Apologetics Debates
Debate-types by Color
▌Does God exist?
▌Does God ground moral facts?
▌Is Jesus Divine?
▌Did Jesus rise from the dead?
▌Did Jesus die by crucifixion?
▌Is life “intelligently designed”
▌Is abortion morally permissible?
William Lane Craig
▌(2014) [Video] Gerd Lüdemann vs. William Lane Craig, “Jesus's resurrection: fact or figment”
▌(2014) [Video] Sean Carroll vs. William Lane Craig, “God & Cosmology”
▌(2013) [Video] Alex Rosenberg vs. William Lane Craig, “Is Metaphysical Naturalism Viable?”
▌(2013) [Video] Lawrence Krauss vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2014) [Video] Gerd Lüdemann vs. William Lane Craig, “The Possibility of Resurrection”
▌(2012) [Video] Kari Enqvist vs. William Lane Craig,“Can the Universe Exist Without God?”
▌(2012) [Video] Klemens Kappel vs. William Lane Craig,“Does God Exist?”
▌(2011) [Video] Sam Harris vs. Craig, “Is The Foundation of Morality Natural or Supernatural?”
▌(2011) [Video] Stephen Law vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2011) [Video] Arif Ahmed & Andrew Copson vs. Craig & Williams, “Is God a Delusion?”
▌(2011) [Video] Peter Millican vs. William Lane Craig,“Does God Exist?”
▌(2011) [Video] Peter Atkins vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2011) [Video] Lawrence Krauss vs. William Lane Craig, “Is There Evidence for God?”
▌(2010) [Video] Yusuf Ismail vs. William Lane Craig, “Is He Man or both Man and God?”
▌(2010) [Video] Spangenberg & W. vs. Craig & Licona, “How to understand resurrection”
▌(2010) [Video] Michael Tooley vs. William Lane Craig, “Is God Real?”
▌(2010) [Video] Herb Silverman vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2009) [Audio] Eric Dayton vs. William Lane Craig, “Does Evil Disprove God?”
▌(2009) [Video] Richard Carrier vs. William Lane Craig, “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2009) [Video] Francisco Ayala vs. William Lane Craig, “Is Intelligent Design Viable?”
▌(2009) [Video] Shabir Ally vs. William Lane Craig,“Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2009) [Audio] Brian Edwards vs. William Lane Craig, “Easter Debate”
▌(2009) [Video] Ronald DeSousa vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2008) [Video] Louise Antony vs. William Lane Craig, “Is God Necessary for Morality?”
▌(2008) [Video] John Shook vs. William Lane Craig“Does God Exist?”
▌(2008) [Video] Bill Cooke vs. William Lane Craig, “Is God a Delusion?”
▌(2007) [Video] Andrew Pyle vs. William Lane Craig, “Does the Christian God Exist?”
▌(2007) [Video] Mike Begon vs. William Lane Craig, “Is God a Delusion?”
▌(2006) [Video] Bart Ehrman vs. William Lane Craig, Any Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus?”
▌(2005) [Audio] AC Grayling vs. William Lane Craig,“Is belief in God is reasonable given evil?”
▌(2005) [Video] Shelby Spong vs. William Lane Craig, “The Great Resurrection Debate”
▌(2004) [Audio] Hector Avalos vs. William Lane Craig, “The Resurrection: Fact or Fiction?”
▌(2004) [Audio] Austin Dacey vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2001) [Video] Marcus Borg vs. William Lane Craig, “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
▌(1998) [Video] Peter Atkins vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God exist?”
▌(1998) [Audio] Keith Parsons vs. William Lane Craig, “Why I Am/Am Not a Christian”
▌(1998) [Audio] Antony Flew vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(1997) [Audio] Jamal Badawi vs. William Lane Craig, The Concept of God in Islam & Christianity
▌(1997) [Audio] Theodore Drange vs. William Lane Craig, “Does God Exist?”
▌(1994) [Audio] Ray Bradley vs. William Lane Craig, “Can a Loving God Send People to Hell?”
Michael Licona
▌(2012) [Video] Dale Martin vs. Mike Licona, “Did Jesus Believe He was Divine?”
▌(2012) [Video] Dale Martin vs. Mike Licona, “Did Jesus Physically Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2012) [Video] Shane Pucket vs. Mike Licona, “Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2011) [Video] Pieter Craffert vs. Mike Licona, “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2011) [Video] Yusuf Ismail vs. Mike Licona, Did Jesus Die by Crucifixion in the First Century?”
▌(2010) [Video] Spangenberg & W. vs. Mike Licona & Craig, “How to understand the resurrection”
▌(2009) [Video] Bart Ehrman vs. Mike Licona, “Can Historians Prove Jesus Rose from the Dead?”
▌(2008) [Video] Bart Ehrman vs. Mike Licona, “Can Historians Prove Jesus Rose from the Dead?”
▌(2006) [Video] Steve Yothment vs. Mike Licona, “Did man create God?”
▌(2006) [Video] Ali Ataie vs. Mike Licona, “What was the first century fate of Jesus?”
▌(2004) [Video] Shabir Ally vs. Mike Licona, “Did Jesus rise from the dead?”
▌(2004) [Video] Richard Carrier vs. Mike Licona, (Second debate) “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
▌(2004) [Video] Richard Carrier vs. Mike Licona, (First debate) “Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?”
More
▌(2015) [Video] Matt Dillahunty vs. Blake Giunta, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2014) [Audio] Peter Boghossian vs. Tim McGrew, “A Manual for Creating Atheists”?
▌(2008) [Audio] Michael Shermer vs. John Lennox, “Does God Exist?”
▌(2007) [Video] Richard Dawkins vs. John Lennox, “The God Delusion Debate”
▌(2009) [Video] Christopher Hitchens vs. Frank Turek “Best Explains Reality: Atheism or Theism?”
▌(2008) [Video] Christopher Hitchens vs. Frank Turek “Does God Exist?”
▌(2012) [Audio] Lewis Wolpert vs. Hugh Ross, “Is there Evidence for a Cosmic Creator?" [Radio]
▌(2013) [Audio] Paul Kurtz vs. Norman Geisler, “Christianity vs. Secular Humanism” [Ankerberg]
▌(2011) [Video] John Baker vs. Greg Koukl, “Do Moral Truths Exist?”
▌(2009) [Audio] Donald Prothero & Michael Shermer vs. Stephen Meyer & Richard Sternberg
▌(2011) [Video] Nadine Strossen vs. Scott Klusendorf, “Abortion: Is it right or wrong?”
▌(2015) [Video] Greg Cavin vs. Calum Miller “Resurrection: Fact or Fiction”
▌(2014) [Video] Justin Schieber vs. Blake Giunta “Naturalism vs. Christian Theism”
3 reasons we should champion apologetics debates
Debates produce seekers
Debates help show Christianity is not absurd. For some, especially so-called New Atheists, Christianity has been portrayed by their iconic leaders as “obviously” false, and demonstrably foolish. However, in a debate, able Christian defenders can publicly shatter this illusion.
Debates help answer objections
Some intellectual challenges to Christian theism are worth thinking about. Through public debate, doubters can encounter new ways to escape these objections, which can help to open Christianity back up as an intellectual option. At the same time, a skilled debater can also quickly expose the various incompetent slogan-like arguments against Christianity that so many critics fall for.
Debates produce apologists
Debates inspire Christians to learn and pursue apologetics. To see an able Christian defender stand toe-to-toe with the most able and/or outspoken critics of Christianity, and to perform well, or even extraordinarily well, can inspire a great deal of new confidence in Christians. It sometimes leads to a new-found boldness in defending Christ in their own lives, and at other times even inspires a love of apologetics. Truly, debates have resulted in producing no shortage of the apologetics enthusiasts active today on the world wide web and elsewhere. Debates equip Christians with basic answers and evidences. Whether the Christian listener has no experience with apologetics, or is a seasoned enthusiast, good debates will arm both with answers that can be called upon in discussions they might run into out in the wild. Moreover, the vehicle can be extremely entertaining, which encourages learning both of the arguments/answers, but also alternative worldviews.
Debates promote evangelism
They are one of the easiest ways to get a non-believer to consider your viewpoint. After all, watching/listening are obviously more exciting than reading, and it is only about two hours. Any would-be potential for bias is mitigated by the fact that both sides get equal time, and the nature of the debate adds a certain friendly competitive drama to the mix.
Debates get people talking about Jesus. As Paul writes in Phillippians 1:17,
“the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, ... What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice.”