Why Jesus?

[llenadegracia]

I thought about posting this in Apologetics, but decided to post it here because it really has more to do with evangelization.

I am currently in college and face this issue pretty frequently. I can easily carry a conversation with a fellow Christian and explain the major misconceptions about Catholicism…but taking to nonChristians is a different ballpark. It’s no longer that they don’t understand the papacy or think Catholics worship Mary, it’s that they don’t accept Jesus at all.

I just am frazzled at how to approach this. In my heart, it makes sense…but I just feel like I cannot provide an adequate answer. Should I approach it from a historical or theological standpoint? Or both?

I want to simply say…it’s joy! It’s compassion! It’s love! It’s faith! But that answer is too vague and could also be applied to other religions…

This should be an easy question. But I’m just bamboozled by it.

 

[1_with_God]

Perhaps you need to know more about Jesus. You know, a closer relationship. His life, His sacrifice. As this is the “Year of Faith” this may be a good time for it. Dogma is wonderful, but to personally walk with Jesus is joy that does not need words.

Just a thought. I’ll pray for you, maybe you just have a difficult time putting it into words. God bless.

 

[LittleRose]

G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and more recently Peter Kreeft have all written good things on common sense arguments in favor of the existence of God, and the validity of Christianity.

 

[bzkoss236]

The evangelists of the past often used what the people knew about to create allegories or examples, even Jesus used this strategy. Base your conversations around what the people know. Start of with asking about them and what they do, what their current religion is, etc. Then use the information about them to create ways to maybe help them better understand God, Jesus, and the Church.

 

[Mike_from_NJ]

Before I go any further, since I am an atheist let me preface my answer:

• I’m treating this as a question regarding how the OP can best evangelize those who are incredulous about Jesus.
• I’m not here (at least on this topic) to debate apologetics. I know you’ll be giving the OP some arguments to counteract the various concerns, but don’t be upset that I don’t reply to them.
• I don’t speak for all non-Catholics or all atheists, but I know I’m not an outlier either.

So with that out of the way, llenadegracia, I think we’re going to need some specifics as far as not accepting Jesus. Then perhaps the other folks here can offer some suggestions. If this might help, here are a few concerns from non-Christians that you can prepare for in case they come up in the future:

• Why is there such a gap between the fall and the arrival of Jesus, especially since Catholics considering him the true way to salvation and many evangelicals considering him the only way to salvation?
• Why is there such a shift in tone between the God of the old testament and Jesus of the new, when they are one? Tangential to that, why does it seem that he is of two minds when it comes to abolishing and keeping the law?
• Why do the number of miracles increase with each book in the Gospels the later that each book is written?

I’m sure other people have other concerns but I hope this is a good start so that you can be prepared.

 

[CalCatholic]

I thought about posting this in Apologetics, but decided to post it here because it really has more to do with evangelization.

I am currently in college and face this issue pretty frequently. I can easily carry a conversation with a fellow Christian and explain the major misconceptions about Catholicism…but taking to nonChristians is a different ballpark. It’s no longer that they don’t understand the papacy or think Catholics worship Mary, it’s that they don’t accept Jesus at all.

I just am frazzled at how to approach this. In my heart, it makes sense…but I just feel like I cannot provide an adequate answer. Should I approach it from a historical or theological standpoint? Or both?

I want to simply say…it’s joy! It’s compassion! It’s love! It’s faith! But that answer is too vague and could also be applied to other religions…

This should be an easy question. But I’m just bamboozled by it.

When I was looking into Christianity, I read a book called ‘A Case for Christ’ by Lee Strobel. The book is written by an atheist who eventually became a Christian pastor. He investigates the case for Christianity and Jesus after his wife becomes a Christian, hoping to debunk it. It is very readable.