We are called to be witnesses, to actively share our faith. We are also called to defend our faith. Sometimes it seems like most people have some sort of objection to religion in general, to Christianity in general, or to Catholicism in particular. Apologetics is the process by which we witness and explain our faith in response to objections.

The first step to witnessing and defending our faith is mindset. The mindset of the witness and the apologist is critical to the mission, and has two main qualities:

1. It is presuppositional. This means, simply, that you start all your arguments from the position that our faith is true, and that it is the objector who is in error. Since the objector almost always gives no credence to our faith's position, this levels the intellectual discussion field. Engaging in Apologetics is not making apologies.

2. It is centered in God's love and the Savior, Jesus Christ. You are not trying to argue, or compete - you are trying to inform a sibling in the way of truth.

Beyond those two principles, the issue is almost always specific to the objection. Here is a set of resources from religious authorities, philosophers, and apologists to help in our calling:

• Catholic Answers is a site dedicated to just that - answers. It has an excellent search capability allowing you to find answers on any topic. It also has a forum where you can post questions if you wish.
• Scott Hahn is a convert to Catholicism. His path is one of the most extraordinary paths to conversion, being almost entirely rooted in the study of scripture from the standpoint of the Protestant Christian faith. The site contains a treasure trove of answers to the most common questions.
• Catholic Biblical Apologetics is a site that focuses on Biblical aspects of Roman Catholic Christianity. It is an excellent resource for those who want good scriptural support for their positions.
• Fr. Dwight Longenecker has a large library of articles on apologetics. His articles take on the secular approach to life, myths, stories, and misperceptions about the Catholic faith.
• Peter Kreeft has a rich library of historical and philosophical arguments for God's existence and the status of Jesus Christ as Messiah and the Son of God. He also has an extensive set of articles on relating to God, all of which can help your witnessing.

This will get you started. This page will continue to evolve with more information and links, so please check back soon!