1. Worldview Apologetics
Worldview Dictionary from Summit Ministries (summit.org) A
Agnostic: the belief that the evidence for the existence of God is inconclusive. (agnosticism)
Anarchy: the belief that government is oppressive and undesirable and should be abolished.
Anti-realism: the belief that reality or what one encounters in the world is socially constructed by human intelligence. (See William P. Alston, ed., Realism and Antirealism)
Apologetics: the branch of theology concerned with defending Christianity as a reasonable faith.
Atheism: the state either of being without theistic beliefs, or of actively disbelieving in the existence of deities.
Atheist: a denial of the existence of a supernatural God.
Axiology: the study of values and value judgments. B
Bisexual: a person who likes or is attracted to both males and females.
Bourgeoisie: a class of property owners as well as those who own the means of production; Marxists call for the elimination of the whole class. (the source of society's problems). C
Capitalism: an economic system based on the peaceful and free exchange of goods and services without fraud, theft and breech of contract; free market or economy.
Coalition government: a government consisting of an alliance of opposing political groups.
Collectivism: the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution by the people collectively.
Communalism: an economic system in which the community owns the goods and property; a governmental system of autonomous local communities loosely bound in federation.
Communism: a religious worldview as outlined in ten categories (including theology, philosophy, biology, economics) in Understanding the Times. Its major dogma includes atheism, dialectical materialism, evolution and socialism.
Creationism: the belief that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1). D
Decalogue: the Ten Commandments as given to Moses (cf. Exodus 20; Deuteronomy 5).
Deconstructionism: a literary technique that insists that each reader's interpretation of a text is superior to the author's meaning.
Deist: one who believes that God exists and that He created the world, but now stands completely aloof from it. (deism)
Despotism: government by an absolute ruler, dictator, king, or tyrant (usually cruel and oppressive).
Determinism: the belief that events, acts and decisions are inevitable consequences of antecedents.
Dialectic: a Hegelian process involving thesis, antithesis and synthesis with the synthesis being a higher form of truth.
Dialectical materialism (Marxist philosophy): thesis and antithesis in conflict bringing about synthesis.
Divine revelation: God's revealing of Himself and His will through both general and special revelation.
Dualism: the belief that man is more than matter; brain and mind e.g., are separate. E
Economic determinism: the modes of production and exchange determine the entire course of history.
Egalitarianism: the belief that both sexes are equal; men and women have equal rights and responsibilities.
Epistemology: the study or theory of the origin, nature, methods, and limits of knowledge (study of knowledge).
Ethical relativism: the belief that no absolute moral code exists, and therefore man must adjust his ethical standards in each situation according to his own judgment (see also moral relativism).
Ethics: system or code of morals of a particular religion, group, or profession.
Eugenics: the belief that information about heredity can be used to improve the human race.
Evangelical: a designation for Christians who hold to basic conservative interpretations of the Bible, including the belief in the literal supernatural conception (virgin birth) of Jesus, his resurrection from the dead, and the proclamation of the "evangel" or "good news" of salvation through Christ.
Evolution: the slow development of a speck of life to a full blown human being over 3.5 billion years; Darwinism.
Existentialism: a philosophic cult of nihilism and pessimism: it holds that each man exists as an individual in a purposeless universe, and he must oppose his hostile environment through the exercise of his free will. Feelings become the standard of human truth. F
Fascism: a political system based on national socialism and Darwinian evolution; favors strong centralized government and rejects a free economy and individual liberty (see Gene Edward Veith, Jr., Modern Fascism: Liquidating The Judeo-Christian Worldview).
Feminism: the belief that all women are the victims of male domination.
Freedom: liberty of person from slavery, oppression, incarceration. G
Gay: a colloquial description of a homosexual or lesbian person.
General revelation: God's revelation of Himself and His will to all persons at all times and in all places. This revelation takes place through nature (Psalm 19:1-6; Romans 1:18-20), history (Acts 14:14-18; 17:24-31), and the human heart and conscience (Romans 2:14-15).
Globalism: an outlook or policy which is worldwide in scope (possible result would be higher regard for worldwide issues than for national issues); sometimes a euphemism for world government. H
Hedonism: the belief that pleasure is the principal good, and should be the highest aim of the individual and society.
Historicism: the belief that each historical epoch has its own knowledge system; all historical questions must be settled within the cultural and social context that they are raised in…answers can not be found by appealing to any external truth, but only within the confines of the norms and forms that phrase the question. (Wikipedia)
Homosexual: a person who is sexually attracted primarily to members of her or his own gender. I
Ideology: the doctrines, opinions, or way of thinking of an individual or group.
Imperialism: a national policy of forming and maintaining an empire; it involves the struggle for the control of raw materials and world markets, the subjection and control of territories, and the establishment of colonies.
Integrity: the quality or state of being of sound moral principle; uprightness, honesty, sincerity.
-ism: a noun-forming suffix: changes the root word into a system of thought, a way of looking at things, or a worldview. J
Justice: Fair handling; due reward or treatment. K
Karma: the sum of a person's actions during the successive phases (re-incarnation) of one's existence. L
Lesbian: of or relating to females who experience a sexual attraction toward and responsiveness to other females; a homosexual female.
Leftism: an educational system accenting the Postmodern Worldview; A government system devoid of Judeo-Christian morality; Woodstock lifestyle (see Richard Rorty, Achieving Our Country).
Liberalism: an educational system based on the Secular Humanist Worldview; A political system based on high taxes and low moral concerns (abortion, homosexuality, feminism).
Liberation theology: theological movement gaining much popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, which was primarily a phenomenon among minorities and the oppressed. In Third World nations especially, liberation theology was highly popular because of the oppressive regimes which held sway. Liberation theology holds that Christ not only came to free people from sin, but also from social oppression and oftentimes, liberation theologies were used by oppressed peoples to justify forms of rebellion. The most important liberation theologian is Gustavo Gutierrez. M
Maoism: a follower of Mao Tse-Tung and his communistic teachings.
Marxism: a follower of Karl Marx and his communistic teachings (see The Communist Manifesto).
Materialism: the belief that all reality consists of the physical, material, and natural elements.
Monism: the psychological belief that the physical brain and mind are one substance (material); Ideas are merely the explosion of atoms in the brain
Moral absolutism: the belief that right and wrong are unchanging, not determined by the individual or the culture; revealed by God through both general and special revelation.
Moral absolutes: those unchanging ethical truths revealed by God (also known as the moral orders in the Bible).
Moral law: the part of natural law that defines the consequences for the moral choices made by men and women. Original sin accounts for man's inability to abide strictly by moral law.
Moral relativism: the belief that right and wrong (ethics) are arbitrary and transitory, determined by the individual or the culture.
Morality: the study of what is good/evil; right/wrong. N
Natural law: laws both physical and moral found in general revelation.
Natural selection: the concept developed by Charles Darwin that genes which produce characteristics that are more favorable in a particular environment will be more abundant in the next generation.
Naturalism: the belief that all reality is physical; all phenomena can be explained in terms of natural causes e.g., law of gravity.
Nihilism: the belief that life as no meaning.
Nazism: a political system based on national socialism (National Socialist German Workers Party) and Darwinian evolution; dictatorship.
Neo-Darwinism: the belief that natural selection and mutations are sufficient to explain the origin of human species from spontaneous generation to mankind. O
Occult: the body of knowledge that is hidden or secret in the areas of the paranormal, preternatural or supernatural.
-ology : a suffix; a branch of learning; science, study of...; from Greek world logos. P
Pantheism: a belief that identifies the forces/energy of nature with God.
Philosophy: literally the love of wisdom or knowledge; a study of the processes governing thought and conduct and ultimate reality.
Pluralism: the belief that reality is composed of many ultimate substances.
Polygamy: the practice of having more than one wife or husband.
Positive Law: the legal system that insists that all law is of human origin.
Proletariat: the blue-collar working class generally propertyless.
Property: a possession that its owner has legal title. R
Realism: the belief that what one encounters in the world exists independently of human thought and human construction.
Relativism: the belief that all truth is relative to the individual and to the time and place in which one acts; no absolute truths.
Religion: any specific system of belief, worship, or conduct that prescribes certain responses to the existence (or non-existence) of God.
Resurrection: A rising from the dead; returning to life following death (1 Corinthians 15). S
Scientism: the harnessing of empirical science for a non-scientific purpose e.g., eugenics, abortion, global warming, DDT, gay genes; sometimes referred to as "junk" science.
Secular Humanism: a religious worldview in which "man is the measure;" man, in himself, is the ultimate norm by which truth and values are to be determined; all reality and life center upon man; man is god.
Situational ethics: a particular view of ethics, in which absolute standards are considered less important than the requirements of a particular situation. The standards used may, therefore, vary from one situation to another, and may even contradict one another.
Special revelation: God's revelation of Himself and His will to particular persons at definite times and places. This revelation is found in miraculous events (e.g. the Exodus), is recorded in the Scriptures (Psalm 19:7-11); 2 Timothy 3:14-17), and located supremely in Jesus Christ (John 1:1-18). It is the means by which man comes to know of salvation.
Socialism: the economic system that abolishes private property; government or group ownership or control of property; central planning usually by a dozen males who determine what is produced and distributed.
Social Justice: The belief that government has a moral duty to take via taxation the wealth of the richest members of society and give it to the poorest.
Spontaneous generation: the belief that non-living matter becomes living matter naturalistically.
State: the body of government as organized for supreme civil rule.
Statism: the concentration of economic controls and planning in the hands of a highly centralized government.
Supernaturalism: the belief that reality is more than nature; that an above nature agency intervenes in the course of natural law. T
Theism: a belief in the existence of a supernatural God.
Theocracy: government bya ruling power claiming Divine sanction.
Theology: the study of God and the relations between God, man, and the universe.
Totalitarianism: see Statism.
Transgender: of, relating to, or designating a person whose identity does not conform unambiguously to conventional notions of male or female gender, but combines or moves between these.
Truth: conformity to knowledge, fact, actuality, or logic. U
Utopianism: visionary scheme for a man-made perfect society on earth. V
Values clarification: the education that leads one to recognize the way that values change over time in response to changing life experiences, assisting one to discover what one's values are rather than what they should be. W
Worldview: any ideology, philosophy, theology, movement, or religion that provides an overarching approach to understanding God, the world, and man's relation to God and the world. Z
Zen: an approach to religion, arising from Buddhism, that seeks religious enlightenment by meditation in which there is no consciousness of self.
Worldview Apologetics
MTP September 2007

2. Introduction "What's your worldview?"
Try that question on a friend sometime. What do you think would be the typical response? A blank stare? A forty-five minute monologue?
1 Chronicles 12:32
Esther 4:14
Proverbs 29:18
Matthew 22:34–40 Acts 17:16ff
Romans 12:1–5
1 Corinthians 2:16; 9:19–23
2 Corinthians 10:4–5 Ephesians 4:22–24; 5:15–16
Colossians 2
Philippians 2:5
1 Peter 1:13–16
Introduction

3. Everybody has one. A person may be educated or uneducated, liberal or conservative, rich or poor, non-believing or God-fearing, but all people act and live in certain ways because they are guided by particular worldviews. Given its importance, just what exactly is a worldview?
Introduction

4. In the simplest terms, a worldview may be defined as how one sees life and the world at large.
In this manner it can be compared to a pair of glasses.
How a person makes sense of the world depends upon that person's "vision," so to speak.
The interpretive "lens" helps people make sense of life and comprehend the world around them.
Sometimes the lens brings clarity, and other times it can distort reality.
“The term worldview refers to any ideology, philosophy, theology, movement, or religion that provides an
overarching approach to understanding God and the world.”
David A. Noebel, Understanding the Times: The Story of the Biblical Christian, Marxist/Leninist and Secular Humanist Worldviews (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1991), 8.
“A worldview is, first of all, an explanation and interpretation of the world and second, an application of this view to life. In simpler terms, our worldview is a view of the world and a view for the world.”
William E. Brown and W. Gary Phillips, Making Sense of Your World: A Biblical Worldview (Sheffield Publishers, 1996), 29.
“A worldview is a commitment, a fundamental orientation of the heart, that can be expressed as a story or in a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or entirely false) which we hold (consciously or unconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic constitution of reality, and that provides the foundation on which we live and move and have our being.”
James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog, 4th ed. (Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 2004), 17.
“A worldview is a way one views the whole world. A worldview is a way of viewing or interpreting all of
reality. It is an interpretive framework through which or by which one makes sense out of the data of life and
the world. A worldview is like a set of colored glasses. If one looks at the same object through green
colored glasses he will see it as green, while another looking at the same object through red glasses will see
it as red.”
Norman L. Geisler and William D. Watkins, Worlds Apart: A Handbook on Worldviews. 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1989), 11.
“I have defined a worldview as a vision about life and the world that is rooted in and expressed through the human heart. I base this definition on what the Bible teaches about the heart as the core of the human person and the single most significant component to human nature. It is the seat and source of the intellect, affections, will, and spirituality. Life, it seems to me, proceeds ‘cardioptically’ out of a vision of the heart with its deeply embedded ideas, affections, choices, and object of worship. For this reason, Proverbs 4:13 states, ‘Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.’ As I said above, yes indeed, everyone has a worldview or a vision of life rooted in their hearts, whether they know it or not. If they don’t know it, they need to come to know it as a significant step toward self-understanding and personal maturity. The unexamined life, Socrates said, is not worth living. It’s time for people, especially believers, to step back and discover what perspective on reality is governing their lives, and to make sure in a Christian sense that the Scriptures are their guide to every aspect of life.”
David Naugle, author of Worldview: The History of a Concept (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002) in an interview with T.M. Moore, editor of Findings, in October 2003.
“A worldview is not the same thing as a formal philosophy; otherwise, it would be only for professional philosophers. Even ordinary people have a set of convictions about how reality functions and how they should live. Because we are made in God’s image, we all seek to make sense of life. Some convictions are conscious, while others are unconscious, but together they form a more or less consistent picture of reality.”
Nancy Pearcey, Total Truth (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 2004), 23
“I am totally convinced the Christian faith is the most coherent worldview around. Everyone: pantheist, atheist, skeptic, polytheist has to answer these questions: Where did I come from? What is life’s meaning? How do I define right from wrong and what happens to me when I die? Those are the fulcrum points of our existence.”
Ravi Zacharias, author, speaker and Christian apologist, in an interview with Julia Duin from The Washington Times, 2003.
Definition

5. Derived from the German term Weltanschauung, the word "worldview" refers to the cluster of beliefs a person holds about the most significant concepts of life-such as God, the cosmos, knowledge, values, humanity, and history.
These beliefs (which may in reality be right or wrong or a combination thereof, not unlike the visual clarity or distortion given by glasses) form a big picture, a general outlook, or a grand perspective on life and the world.
It’s the picture on the front the puzzle box that helps you know where all the pieces should fit.
Definition

6. In more technical terms, a worldview forms a mental structure that organizes one's basic or ultimate beliefs.
This framework supplies a comprehensive view of what a person considers real, true, rational, good, valuable, and beautiful.
In this vein, philosopher Ronald Nash defines a worldview as "a conceptual scheme by which we consciously or unconsciously place or fit everything we believe and by which we interpret and judge reality."
Definition

7. Similarly, philosophers Norman Geisler and William Watkins describe a worldview as "an interpretive framework through which or by which one makes sense out of the data of life and the world.“
Worldview perspectives involve much more than merely sets of intellectual beliefs, but a basic conceptual system is critical. Rather than a disconnected or disparate group of unrelated beliefs, a carefully examined and reflective worldview consists of a network of interconnected ideas that form a unified whole.
Definition

8. This system of beliefs then responds to the big questions of life, focusing on issues central to human concern.
These issues especially include thoughts about the human predicament:
Why is man the way he is?
Why does he face the challenges he does?
Such questions explore how human beings derive meaning, purpose, and significance.
Definition

9. Philosopher Michael Palmer explains: "Through our worldview, we determine priorities, explain our relationship to God and fellow human beings, assess the meaning of events, and justify our actions."
A person's worldview provides a general context for life, including a vision of what one considers authentically real.
Definition

10. More than just an interpretive lens, a worldview perspective shapes, influences, and generally directs a person's entire life. Because people behave as they believe, their worldviews guide the development of the values that inform their decisions and actions.
Life’s Road Map

11. Living a well-balanced life based on realistic values requires thinking about basic and critical questions. When a worldview attempts to answer them, it functions like a chart or plan used to navigate through the journey of life (though potential flaws in the plans must be kept in mind).
A worldview can be seen as a "road map" that supplies directions that guide a person's life decisions.
Life’s Road Map

12. Therefore, a well-thought-out course or worldview needs to answer twelve ultimate concerns that philosophers identify as "the big questions of life:“ The answers given to these inquiries not only provide focus and purpose in life, but they can also (as a system) be tested for logical coherence, correspondence to reality, explanatory power and scope, and internal and external livability.
Life’s Road Map

13. At some point, everyone asks the question, "What about God
At some point, everyone asks the question, "What about God?" (theology). Also, we are curious about the nature of reality and how we know what is true (the questions philosophy seeks to answer). We have questions about life's origins (biology), ourselves (psychology) and how we make moral choices (the study of ethics). We question how society ought to be structured (sociology), how to solve legal issues (law), what government should look like (politics), how to make and spend money (economics), and where we have come from (history).
Defining Questions

14. What kind of God, if any, actually exists? (Theology)
Is there anything beyond the cosmos? (Cosmology)
What can be known, and how can anyone know it? (Epistemology)
Where did I come from? Who am I? Where am I now? (Anthropology)
How should I live? (Ethics)
What should I consider of great worth/beauty? (Aesthetics)
What is the meaning and direction of history? (Teleology)
Will I survive the death of my body and, if so, in what state? (Eschatology)
Epistemology
Defining Questions

15. 7 Basic Questions of J. Sire
What is prime reality – the really real?
What is the nature of external reality, that is, the world around us?
What is a human being?
What happens to a person at death?
Why is it possible to know anything at all?
How do we know what is right and wrong?
What is the meaning of human history?
The Universe Next Door – A Basic Worldview Catalog 3rd Edition
7 Basic Questions of J. Sire

16. Paradigm Shift Paradigms are similar to the idea of a Worldview
Paradigms are Models to help make sense and organize the stuff of reality
They are the Rules by which you play the game
Paradigm Shifts are a powerful phenomenon
Change of Perspective
A new lens
A new roadmap1530 Copernican revolution from a Geocentric model to a Heliocentric model
Our great shift is from Egocentric model to Theocentric
Paradigm Shift

17. Appeal to force - The hearer is told that something bad will happen to him if he does not accept the argument. 
Example:  If you don't want to get beat up, you will agree with what I say.
Example:  Convert or die.
Appeal to pity - The hearer is urged to accept the argument based upon an appeal to emotions, sympathy, etc. 
Example:  You owe me big time because I really stuck my neck out for you.
Example:  Oh come on, I've been sick.  That's why I missed the deadline.
Appeal to the popular - the hearer is urged to accept a position because a majority of people hold to it.
Example:  The majority of people like soda.  Therefore, soda is good.
Example:  Everyone else is doing it.  Why shouldn't you?
Appeal to tradition - trying to get someone to accept something because it has been done or believed for a long time.
Example:  This is the way we've always done it. Therefore, it is the right way.
Example:  The Catholic church's tradition demonstrates that this doctrine is true.
Logical Fallacies

18. Begging the Question - Assuming the thing to be true that you are trying to prove.  It is circular.
Example:  God exists because the Bible says so.  The Bible is inspired.  Therefore, we know that God exists.
Example:  I am a good worker because Frank says so.  How can we trust Frank?  Simple.  I will vouch for him.
Cause and Effect - assuming that the effect is related to a cause because the events occur together.
Example:  When the rooster crows, the sun rises.  Therefore, the rooster causes the sun to rise.
Example:  When the fuel light goes on in my car, I soon run out of gas.  Therefore, the fuel light causes my car to run out of gas.
Division - assuming that what is true of the whole is true for the parts.
Example:  That car is blue.  Therefore, its engine is blue.
Example:  Your family is weird.  That means that you are weird too.
Logical Fallacies

19. Guilt by Association - Rejecting an argument or claim because the person proposing it likes someone is disliked by another.
Example:  Hitler liked dogs.  Therefore dogs are bad.
Example:  Your friend is a thief.  Therefore, I cannot trust you.
Non Sequitar - Comments or information that do not logically follow from a premise or the conclusion.
Example:  We know why it rained today, because I washed my car.
Example:  I don't care what you say.  We don't need any more bookshelves.  As long as the carpet is clean, we are fine.
Poisoning the well - Presenting negative information about a person before he/she speaks so as to discredit the person's argument.
Example:  Frank is pompous, arrogant, and thinks he knows everything.  So, let's hear what Frank has to say about the subject.
Example:  Don't listen to him because he is a loser.
Logical Fallacies

20. Red Herring - The introduction of a topic not related to the subject at hand.
Example: I know your car isn't working right.  But, if you had gone to the store one day earlier, you'd not be having problems. 
Example:  I know I forgot to deposit the check into the bank yesterday.  But, nothing I do pleases you.
Special Pleading (double standard) - Applying a different standard to another that is applied to oneself.
Example:  You can't possibly understand menopause because you are a man.
Example:  Those rules don't apply to me since since I am older than you.
Straw Man Argument - Producing an argument to attack that is a weaker representation of the truth.
Example:  The government doesn't take care of the poor because it doesn't have a tax specifically to support the poor.
Example:  We know that evolution is false because we did not evolve from monkeys.
Logical Fallacies

21. Equivocation - The same term is used in an argument in different places but the word has different meanings.
Example:  A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.  Therefore, a bird is worth more than President Bush.
Example:  Evolution states that one species can change into another.  We see that cars have evolved into different styles.  Therefore, since evolution is a fact in cars, it is true in species.
False Dilemma - Two choices are given when in actuality there could be more choices possible.
Example:  You either did knock the glass over or you did not.  Which is it?
Example:  Do you still beat your wife?
Ad hominim - Attacking the individual instead of the argument.
Example:  You are so stupid you argument couldn't possibly be true.
Example:  I figured that you couldn't possibly get it right, so I ignored your comment.
A. Key Beliefs
“Naturalism projects the view that ultimate reality is material. The physical universe is all there is. There is nothing beyond or separate from that which we can see, touch, and measure. Matter and energy are the basic ‘stuff’ from which all existence is derived. Such a view of reality implies that all obtainable answers for the questions relating to the universe and mankind can be found by the investigation of physical phenomena. Naturalists do not deny the real existence of such things as thoughts, plans, language, and so on, but they claim that these things are explainable as a form or function of some material entity.” (Brown & Phillips, Making Sense of Your World, 44)
All problems have scientific/materialistic solutions.
No external rules to follow (Moral Relativism).
Each person determines own purpose and meaning.
No life after death.
B. Key Naturalists
John Dewey, education Stephen Jay Gould, evolutionist
Julian Huxley, humanist Sigmund Freud, psychiatrist
Frederick Nietzsche, philosopher Karl Marx, economist/ sociologist
Paul Kurtz, humanist Carl Sagan, cosmologist
Bertrand Russell, philosopher
C. Key Scriptures
Hebrews 11:1-3 Psalm 14:1-3
2 Corinthians 4:18; 10:5 Romans 1:21-32
Romans 1:18-20 Luke 12:16-21
Genesis 1:1 2 Timothy 3:7
D. Key Sources
Noebel, David A., Understanding the Times: The Story of the Biblical Christian, Marxist/Leninist and
Secular Humanist Worldviews. (Eugene, Or: Harvest House Publishers, 1991).
Colson, Charles and Nancey Pearcey, How Now Shall We Live? (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale Publishers, Inc.,
1999).
Sire, James W. The Universe Next Door 4th, ed. (Downer’s Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 2004).
Zacharias, Ravi, Can Man Live Without God? (Dallas: Word Publishing, 1994).
Logical Fallacies

22. Catalog of Worldviews Christian Theism Deism Naturalism Nihilism
Existentialism
Eastern Pantheistic Monism
New Age
Postmodernism (it’s all that and a bag of chips)
Naturalism: All problems have scientific/materialistic solutions.
No external rules to follow (Moral Relativism).
Each person determines own purpose and meaning.
No life after death.
Catalog of Worldviews

23. Humanism Don’t confuse with Humanitarianism Humanist Manifesto
The natural world is the only one we can know; the here and now is all there is;
Insight, intuition, and divine revelation must be tested by reason, truth is best discovered rationally;
Mankind is the only source of morals and value, and the highest human achievement is to improve the human condition;
The future will be better if people proceed ethically and rationally;
Democracy in all aspects of life is to be strived for, as a means of enhancing personal freedom
“Religion tends to hinder the evolutionary progress of man” - Dewey
Man, the measure. Man is the measure of all things. Pythagoras. Man is the ultimate being and the ultimate authority.
Humanism

24. Pluralism
Relativism
Post-Modernism

25. The Christian Worldview
“I am totally convinced the Christian faith is the most coherent worldview around. Everyone: pantheist, atheist, skeptic, polytheist has to answer these questions: Where did I come from? What is life’s meaning? How do I define right from wrong and what happens to me when I die? Those are the fulcrum points of our existence.” Ravi Zacharias
The Christian Worldview

26. Overlapping Worldviews
Secular and Christian rationalities, although distinct, overlap at points. Sin has a noetic influence in that it disrupts the continuity between secular and Christian outlooks; it does not, however, destroy their contiguity. The task of the apologist is to identify the areas of overlap in order to facilitate the transition from a secular to a Christian worldview.
It is thus possible to make the transition from a secular to a Christian outlook through the points of contact that act as bridges between the two. There is not so much a “no man’s land,” as an area of shared possibilities, a region in which there is room for ambiguity. The creative apologist will direct attention to this region with a view to exploring it and emerging within the context of a Christian worldview. This region could prove the vital bridge between a secular and Christian worldview, enabling someone previously committed to the former to make the critical transition to the latter.
2 Alister McGrath, Intellectuals Don’t Need God, and Other Modern Myths (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993), 57, 59.
Dan Story, Engaging the Closed Minded : Presenting Your Faith to the Confirmed Unbeliever (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1999), 98.
Overlapping Worldviews

27. Worldview Points of Contact
Points of contact are not in themselves adequate to bring people into the kingdom of God. They are merely starting points. Nor are they adequate in themselves to bring people to a specifically Christian faith. They might well point toward the existence of a creative and benevolent supreme being. The connection with “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:3) remains to be made.
The apologist must still show that the Christian gospel is consistent with these points of contact, that it is able to explain them, and more than that it is able to deliver all that they promise, turning hints into reality.
McGrath, Intellectuals Don’t Need God, 16.
Dan Story, Engaging the Closed Minded : Presenting Your Faith to the Confirmed Unbeliever (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1999), 99.
Worldview Points of Contact

28. Common Points of Contact
Nature
Morality
Spiritual yearnings
Aesthetics
Sin
Suffering and evil
Science
Ethics
Social services
Fear of death
Below are ten sample points of contact—areas of mutual agreement between Christians and non-Christians—that can be used to initiate conversations. All of them open doors to congenial, thought-provoking discussions on subjects of importance to both.
Nature. Many unbelievers claim they feel the presence of God in nature. This is a point of contact. We explain why the God they sense in nature and the God of Scripture are one and the same. God created nature and is revealed in His creation (Ps. 8; Rom. 1:20).
Morality. All people, in all cultures, and throughout all of history— in spite of differences in languages, customs, and religions—maintain a similar understanding of right and wrong behavior. This points to a moral Lawgiver who has placed in the minds of all people an instinctive moral conscience (Rom. 2:14–15).
Spiritual yearnings. Most people believe in a deity and crave a relationship with God. Atheism is an anomaly—people learn to disbelieve in God. This is because God has placed an innate awareness of Himself in the hearts and minds of all people (Rom. 1:19). This opens the door for a discussion of “What is God like?” and the fact that only Christianity can offer objective evidence that it is God’s sole revelation.
Here’s another way to look at it. Non-Christian worldviews are not totally false in all their components. All worldviews contain elements of truth—even spiritual truth. Now don’t misunderstand me; I’m not saying that non-Christian religions lead to God. But I am saying that, through general revelation, many religions do contain ingredients of truth, and these areas of light afford points of contact. We can acknowledge our agreement at these points, show their similarity with Christian teachings, and then move on to their fuller revelation in Scripture.
Aesthetics. The family of humankind shares an appreciation of beauty and a love of art, music, and literature. This is a result of being created in the image of God; it is our God-given capacity to create, a reflection of the God who created us. This too can lead to a discussion of the nature of God.
Sin. Almost all fiction books and movies focus on the perpetual battle between good and evil forces. Likewise, all people struggle against lust, selfishness, greed, and pride. Thousands of years of civilization have not tempered this urge. Explore this propensity toward sin with unbelievers. How did it become ingrained in the human race? What is the remedy?
Suffering and evil. Everyone agrees that pain and suffering are real. Many people blame God or reject Him because He doesn’t stop it. So we challenge unbelievers to remove God from the equation. What’s the solution to suffering and evil if God doesn’t exist?
Science. Most people trust science to reveal accurate truth. However, miracles and spiritual truth-claims (e.g., salvation through Jesus Christ alone) can’t be ruled out by science because they are issues that fall beyond the scope of science to investigate. This can lead to a discussion of the evidences supporting God’s existence and the Bible as God’s Word.
Ethics. Christians agree that Christianity has its dark pages. Yet the same ethical standards by which critics judge the dark pages of Christianity have their source in the Bible. Challenge unbelievers to account for this. How can they endorse Christian ethics and still deny the Christian God? Consider how moral behavior is rapidly degenerating as Christianity loses its influence in society. Why is this?
Social services. Hospitals, orphanages, relief organizations, and universities are vital components of modern society. All of these have their source in the Christian church. What have atheistic governments contributed that have bettered humanity? At best, they have appropriated institutions Christianity began.
Fear of death. Everyone dies, and most people harbor a fear of death. What happens after death? Is there a better place waiting for us in the hereafter? How do we get there? Secular humanism and naturalism deny a future life. Pantheism and New Age beliefs offer only extinction (absorption). Other religions and cults promote views of salvation that can’t be substantiated (such as becoming “gods” ourselves). Why not examine the Bible? It can be checked out and verified.
I’m not suggesting that these points of contact will automatically lead to a gospel presentation—or that unbelievers will be unable to muster counterarguments. The point is to engage in dialogue that allows us to explain the Christian perspective on issues and to offer an apologetic defense of our views.
Remember, Christianity is truth. If we have done our homework, we will successfully defend our positions against counterarguments.
Dan Story, Engaging the Closed Minded : Presenting Your Faith to the Confirmed Unbeliever (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1999), 104.
Common Points of Contact

29. Apostolic Application
Acts 17
There are different kinds of logical fallacies that people make in presenting their positions.  Below is a list of some of the major fallacies.  It is a good idea to be familiar with them so that you can point them out in a discussion thereby focusing the issues where they belong.      I have discovered numerous times that during a debate on an issue, if you simply point out to your "opponent" a logical fallacy that he/she has just made, that it generally gives you the upper hand.  But then, merely having the upper hand is not the point.  Truth is the point.  Nevertheless, it is logical fallacies that hide the truth.  So, pointing them out can be very useful.
Circular Argument - see Begging the Question
Division - assuming that what is true of the whole is true for the parts.
Example:  That car is blue.  Therefore, its engine is blue.
Example:  Your family is weird.  That means that you are weird too.
Equivocation - The same term is used in an argument in different places but the word has different meanings.
Example:  A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.  Therefore, a bird is worth more than President Bush.
Example:  Evolution states that one species can change into another.  We see that cars have evolved into different styles.  Therefore, since evolution is a fact in cars, it is true in species.
False Dilemma - Two choices are given when in actuality there could be more choices possible.
Example:  You either did knock the glass over or you did not.  Which is it?
Example:  Do you still beat your wife?
Genetic Fallacy - The attempt to endorse or disqualify a claim because of the origin or irrelevant history of the claim
Example:  The Nazi regime developed the Volkswagen Beetle.  Therefore, you should not by a VW Beetle because of who started it.
Example:  Frank's just got out of jail last year and since it was his idea to start the hardware store, I can't trust him.
Guilt by Association - Rejecting an argument or claim because the person proposing it likes someone is disliked by another.
Example:  Hitler liked dogs.  Therefore dogs are bad.
Example:  Your friend is a thief.  Therefore, I cannot trust you.
Non Sequitar - Comments or information that do not logically follow from a premise or the conclusion.
Example:  We know why it rained today, because I washed my car.
Example:  I don't care what you say.  We don't need any more bookshelves.  As long as the carpet is clean, we are fine.
Poisoning the well - Presenting negative information about a person before he/she speaks so as to discredit the person's argument.
Example:  Frank is pompous, arrogant, and thinks he knows everything.  So, let's hear what Frank has to say about the subject.
Example:  Don't listen to him because he is a loser.
Red Herring - The introduction of a topic not related to the subject at hand.
Example: I know your car isn't working right.  But, if you had gone to the store one day earlier, you'd not be having problems. 
Example:  I know I forgot to deposit the check into the bank yesterday.  But, nothing I do pleases you.
Special Pleading (double standard) - Applying a different standard to another that is applied to oneself.
Example:  You can't possibly understand menopause because you are a man.
Example:  Those rules don't apply to me since since I am older than you.
Straw Man Argument - Producing an argument to attack that is a weaker representation of the truth.
Example:  The government doesn't take care of the poor because it doesn't have a tax specifically to support the poor.
Example:  We know that evolution is false because we did not evolve from monkeys.
Apostolic Application

30. 1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 2Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:1-2