Chad Meister teaches philosophy at Bethel and is writing several books.
Chad V. Meister, a Bethel Assistant Professor of Philosophy is also a very well known Christian apologist. Meister is very involved at Bethel teaching several classes and is currently in the process of writing over five other books. Somehow he stills finds the time to still spend time talking with students. In fact it is students that inspired him to begin the process of writing his most current book “God is great, God is good”. The book is in response to the new atheists that are appearing and writing books of their own such as “God is not great” by Christopher Hitchens. Which is actually where the title of Meister’s new book comes from; it is a play off of Hitchens book title. Other books of this kind would be “Letter to a Christian Nation” by Sam Harris, “The God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins and “God, the failed hypothesis” by Victor J Stenger.
“I have talked to several dozen students that have either given up their Christian faith or are struggling because of these books,” said Meister. So Meister began to collaborate with other scholars in varying different fields to write a book in response. John Polkinghorn, a theologian, physicist and cosmetologist at Cambridge will be one of the authors contributing to this book. Other people that will be included will be Scot McKnight and Alister McGrath. “They are all experts in particular areas; there experience is what they are responding to with the new atheists,” explained Meister. “Religion, specifically Christianity is under attack,” said Meister. In the book he says they will be focusing on the criticisms that aren’t legitimate. The idea is that they will be responding in a way that is not condemning of anybody. “We are attacking ideas, not people,” he explained. Some of the big questions they will be addressing are: Is religion dangerous or evil? How do you explain the God of the Old Testament and the perceived evil of the things that surround him? What are the evidences for God? What about evolution- can you be a Christian and an evolutionist? “I had all those who are contributing write in a way that is accessible to people,” said Meister. He wants ordinary people and not necessarily just philosophers to be able to understand the book. Meister hopes the books will “strengthen the faith of people who are Christians and help people who aren’t Christian’s develop faith.” He picked big names to write the book and big names to go after in response. Meister hopes that the book will cause a big splash in the academic and public sphere and open up conversation. Meister has been working at getting to book a lot of publicity. There might be a possibility to turn the book into a film. Illustra Media has been in contact with Meister. They are the same ones that turned Lee Strobel’s books into movies as well. The book will be published with Intervarsity Press and will be mass marketed and released in major book stores worldwide such as Boarders and Barnes and Nobles. Meister said that one of this favorite verses that explains what he trying to do with the book is 2 Corinthians 10:5 which says “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” Meister and the other authors hope that the book will open up conversation between themselves and these new atheists. The release date is set for around the end of the summer, most possibly in August but as of yet there is no specific date set.
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