MORAL APOLOGETICS FOR CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIANS Mark Coppenger (B&H Publishing 2011, $24.99) Review by Aaron Cline Hanbury
In his new book, Moral Apologetics for Contemporary Christians, Mark Coppenger, professor of Christian apologetics at Southern Seminary, argues that accusations that Christianity is bad for society are “incredible nonsense.” Conversely, Christianity, in its pure form, brings flourishing and vibrancy to society. According to Coppenger, many contemporary Christian apologists often unnecessarily and unhelpfully avoid cultural apologetics and ethics. Against this backdrop, he sets forward several reasons to pursue cultural apologetics. He begins with the claim that if God is indeed the God of the Bible, then “obedience
Coppenger writes: “Foes of the faith often declare Christianity morally deficient. Christopher Hitchens for one has said that religion ‘poisons everything,’ and believers are all too familiar with attempts to hang the Crusades, the Inquisition, and even the Holocaust around their necks. They have also felt the sting of being
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labeled ‘repressed, Victorian prudes,’ ‘blood-thirsty colonists,’ purveyors of ideological ‘opium to the masses,’ and insufferable ‘theocrats.’ The Bible itself has been demeaned for teaching willfullyblind creationism, genocide, homophobia, and an eternal hell. This book is designed to push back against such criticism, arguing
should result in wonderful things, which should reflect well on tenets of the faith.” In 18 fast-paced chapters, Coppenger leads his readers through a tour of secular and Christian cultures from the early church up until, well, about six months before the book’s Nov. 1 release. This unique, exciting survey of the Christian apologetic landscape, filled with references from high- to pop-culture, will shame the holier-than-thou skeptic. But Moral Apologetics is sure to delight and empower Christians who find themselves in religion-based coffee shop conversations.
that Christianity is morally superior as well as true.” _____
millions, and scores of millions or innocent peoples.” _____
“It is perfectly reasonable, worthwhile, and apologetically responsible to remind the critic of Christianity wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt that 20th-century Communists such as Pol Pot, Stalin, and Mao have intentionally killed, respectively millions, tens of
“The salubrious effect of strong Christian presence should be pervasive, unmistakable, and compelling wherever believers live, the more so as they predominate. If not, it is fair to ask whether Christianity is actually transformative, whether these people who
call themselves Christian are genuinely so, and whether these believers somehow misconstrued or misapplied Christianity. If the faith is true and wonderful as the Bible says it is, then the splendor of its manifestations and outcomes should be obvious to the dispassionate observer. And therein lies an apologetic.”
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