A Brief Introduction to Four Types of Christian Apologetics

Apologetics is based on the word apologia (Greek), which means to give a reason or defense for some belief. In modern Christian apologetics, there are four schools of thought: classical, evidentialist, presuppositional, and Reformed.

St. Thoma Aquinas (1225-1274)

classical apologetics – The classical approach is so named, because it was employed by the earliest Christian thinkers to practice formal apologetics, such as Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and Anselm. In this form of apologetics, there are two steps:

1. Prove the existence of God (broad theism) through rational argumentation using the cosmological (William Lane Craig, Thomas Aquinas), teleological (William Paley, Michael Behe), moral (C.S. Lewis, William Sorley), or ontological arguments (Anselm, Alvin Plantinga, W.L. Craig). Different apologists may prefer one of the four arguments, rejecting one or more of the others. The ontological argument, for instance, is particularly controversial due to its questionable logical validity. [1]
2. Establish the truth of Christianity specifically by appealing to the historical evidence, particularly of the life of Jesus, his miracles, and his resurrection.

Josh McDowell (1939-)

Evidentialist apologetics – The evidentialist approach appeals to the many different forms of evidence that support the truth claims of Christianity. Evidentialists overlap with classical apologists when they use rational evidence, but they don't believe the rational proof for the existence of God is a necessary step. They may just as easily appeal to miracles, historical, prophetic, or archaeological evidence, without first proving God's existence. Josh McDowell is a modern proponent of this approach. There is only one step:

1. Present the evidence for the truth claims of Christianity.

Francis Schaeffer (1912-1984)

Presuppositionalist apologetics – The presuppositionalist approach presupposes that Christianity is true without rational proof or any type of direct evidence. Though there are many different types of presuppositionalism, they all essentially demonstrate that Christianity makes the most sense of reality. In this system, Christianity is seen as a total worldview. Some show that it is the only rational worldview (Gordon Clark, Carl F.H. Henry), others show that it is the only worldview that can be consistently lived (Francis Schaeffer), and still others show that it is the only worldview that is internally consistent with itself.

1. Demonstrate that Christianity, as a whole worldview system, is superior to the alternatives (naturalism, pantheism, Islam, etc...)

Alvin Plantinga (1932-)

Reformed epistemology [2] – Surprisingly, Reformed epistemologists argue that it is perfectly rational to assume God exists without any empirical reason for it at all. This is rooted in the philosophical school of rationalism, which states that there are certain ideas innate to humanity. Alvin Plantinga, the premier Reformed epistemologist, argues (with John Calvin and Thomas Aquinas) that God has created human beings with innate knowledge of him, which may be triggered by such things as the wonders of nature (Romans 1:20). Believing in God without empirical evidence is just as rational as believing that other people have minds and believing that your memories of the past are true.

1. Demonstrate that assuming the truth of Christianity is epistemologically valid or even superior to not believing.

I am not a formal apologist, but I do prefer presuppositional and Reformed arguments over classical and evidentialist arguments. There are many reasons for this, but essentially I believe that presuppositional and Reformed arguments are the most convincing and effective approaches in today's increasingly postmodern environment.

Which type of apologetics do you prefer and/or find most effective? (Please comment below.)

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[1] Classical apologetics is rooted in natural theology, which operates on the belief that God has revealed himself through nature (general revelation), apart from what may be learned about God through Jesus or the Scriptures (special revelation).

[2] “Reformed” refers to the Reformed wing of the Protestant reformation, which was largely shaped by John Calvin. This approach has been developed within the confessional Reformed tradition of Protestant Christianity.