I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist
by Norman L. Geisler, Frank Turek
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Book Summary Information
Author: Frank Turek, Norman L. GeislerForeword: David Limbaugh
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-03-12
ISBN: 1581345615
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: Crossway Books
Book Reviews of I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist
Book Review: A Wonderful Introduction to Christian Apologetics
Summary: 5 Stars
First (as you'll see after reading the introduction), "I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist" would be more aptly titled "I Don't Have Enough Faith Not to Be a Christian". Second, something that must be understood is that authors Norman L. Geisler and Frank Turek had about a 400 page restriction in which to write all of their subjects, so that reduced each argument to a mere 30 or so pages each. With more space, they could have gone into more detail with their arguments. This isn't to say that the arguments presented weren't well done (for the most part, they were done very proficiently), only that they had a lot of areas to cover. Thus of course some things had to be left out due to limited space.
Now, one of the parts which lacked articulation in my opinion was in their "kalam" version of the the cosmological argument, where their philosophical argument about the impossibility of traversing an infinite seemed somewhat rushed and underdone. They made their point nevertheless (although some might find the way they use "days" instead of just "events" in their argument somewhat odd), but I just more prefer William Lane Craig's presentation of the "kalam" argument. But other than that, their presentation of the Cosmological Argument was excellently done in the form of the "S-U-R-G-E" evidence.
Now, something should be brought up: Intelligent Design vs. Evolution. I personally feel that this is a tired issue that's unworthy of the amount of attention and controversey it receives. This is mostly a non-issue for me. In the long run, it really seems very unimportant and even irrelevant when compared with, say, the existence of God, the beginning of the universe, the apparent fine-tuning of the universe, and Jesus' resurrection from the dead. Furthermore, evolutionary theory can even be used against the very naturalistic philosophy it is typically touted by! (See Alvin Plantinga's "Evolutionary Argument Against Naturalism".)
Besides this, the book was excellent, with the chapters dealing with the historicity of the New Testament (9 - 12) being some of the most intense and fascinating in the book (if you're anything like I was, you'll probably think about your copy of the New Testament in an entirely different light than prior to reading "I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist").
The first two chapters concerning truth were of particular interest to me, as they exposed the self-defeating nature of the relativism that is so prevelent in today's postmodern society. After those two chapters however, some relativists/postmodernists may still deny that absolute truth and reality exist and/or is knowable. Geisler and Turek weren't able to cover every area and answer every single objection to absolute truth due to limited available space, but the books I'll now recommend cover it all:
"Truth Decay" by Douglas R. Groothuis, "Telling the Truth" by D. A. Carson (recommended by *this* book in the notes), "Being and Becoming" by F. F. Centore (very expensive book at 85 dollars, but from what I hear it completely disembowels postmodernism), "The Gagging of God" by D. A. Carson, and "Truth or Consequences" by Millard J. Erickson (should be used as a companion with "Truth Decay").
More advanced apologetics I recommend include William Lane Craig's "Reasonable Faith" and "The Son Rises"; Gary Habermas and Mike Licona's "The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus" (beginner friendly as well as helpful to more seasoned apologists); Norman Geisler's "When Skeptics Ask"; and J.P. Moreland's "Scaling the Secular City". Other excellent introductory books are Lee Strobel's "The Case for Christ", "The Case for Faith", and "The Case for a Creator". And of course the excellent website tektonics.org is great for Bible difficulties, alleged contradictions, NT historicity, the resurrection, and nearly everything else!
As an aside, I take note that there's currently a "refutation" of this book which can be found by typing "i don't have enough faith to be a christian" into your browser and clicking "go", or hitting "enter" or what have you. It's written by one Kyle Williams, a self-proclaimed "freethinker".
Well, I can certainly say that this response Kyle Williams wrote to "I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist" is full of misconceptions. He indulges in misuse of the Principle of Uniformity, appeals to overcomplicated metaphysical blunders (this fellow has more faith in a myriad of dimensions than Christians have in God!), makes false analogy, attacks strawmen, very humorously misunderstands the Moral Argument (according to his take on it, if society as a whole decided to kill atheists and give their property to the southern baptists, it would automatically be moral!), etc. etc. etc. There are too many issues for me to name here. But don't worry, they're dealt with in-depth elsewhere.
For a refutation of Mr. Kyle's "refutation" of this book, type "I Have Too Much Brains to Be a Skeptic" into your browser and hit "enter" (or click "go"). You'll find it all from there. ;)
(PS: I had the fun of responding to some of Williams's misconstrual of the Kalam Argument myself.)
The president of Tekton, JP Holding, commented on Kyle Williams's article: "Good heavens. I read one paragraph and it was so stupid I nearly broke my chair."
Don't therefore let Mr. Williams's "expose" floating around on the web deter you from purchasing this book. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek stand strong, unscathed from such poor scholarship. It both amazes and perplexes me that some fellows could consider Williams's article a "great rebuttal" to the book I hope you're about to buy and read. It really, really is not. And if you follow my instructions above, you'll see why for yourself.
Summary of I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist
To some, the concept of having faith in a higher power or a set of religious beliefs is nonsensical. Indeed, many view religion in general, and Christianity in particular, as unfounded and unreasonable.
Norman Geisler and Frank Turek argue, however, that Christianity is not only more reasonable than all other belief systems, but is indeed more rational than unbelief itself. With conviction and clear thinking, Geisler and Turek guide readers through some of the traditional, tested arguments for the existence of a creator God. They move into an examination of the source of morality and the reliability of the New Testament accounts concerning Jesus. The final section of the book deals with a detailed investigation of the claims of Christ. This volume will be an interesting read for those skeptical about Christianity, as well as a helpful resource for Christians seeking to articulate a more sophisticated defense of their faith.
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