When Cultists Ask


Book Description

Learn to identify and respond to the misuse and misinterpretation of Scripture by cults.




Cultish


Book Description

“One of those life-changing reads that makes you see—or, in this case, hear—the whole world differently.” —Megan Angelo, author of Followers “At times chilling, often funny, and always perceptive and cogent, Cultish is a bracing reminder that the scariest thing about cults is that you don't realize you're in one till it's too late.”—Refinery29.com The New York Times bestselling author of The Age of Magical Overthinking and Wordslut analyzes the social science of cult influence: how “cultish” groups, from Jonestown and Scientologists to SoulCycle and social media gurus, use language as the ultimate form of power. What makes “cults” so intriguing and frightening? What makes them powerful? The reason why so many of us binge Manson documentaries by the dozen and fall down rabbit holes researching suburban moms gone QAnon is because we’re looking for a satisfying explanation for what causes people to join—and more importantly, stay in—extreme groups. We secretly want to know: could it happen to me? Amanda Montell’s argument is that, on some level, it already has . . . Our culture tends to provide pretty flimsy answers to questions of cult influence, mostly having to do with vague talk of “brainwashing.” But the true answer has nothing to do with freaky mind-control wizardry or Kool-Aid. In Cultish, Montell argues that the key to manufacturing intense ideology, community, and us/them attitudes all comes down to language. In both positive ways and shadowy ones, cultish language is something we hear—and are influenced by—every single day. Through juicy storytelling and cutting original research, Montell exposes the verbal elements that make a wide spectrum of communities “cultish,” revealing how they affect followers of groups as notorious as Heaven’s Gate, but also how they pervade our modern start-ups, Peloton leaderboards, and Instagram feeds. Incisive and darkly funny, this enrapturing take on the curious social science of power and belief will make you hear the fanatical language of “cultish” everywhere.




10 Keys to Witnessing to Cults


Book Description

Open the Door Expert author Ron Rhodes helps to dispel believers' feelings of insecurity when confronted with cults. "10 Keys To Witnessing To Cults"\ will prepare you to witness in a loving, respectful and informed way to the cults at your door, your work, or your neighborhood. Tips include spotting common objections cultists are trained to answer, strategic questions to ask, and easy ways to demonstrate Jesus' deity, plus much more.




When Christians Ask, the Quran Answers


Book Description

A list of questions frequently asked by Christian students of theology and their professors alike that are answered in the Islamic holy book, the Quran.




10 Keys to Witnessing to Cults


Book Description

Cults are based on a simple theological fallacy—that God is not what the Bible says that He is. Once simple scriptural observations are made, we can be sure that there is a God, and that He is everything that He claims to be in His Word. Having a dialogue with someone who believes differently about God can be difficult, but this pamphlet helps in many ways. Clearly explaining how cultists think, giving biblical responses to their arguments, providing information about additional resources, and offering questions that cultists must answer for themselves, authors Ron Rhodes and Christy (Harvey) Darlington provide a simple resource to assist Christians in their conversations with those involved in cults.




The 10 Most Important Things You Can Say to a Catholic


Book Description

Fact-filled, easy-to-understand, and visually appealing, this series delivers the essential knowledge you need to know to effectively witness biblical truths to people led astray by false teachings. Noted Bible teacher Ron Rhodes highlights the key differences between specific cults and biblical Christianity by: identifying the 10 most critical problems examining the exact nature of each doctrinal error contrasting cultic teachings with the truth found in God’s Word explaining the correct meanings of Bible verses cults cite out of context reviewing basic principles of Bible interpretation that ensure accurate understanding Important points, witnessings tips, digging deeper sections, and cautions that highlight the confusing arguments and tactics used by each organization make these books perfect for individual witnessing, Bible studies, youth groups, and evangelism refreshers. Discusses why the Apocrypha isn’t in the canon, the true role of tradition, Catholicism’s erroneous distinction between venial and mortal sins, the concept of purgatory, the controversy surrounding Jesus’ mother Mary, and more.




Don DeLillo


Book Description

Don DeLillo, author of twelve novels and winner of the National Book Award, the PEN/Faulkner Award, the William Dean Howells Medal, and the Jerusalem Prize, has begun to rival Thomas Pynchon as the definitive postmodern novelist. Always thought-provoking and occasionally controversial, DeLillo has become the voice of the bimillennial moment. Charting DeLillo's emergence as a contemporary novelist of major stature, David Cowart discusses each of DeLillo's twelve novels, including his most recent work, The Body Artist (2001). Rejecting the idea that DeLillo lacks affinities across the cultural spectrum, Cowart argues that DeLillo's work invites comparison with that of wide range of antecedents, including Dunbar, Whitman, Wittgenstein, Heidegger, Freud, Lacan, Derrida, Hemingway, Joyce, Rilke, and Eliot. At the same time, Cowart explores the ways in which DeLillo's art anticipates, parallels, and contests ideas that have become the common currency of poststructuralist theory. The major site of DeLillo's engagement with postmodernism, Cowart argues, is language, which DeLillo represents as more mysterious--numinous even--than current theory allows. For DeLillo, language remains what Cowart calls "the ground of all making." Don DeLillo: The Physics of Language is a provocative investigation of the most compelling issues of contemporary fiction.




Developing a Christian Apologetics Educational Program


Book Description

Many are expressing concern about the future of Christian youth today. What can we do to help ensure they will keep their evangelical faith once they graduate from high school? Can Christian apologetics provide an educational solution? Developing A Christian Apologetics Educational Program explores issues certain to be encountered by secondary school educators who want to teach apologetics as a distinct subject of study either as a part of a Christian institutional or home school curriculum. This book helps the apologist and educator blend their skills to soundly integrate the two subjects. A solution is sought by providing a background and rational for implementing an age-level appropriate apologetics course at this critical level of Christian education. This book is designed as a text to supplement those used in Christian education or applied apologetics courses; each chapter successively builds upon the other to help develop an educational philosophy that supports the inclusion of apologetics in the curriculum. A model is explained and materials are given to support the development of a curriculum in Christian Apologetics Education at the secondary level. Practical ideas are explored and a sample unit of instruction is supplied to help the educator develop an evangelical approach to education that is in the classical apologetic tradition.




I Am Put Here for the Defense of the Gospel


Book Description

Dr. Norman L. Geisler has been called the "father of evangelical Christian philosophy." He has written more than one hundred books and taught at universities and top seminaries for some fifty-six years. He was the first president of the Evangelical Philosophical Society and the founder and first president of the International Society of Christian Apologetics. He has spoken or debated in more than two dozen countries and held pastoral/pulpit ministries in four states. Many view him as a cross between Thomas Aquinas and Billy Graham. No one has done more to communicate the modern challenges of the Faith to the "average" Christian, to the church, and to the academy. This volume offers creative and constructive essays from twenty-three contributors, all notable in their own right, who preserve and propagate Dr. Geisler's ideas and express appreciation for his influence. Those who know him best say he is "true, faithful, and blessed by God!"




The Comprehensive Guide to Apologetics


Book Description

"A must-read for anyone who seeks to share the gospel and defend the faith!” —Josh McDowell “Crucial to the next generation of missionaries and apologetic evangelists.” —Norman L. Geisler In a postmodern, post-truth society, how can we be certain our faith is based on more than our feelings? And how do we answer the complex questions about Christianity posed by skeptics and searchers alike? The Comprehensive Guide to Apologetics challenges you to understand and defend the tenets of your faith. This informative resource covers topics spanning from the evidence for the Bible’s reliability, to the relationship between science and faith, to the comparisons between Christianity and other worldviews. The many contributors to this volume include respected apologists and Bible scholars such as… Norman L. Geisler Josh McDowell Gary R. Habermas Walter C. Kaiser Jr. Ron Rhodes Edwin M. Yamauchi John Warwick Montgomery William A. Dembski Randy Alcorn Stephen C. Meyer Randall Price Ed Hindson Essential reading for every Christian, The Comprehensive Guide to Apologetics will equip you with the knowledge and confidence to testify for your faith with compassion, intention, and Christlike wisdom.