Sunday 19 April 2009

UK Apologetics Seminar for Missionary Students April 2009

Dear brothers and sisters

These are the 'objections against the Christian faith and the Gospel' we will be assessing this week.

Notice that there are three sessions, which will include teaching, debate videos, discussion and role-plays.

It would benefit you all greatly if you spent some time looking at the objections (written below) and write a few notes on each of them.

When I say benefit you, it is because these sessions will involve you personally in discussion, role plays (in which you debate other students) or if you really unlucky (or lucky) you will be picked out to debate me personally, you will be the Christian and I will be the opponent.

Notice I intend to drain you and challenge your faith, which will be part of the training.

Good luck.

Session 1: Objections related to God, Jesus and the Gospels:
· How do you know God exists: Science, history, miracles and the supernatural, personal experiences
· In the beginning there were different kinds of Christianity! The Gnostics, the Ebionites, others.
· How about the Apocryphical Gospels, Epistles, Acts and Revelations?
· Did the Apostles all preach the same Gospel?
· How do you know Jesus ever existed?
· If Jesus existed how do you know Jesus was what the Bible describes him to be?
1. What Jesus truly a moral person
2. Did Jesus do miracles
3. Did Jesus truly raise from the dead
· Was Jesus not copied from other religions?
Session 2: Objections related to the Bible:
· How do you know the Bible is inspired?
· Has the Bible not been changed?
· Early Christians were uneducated, unorganised and confused how did Christianity survive?
· What was Christianity before the Gospels were written? Did the apostles preserve and guard it?
· Why do so many Christian scholars not trust the Bible?
· Why does the Bible get Science so wrong (The flat earth and centrality of the earth debate)?
Session 3: Issues relate to personal experiences or ethics:
· There are so many different kinds of Christians!
· Is the Christian faith not suppressive: marriage, women, upbringing of children, normal values?
· Why do so many Christians leave the Christian faith?
· Why are Christians not better than non-Christians: general behaviour, priests and paedophilia, divorce?
· Why are Christians ashamed about their faith
· Are Christians willing to live and die for their faith: some religions do because they truly believe it!
· Why do Christians not care about their kind being persecuted in a variety of nations?
· Can Christianity change the social situation in our world?
· Why do Christians commit atrocities? Rwanda, the religious wars, the inquisition, witch hunts, etc?
· Why are Christians so intolerant?
· Why are Christians not open-minded?
· Christianity restricts my freedom, or what?

1 comment:

Hogan Elijah Hagbard said...

Good work guys. You survived.

I think we all agree that the video clip of Jay Smith debating Adnan over the Bible's prediction of Muhammad was the dessert of the seminar. It was good to end a series of hard and intense studies and practice with a good laugh. Yeah I know Jay is cool.

God bless you all

A response and challenge to those who oppose the Christian faith.