Product Description

The New Dictionary of Christian Apologetics is a must-have resource for professors and students, pastors and laypersons--in short, for any Christian who wishes to understand or develop a rational explanation of the Christian faith in the context of today's complex and ever-changing world. Packed with hundreds of articles that cover the key topics, historic figures and contemporary global issues relating to the study and practice of Christian apologetics, this handy one-volume resource will make an invaluable addition to any Christian library.Editors Gavin McGrath and W. C. Campbell-Jack, with consulting editor C. Stephen Evans, have divided the dictionary into two parts: Part one offers a series of introductory essays that set the framework for the dictionary. These essays examine the practice and importance of Christian apologetics in light of theological, historical and cultural concerns. Part two builds on these essays to present numerous alphabetized articles on individuals, ideas, movements and disciplines that are vital to a rational explanation of the Christian faith. Both essays and articles are written by leading Christian philosophers and theologians. Together, they form an indispensable resource for Christians living in today's pluralistic age.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #549607 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-30
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 779 pages

Customer Reviews

Does Not Appear to "Defend" Christianity
I thought the book has a lot of "iffy" opinions that don't even pretend to support Christianity. I thought the chapter on Islam is a perfect example of this. If you are really looking for arguements for your Christian faith, I would not recommend this. I really don't mind reading various opinions, but that is not what I paid for.

Secular-Progressive Spin on Christianity
I could not bring myself to believe this was a serious search for the truth based on my review of a few topics with which I had considerable familiarity. The material presented in this book appears to be a secular-progressive attempt to cast doubt about Christ and Christianity under the guise of a serious work. It seems to be most selective in regard to the information presented and should not be used by any serious student in search of the truth. There are just too many good books on this subject to waste your time reading this one!

Not as useful as Baker's Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics
Two of the three previous reviewers included comparisons with Norman Geisler's Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, a volume of similar size and scope. I would like to offer my own comparison of the two, focusing on topics that come up most frequently in Christian apologetics, namely the existence of God, the problem of evil, biblical contradictions, miracles, the resurrection, creation, etc. Coverage by page count for the two are as follows:

Evidence/Arguments for God: Baker 32-1/2 pages, IVP 11 pages
Problem of Evil: Baker 5-1/2 pages, IVP 3-1/2 pages
The Resurrection: Baker 23-1/2 pages, IVP 5 pages
Bible Criticism: Baker 5-1/2 pages, IVP 2 pages
Bible Difficulties/Errors: Baker 6-1/2 pages, IVP 5-1/2 pages
Miracles: Baker 38 pages, IVP 5-1/2 pages
The Trinity: Baker 7-1/2 pages, IVP 3-1/2 pages
Views of Creation/Origins: Baker 15-1/2 pages, IVP 4-1/2 pages
Science & the Bible: Baker 9 pages, IVP 2 pages
Evolution: Baker 9-1/2 pages, IVP 2-1/2 pages
Big Bang Theory: Baker 4 pages, IVP 1/2 page
C. S. Lewis: Baker 5 pages, IVP 1 page
Salvation of Infants: Baker 5-1/2 pages, IVP 0 pages

In addition, the articles in the Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics tend to be more structured, with sub-headings, text tables and numbered lists, which make them easier to follow and to browse. The articles in IVP's New Dictionary of Christian Apologetics are almost exclusively undifferentiated paragraphs of text.

Furthermore, in the area that I am personally most familiar with (science & the Bible), the articles in the Baker Encyclopedia are much more informative, presenting arguments on all sides of an issue.

As for the argument that multiple contributors are better than one, remember that systematic theologies tend to have single authors.

Therefore, between the two, I recommend Norman Geisler's Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics over IVP's New Dictionary of Christian Apologetics.