Apologetics Profile

Is there any redeeming value in reading fantasy literature or literature from the ancient world that is not distinctively Christian? What does Athens have to do with Jerusalem? What does truth have to do with fiction?

Our guest again this week, an advocate for classical Christian education, Dr. Louis Markos, believes that reading fantasy or any of the classical works from pagan antiquity is an essential component to a classical Christian education; one that enables students to understand and appreciate the bigger historical and cultural contexts picture related to the origins of Christianity, as well as equips them to better grasp who they are as human beings created in the image of God.

We continue to discuss his new book Passing the Torch - An Apology for the Christian Faith.

Dr. Louis Markos is an authority on C. S. Lewis, apologetics, and ancient Greece and Rome. He lectures widely for classical Christian and classical charter schools and conferences. Markos is the author of twenty-six books, and is the Robert H. Ray Chair of Humanities at Houston Christian University in Houston, Texas.

Free Four-Page Watchman Profiles
Naturalism
Pantheism
Carl Sagan's Cosmos
Panpsychism
Charles Darwin

Previous Apologetics Profile Episodes with Dr. Markos
The Myth Made Fact Part One
The Myth Made Fact Part Two

Additional Resources
FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

Any purpose or end goal of education requires one to have an understanding of what it means to be human. Etymologically, the word “curriculum” means to run a course.

The Apostle Paul says in his second letter to Timothy that he had “run the race” in fulfilling what Jesus created and called him to do. Jesus Himself tells us that He is the way, the truth and the life, the only way to the Father. We are created in God’s image, for His purpose and glory, to walk in the works He has prepared for us before the world began.

Our guest this week and next on the Profile is Dr. Louis Markos, an advocate for classical Christian education. He discusses his new book Passing the Torch – An Apology for Classical Christian Education. Markos shares his insights as to how a deeper understanding of the culture and literature of the Greco-Roman world enhances and complements a virtuous Christian education.

Dr. Louis Markos is an authority on C. S. Lewis, apologetics, and ancient Greece and Rome. He lectures widely for classical Christian and classical charter schools and conferences. The author of twenty-six books, Markos currently serves as the Robert H. Ray Chair of Humanities at Houston Christian University in Houston, Texas.

Free Four-Page Watchman Profiles:
Naturalism
Pantheism
Carl Sagan's Cosmos
Charles Darwin

Previous Apologetics Profile Episodes with Dr. Markos
The Myth Made Fact Part One
The Myth Made Fact Part Two

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

With the recent tragic death of Christian and political activist Charlie Kirk, it is more essential than ever for us as Christians to move forward in civil dialogue with those who are not Christians about what it means to be human.

From Ancient Greece and Rome to our culture today, it is clear that a lack of understanding of who God really inevitably results in not properly understanding who we are as human beings. This week we continue our conversation with historian, author, and mother Nadya Williams about what we can learn from history about the sanctity and value of human life and be encouraged to hold fast to our confession of faith, for a world that needs real hope. 


Nadya Williams (from the publisher website):

Nadya Williams (PhD, Princeton) walked away from academia after fifteen years as a professor of history and classics. She is now a homeschool mom, book review editor at Current, and a contributing editor at Providence magazine. She is the author of Cultural Christians in the Early Church (Zondervan Academic, 2023), and numerous articles and essays in Current, Plough, Christianity Today, Front Porch Republic, Fairer Disputations, Law and Liberty, Church Life Journal, and others. She and her husband, Dan, are parents to one adult son and two children still at home. They live and homeschool in Ashland, a small town near Cleveland, Ohio.

Mothers, Children, and the Body Politic (book).

Free Four-Page Profiles From Watchman Fellowship:

Goddess Worship: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/goddessprofile.pdf
Patterns in the Cults: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/patternsprofile.pdf
Astrology: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/astrologyprofile.pdf
Watchtower Bible and Tract Society: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/watchtowerprofile.pdf
Zoroastrianism: https://www.watchman.org/staff/jwalker/ProfileZoroastrianism.pdf

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

Mothers and children were devalued in ancient Greco-Roman society. The advent of  Christianity, however, introduced a radically different perspective - that every human being at every level of society has value and worth because we are all made in the image of God, the Imago Dei.

What can we learn from the early Christians about valuing human life and what it means to live as a Christian in the world but not of it? We talk with historian, author, and mother Nadya Williams about these and other issues pertaining to the value and worth of human beings both in ancient societies and in our own.

Nadya Williams (from the publisher website):

Nadya Williams (PhD, Princeton) walked away from academia after fifteen years as a professor of history and classics. She is now a homeschool mom, book review editor at Current, and a contributing editor at Providence magazine. She is the author of Cultural Christians in the Early Church (Zondervan Academic, 2023), and numerous articles and essays in Current, Plough, Christianity Today, Front Porch Republic, Fairer Disputations, Law and Liberty, Church Life Journal, and others. She and her husband, Dan, are parents to one adult son and two children still at home. They live and homeschool in Ashland, a small town near Cleveland, Ohio.

Mothers, Children, and the Body Politic (book).

Free Four-Page Profiles From Watchman Fellowship:

Goddess Worship: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/goddessprofile.pdf
Patterns in the Cults: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/patternsprofile.pdf
Astrology: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/astrologyprofile.pdf
Watchtower Bible and Tract Society: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/watchtowerprofile.pdf
Zoroastrianism: https://www.watchman.org/staff/jwalker/ProfileZoroastrianism.pdf

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

This is part two of our conversation with software engineer, former Hindu and former atheist Ganesh Vankataramanan. Here on part two Ganesh shares how certain aspects of physical creation helped lead him out of atheism to Jesus.

Ganesh Vankataramanan is a graduate from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology.
He works as a Vice President at a software technology company. With his background in science and experience in working with highly analytical teams, Ganesh found that scientific explanations, while fine in themselves, lacked depth and human meaning. In his attempts to better understand life, he stumbled across religion and then Jesus.

Ganesh in social media:
YouTube - @geevesofficial - https://youtube.com/@geevesofficial?si=5mXsz7HiA720ua8Y

Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/geevesofficial?igsh=dWxkeXQxczNzdmR2&utm_source=qr - @geevesofficial 

X-https://x.com/cause_first - @cause_first

Website https://www.letmeintoheaven.com 

Free Resources from Watchman Fellowship:
Hinduism Profile https://www.watchman.org/staff/jwalker/ProfileHinduism.pdf
International Society of Krisha Consciousness Profile https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/iskconprofile.pdf

Additional Resources from Watchman:
FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

Born into the Brahmins, the highest caste class in India, Ganesh began doubting Hinduism while in college and eventually turned to atheism. While in the United States, the hospitality of a Christian family eventually led to the foot of the cross. Come and see.

Ganesh Vankataramanan is a graduate from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology.
He works as a Vice President at a software technology company. With his background in science and experience in working with highly analytical teams, Ganesh found that scientific explanations, while fine in themselves, lacked depth and human meaning. In his attempts to better understand life, he stumbled across religion and then Jesus.

Ganesh in social media:
YouTube - @geevesofficial - https://youtube.com/@geevesofficial?si=5mXsz7HiA720ua8Y

Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/geevesofficial?igsh=dWxkeXQxczNzdmR2&utm_source=qr - @geevesofficial 

X-https://x.com/cause_first - @cause_first

Website https://www.letmeintoheaven.com 

Free Resources from Watchman Fellowship:
Hinduism Profile https://www.watchman.org/staff/jwalker/ProfileHinduism.pdf
International Society of Krisha Consciousness Profile https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/iskconprofile.pdf

Additional Resources from Watchman:
FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

We continue our conversation about the history and interaction of Christianity and Islam with Dr. Wafik Wahba of Tyndale University in Toronto, Canada. We will be discussing more highlights from Wafik's latest book Global Christianity and Islam - Exploring History Politics and Beliefs. Wafik will also give us a concise overview about the differences between how Christians and Muslims understand the Person of Jesus.

From Dr. Wahba's website at Tyndale University:

Dr. Wahba first came to Tyndale as adjunct professor of theology in 1998, having previously taught contextualized theology at the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo, Egypt, as well as having pastored churches in Chicago and Toronto. Dr. Wahba has taught theology and intercultural studies in the United States, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America. Dr. Wahba is one of 31 contemporary reformed theologians who have contributed to The Future of Reformed Theology, edited by Willis, David & Welker, Michael, (Eerdmans, 1999). Dr. Wahba has also published in Zur Zunkunft Der Reformierten Theologie, (Neukirchener Verlag, 1998). He co-led the unit on Theological Education for Mission at the 2004 Forum of Lausanne Committee in Pattaya, Thailand and is one of the authors of “Effective Theological Education for World Evangelization” Lausanne Occasional Paper No. 57, (May 2005). Dr. Wahba serves on the Board of Directors for several international Christian organizations.

Related Links: Access additional Watchman Fellowship resources related to this week's podcast:

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free.

PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/notebook.

SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/give.

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

On September 10th, 2025, in front of over 3,000 students on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, a lone gunman took the life of Christian and political activist Charlie Kirk. 

Why would God allow such a tragedy to happen? 

Watchman staff recently traveled to Utah and visited the campus of UVU. On this special episode of Apologetics Profile, Watchman Fellowship senior apologist Dr. Brady Blevins helps us make sense of the tragedy. 

© 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc. Apologetics Profile is a production of Watchman Fellowship, Inc., Arlington, Texas (Watchman.org).

The history of Christianity and Islam has a long and complex history spanning several centuries, from Christians living among Muslims in Baghdad during the Golden Age of Islam to the Crusades and on into the 21st century. 

What does the future hold for Christian and Islamic relations? 

On the next two episodes of the Profile, we will be talking with an expert in the fields of Christianity and Islam, Dr. Wafik Wahba about his new book Global Christianity and Islam - Exploring History Politics and Beliefs. Wafik will give us a comprehensive overview of how Christianity and Islam have engaged and clashed since Islam emerged in the 7th century A.D.

From Dr. Wahba's website at Tyndale University:

Dr. Wahba first came to Tyndale as adjunct professor of theology in 1998, having previously taught contextualized theology at the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo, Egypt, as well as having pastored churches in Chicago and Toronto. Dr. Wahba has taught theology and intercultural studies in the United States, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America. Dr. Wahba is one of 31 contemporary reformed theologians who have contributed to The Future of Reformed Theology, edited by Willis, David & Welker, Michael, (Eerdmans, 1999). Dr. Wahba has also published in Zur Zunkunft Der Reformierten Theologie, (Neukirchener Verlag, 1998). He co-led the unit on Theological Education for Mission at the 2004 Forum of Lausanne Committee in Pattaya, Thailand and is one of the authors of “Effective Theological Education for World Evangelization” Lausanne Occasional Paper No. 57, (May 2005). Dr. Wahba serves on the Board of Directors for several international Christian organizations. 

Related Links: Access additional Watchman Fellowship resources related to this week's podcast:

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free.

PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/notebook.

SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/give.

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.

This week we continue our fascinating conversation with biochemist, intelligent design advocate, and author Dr. Michael Behe, looking back over three decades since he first published Darwin's Black Box in 1996. On this episode, we will discuss some of the challenges facing origin of life research.

From Michael's personal website:

Michael Behe is Professor of Biological Sciences at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania and a Senior Fellow at Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. He received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Pennsylvania in 1978. Behe’s current research involves delineation of design and natural selection in protein structures.

In his career he has authored over 40 technical papers and two books, Darwin’s Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution and The Edge of Evolution: The Search for the Limits of Darwinism, which argue that living system at the molecular level are best explained as being the result of deliberate intelligent design. The books have been reviewed by the New York Times, Nature, Philosophy of Science, Christianity Today, and many other periodicals. Darwin’s Black Box has sold over 250,000 copies and was internationally reviewed in over one hundred publications. Both National Review and World magazine named it as one of the 100 most important books of the 20th century.

Behe has presented and debated his work at major universities throughout North America and England.

More about Darwin's Black Box

Audio Clips Featured in the Broadcast:
Paul Davies: https://youtu.be/q4LnWlOKQFA?si=92PafZrUWecexarM
Richard Dawkins: https://youtu.be/HJY5KKDrygI?si=kIyKZjIP26qsoGKB
Jerry Coyne: https://youtu.be/QOsNhQeUwk0?si=_BS67GjvyjItxeCV

Free Resources from Watchman Fellowship

Naturalism: https://www.watchman.org/Naturalism/ProfileNaturalism.pdf
Scientism: https://www.watchman.org/scientism/ProfileScientism.pdf
Panpsychism: https://www.watchman.org/files/ProfilePanpsychism.pdf
Postmodernism: https://www.watchman.org/files/ProfilePostmodernism.pdf
Atheism: https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/atheismprofile.pdf

Additional Resources

FREE: We are also offering a subscription to our 4-page bimonthly Profiles here: www.watchman.org/Free
PROFILE NOTEBOOK: Order the complete collection of Watchman Fellowship Profiles (around 700 pages -- from Astrology to Zen Buddhism) in either printed or PDF formats here: www.watchman.org/Notebook
SUPPORT: Help us create more content like this. Make a tax-deductible donation here: www.watchman.org/Give

Apologetics Profile is a ministry of Watchman Fellowship For more information, visit www.watchman.org © 2025 Watchman Fellowship, Inc.