The Ultimate Apologist's Book List

About this sermon

In this episode Trent shares nearly 50 book recommendations that will help anyone better defend the Catholic faith. Timestamps 00:00 – Introduction 03:50 – Atheism 09:39 – Jesus/Resurrection 14:23 – The Bible 18:36 – General Catholic Apologetics 27:59 – The Papacy 30:00 – Saints and Salvation 35:00 – Life Issues 37:00 – Marriage and Sexuality The List: I'm not including classic works, the Bible, or magisterial texts. Also, inclusion on this list does not mean I agree with everything an author has ever said or even everything they say in the works listed. I simply find their works to be helpful overall in equipping the faithful. Finally, the fact that a work is not included is not indicative of my opinion toward the work or its author. Note: (A) means the work is an advanced treatment of a topic. Atheism • Five Proofs of the Existence of God by Edward Feser • One Less God than You by John DeRosa • A Fortunate Universe: Life in a Finely Tuned Cosmos by Geraint Lewis and Luke Barnes • God and Cosmos: Moral Truth and Human Meaning by David Baggett and Jerry L. Walls • How Reason Can Lead to God by Joshua Rasmussen • Reasonable Faith by William Lane Craig (A) • An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion by Brian Davies (A) Jesus/Resurrection • The Case for Jesus: The Biblical and Historical Evidence for Christ by Brant Pitre • The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona • Investigating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ: A New Transdisciplinary Approach by Andrew Loke (A) • The Jesus Legend: A Case for the Historical Reliability of the Synoptic Jesus Tradition by Paul Rhodes Eddy and Gregory Boyd (A) The Bible • Hard Sayings: A Catholic Approach to Answering Bible Difficulties by Trent Horn • The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Craig Blomberg • The Historical Reliability of John’s Gospel by Craig Blomberg • On the Reliability of the Old Testament by K.A. Kitchen • The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible by Curtis Mitch and Scott Hahn • A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament by John Bergsma and Brant Pitre Scripture, Tradition, and Authority • The Bible is a Catholic Book by Jimmy Akin • The Meaning of Tradition by Yves Congar • Why Catholic Bibles Are Bigger by Gary Michuta • Teaching with Authority by Jimmy Akin • Not by Scripture Alone, ed. Robert Sungenis (A) • True or False Pope: Refuting Sedevacantism and other Modern Errors by John Salza and Robert Siscoe (A) General Catholic Apologetics • The Case for Catholicism by Trent Horn • Meeting the Protestant Challenge by Karlo Broussard • A Daily Defense: 365 Days (plus one) to Becoming a Better Apologist by Jimmy Akin • The Early Church Was the Catholic Church by Joe Heschmeyer • The Fathers Know Best: Your Essential Guide to the Teachings of the Early Church by Jimmy Akin • The Real Story of Catholic History by Steve Weidenkoppf The Papacy • The Papacy: What the Pope Does and Why It Matters by Steve Ray and Dennis Walters • Pope Peter by Joe Heschmeyer • Pope Fiction: Answers to 30 Myths and Misconceptions About the Papacy by Patrick Madrid • The Papacy: Revisiting the Debate Between Catholics and Orthodox by Erick Ybarra (A) Saints and Salvation • Purgatory is for Real by Karlo Broussard • Any Friend of God’s Is Friend of Mine: A Biblical and Historical Explanation of the Catholic Doctrine of the Communion of Saints by Patrick Madrid • Behold Your Mother: A Biblical and Historical Defense of the Marian Doctrines by Tim Staples • The Drama of Salvation by Jimmy Akin • Salvation: What Every Catholic Should Know by Michael Barber • Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist by Brant Pitre • The Biblical Basis for the Mass by Tom Nash Life Issues • Persuasive Pro-life: How to Talk About Our Culture’s Toughest Issue by Trent Horn • Start with What: 10 Principles for Thinking about Assisted Suicide by Stephanie Gray Connors • Conceived by Science: Thinking Carefully and Compassionately about Infertility and IVF by Stephanie Gray Connors • The Ethics of Abortion: Women’s Rights, Human Life, and the Question of Justice by Christopher Kaczor (A) • Catholic Bioethics and the Gift of Human Life by William E. May (A) Marriage/Sexual Ethics • Truth Overruled: The Future of Marriage and Religious Freedom by Ryan Anderson • Living the Truth in Love: Pastoral Approaches to Same-Sex Attraction, eds. Janet Smith and Fr. Paul Check • Catholic Sexual Ethics: A Summary, Explanation, & Defense by William E. May • The Porn Myth: Exposing the Reality Behind the Fantasy of Pornography by Matt Fradd • When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Moment by Ryan Anderson • Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters by Abigail Shrier • One Body: An Essay in Christian Sexual Ethics by Alexander Pruss (A) • The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics by Robert Gagnon (A)