What is Apologetics?

The word apologetics is derived from the Greek word, apologia, which translated means (to give) “verbal defense.” It is not a military term but a judicial term. Within the context of Christianity, it means to verbally defend the true character of God. The word, apologia is used seven times in the New Testament.

It should be emphasized here, however, that the purpose of apologetics is to defend, not to prove the faith and that defense, on a personal level, ought to be done with the goal of building a relationship. 

Jesus never hesitated to respond to controversial issues or tough questions. However, he very rarely answered a question with an answer. Rather, he responded to questions with questions. In fact, of the almost 300 questions asked of Jesus, he only directly answers about five questions with an answer. Yet, most of his responses left his questioners either amazed or speechless—as he disarmed them using his critical and constructive thinking skills.

Jesus does not even give the “punch-line” away in his parables. Look closely and you will see that he asks his listeners questions concerning the “principles” hidden in the parables: “What do you think? A man had two sons . . . “Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “Which of these three was a neighbor?” “Now which of them will love him more?” . . .

The above table shows a clear distinction between “Information Centered Thinking” (fact-based) and “Principle-Centered Thinking” (principle-based). It is a paradigm shift from “what to know” to “how to know”—from “what to think” to “how to think.” This is the method used by Jesus in order to get people to go beyond the sphere of fact gathering in order to take them into the realm of true learning. This happens when they discover how to think through the facts for themselves (reflective process) by applying truth-principles (self-evident truths) to the issues being discussed.