Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics

Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics. By Norman L. Geisler. Baker Reference Library. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1999, 841 pp., $49.99.

Unlike other volumes in the Baker Reference Library, this one has a single author. All the others are edited (mostly by Walter A. Elwell). This in itself is an astounding accomplishment, but to realize that this is only one of a long series of substantial philosophical/theological works by this author is to pause in gratitude to God for the gift of Norman Geisler to the Christian world. His work has far exceeded the impact of E. J. Carnell, and though often controversial, his contribution to philosophical theology and Christian apologetics is truly noteworthy.

Initially many thought this Encyclopedia would be a reiteration of much of Geisler's previous work, and of course one finds a defense of his characteristic views (e.g. the cosmological argument, the problem of evil, and the physical nature of the resurrection of Christ). Yet even in these articles I found fresh presentations of Geisler's mature thinking on these issues.

Included are summaries of terms, aspects of Biblical criticism, subjects, people, and themes that are relevant to the field of Christian apologetics and the philosophy of religion. Carnell, for example, receives more than twelve columns of text, and C. S. Lewis gets ten columns. Articles also appear, for example, on "Alleged Errors in the Bible" (almost twelve columns), "Canonicity" (more than ten columns), "Miracles" (almost forty pages), and "Evolution" (almost ten pages plus twelve more on "Creation"); twenty-five pages are devoted to various aspects of the resurrection of Christ. Treatments are given of terms like indeterminism, Molinism (evaluated negatively, of course), and causality. People covered by lengthy article-reviews include William F. Albright, Alfarabi, Thomas J. J. Altizer, Karl Barth, Sigmund Freud, Jonathan Edwards, John Dewey, Herman Dooyeweerd, Ayn Rand, Bernard Ramm, and Maimonides. Again I found fresh material (e.g. the claim that thesis/antithesis/synthesis was not Hegel's philosophical methodology). Geisler's insights on Francis Schaeffer, Martin Luther, and Thomas Jefferson were helpful.

A special feature of the volume is its emphasis on Islam and on the Qur'an as a rival to Holy Scripture. Numerous articles are found on Muhammad and related topics. New Age movements, however, are simply treated as a part of other headings (such as polytheism, neopaganism, panentheism, Zen Buddhism, Hinduism, and pantheism). "New Age" needs its own article.

The reader must realize that this is an "encyclopedia" from Geisler's point of view. Most often I nod in agreement, but the articles are not objective or simply descriptive (as many encyclopedias try to be). Each article is a short essay that describes and evaluates issues from Geisler's evangelical version of a Thomistic and moderate-Calvinist view. In the article "Existentialism," for example, Geisler gets a little carried away, perhaps, and claims that Thomas Aquinas was an existentialist par excellence since Thomas portrayed God as pure existence; that is, pure actuality with no potentiality. Perhaps I misread the Summa Theologiae Ia. 3, 4, but I thought Thomas would not distinguish existence and essence in God and thus would not prioritize existence as existentialists do.

There are a few other nits to pick. For example, not all of the biographical entries have dates. I thought the articles "Nihilism" and "Special Revelation" were surprisingly short. With so much on Jesus Christ and Mohammed, I was surprised to find no article on Moses, though there is an article on the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch and two on Pharaoh (one of which is actually on divine determinism). The editors failed to be consistent with some of their headings; for example, it should be "Apologetics, Experiential" instead of "Experiential Apologetics." And why do we have "Barnabas, Gospel of" but "Gospel of Thomas, The"? Even the marginal headers (which are supposed to name the first article on the left page and the last on the right page) are sometimes incorrect (e.g. pp. 234-235). The article "Foundationalism" is good but incomplete. There is no reference, for example, to the so-called broad/narrow distinction (as argued by Nash), and there at least should have been a cross-reference to the article "Proper Basicality" (which is also very brief).

Apparently a decision was made not to include articles on contemporary evangelical writers such as Craig, Habermas, Moreland, or Nash; on the other side, Antony Flew is included. The bibliography, however, does include many titles by these evangelical apologists.

Overall I want to commend this volume as a "must-have" reference work. It should not be one's only reference source, but it is an excellent place to start. Nothing else I know of covers so well so much material relevant to Christian apologetics.

L. Russ Bush

Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Wake Forest, NC

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Jun 2000
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