Christian apologetics is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. It is the intellectual defense of the truth of the Christian religion. Christian apologists use reasons and evidence to present a reasonable defense of the Christian faith and truth to those who disagree. The mission of Christian apologetics is to combat movements that doubt the existence of God, attack belief in the God of the Bible, promote false doctrines, and deny the key truths of the Christian faith.

Christian apologetics has taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in the early church. Early Christian apologists include Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, and the author of the Epistle to Diognetus. Augustine of Hippo was a significant apologist of the Patristic era. Christian apologetics continues in modern times in a wide variety of forms. Among the Roman Catholics, there are Bishop Robert Barron, G. K. Chesterton, Ronald Knox, Taylor Marshall, Arnold Lunn, Karl Keating, Michael Voris, Peter Kreeft, Frank Sheed, Dr. Scott Hahn, and Patrick Madrid. Among the Evangelicals, there is the Anglican C. S. Lewis, Evangelical Norman Geisler, Lutheran John Warwick Montgomery, and Presbyterian Francis Schaeffer.

Christian apologetics seeks to build bridges to unbelievers by presenting reasons and evidence that Christianity is true, rational, and worthy of belief. The late twentieth-century Christian apologist Francis A. Schaeffer saw Christian apologetics as “pre-evangelism” – a way to prepare the mind and heart for the Christian message (the Gospel) . The connection of apologetics with evangelism is best summarized by Oxford theologian Alister E. McGrath: “Christian apologetics represents the serious and sustained engagement with ‘ultimate questions’ raised by a culture, people, or individual aiming to show how the Christian faith is able to provide meaningful answers to such questions” .

In summary, Christian apologetics is the defense of Christianity using reasons and evidence. It has taken many forms over the centuries and continues in modern times. Its mission is to combat movements that doubt the existence of God, attack belief in the God of the Bible, promote false doctrines, and deny the key truths of the Christian faith. Christian apologetics seeks to build bridges to unbelievers by presenting reasons and evidence that Christianity is true, rational, and worthy of belief.