The Reasonableness of Christianity

What I think I shall say, instead of a semi-scholarly or pseudo-scholarly examination of some arcane point that would leave you all gasping for breath, is to go through eight very simple and elementary points about the reasonableness of Christianity—each of which is highly controversial. They will serve as a sort of diving board so that we can swim around in the pool of discussion for a half hour or so afterwards because, in my experience, speeches are usually dull and discussions are usually interesting. This is why Plato is my favorite philosopher.

My purpose then is to try to confront and answer the eight most common objections to the reasonableness of Christianity, in an attempt to follow the advice of the apostle Peter who said, "Be prepared to give a reason for the hope that is in you" (1 Peter 3:15).
Four of these points are general and preliminary presuppositions to Christianity which are often denied by modern thought. They are not specifically Christian. A Jew, a Christian, a Muslim, a Unitarian, a theist, a Platonist, would all agree with them. But they are very frequently denied. They are sort of pre-evangelical, like the fertilizers of the soil. The other four are specific doctrines of Christianity that are quite often controverted or denied.