BUSTH PhD Student Daniel Montañez (STH’18,’25) Published on Patheos.com
The following is an excerpt from the Patheos.com blog article “From Truth to Trust: Reimagining the Future of Christian Apologetics” by BUSTH PhD student Daniel Montañez, published on August 31, 2022. Click here to read the full article.
…
Today, the context from which apologetics is done is vastly different from the early Church. One of the stark differences between apologetics then and now is that, whereas the early apologists defended their faith in a pre-Christendom context, Christians today engage the task of apologetics from a post-Christendom context. With the rise of Constantine, the passing of the Edict of Milan in 325 A.D., and the recognition of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman empire, what separates these two communities is a near 1700-year history of political turmoil, religious violence, and colonial domination that is often associated with the period of Christendom. While this narrative does not account for the significant contributions made by the Church throughout the centuries, it is nonetheless a dominant narrative that persists in our postmodern age. Therefore, any attempt to engage in apologetics today should consider Christianity’s historical context, in order to seriously and faithfully respond to the skeptics of the Christian faith of our postmodern era.