Christian apologetics
branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity against objections
Christian apologetics (Ancient Greek: ἀπολογία, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. It is potentially first seen in 1 Peter 3:15–16, in which Christians should respond in a well manner to those who ask about their faith.
Christian apologetics have taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in the early church and Patristic writers such as Origen, Augustine of Hippo, Justin Martyr and Tertullian, then continuing with writers such as Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus, William of Ockham and Anselm of Canterbury during Scholasticism.
Blaise Pascal was an active Christian apologist during the 17th century. In the modern period, Christianity was defended through the efforts of many authors such as John Henry Newman, G. K. Chesterton, William Lane Craig and C. S. Lewis, as well as G. E. M. Anscombe.
History
Jewish precursors
According to Edgar J. Goodspeed, Jewish apologetic elements could be seen in first century CE works such as The Wisdom of Solomon, Philo's On the Contemplative Life and, more explicitly, Josephus's Against Apion.
Apostolic and post-apostolic period
Christian apologetics first appear in the New Testament (e. g. Paul's preaching on Mars Hill in Acts 17:22–31). During the subapostolic age Christianity was already competing with Judaism as well as with various other religions and sects in the Greco-Roman world.
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This entry incorporates text from “Christian apologetics” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.