Gavin Ortlund has quickly become one of my favorite Christian writers and my number 1 favorite Christian YouTuber. His writing is filled with clarity, conviction, elegance, engagement, thoughtfulness, research, and citations, but most importantly, he offers charity to people of opposing viewpoints. It is very clear from his writings that Ortlund is a studious and well-read scholar, we really need more people like this in Christian circles! Why God Makes Sense In A World That Doesn't is a phenomenal work that engages both the intellect and the emotional.
Overview
This book primarily focuses on two aspects: firstly, it seeks to argue why naturalism as a worldview is not the best or even the most probable explanation for why reality is the way it is. In this category, things like origins, mathematics, love, and evil are considered, and naturalism, in Ortlund's conclusion, fails to adequately explain all of those things. Ortlund will go on to show how Christian theism as a worldview is a far better explanation for reality. Beyond just plausibility, he also showcases, and this is the second aspect of the book: that Christian theism is also more beautiful and emotionally compelling. In this category, Ortlund explores how Christianity offers enchantment to the human experience. It offers reality itself purpose in the form of a beautiful narrative. It gives explanations for the transcendental experiences we get from things like music, art, and movies. It gives reasons for the beautiful orderly nature of mathematics. And of course, it gives the ultimate hope for humanity. The book is filled with citations, which gives greater insight by drawing from the wisdom of other great thinkers and works of literature.
My Thoughts
I have never really thought about an apologetic from beauty, but apparently, that's been developing for thousands of years! I found this book to be very interesting, insightful, and compelling to the soul. It is both academically capable and engaging to the heart, which is a tough challenge, it certainly reminds me of the works of Tim Keller, whom I know Ortlund is a huge fan of. For the person with intellectual doubts, this book makes a strong case intellectually, and then it'll come back for a round two by appealing to some of the deeper desires within your soul.
I am a pretty idealistic person, I have always held strongly to ideas like the existence of real goodness, the triumph of the good guys, that everything has a purpose, and things like that. Sadly, in the part of the world I live in, those things are becoming harder and harder to believe in. It seems like some of the smartest guys will tell you that those are but delusions, to a certain degree. Reading this book was encouraging and comforting to me because it showed me how this world actually is built on the foundations of those things, namely, built on the foundations of love, for God is love.
I really don't have a lot of criticism for the book. The one thing I will suggest to readers is this: This book compares Christianity with naturalism. The thoughtful reader and searcher will not stop just there, because Christianity is not the only worldview that brings beauty to the table, plenty of other religions can do that. So it's up to you to do some more digging if you're really searching for that truth!
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