“In the biblical view the issue is not modern versus postmodern. Both these views are partly right, and both are finally wrong. Nor it is rational argument versus story or reason versus imagination. In fact it is not either-or at all. The deep logic of God’s truth can be expressed in both stories and argument, by questions as well as statements, through reason and the imagination, through the four Gospels as well as through the book of Romans. This is one reason why C.S. Lewis has had such enduring appeal. At times he was coolly rational, as in Mere Christianity, while at other times he engaged the imagination brilliantly, as in The Screwtape Letters or The Chronicles of Narnia. There is a time for stories, and there is a time for rational arguments, and the skill we need lies in knowing which to use, and when.” (Os Guinness, Fool’s Talk)Fool’s Talk by Os Guinness is an excellent book on practical apologetics which discusses the relationships of apologetics to evangelism, lifestyle, presuppositions, confidence, hypocrisy, culture, asking questions, and more. I found it very helpful, especially because I read it right before attending a L’Abri conference in Rochester that dealt with the same subject.
I heartily recommend the book even though you may find things you disagree with, things he treats too lightly (or too heavily), things he repeats too often. I did. But overall I found the book stimulating, informative, and challenging.
