Contrary to popular assumption, Christianity doesn’t crush diversity, hinder morality, cause violence, undercut science, or denigrate women. Other common objections to Christianity rest on misunderstandings. Understanding the Bible’s overall story, as well as its use of metaphor, helps us see the goodness and beauty of Jesus and the gospel. This union is a visible reminder of deep spiritual truths: the relationship between Christ and the church. Humans are created male and female in God’s image. This idea of metaphor helps us understand the big picture. McLaughlin helpfully distinguishes between literal and figurative language, showing that “some of the deepest truths are metaphorically expressed” (95). The chapter “How can you take the Bible literally?” is worth the price of the book. The question for this generation isn’t, ‘How soon will religion die out?’ Rather, the question is ‘Christianity or Islam?’ A key strength in McLaughlin’s book is her ability to cut through that noise and help the reader see and understand the Bible on its own terms. The loud and incessant cries of the so-called New Atheists-that “religion poisons everything” or that “the God of the Old Testament is a moral monster”-haven’t helped either. Religion hasn’t gone away, but knowledge of the Bible has.
Many of the hardest questions for faith arise as a byproduct of our now largely biblically illiterate culture. McLaughlin engages 12 of the hardest objections to Christianity, expertly showing how each challenge-when properly probed and understood-points to a good and loving God.Ĭrossway (2019).
Moreover, the common moral and intellectual objections to Christianity aren’t insurmountable. But is the God of these great monotheistic religions really as bad as we think? When it comes to Christianity, McLaughlin-regular TGC contributor and cofounder of Vocable Communications-thinks the answer is surely no. As Rebecca McLaughlin puts it in her book Confronting Christianity: 12 Hard Questions for the World’s Largest Religion, the question for this generation isn’t “How soon will religion die out?” Rather, the question is “Christianity or Islam?” (14).įor many today, both Christianity and Islam are unappealing because they seem violent and oppressive. Spirituality can’t be wiped out humans are fundamentally spiritual beings, created by and for God. This comes as no surprise for those of us who believe. Just the opposite in fact: Religion is poised to be a dominant player on the world stage in this century. Now that we’re well into the 21st century, many of these same sociologists admit they were wrong. In the 1960s, sociologists widely predicted that religion would soon disappear.
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