Overview
Fully revised and updated, this is a frank critique of Christian belief from a former insider. For almost two decades John Loftus was a devout evangelical Christian, an ordained minister, and an ardent apologist for Christianity. With three degrees - in philosophy, theology, and philosophy of religion - he was adept at using rational argument to defend his faith. But over the years, as he ministered to various congregations and taught at Christian colleges, doubts about the credibility of key Christian tenets began to creep into his thinking. By the late 1990s he experienced a full-blown crisis of faith, brought on by emotional upheavals in his personal life as well as the gathering weight of the doubts he had long harboured. In this honest appraisal of his journey from believer to non-believer, Loftus carefully explains the experiences and the reasoning process that led him to reject religious belief. The bulk of the book is his ""cumulative case"" against Christianity. Here he lays out the philosophical, scientific, and historical arguments that can be raised against Christian belief. From the implications of religious diversity, the authority of faith vs. reason, and the problem of evil, to the contradictions between the Bible and the scientific worldview, the conflicts between traditional dogma and historical evidence, and much more, Loftus covers a great deal of intellectual terrain. In conclusion, he describes the implications of life without belief in God, some liberating, some sobering.
Full Product Details
Author: John W. Loftus
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Imprint: Prometheus Books
Edition: REV and Expanded ed.
Dimensions:
Width: 15.30cm
, Height: 3.10cm
, Length: 21.90cm
Weight: 0.844kg
ISBN: 9781616145774
ISBN 10: 1616145773
Pages: 540
Publication Date: 27 March 2012
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Manufactured on demand
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.
Reviews
A thoughtful and intellectually challenging work presenting arguments that every honest theist and Christian should face. <br>-Dr. Norman L. Geisler Christian apologist, author of The Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics
"""""A thoughtful and intellectually challenging work presenting arguments that every honest theist and Christian should face."" -Dr. Norman L. Geisler Christian apologist, author of The Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics"
A thoughtful and intellectually challenging work presenting arguments that every honest theist and Christian should face. -Dr. Norman L. Geisler Christian apologist, author of The Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics
Author Information
John W. Loftus (Angola, IN) earned MA and MDiv degrees in theology and philosophy from Lincoln Christian Seminary under the guidance of Dr. James D. Strauss. He then attended Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where he studied under Dr. William Lane Craig and received a ThM degree in philosophy of religion. Before leaving the church, he had ministries in Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana, and he taught at several Christian colleges. He is also the editor of The Christian Delusion: Why Faith Fails and The End of Christianity. In addition, he has an online blog at http: //debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com.
