Apostolic Succession, Personal Incredulity, and Stubborn Non-Christians
Welcome back to The Think Institute’s weekly Newsletter. Each Friday, you get one idea from me, one quote from somebody else, and one thing to think about. Let’s dive in.
AN IDEA FROM ME
“True apostolic succession is doctrinal, not lineal. You can chase this rabbit trail of trying to establish the credibility of your church by tracing apostolic succession… but the true apostolic succession is so easy to prove. You open up your Bible and you say, “What did they teach?” And if I'm teaching what they teach, and if my bishop, my pastor, my overseer, my elder, is teaching what they taught, well then we’re standing in line with the apostles.”
—From today’s live video from The Think Institute, “AI, Apostolic Succession, and Pluralism: A Dangerous Deep Dive” [Link:] https://www.youtube.com/live/3mc5Nxbjcoo
A QUOTE FROM SOMEBODY ELSE
“We would sit on our deck chairs near the stern, and he would bring up some topic or other. I would engage with him, undertaking my efforts in good faith.... I would set down three good arguments in rapid succession, and he would then stroke his chin—he was a great chin-stroker—and say something like, ‘Hmmm. I am not convinced.’ Also, ‘I’m not sure I feel that way.’ And, ‘I see what you’re saying but I’m not sure it moves me.’ Finally, ‘I just don’t find your argument compelling.’ This demonstrated—several hundred times it demonstrated—the fallacy of personal incredulity. Some also call it the divine fallacy (because of the godlike attributes the incredulous ones assign to themselves)
—Douglas Wilson, describing the Argument from Personal Incredulity, in The Amazing Dr. Ransom’s Bestiary of Adorable Fallacies: A Field Guide for Clear Thinkers (Moscow, Idaho: Canon Press, 2015), 62.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
How do you handle it when you’re sharing or defending your Christian faith, and someone just won’t listen to reason?
Respond to this email in seven days, and I will write you back.
In Christ,
Joel Settecase
President, The Think Institute
P. S. Summer Debate Fund — Help Us Take the Truth Public
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John Gleeson, aka The Godless Engineer
Tom Jump
Justin from Deconstruction Zone
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