Title: Questioning Evangelism
Author: Randy Newman
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Kregel Publications; Student/Stdy Gde edition (February 1, 2004)
ISBN-10: 082543324x
I first heard about Questioning Evangelism by listening to it's author, Randy Newman, discuss it at the Gospel Coalition. Newman works for Campus Crusade in Washington, DC.
You can download the talk right here, or through the Gospel Coalition's page on iTunes, which is how I heard it. And quite honestly, you can get the best parts of the book simply by listening to that podcast.
Questioning Evangelism sounds like a title from a liberal attacking evangelism. But, instead, it's about evangelism through asking questions. As an academic, I really liked the premise. Imagine Socratic questioning as an evangelism strategy.
The book is divided into 3 parts:
The pros of the book:
I really like the idea of using Socratic questioning (I don't think Newman ever uses the term Socratic). I think this method is especially suited for people who, like Newman, work with college students.
I also liked how Newman frequently discussed his own personal failures in evangelism--from missed opportunities to saying something stupid.
The weaknesses of the book:
To truly use Socratic questioning in evangelism, the evangelist needs to be pretty intelligent and an excellent critical thinker. To makeup for this, Newman provides several stock questions, such as: "Really?" "How do you know that?" Or, if the person asks one of the questions in Part 2, "Why do you think...?"
I think these stock questions can work for those people who have never really thought about their beliefs and would be shocked their ideas weren't immediately affirmed. And, according to Newman, most people fit that description.
Recommendation:
I like Newman's ideas. But, you really can get the best parts of the book simply by listening to his Gospel Coalition talk. I obtained the book through interlibrary loan, and I'm glad I did. It was worth the time I spent reading it, but it's not the kind of book I'd keep on my shelf and look back to over and over.
Author: Randy Newman
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Kregel Publications; Student/Stdy Gde edition (February 1, 2004)
ISBN-10: 082543324x
I first heard about Questioning Evangelism by listening to it's author, Randy Newman, discuss it at the Gospel Coalition. Newman works for Campus Crusade in Washington, DC.
You can download the talk right here, or through the Gospel Coalition's page on iTunes, which is how I heard it. And quite honestly, you can get the best parts of the book simply by listening to that podcast.
Questioning Evangelism sounds like a title from a liberal attacking evangelism. But, instead, it's about evangelism through asking questions. As an academic, I really liked the premise. Imagine Socratic questioning as an evangelism strategy.
The book is divided into 3 parts:
- Part 1 (chapters 1-3) is about evangelism through questioning.
- Part 2 (chapters 4-10) is about the types of questions that non-Christians use to avoid or attack Christianity. These include questions such as: "Why does God allow evil?" "Aren't Christians homophobic?" "Why are so many Christians a bunch of hypocrites?"
- Part 3 (chapters 11-13) is about our motivations for evangelism.
The pros of the book:
I really like the idea of using Socratic questioning (I don't think Newman ever uses the term Socratic). I think this method is especially suited for people who, like Newman, work with college students.
I also liked how Newman frequently discussed his own personal failures in evangelism--from missed opportunities to saying something stupid.
The weaknesses of the book:
To truly use Socratic questioning in evangelism, the evangelist needs to be pretty intelligent and an excellent critical thinker. To makeup for this, Newman provides several stock questions, such as: "Really?" "How do you know that?" Or, if the person asks one of the questions in Part 2, "Why do you think...?"
I think these stock questions can work for those people who have never really thought about their beliefs and would be shocked their ideas weren't immediately affirmed. And, according to Newman, most people fit that description.
Recommendation:
I like Newman's ideas. But, you really can get the best parts of the book simply by listening to his Gospel Coalition talk. I obtained the book through interlibrary loan, and I'm glad I did. It was worth the time I spent reading it, but it's not the kind of book I'd keep on my shelf and look back to over and over.
