Thoughts on "Apologetics"

I'd like to claim that the notion of "apologetics" actually makes little sense.  Usually, when we think of apologetics, we're thinking of a defense.  Christian apologetics, therefore, is a defense of the Christian faith against its detractors.  But I don't like the notion of apologetics for several reasons.  First, it suggests that if only we have a clear-cut and impenetrable defense of our faith, then it would be irrational and silly not to be Christian.  Indeed, militant atheists like Richard Dawkins are not just deluded, but are just stupid, plain and simple.  The problem with that view is that it boils Christianity down to a set of seemingly obvious criteria.  These criteria are usually human constructions.  Even those that are claimed to be "biblical" are really human because they are based on personal interpretations of the Scriptures.  Scripture, for it to be canonical,  must be interpreted from the lens of the church community.  If personal interpretations of the Scriptures are viewed to be valid, then anyone can argue any position using the Scriptures.

Secondly, apologetics needs to be seen in terms of its cultural relevance.  We live in a time and country where utilitarianism is the ethical default.  Unless Jesus has benefits, why should anyone choose to believe in him?  But as Christians this "Christian utilitarianism" is something we simply cannot accept!  One does not even "choose" Jesus, as if he were on a religious Wal*Mart shelf among other gods, and Jesus were a "best deal" among all other religions.  Instead of meeting Jesus in a religious Wal*Mart, we need ditch our metaphysical shopping cart and get out of Wal*Mart where Jesus is actually waiting for us in his car, wondering why on earth you're hanging out at Wal*Mart instead of following him to Whole Foods to get some dinner.  Apologetics is, in my view, like a Wal*Mart representative trying to get you to buy Jesus rather than Al'lah, Buddha, Ba'hai or Atheism.  Forget it - Jesus is waiting outside for you!  No matter how convincing your proof of Christianity's validity is, the fact is that Christianity is about living the faith, not knowing the faith.

While I think apologetics has some uses in Christian history, the problem today is not a matter of belief, but a matter of witness.  What we hear in the wider public today is not "Christianity is irrational."  If only!  But we don't live in such a world anymore.  What we usually hear is that "Christians are hypocrites."  This is not an issue of apologetics, but an issue of witness.  When Christians are accused of being poor witnesses of the Christ they profess to follow, no amount of faith-defense can work, because the accusation leveled against Christianity is that Jesus has set up an impossible - and therefore irrelevant - ethic.  I think what we need to focus on is less apologetics and more living the Christian life.

Furthermore, if apologetics is defending a faith that is assumed to be entirely self-consistent, then shouldn't living that faith out be an obvious implication of that supposedly self-consistent faith?  But why are church congregational meetings so contentious, and why are churches bickering over really stupid issues?  Are churches places where you go to be someone you're not, or are churches places you go to know that God loves and delights in you?  What is the use of proving to the world that belief in Jesus makes sense when going to church only gives you access to see people living contrary to Jesus' teachings?  What's the use of believing in a Jesus who claims to love us when we go to church and find rejection because we don't have a high GPA, go to the right schools, etc.

So let's just cut the crap, shall we?  While there is some room for apologetics in this world, the vastly bigger challenge is not that Christianity is not logically consistent, but that Christian witness has taken on the stereotype of being hypocritical.  What we need is not apologetics to hide behind but the courage to simply live our faith without shame and without regrets before a watching world.