983089

Y 9830911048626 983091983089 9830911048624 1048626983097 10486261048632 1048626983095 1048626983094 10486261048629 10486261048628 1048626983091 10486261048626 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628




Tere is everything







but did not see it


but did not hear it





CONTENTS

Preace 983097





983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God









Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































InterVarsity Press






InterVarsity Press





org















ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-1048628104862410486291048629-983095 (print)

ISBN 9830979830951048632-1048624-104863298309110486241048632-9830979830941048628983097-983091 (digital)



Sire James W


Sire

pages cm




B9830899830891048624983091S1048629983094983095 1048626104862498308910486281048626983091983097mdashdc1048626983091

1048626104862498308910486281048624983089104862698309410486291048629

P 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628 983089983091 9830891048626 983089983089 9830891048624 983097 1048632 983095 983094 1048629 1048628 983091 1048626 983089

Y 9830911048626 983091983089 9830911048624 1048626983097 10486261048632 1048626983095 1048626983094 10486261048629 10486261048628 1048626983091 10486261048626 1048626983089 10486261048624 983089983097 9830891048632 983089983095 983089983094 9830891048629 9830891048628




Tere is everything







but did not see it


but did not hear it





CONTENTS

Preace 983097





983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God









Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































Tere is everything







but did not see it


but did not hear it





CONTENTS

Preace 983097





983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God









Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































CONTENTS

Preace 983097





983091 In the Beginning 983092983089

An Argument rom God









Aterword 983089983092983091

Notes 983089983092983093

Bibliography 983089983093983093

Index 983089983093983096




PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































PREFACE





W983145983148983148983145983137983149 B983148983137983147983141 ldquoA983157983143983157983154983145983141983155 983151983142 I983150983150983151983139983141983150983139983141rdquo












and hear

















Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161























































Tere is literature




Tere is everything




acelli











ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161




















































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161













































1


























Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161

















































Christian aith

A983150 I983150983145983156983145983137983148 D983141983142983145983150983145983156983145983151983150 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155







added this





strate their truth






T983144983141 C983151983149983152983148983141983160 M983137983152 983151983142 A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155























POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161


























































POPULAR APOLOGETICS











nice peoplerdquo






























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161































































































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161



























































work or me

















































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161







































































A C983151983150983142983141983155983155983145983151983150 G983151983151983140 983142983151983154 M983161 S983151983157983148








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161












































































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161








































































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161




































































A983152983151983148983151983143983141983156983145983139983155 I983155 M983141983155983155983161












































































Documents

Apologetics Beyond Reason by Jim Sire - EXCERPT