Bill Maher, the popular atheistic talk show host and comedian, came out with a "mockumentary" film a few years ago that pokes fun at religion and seeks to shame certain things within the Christian worldview. Unfortunately, some people take this as factual and well-researched. I address some of the problems with the film and urge people to do a more careful job of thinking about important things.
 At the question table, people commonly ask who we are associated with or what denomination we belong to. I quickly respond to this with a heart for more inter-denominationalism.

What did Jesus believe his mission to be? According to some, Jesus came to show people and societies how to live better lives toward other people. This suggests he was primarily interested in the social/political side of life. This obsession with blending political preferences with pieces of Christian truth is turning some from an accurate view of Jesus's key purpose--to redeem people's hearts. 

Christians can expect to get asked for any shred of evidence that shows the existence of God. The cosmological argument is possibly the clearest and most airtight method of proving the existence of God. This episode explores a conversation I had in which I used this path of showing the existence of God. I also explore some of the common tactics that people may use to dodge the implications of this proof of God's existence. 

Islam and the Bahai faith both believe the words of Jesus. Both say that Jesus foretold of to coming of their respective great and final prophets. What did Jesus really say about the coming one? What did he say about the nature of his return? Is the Bahai faith consistent with the nature of truth and the nature of Jesus? What did Jesus believe about himself and say about his purpose?

Atheists often like being referred to as "freethinkers." One would expect "freethinkers" to be open to a diversity of views and to reserve strict judgement regarding scientifically questionable things. However, I have recently found that to be very atypical of the atheists and "freethinkers" that I encounter. Here is an intriguing example from a conversation on the subject of abortion. This shows that those who say that dogmatic group thinking is a stopper to human progress are themselves non-critical, narrow, and dogmatic regarding certain important topics.     

This is the third and final part in the series on Critical Thinking. We have identified problems for others; but what happens when we make those same criticisms toward ourselves. Can we be consistent and reasonable to the extent that we critique the inconsistency and unreasonableness of others? This includes an overview of the internal and external consistency of foundational Christian truth-claims.

This is part two of three in critical thinking. Last time, we looked at the straw man fallacy and the importance of representing a position accurately. This time, we are looking at whether a worldview or a claim matches with itself and whether it matches with life. When happens when you turn someone's claim back on itself? Does the idea self-destruct? Does it match up with the way the person lives? Here are some tools to detecting these, including some specific examples from non-Christians and Christians.  

Built on the foundation of listening well, we now come upon the topic of critical thinking. However, critical does not mean that we present another person's perspective in a negative light. Rather, we are to represent their position with accuracy and grace. The opposite of this is known as a straw man, the fallacy of misrepresenting a position in order to make it easier to tear down. I give some examples of straw man arguments and strategies to help us avoiding using it ourselves. 

"Listening Has its Limits." To this point I have promoted the idea that evangelism and apologetics ought to begin with listening--rather than proclamation. This might tempt us to think that we ought to listen no matter what. Should we have standards for conversation, though? Does there come a point when we should leave listening behind and find times of rest? How can we honor others while also maintaining standards and expectations?

Part two of the Listening Christian deals with the importance of asking good questions. It explores the benefits that questioning has on conversation, on the heart of the Christian witness, and on the mental development of both involved.