I just finished reading an excellent book by Joshua D. Chatraw entitled, Telling a Better Story: How to Talk About God in a Skeptical Age. Chatraw is the executive director for the Center for Public Christianity and the theologian in residence at Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. He has written several other books on apologetics; this particular text caught my eye when it was named Christianity Today’s 2020 Apologetics / Evangelism Book of the Year.

Chatraw repeatedly argues that the Christian story — as revealed in the Bible — offers a more compelling vision of meaning, self, and reason than the limited scope of so many secular metanarratives. The Christian gospel is the better story, Chatraw claims, because it offers the most satisfactorily systemic answers to our most pressing philosophical questions.

But I also appreciated the generosity and hospitality of his “inside out” approach to apologetics. Whereas so many contemporary apologetical claims can come across as arrogant and off-putting, Chatraw encourages a more empathetic, engaged model of listening to Christianity’s skeptics. Less monologue, more dialogue.

Maybe the best thing I can say about Telling a Better Story is that it immediately goes on the pile of books on my desk that I plan to re-read for either a second or third time. (The short list includes Smith’s On the Road with Saint Augustine and my Mark Thibodeaux collection.) I think every Christian would benefit greatly from reading this book.