There have been a number of books recently that have come my regarding the topics of evangelism and defending the Catholic faith. This week’s book I found to be very handy and one many will find useful as well John DeRosa has written One Less God Than You: How to Answer the Slogans, Clichès, and Fallacies That Atheists Use to Challenge Your Faith
In the introduction John sets the timid and unsure on the path of success by outlining five things to do when holding faith discussions with atheists. They are:
1 – Pray every day. After all, if we are not grounded in the faith and have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ how are we to defend His Church?
2 – Whenever possible start by asking questions rather than making statements. This one is gold. Making statements only leads to more tension. The better strategy is to counter an atheist’s line of reasoning with a question of your own.
3 – Don’t let people get away with vague, wishy-washy criticisms. Always make the person you are engaging with prove their point with solid, verifiable evidence.
4 – Apologetics is most helpful to those who are already open to the truths of faith. We can talk until we are blue in the face but if someone is totally closed minded to any evidence, well you’re fighting a losing battle.
5 – Do not neglect the soft skills of evangelism. These means essentially, don’t be a jerk. You attract more bees with honey than you do with vinegar after all.
After laying foundation for success John dives into the real meat and potatoes of this book. He has provided twenty slogans or sayings you will likely encounter from someone doubting of out right rejecting the faith. These are broken down into four sections. Popular Slogans, Serious Slogans, Slogans About Faith and Evidence, and Miscellaneous Slogans. Some examples are:
- “There is no evidence for God’s existence.”
- “I don’t believe in God because I believe in science.”
- “If a loving God existed, his presence would be obvious.”
- “Anyone who walks into a children’s hospital knows that God doesn’t exist.”
- “Do you take the Bible literally? Hahaha.”
For each of these John provides evidence to refute the claim, responses to use, questions ta ask, and further options for study and research you can conduct. Remember it’s never wrong to say, “Great question. I do not have the answer right now. Let me research and get back to you.”
One Less God is an excellent book that should be in every Catholic’s library. At some point we will encounter friends or family who are either seriously doubting their faith or have been convinced to believe a more secular atheistic line of thought. In this book, John leads readers to the path of success in clear easy to follow ways to defend the Catholic faith.
