In the United States nowadays, atheism is out in the open: like gays and lesbians, it has come “out of the closet.” It used to be, in the good old days, that the only open enemy of their religion that American Christians had to worry about was arguing heresies amongst each other. The old disputes between Catholicism and Protestantism were small potatoes in comparison to the new dispute between Christians and atheism. Protestantism may have objected to certain particulars of Catholicism but atheism objects to the whole root-and-branch of Christianity.
All this being the case, we would be wise to give serious attention to atheism. Atheism has been in the world for many centuries, it has many varieties, it has offered many defenses of itself and it arises from many different motives.
Fr. John Cihak sums up the challenge fairly neatly: “The greatest challenge I find in bringing someone to Christ and his Church is finding ways to engage him in meaningful conversation.
Talk of truth is often met with a yawn, and an assertion about what is good is met with a stare of incomprehension. In the malaise of contemporary American life, people do not seem to be moved much by claims of truth or goodness.
Relativism has made truth to be whatever one desires, thereby turning the good into whatever makes one “feel” good. With access to these roads of Truth and Goodness into the human heart darkened by relativism, how can one engage the average non-believer? How can one place him on the road that would ultimately lead him back to the Truth and the Good?
Is there a best argument? Where would you begin?
dj
Fr. Cihak thought the theology of von Balthazar offered an approach to atheists. The full argument here:
All this being the case, we would be wise to give serious attention to atheism. Atheism has been in the world for many centuries, it has many varieties, it has offered many defenses of itself and it arises from many different motives.
Fr. John Cihak sums up the challenge fairly neatly: “The greatest challenge I find in bringing someone to Christ and his Church is finding ways to engage him in meaningful conversation.
Talk of truth is often met with a yawn, and an assertion about what is good is met with a stare of incomprehension. In the malaise of contemporary American life, people do not seem to be moved much by claims of truth or goodness.
Relativism has made truth to be whatever one desires, thereby turning the good into whatever makes one “feel” good. With access to these roads of Truth and Goodness into the human heart darkened by relativism, how can one engage the average non-believer? How can one place him on the road that would ultimately lead him back to the Truth and the Good?
Is there a best argument? Where would you begin?
dj
Fr. Cihak thought the theology of von Balthazar offered an approach to atheists. The full argument here:
http://payingattentiontothesky.com/20...