Bringing Apologetics to Erie
The Following is a guest post written by Ratio Christi president Rick Schenker. Help us spread the word about RC Erie by liking and sharing both this article and our group facebook page. Stay tuned for more information on our launch date. Exciting things are happening in Erie, get plugged in and stay connected by subscribing to our page!
-Joe Holmes DO, Chapter Director of Erie region Ratio Christi
Ratio Christi is a tremendously fast growing ministry in the world of Christian apologetics, and it is coming to Erie. So what is Christian apologetics? Christian apologetics (from Greek apologia, "defense") is a field of Christian theology that aims to present a rational basis for the Christian faith, defend the faith against objections, and expose the perceived flaws of other world views. The purpose of apologetics is to give reasons or arguments in support of Christian beliefs. These arguments may be either defensive, in which objections to Christian faith are answered (e.g., why does God permit evil?), or offensive, in which positive cases are made for Christian beliefs (e.g., the historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus).
The original idea of starting Ratio Christi (meaning “Reason of Christ”) Christian apologetic clubs on campus started in the spring semester of 2008 at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. The purpose was to equip university students and faculty to give historical, philosophical, and scientific reasons for following Jesus Christ. By the fall of 2008, it expanded to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. At that time a group of students at Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte decided to try and make it a ministry that could expand to all college campuses. By the end of the 2008-2009 academic year, Ratio Christi had five chapters including ones at NC State, Ohio State, Texas A&M. By the fall of 2010 they grew to twelve chapters including one in South Africa.
In February 2011, Ratio Christi became independent of Southern Evangelical Seminary, incorporated and filed for tax exemption as a 501c3. By the end of 2011, they have grown over 500% and have chapters starting all over the world. They have developed partnerships with six seminaries, and a large number of apologetic ministries including; Ravi Zacharias Ministries, Stand to Reason, the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, Reasons to Believe and many others. Now this organization is coming to Erie, Pennsylvania.
The chapter called, Ratio Christi—Erie Region will be led by Joe Holmes, D.O., a resident at Millcreek Community Hospital and an apologist. He is teaming up with Andy Kerr, Pastor of Forward Hall on Peach Street to develop an outreach to Gannon, Mercyhurst and Behrend. Students will learn how and why the Christian faith can stand up intellectually compared to other worldviews.Ratio Christi’s aims are simple:
• Empower Christian students and faculty with reasons for their faith.
• Sponsor campus events that encourage students and faculty to consider the intellectual coherence and explanatory power of a Christian worldview in dialogue with all academic disciplines.
• Serve other Christian organizations that attend to the needs of college students.Ratio Christi seeks to encourage and strengthen the faith of Christians, and challenge those that are skeptics and atheists by engaging in discussions directed towards answering life’s pressing questions:
• Why am I here?
• Does God really exist?
• What about science?
• Is this all by random chance?
• If there is a loving God, why is there so much evil?
• Is Christianity true?
• Is the Bible reliable?
• Who was Jesus of Nazareth, really?
• Does God have a plan for me?
• Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
• Is faith in Christ rational?
• What is truth?
• Does Jesus really matter?
• and much more...This is the first step in a plan to bring a full-time Ratio Christi apologist into Erie. That person will work with Dr. Holmes and Pastor Kerr in a consulting capacity while starting a chapter at Edinboro University. Anyone that would like more information may go to the Ratio Christi web site at www.RatioChristi.org or ask for information at info@RatioChristi.org.
