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Defending the Gospel in Legal Style Legal in Gospel the Defending John Warwick Montgomery Warwick John Defending the Gospel in Legal Style Montgomery John Warwick Traditional apologetics is either focused on obscure, quasi-Thomist philosophi- cal arguments for God’s existence or on 18th-century-style answers to alleged biblical contradictions. But a new approach has recently entered the picture: the juridical defence of historic Christian faith, with its particular concern for demons- trating Jesus’s deity and saving work for mankind. The undisputed leader of this movement is John Warwick Montgomery, emeritus professor of law and humani- ties, University of Bedfordshire, England, and director, International Academy of Apologetics, Evangelism and Human Rights, Strasbourg, France. His latest book (of more than sixty published during his career) shows the strength of legal apo- logetics: its arguments, drawn from secular legal reasoning, can be rejected only at the cost of jettisoning the legal system itself, on which every civilised society depends for its very existence. The present work also includes theological essays on vital topics of the day, characterised by the author’s well-known humour and skill for lucid communication. John Warwick Montgomery is the leading advoca- te of a legal apologetic for historic Christian faith. He is trained as a historian (Ph.D., University of Chicago), an English barrister, French avocat, and American lawyer (LL.D., Cardiff University, Wales, U.K.), and theologian (D.Théol., Faculty of Protes- tant Theology, University of Strasbourg, France). He has debated major representatives of secula- rism (atheist Madalyn Murray O’Hair, death-of-God advocate Thomas Altizer, liberal theologian Bishop James Pike, atheistic cosmologist Sean M. Carroll, et al.). He is the author or editor of more than 60 books and 150 journal articles, and has appeared on innumerable international television and radio broadcasts. Professor emeritus of Law and Huma- nities, University of Bedfordshire, England, he now serves as Professor-at-Large, 1517: The Legacy Project (Irvine, California, U.S.A.). Professor Montgomery resi- des in France and England and directs the International Academy of Apologetics, Evangelism and Human Rights (Strasbourg, France). Websites: www.jwm.christendom.co.uk www.globaljournalct.com www.apologeticsacademy.eu ISBN 9783862691296 90000 > ISSN 1612-1171 ISBN 978-3-86269-129-6 Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft Christian Philosophy today 19 Christian Philosophy today 19 (Culture and Science Publ.) 7838629 691296 Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher VKW VKW VKW Since apologia refers to a legal argument, it makes perfect sense that de- fending the faith should find the courtroom a suitable analogy for the spe- cific kind of truth-claim that is the gospel. And no one has ever excelled J. W. Montgomery in articulating this apologetic approach and exhibiting its effectiveness in countless debates for more than a half-century. Although I have had the privilege of teaching alongside Dr. Montgomery on many occasions, there are some essays in this volume that I have not read before. Others I have read many times and will read again and again. This volume is chock-full of some of his best work previously available only to special- ists. So make friends with your inner lawyer as you explore the wisdom, wit and immensely practical fruit of a remarkable thinker. Michael Horton, Ph.D., D.D., J. Gresham Machen Professor of Systematic The- ology and Apologetics, Westminster Seminary California, co-host of the White Horse Inn and author of Core Christianity In this fascinating collection, the distinguished apologist John Warwick Montgomery shows the relevance of legal reasoning – so often neglected by theologians and philosophers – to the defense of the Gospel and to a wide range of theologically important topics. As always, Montgomery pro- vokes readers to reconsider their prejudices--and to let the evidence have the final word. For a culture distracted by ideology and hearsay, this is a most welcome antidote. Angus Menuge, Ph.D., Professor and Chair of Philosophy, Concordia Univer- sity Wisconsin; President of the Evangelical Philosophical Society. For over fifty years the name John Warwick Montgomery has been synon- ymous with Christian apologetics. He is hands down the leading defender of the faith with regard to legal and evidential apologetics. If you want to experience a genius mind at work in defending the gospel in legal style, read this book! Chad Meister is Professor of Philosophy and Theology at Bethel College, USA John Warwick Montgomery is the founder of the modern-day legal apolo- getic. What a privilege to have this new book featuring some of his finest argumentation! His apologetic method, with its focus on the resurrection of Jesus, draws people to faith. Its appeal is the common use of the legal paradigm. People daily encounter the juridical process. Now we have a col- lection of essays from the leading exponent of how to use legal reasoning to defend classic Christianity. The chapter in defense of Christ’s resurrec- tion “by way of Wigmore’s juridical analysis of evidence” is alone worth the price of this book. The book also explores the application of the legal paradigm to theological issues beyond the strictly apologetical. As always, Montgomery’s writing is accessible to all. A “must read” and essential re- source for all who take the scriptural command in 1 Peter 3:15 seriously. Dr Ross Clifford, Principal, Morling Theological College, Sydney, Australia; former lawyer and barrister; graduate of the University of Sydney, the Aus- tralian College of Theology, the Simon Greenleaf School of Law; President of the Asia Pacific Baptist Federation, past President Baptist Union of Australia; author of 10 books including, Leading Lawyers Case for the Resurrection. One might think that after writing more than 60 books in six languages and obtaining 11 earned degrees (including three doctorates), John War- wick Montgomery might be tempted to take a short literary holiday. Thankfully, not so! This volume is Montgomery at his controversial, hard- hitting and often politically-incorrect best as he brilliantly defends both the truth claims and resulting societal impact of Christianity, establishing that Christian belief and practice are positions of maximum relevancy in addressing the major secular challenges of our day. The field of legal apol- ogetics would simply not exist in its current robust form absent the tireless efforts of Dr. Montgomery and the International Academy of Apologetics in Strasbourg (www.apologeticsacademy.eu) where, for over two decades, he has taught that St. Luke’s “many infallible proofs” supporting the Chris- tian proclamation are overwhelmingly sufficient to persuade any reason- able secular juror. There is simply no other thinker in Christendom who combines the professional expertise of a lawyer, historian, philosopher and theologian with the panache of an internationally regarded trial law- yer. Craig Parton, A.B., M.A., J.D., (Chairman of the Litigation Department of Price, Postel & Parma LLP of Santa Barbara, California) This book brings together a wide range of essays – insightful, provocative work from one who is both an eminent scholar of legal apologetics and its greatest living practitioner. It is hard to imagine a reader who would not learn much from these pages. Dr. Timothy McGrew, Professor and Chairman, Department of Philosophy, Western Michigan University Dr Montgomery is a trail-blazing creative scholar who has devoted his life’s work to defending and commending the gospel message that God was in Jesus Christ reconciling the world to himself. In Defending the Gospel in Legal Style we quickly appreciate his gifted and creative thoughts which are expressed in a series of crisply written essays. He acts as a venerable teacher and guide to help non-lawyers understand how the lawyer’s craft may be applied in testing both the documentary and eyewitness evidence for Jesus’ resurrection. He also discusses crucial questions about the stand- ard of proofs and the evidential criteria that is needed to assemble a case and reach a verdict on the resurrection. In part two he show cases how to think like a lawyer about theological matters such as doctrinal fidelity as well as highlighting the relevance of Christian apologetics in the church’s heritage. He also teases out the heartfelt tensions between religious and secular values by illustrating the problems that arise when socially and po- litically conservative values are narrowly interpreted as being synony- mous with a biblical understanding of life in the public square. Other con- troversial questions he discusses include the problem of religious fraud and the tensions generated about immigration in the midst of the terrorist crisis. The final part of the book contains brief articles where Montgom- ery’s razor sharp logic cuts through matters under discussion. I enjoyed reading and re-reading all the essays which I found challenging and re- warding. I warmly commend it as a text that is rich in thought, incisive in observations, very witty in delivery, as well as frequently ruffling feathers in its no-nonsense arguments. You may discover that you do not have to become a credentialled lawyer in order to think like one about ultimate questions. Philip Johnson, Visiting lecturer in apologetics, Morling Theological College, Sydney Australia, and co-author of Taboo or To Do and The Cross is not Enough: Living as witnesses to the resurrection. This new collection of essays by John Warwick Montgomery is a must read for anyone who wants to do serious apologetics in the modern age. Mont- gomery is still the maestro of the legal-evidential approach to defending the faith and Defending the Gospel in Legal Style is a brilliant presentation of this effective, creative, and biblical methodology. This is vintage Mont- gomery – not only erudite and educational, but always delightfully enter- taining. I have been a fan of his work for forty years and this collection is a great way to get a grand introduction and survey of some of JWM’s best thinking on key theological, cultural, and apologetic issues.
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