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About

All students of apologetics should read at least one book by arguably the most important apologist of the twentieth century: Cornelius Van Til. The single best point of entry into Van Til’s writings is Christian Apologetics.

Here Van Til presents the underpinnings of his uniquely biblical approach. He shows how Christian apologetics is rooted in a unified system of scriptural truth, a worldview that encompasses all spheres of knowledge. Noting the ultimate conflict between Christian and non-Christian systems, Van Til sets forth a method of argument that centers on an all-important, biblically defined point of contact with the unbeliever.

In this the first typeset edition, William Edgar sheds light on Van Til’s approach by adding a new introduction and explanatory notes.

Endorsements 

“One of Van Til’s two or three most important books, this is certainly a must-read for anyone who is trying to understand Van Til today. He challenges Christians to think in a distinctively biblical way. That biblical way opposes and challenges all religions and secular philosophies, all ideologies that place the ultimate source of truth and value in human beings rather than in God. Thoroughly re-edited, with an excellent introduction by William Edgar.”

—John M. Frame

“The copious explanatory notes by Dr. Edgar are invariably helpful and will serve to enhance the singular value of this great work for the present and coming generations.”

—Richard B. Gaffin Jr.

The Author

Cornelius Van Til

Cornelius Van Til (1895–1987) was born in Grootegast, the Netherlands, and immigrated with his family to America in 1905. He attended Calvin College and Calvin Seminary before completing his studies at Princeton Theological Seminary and Princeton University with the ThM and PhD degrees. 

Drawn to the pastorate, Van Til spent one year in the ministry before taking a leave of absence to teach apologetics at Princeton Seminary. When the seminary reorganized, he was persuaded to join the faculty of the newly founded Westminster Theological Seminary. He remained there as professor of apologetics until his retirement in 1972. 

Van Til wrote more than twenty books, in addition to more than thirty syllabi. Among his best-known titles are The Defense of the Faith, A Christian Theory of Knowledge, and An Introduction to Systematic Theology.

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