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Why Good Arguments Often Fail: Making a More Persuasive Case for Christ by James W. Sire
by Jeffrey R. E. Morgan Why Good Arguments Often Fail is a work in which the author tries to lay out the case for why good sound logic can and will often fail amongst family, friends, co-workers, acquaintances, and anyone you may not know. In our current culture, why is it that making a sound, reasoned argument for believing in Christ can seem to go nowhere? It may not be for the reasons you think. Sires has split his book into three major categories: Common Logical Fallacies, Good Arguments That Often Fail, Good Arguments That Work. Fallacies, which are deceptive, misleading, and false notions or beliefs, are spoken about in the first section. One common fallacy, called an Unqualified Generalization is all about making statements that are so broadly defined that on the surface they seem true but with more careful consideration they really are not. The examples used to describe these fallacies are true to life stories that anyone could have experienced in life. In my own dealings with friends and acquaintances I have seen first hand the various scenarios played out before my own eyes. The author details the reasons why making certain arguments fail and the reasons or causes why things are this way. A principle stated in the book notes, "Valid, well substantiated arguments presented with arrogance, aggression or an overly clever attitude are often not heard clearly enough to attract the attention they deserve", (p 74) The old adage may apply here: its not so much what you say but HOW you say it that matters. After reading the book I sum it up this way: if what you say matters, the way you say it REALLY matters. This book resonated with me because it lays out its case for how to analyze the arguments of one's self and others. What was especially eye opening is that as I read each type of argument, I realized that I knew what the writer was talking about and could actually search my own memory for occasions of each situation occurring in my life. The last chapter is called Framing Effective Arguments. The author gives a great section on literature that will be useful in learning more about, The Character of Jesus Christ, The Resurrection of Jesus, The Reliability of the Gospels, Defense of the Faith in General, and Classic and Creative Works. In each of these the author then splits his selections into Highly Recommended and Recommended lists of books. I loved this book as it really got me thinking about the way that I interact with people. To really take note of the way I speak to people, what I say, and how I say it. My aim is to share Christ with others, any book that helps me do that better I highly recommend. Jeffrey R. E. Morgan, a member of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS), founder of Blessings From Heaven Ministries, and Master of Divinity (M.Div) student at Faith Evangelical Seminary, has a passion for Christ and the Word of God and seeks to share this with his readers. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |