Question:  What is apologetics?
Answer:  Apologetics is simply a reasoned defense of something or someone. In this case, apologetics is explaining and defending our Catholic faith.

Question:  How is apologetics useful as a Catholic?
Answer:  Apologetics is a very useful means for defending and explaining our Catholic faith to others.

Question:  Why should I become interested in apologetics?
Answer:  So we can teach, explain, defend, and spread our Catholic faith to others.  By learning Catholic apologetics we also learn more about our Faith and become more familiar with the Bible.

Question:  How do I practice & learn catholic apologetics?
Answer:  You learn apologetics by reading the Bible, The Catechism of The Catholic Church, and other Catholic books .  There are also many other resources such as Catholic Radio/TV, your local parish priest, and various Catholic websites which are very useful for learning what
the Catholic Church Teaches.  You don't have to know everything to practice apologetics.

Question:  What if I don't know the Bible all that well?
Answer:  You might be surprised how much of the Bible you already know since as a Catholic you hear various parts of it every time you attend Mass. You don't have to memorize the Bible to practice and apply apologetics, but you need to understand what the Bible actually says and what it doesn't say.

Question:  What if I am asked a question or quoted a scripture verse that I can't explain?
Answer:  Don't worry, there is an answer.  The easiest thing to do is to say "I don't know the answer, but I will find out and get back with you". Just remember, our Catholic faith does not contradict the bible and there is always a logical answer for even the most difficult question.

Question:  What is the best way to use apologetics?
Answer:  When using apologetics to defend our faith we should always be polite and courteous to the other person.  Never get angry or insult their religious affiliation.  Even if you explain your Catholic views to someone he/she may not really be open to hearing what you have to say.
 

 

A few last things.............  

- Don't be offended when someone confronts you on a Catholic teaching.  More than likely the person is just concerned about your salvation.  This is a good thing.  Again, your job as a Catholic is to explain to the best of your ability what the Catholic Church actually teaches.  Most non-catholics do not really understand what the Catholic Church teaches.

- Many times when you are discussing our Faith with non-catholics you will get asked a question and before you can even finish giving the answer to the question you will be asked another question and then another.  When practicing apologetics it is very important to stick with one topic at a time or the conversation will get very confusing very fast.  Do not move onto another topic until you are happy with your answer to their question.

- When we discuss our faith with non-catholics we should keep in mind that only the Holy Spirit can move someone to convert to the Catholic Church.  All we can hope to do is to instill in their mind that there is more to Christianity than their current faith tradition offers.  After all a good protestant is a good protestant for the same reasons that a good catholic is a catholic - that is they love Christ and want to be fully united with him.  Before someone converts they must understand that they will not loose anything by becoming a Catholic, but instead they will be entering into a deeper relationship with Christ through the Church which he founded.