If the word, "apologetics", is unfamiliar to the reader, its meaning is quite different from the word it closely resembles, though both come from the same Greek root word. Apologetics isn’t the art of crafting ways to say, "I’m sorry." (or craftily saying what sounds like, "I’m sorry."). "Apologetics" comes from the Greek word, "APOLOGIA", which means, "a verbal defense, a speech in defense", or, "a reasoned statement or argument". In the Christian context, apologetics means giving reasons for the Christian Faith: belief in God; belief in Creation; belief in the Bible; belief in Jesus; belief in what the Bible teaches about the natures of God, man, righteousness and sin, salvation, and the Christian life.

It would be reasonable to wonder why Christians who are not involved in full-time ministry need to know about apologetics. The command given in 1 Peter 3:15, "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear" (there’s that Greek word, "APOLOGIA"), is addressed to all Christians, not just those involved in full-time ministry. One never knows when, where, or by whom serious questions may be asked, or one’s faith may be challenged. We may find the challenge when we share our faith, or the challenge may come to us: through one of Jehovah’s witnesses knocking on our door; through an acquaintance asking what we believe about God, life, or eternity; through someone on an Internet discussion forum questioning one (or more) of our beliefs. If we are not able to respond by explaining what we believe and why, not only will that person not receive an answer, but we ourselves may fall into confusion or doubt about what we have believed. In such witnessing opportunities we might not take part in the whole process from sowing the first seed through seeing the person profess faith in Jesus. Nor are we responsible for convincing someone to believe in Jesus (that’s the Holy Spirit’s work). But we should be able to plant or water seeds by explaining what we believe and why we believe what we believe. This doesn’t mean that we have to become experts on every one of Satan’s religious and philosophical lies. We do need, however, to be able to think through inquirers’ questions and skeptics’ challenges, understand the issues raised thereby, and be sufficiently familiar with the Truth as to be able to apply it to questions and challenges appropriately. We also need to know how to find and learn fairly quickly the information necessary to be able to give people the answers they need.

I can already imagine the reaction of some busy, harried, homeschoolers: "What?! Teach another whole new subject?! When?! How?!" Well, the good news is that, to some degree, most Christian homeschoolers probably already are teaching at least some apologetics topics. Most science curricula from Christian publishers, for example, deal to some degree with Creation-Evolution issues. And most Bible curricula teach at least some of what the Bible has to say about God, man, righteousness and sin, salvation, and living the Christian life. So apologetics isn’t an entirely new, unfamiliar subject, though one’s awareness of it may be.

In the elementary grades and into junior high, such introductions to basic apologetics issues and ideas as these curricula provide are usually sufficient. Many students probably aren’t ready for much more (don’t discourage unexpected interest, though). In high school is when students should be introduced to apologetics as such. Students have usually reached a point in their maturity (personal and spiritual), knowledge base, and abilities to reason where they will be ready to consider these topics in greater detail. This also is an age when many young people start to think through their ideas and beliefs in greater depth and detail. Teaching apologetics will guide and aid that process. Apologetics may be taught as a subject unto itself, as a homeschool’s regular Bible course, or apologetics topics could remain integrated in subjects such as Bible, Science, History, and Language Arts, perhaps using supplemental materials to add greater depth to the coverage of some topics.

Students need to study Creation-Evolution issues in greater detail than previously - being able to explain the Theory of Evolution, the problems with the Theory, and evidences for Creation. The basic beliefs of common religions and secular philosophies (including cults that claim to be Christian but do not follow the Bible) should be learned, and Christian responses. Note, I use the word "cult" in the old sense of the word, its real meaning - followers of a particular teacher - not in the modern sense with all its connotations of brain-washing, coercion, forced isolation, and odd or anti-social behavior. And Christians should learn elementary logic, to be able to reason, to recognize fallacies, and to avoid making fallacious arguments. Not only will these enable students to understand their Christian beliefs better, but they will better be able to apply them in their lives as adults. The general goal is to teach our children enough to understand and begin to deal with such questions and challenges as may come their way, and to be able to know where to go to learn more when necessary. For most Christians, this general level of knowledge and preparedness is sufficient. It may be, however, that some topic will catch your child’s interest or they will encounter a special challenge and will be motivated to learn more about it than you had originally intended to teach. Homeschooling affords students the flexibility to pursue such interests (brief or long-term), and this should be encouraged. Who knows whether that spark of interest is the precursor of a calling to a ministry (formal or informal) having to do with that issue?

Homeschooling affords parents great flexibility in how they can cover Apologetics. For those who want to design their own units and courses or supplement the coverage of regular Bible, Science, History, or Language Arts courses, they can use "real" books. If parents study "real" books (a few are listed toward the end of this article, though there are many, many more available) along with their children, they will be able to guide their children’s learning, answer questions that arise, and, at the same time, learn more themselves. Doing this may also be economical in the long run, as textbooks for special courses will recommend such books, which you may end up purchasing anyway. Several curriculum publishers offer Apologetics-oriented courses - e.g. "Patterns for Christian Living" (Christianity and societal issues), "What Is Truth" (worldviews and religions), "How Firm a Foundation" (the history and reliability of the Bible) from Bob Jones University Press. There are also special "camps": one- or two- week seminars that focus on Apologetics issues. Examples of these would be Worldview Academy (http://www.worldview.org/) or Summit Ministries (http://www.summit.org/). In addition, some churches offer their members classes or seminars that parents can use as part of or to supplement their family’s Apologetics coverage.

Every Christian needs to be able to express and explain their faith to others. Some hearers will be more questioning or challenging than others, and Christians need to be prepared for this. One extra benefit of teaching basic apologetics topics in one’s family’s homeschool is that Mom and Dad will have a chance to fill in gaps in their own knowledge (this frequently happens in homeschooling anyway), and thus become stronger Christians as well. Here is a short list of books that are invaluable basic resources:

Evidence That Demands a Verdict - Josh McDowell; Evidence That Demands a Verdict has a lot of information concerning the history and credibility of the Bible, the uniqueness of Jesus, and Jesus’s resurrection;

The Case for Faith - Lee Strobel; The Case for Faith considers and responds to the "Big Eight" arguments advanced against belief in God and Christianity.

The Case for Christ - Lee Strobel; The Case for Christ examines the credibility of Jesus, His claims, and His resurrection.

Kingdom of the Cults - Dr. Walter Martin (Hank Hanegraaf, editor); Kingdom of the Cults provides a brief history and covers the basic teachings of several cults that claim to be Christian, but do not follow the Bible;

Scientific Creationism - Henry M. Morris; Scientific Creationism provides a good overview of many of the issues between Creationism and the Theory of Evolution.

Understanding the Times - David A. Noebel; Understanding the Times examines what Christianity, Secular Humanism, Marxism, and Cosmic Humanism (New Age) teach regarding God, man, and society.

Here are several websites that have information on Apologetics topics. These will be helpful as sources of quick answers, as introductions to issues (the price is right!), and as guides for further research. Some may also offer for purchase many of the books listed above, plus other similar books.

Christian Answers Network >>>> http://www.christiananswers.net/

Christian Research Institute >>>> http://www.equip.org/

Stand to Reason>>>> http://www.str.org/

Creation Research Society >>>> http://www.creationresearch.org/

Institute for Creation Research >>>> http://www.icr.org/