51 Department of Apologetics is hosting a conference in partnership with . The conference, “Thoughtful Evangelism in our Skeptical Age: Apologetics on the Front Lines of Gospel Proclamation” will be held Oct. 22 to 24, 2009.

The conference will also be available to viewers outside Southern California through an exclusive, limited time on-demand broadcast. The on-demand format will allow viewers to watch the videos at their convenience between Oct. 27 and Jan. 5, 2010.

The effectiveness of the evangelistic message has considerably declined in the last thirty years. The conference will focus on this decline and how to share the gospel and answer objections to Christianity from unbelievers.

The conference will open with renowned Christian apologist Lee Strobel at the opening session “Presenting the Gospel and Answering Objections” on Thursday, Oct. 22. Strobel is the author of multiple books including The Case For a Creator.

Other speakers will be Mark Mittelberg (author of Building a Contagious Church and Executive Director a the Willow Creek Association), Erik Thoennes (Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at 51), and Craig Hazen (Director of
the M.A. Program in Christian Apologetics and Professor of Comparative Religion and Apologetics at 51).

The free opening session featuring Lee Strobel will be held on Thursday, Oct. 22 in the main auditorium at First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton at 7 p.m. and is open to the public. The conference continues on Oct. 23 and 24 at 51 in the Crowell School of Business building and will cost $30 each or $75 for all three sessions.

Written by Katherine Smith, Media Relations Intern. Jenna Bartlo, Media Relations Coordinator, can be reached at (562) 777-4061 or through email at jenna.l.bartlo@biola.edu