How Do You Know You're Not Wrong?: Responding to Objections That Leave Christians Speechless

by Paul Copan

In today's postmodern world, believers more than ever before are faced with a host of objections to Christianity. Expert apologist Paul Copan describes these objections as "anti-truth" claims and with "How Do You Know You're Not Wrong" he provides a helpful resource with thorough, biblical answers to such regularly used objections as

- "Whatever works for you"
- "Just as long as it makes you happy"
- "All religions are basically the same"
- "Christianity is anti-semitic"

At the end of each chapter, he provides practical and easy-to-share summary points to help readers intelligently and effectively answer the challenges of their non-Christian friends and neighbors.

Genres: Christianity, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Theology, Christian, Christian Non Fiction, Religion

273 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2005

About the author

Paul Copan is a Christian theologian, analytic philosopher, apologist, and author. He is currently a professor at the Palm Beach Atlantic University and holds the endowed Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics.

From 1980-1984, he attended Columbia International University and earned a B.A. degree in biblical studies. Copan attended Trinity International University, where he received his M.A. in philosophy of religion, as well as his M.Div. at Trinity International. Copan received the Prof. C.B. Bjuge Award for a thesis that “evidences creative scholarship in the field of Biblical and Systematic Theology.”

In May 2000, Copan received his Ph.D. in philosophy of religion from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His dissertation topic was "The Moral Dimensions of Michael Martin’s Atheology: A Critical Assessment."

Reviews

[Richard Conklin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started off very good, became so-so, then not so good, then back to “ok.” Not a waste of time, but wouldn’t necessarily recommend the time to read. I am finding this to be typical of Paul Copan’s books as whole - not to mention the regurgitation of ideas from one book to another. Paul, you said that before, like 736 times, in your other 47 books.

[Christine Norman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Copan is very thorough, yet concise. Organized by common objections to both truth and the truth claims of Christianity, it is an excellent resource for dispelling doubts about the Christian faith. It was not an easy read, but very much worth my time. I'll probably read it again.

[Sawn Medrano · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the very beginning but then had a hard time staying awake through the next section. It was not until part 3 that I found the most interesting writing. I like the way he summarizes each chapter so you can skipt o the summaries of the first ten chapters then read through till the end.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

COPAN'S THIRD BOOK OF APOLOGETICS

Paul Copan (born 1962) is a Christian theologian, philosopher and apologist, who is currently a professor at the Palm Beach Atlantic University; he has written many other books such as 'True for You, But Not for Me: Overcoming Objections to Christian Faith,' 'That's Just Your Interpretation: Responding to Skeptics Who Challenge Your Faith,' 'When God Goes to Starbucks A Guide to Everyday Apologetics,' etc.

He wrote in the Introduction to this 2005 book, "In my previous writings, I've mentioned a basic threefold strategy for defending and dealing with objections to the Christian worldview. First of all, we can't escape the objectivity of truth and the REALITY, to which truth-claims correspond... Second, if... people see that truth and reality are inescapable, then we can deal with the next level---worldviews... Third, if theism is the best option among competing worldviews, then WHICH theistic option is the most viable---Judaism, Islam, or Christianity?... It's my hope that this material will encourage Christians in general, but particularly Christian students in high schools and universities ... who regularly face skeptical challenges to their faith." (Pg. 11-12)

He suggests, "the very strong evidence for near-death experiences (NDEs) or out-of-body experiences (OBEs) taking place suggests that body and soul are different substances. During a four-minute time period of being clinically dead, the late atheist philosopher A.J. Ayer was aware of an 'exceedingly bright and also very painful' red light. Ayer concluded that 'death does not put an end to consciousness.'" (Pg. 103; Ayer's article is included in 'Does God Exist?: A Believer and an Atheist Debate.')

He argues, "PETA engaged in a (false) advertising campaign claiming that 'Jesus was a vegetarian.' He wasn't. Besides eating lamb every year at Passover, he, being a good Galilean, certainly ate fish on a regular basis (cf. Luke 24:42-43). Jesus also helped some of his fishermen-disciples catch fish (Luke 5:1-9; John 21:1-12)---a legitimate livelihood. He also would provide fish for his disciples to eat (John 21:9, 13). He miraculously fed fish to over five thousand people on one occasion (Mark 6:33-44) and to over four thousand people on another occasion (Mark 8:1-9). The celebration at the return of the prodigal son in Luke 15 calls for a feast---a killing of the fatted calf---a portrayal of the fact that Jesus 'receives sinners and eats with them'..." (Pg. 126-127)

He states, "We should avoid referring to our 'nature' as 'sinful' (unless we clarify that 'nature' is being used in a philosophically IMPRECISE manner). God made human nature to be good---even though it has been deeply damaged by the fall. But because God has created human nature as good, it isn't INTRINSICALLY sinful. And if it were, then Jesus couldn't truly identify with human beings as the divine-human mediator, and therefore he couldn't bring about salvation for us." (Pg. 206)

This book deals with an entirely different range of objections than Copan's previous books, and it will be of keen interest to Christians studying apologetics.

[Melissa Wohlgemut · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite philosophical.

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

It took me a while longer than what is normal for me to get through this book. One very annoying habit of the author is using italics for so many words or phrases that he wanted to emphasize. And I mean in addition to sentences he already italicized for setting apart his points. one disappointment is that I thought it would have answers to questions that I have heard about Christianity (or that I may have had myself), but no, it did not. I don't agree with the book's description because it just did not answer most of those questions. A second disappointment is that I also felt bogged down by so much information (sometimes repetitive) about naturalism. Many times I thought, "Are we there yet?" No, still talking about it even though the title of the next chapter was different or the content was different for a paragraph or two. The third disappointment is the chapters about science. If I thought before that a person doesn't have to choose between science and religion or that there isn't science vs. religion, then Paul Copan made me question that. I don't really want to get into a long explanation about it.

From my review so far it would seem I didn't like the book at all. Not so. I am glad I read it and did learn new, interesting information. I underlined and made notes throughout the book and will go back at a later date to look through the book again.

*Update: I’ve never gone back to look through or re-read this book. It just really was not helpful to me, and I didn’t want to torture myself again.

[Atchisson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and challenging, this book helps you understand the basic premise of your convictions.

[Jeffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated these intro discussions for popular audience.

[Greg Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good and informative. Misses the mark on a couple topics, but well worth the read.

[Marius · Rating 5 out of 5]

A refreshing and challenging reading