LA MIRADA, CALIF. — Biola University Christian apologetics professors will speak at Centre Street Church in Calgary, AB, Canada March 8-9 to feed the growing appetite of Christians and scholars who seek to defend and articulate the reasonableness of the Christian faith. Approximately 1,000 Christians will gather for the “Be Ready Conference: Reasonable Faith in an Uncertain World” to hear from leading apologists and be equipped with a ready defense for their faith.

Hosted by Centre Street Church, Faith Beyond Belief, and Biola University, the event will feature several nationally renowned apologists and philosophers, including Biola professors J.P. Moreland, William Lane Craig, Craig Hazen and Clay Jones. The speakers will educate attendees on how to defend their faith, answering how religion is a force for good, not evil.

“Clearly the churches in North America have an intense new interest in offering reasons for faith,” said Craig Hazen, director of Biola University’s Christian apologetics program. “I think this is because secular culture is encroaching upon traditional church territory like never before and church leaders have become alarmed by this.  So, they are looking for help in this specialized area called apologetics.”  

The growing demand for apologetics is evidenced, in part, by the rise in output of apologetics publications in the last 10 years; 66 percent of apologetics books published in the last 30 years were published in the last decade and 779 apologetics titles have been published in the last five years alone, according to Bowker “Books in Print” database. Countless websites, blogs and Internet forums have been created to tackle the difficult questions of Christianity. Meanwhile, church requests for Biola apologetics conferences have increased by 50 percent in the last three years.

To attend “Be Ready Conference: Reasonable Faith in an Uncertain World,” register online at http://www.faithbeyondbelief.ca/events/2013_be_ready/register.html. Tickets are $60 for individual registration with lunch or $50 for individual registration. Group rates are available. The conference is at Centre Street Church, 3900 2nd Street NE, Calgary, AB, T2E 9C1.

Follow the conversation at #BeReady2013.

To view the entire Biola apologetics tour schedule, visit https://www.biola.edu/on-the-road. To request to have Biola’s apologetics department host a conference, visit https://www.biola.edu/on-the-road#host.

For press passes, contact Jenna Bartlo, Media Relations Specialist, at 562.777.4061 or jenna.l.bartlo@biola.edu.