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Sharing Christ with atheists and agnostics isn’t an endeavor to take lightly. Here are six tips.
by Dan DeWitt | Sharing the gospel with skeptics isn’t an endeavor to take lightly. In addition to risking your public reputation, you’re forced to come face-to-face with your true convictions. Your views will be laughed at, and your commitments scorned...
by Dan Dewitt | I love the story of Peter in the Bible. That guy could really be an idiot. Maybe that’s why I identify with him so. I can be an idiot too. I’m thankful God loves idiots...
Children’s Book Review: Why God? Written by Dan DeWitt and Illustrated by Christine Grove
Why God? is a new children’s book written by Dan DeWitt and illustrated by Christine Grove. It is a story of asking God questions and finding answers about why we believe in Him.
Big Answers About God
The story centers around a young boy named Thomas who loves to ask questions. This book is about a day when Thomas asks this question: "Why God? My friend Richard at school doesn't believe in God. So, why do we believe in Him?"
The book works best for children ages 4-8. The text is simple and the line of thinking is clear. Children can discover the clues God has given to us so we can know Him.
Why We Believe in Him
The book is 32 pages long. Author Dan DeWitt, the associate professor of applied theology and apologetics and the director of the Center for Biblical Apologetics and Public Christianity at Cedarville University, is able to give a concise and captivating answer to Thomas' question.
The illustrations are approachable with a watercolor feel. Some pages have minimal white backgrounds, while others pop with full-page colors. Thomas is presented as a boy with short brown curly hair. His sister, Hope, is presented as a girl wearing glasses with long brown curly hair.
Opening Hearts to the Wonders of God
Apologetics is a difficult subject to tackle, but this book makes it accessible for children. B&H Kids Publishing includes a Parent Connection page at the book of the book, featuring Psalm 19:1, Romans 1:18-20, and five questions for discussion. This book is a wonderful way to bring God's Word to children and open their hearts to his wonders.
I was provided a complimentary copy of Why God? in exchange for an honest review. Read more of my book reviews.
We must recognize that lost people are unlike hungry people in that they are unaware of their need for spiritual bread. Our task would be much easier if everyone sensed the hunger pangs of their sacred starvation. For that matter, our task would be easier if we as believers would better nurture an appetite for spreading the faith by sharing the gospel. Too often, we can be guilty of being gospel hoarders and simultaneously spiritually malnourished. If we hide the gospel away for our families, and ourselves, the result will be an evangelistic anorexia that fails to convince the watching world that we have found the source of supreme satisfaction. God help us.
Dan DeWitt, A Guide to Evangelism (free PDF)
The Big Bird Atheist
—Dan DeWitt—
It’s kind of like like an atheism remix of Sesame Street, though it’s not nearly as well-funded, creatively produced, or entertaining. But it is aimed at children. Whose kids? Your kids.
I spent some time this morning perusing KidsWithoutGod.com after reading an article about it in Salvo magazine. The site kind of reminds me of a low budget children’s ministry web page offering clunky resources for those working with preschoolers. But this url provides a very different kind of religious training, the godless type produced by the American Humanist Association.
The site claims to be dedicated to the “millions of young people around the world who have embraced science, rejected superstition, and are dedicated to being Good Without A God.” For a site devoted to such a scientific endeavor, I’m curious as to the statistical evidence for this claim. Not that I can readily provide the percentage of children who have self-identified as atheists, I just think I’m not alone. Perhaps we can chalk this up to marketing zeal and hyperbole.
But can we at least agree to be a little more honest with children than trying to entice them in with ungrounded marketing hype? I’m all for children being taught to be critical thinkers at a young age. But I’m also for a more authentic approach. For example, the site connects embracing science with being good without God, thus forcing a choice between science or God. The only problem with this is that it is a false dilemma. But, then again, why should we care about proper argumentation? I mean, if we want little ones to be critical thinkers, we should lure them in with overstated advertising claims, straw men arguments, and logical fallacies—all for the sake of free thinking and skepticism, of course.
Read more at theolatte.com
More Than Preaching to the Choir
—Dan DeWitt
Chris Stedman seems like a really nice guy. Smart. Witty. Interesting. Empathetic. I enjoyed his book. But I think he’s fighting a lost cause.
Here’s why. In his recent book, “Faitheist: How an Atheist Found Common Ground with the Religious,” he promotes the kind of humanism embodied by the late Paul Kurtz, the father of the movement. Like Kurtz, he sees a certain societal value in religion, at least the non-fundamentalist variety. In this vein, Stedman seeks to nurture healthy relationships between skeptics and those of faith.
Chris’s book is really his life story—his coming to faith as a teenager in an evangelistic youth group—his later coming out of the closet and wrestling with the tension between biblical Christianity and homosexuality—and his departure from the faith. He provides powerful insights into the depth of his struggle, his intense questioning, his season of despair, and finally the intellectual liberation he found in atheism. Though he initially took a more hostile view towards religion with Christianity as his “special target” (p. 86), he now promotes a more mature and empathetic humanistic outlook.
Chris says he wrote the book because he wants to live “in a world where love is more commonplace” by working to promote a healthy dialogue on how “atheists and religious relate to one another” (163). I think this is good and right and admirable. And I think a world where love is more commonplace is possible. I hope his tribe increases. But I think there are some really big limitations to his larger desire for cooperation.
I do think Chris’s work is important—because healthy dialogue and meaningful discussions are helpful and necessary. There’s way too much of the stereotypical sound byte bombing between Christians and skeptics. And if Chris’s exclusive focus is the Interfaith movement—I think he will likely find quite a bit of success. But as for the broader, growing, segments of orthodox faith—I think his initiative is dead upon arrival. Let me offer three interrelated reasons why:
Read more at Theolatte.com
Puppets and Their Beloved Strings
-Dan DeWitt
Sam Harris quickly cast the gauntlet for a new expression of atheism in the wake of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. His first book, “The End of Faith,” is an open letter, a short one at that, citing religious belief as the motivation for much, if not all, evil in the world.
Though more serious works have followed, Harris’ first book was not much more than a paperback rant. He set his sights higher with “The Moral Landscape,” which is predominantly a philosophical work punctuated with scientific references. Though the subtitle claims “How Science Can Determine Human Values,” the reader might separate the science from the philosophical assumptions and question how much support is left for the author’s thesis. But who can blame the guy for trying to tackle one of the largest difficulties that plagues a reductionist worldview.
Although a noble effort, it doesn’t seem that Harris has solved the riddle offered by David Hume that we cannot derive a moral “ought” from a scientific “is.” This always makes me think of Oxford University prof John Lennox’s apt illustration that science can tell me if I put strychnine in my grandmother’s tea it will poison her (the scientific is), but science cannot tell me why I shouldn’t do it (the moral ought).
If we were to concede for a moment that Harris is right and science really can determine our values, we should go all the way and accept the conclusion of his most recent book that claims free will is an illusion. This book is less of an attack on religion, and more of an honest look at the implications of Harris’ view of the world.
Read more at Theolatte.com
An Interview with Dan DeWitt—Part One
What's your writing background?
Nothing too exciting. I have a Bachelor's degree in English, which means next to nothing when it comes to writing fiction. Still, I took a bunch of creative writing classes and really enjoyed them. Before that, I dabbled in short stories here and there, but wasn't ready to try and make a career out of it. I wrote one screenplay in 2001 that advanced to the second round at Austin (and I'm about ¼ of the way into its novelization). I've always been a voracious reader, and I got really serious after participating in NaNoWriMo in 2006. Since then, I've published a couple of short stories in e-zines and one non-fiction profile in a local magazine. But I'm really just a guy who loves to read fiction and tell a story from time to time.
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