Program / Course 13: Foundations of Apologetics / Lesson 3.1
What you will learn
- Define an argument as a set of statements in which some (premises) are offered as reasons for another (the conclusion).
- Tell arguments apart from quarrels, explanations, descriptions and mere assertions.
- Recognize that a statement is something that can be true or false.
- Explain why an argument can be good even when its conclusion is false, and bad even when its conclusion is true.
The big idea
In everyday speech an argument is a quarrel. In logic it is something quite different: a group of statements in which some are given as reasons for accepting another. The reasons are called premises, and the claim they support is the conclusion. Learning to see this structure is the first skill of clear thinking. It lets a student ask of any piece of writing, what exactly is being claimed, and what reasons are offered? It also shows that a bad argument can have a true conclusion, and that a good one can be answered.
Key terms
- Statement
- A sentence that makes a claim and can be true or false. Questions, commands and exclamations are not statements.
- Argument
- A set of statements in which one or more, the premises, are offered as reasons to accept another, the conclusion.
- Premise
- A statement offered as a reason for accepting a conclusion.
- Conclusion
- The statement that an argument tries to show or support.
- Explanation
- A set of statements that tells why or how something is the case, when its truth is already accepted.
- Assertion
- A claim made without reasons given for it.
- Inference
- The step of reasoning from premises to a conclusion.
Background
Logic is the study of good reasoning. The Greek philosopher Aristotle, in the fourth century before Christ, wrote the first systematic treatise on it, and his work shaped Christian and Jewish thought for centuries. Medieval Christian scholars taught logic as a basic part of education. Understanding arguments does not require advanced mathematics. It requires care about what is being said.
For the student of apologetics, this skill matters in two ways. It makes it possible to read the arguments of others, whether for or against Christianity, and see what they claim. And it makes it possible to state one’s own claims so that others can check them. Later lessons in this module build on the basic idea set out here.
Step-by-step explanation
Step 1: Learn what a statement is
An argument is built from statements. A statement is a sentence that says something is the case, so that it can be true or false. The sentence Jesus was crucified under Pontius Pilate is a statement. So is the sentence There is no God. Whether they are true is another question. What matters is that each makes a claim that could be checked.
Many sentences are not statements. Please come to church is a request. Is the tomb empty? is a question. How wonderful! is an exclamation. These can appear in an argument as part of the context, but they cannot be premises or conclusions, since they are neither true nor false.
Step 2: See the shape of an argument
An argument has at least one premise and one conclusion. A famous example runs: all humans are mortal; Socrates is a human; therefore Socrates is mortal. The first two statements are premises. The last is the conclusion. The word therefore marks the step of inference from the premises to the conclusion.
In ordinary writing the conclusion may come first, last or in the middle. Writers often use words that signal it, such as therefore, so, thus, hence and consequently. Premises are often signaled by because, since, for and given that. These indicator words are helpful but not required, and some arguments have none.
Step 3: Tell arguments from things that are not arguments
Not everything that sounds like an argument is one. A description simply reports facts: The church stood on a hill, and its bell rang at noon. An assertion makes a claim without giving reasons: Christianity is false. An explanation tells why something happened when everyone already accepts that it did: The bridge fell because the supports gave way. An argument, by contrast, tries to show that something is true.
The difference lies in purpose. If the writer is trying to give you a reason to believe the claim, it is an argument. If the claim is already granted and the writer is accounting for it, it is an explanation. Sometimes the same sentences can be read either way, and the context decides.
Step 4: Separate quality from truth
A good argument is one that gives good reason to accept its conclusion. This is not the same as the conclusion being true. Someone may argue that Paris is in France because two plus two is four. The conclusion is true, but the premise gives no reason for it, so the reasoning is poor. Equally, a strong argument may have a false conclusion if one of its premises is mistaken, in which case the argument can be good in form and faulty in content.
This distinction matters for apologetics. A Christian who sees that an argument for Christianity is weak should say so, even though the conclusion is held to be true. And a Christian who sees that an argument against Christianity is weak need not feel that the conclusion has been shown false. A conclusion can have bad arguments and good ones.
Step 5: Practice reading charitably
When you meet an argument, try to state it in your own words in the strongest form you can. Ask what the writer wants you to believe and what reasons are given. If some premise is unstated, ask what must be assumed for the argument to work. Do not attack a weaker version than the writer meant. This habit, which is called charity, prepares the way for the lessons on steelmanning in Module 5.
Finally, notice how many sentences in a piece of writing do not contribute to the argument. Greetings, illustrations and emotional appeals may be useful in other ways but are not part of the logical structure.
- Which of these is a statement, and which is not: a question, a prayer, a report of a fact, a command?
- What is the difference between an argument and an explanation?
- How can you find the conclusion of a passage that has no signal words?
- Can a false statement be a premise? Can a true statement be a conclusion of a bad argument?
- Why does it help to state an argument in your own words before replying to it?
- What would you say to someone who says that religion is not something to argue about?
Examples
A short argument
The Gospel of Luke begins with a claim that many have drawn up accounts of events. Luke says that he has followed them all closely and so writes an orderly account for his reader. In outline: the events were investigated (premise), therefore the account can be relied upon (conclusion). The second line is an argument because it offers a reason to trust the account.
An explanation, not an argument
The roof of the old chapel collapsed because rain soaked the beams for years. Everyone already knows that the roof collapsed. The sentence explains why. It is not trying to prove that the roof fell.
Quality and truth separated
All birds can fly. Penguins are birds. Therefore penguins can fly. The reasoning has a valid form but the first premise is false, and so the conclusion is false. A different argument could reach a true conclusion by poor reasoning. This shows that truth of conclusions and quality of arguments are separate questions.
Different perspectives
Aristotelian and scholastic tradition
Medieval Catholic and Orthodox scholars inherited Aristotle’s logic and taught it as an essential tool. Thomas Aquinas used syllogisms freely in his theology, treating good reasoning as a gift suited to the study of God.
Protestant Reformers and heirs
Reformers such as Luther and Calvin used logic and rhetoric extensively, and Reformed schools taught it as part of the liberal arts. Some warned that reason must stay under the authority of Scripture, which does not forbid its use.
Eastern Orthodox
Orthodox theologians such as John of Damascus used logic to define terms and expose errors. They also teach that the mysteries of God exceed what logic can contain, so logic serves worship and does not replace it.
Modern logicians and philosophers
Contemporary logic, developed from the nineteenth century onward by thinkers such as Gottlob Frege, has refined the rules for correct inference. Its tools apply to arguments about any subject, religious or not, and are not tied to any one worldview.
Why it matters
Almost every claim about God, history or morality comes with reasons, good or bad. A student who can find the argument in a passage can ask the right questions: is this premise true, does the conclusion follow, is anything missing? This habit protects against being carried along by style, and it makes honest disagreement possible, since the parties can point to the exact premise they dispute.
Common misunderstandings
Misunderstanding: An argument is a heated disagreement.
Correction: In logic an argument is a structure of reasons and a conclusion. It can be calm, written or silent.
Misunderstanding: If the conclusion is true, the argument is good.
Correction: A true conclusion can be reached by a bad argument. Evaluating an argument means looking at its reasons, not only at whether you agree with its conclusion.
Misunderstanding: Logic is only for philosophers and mathematicians.
Correction: Anyone who gives reasons uses logic. Studying it makes the habit more careful.
Misunderstanding: Religious claims are not the kind of thing that can be argued.
Correction: Christian tradition has argued for centuries. Some religious claims, such as acts of worship, are not arguments, but claims about what is true can be examined.
Knowledge check
What is an argument in the logician’s sense?
An argument is a set of statements in which one or more, the premises, are offered as reasons to accept another, the conclusion. It need not involve any quarrel. Its structure is reasons leading to a claim.
What is a statement?
A statement is a sentence that makes a claim and can be true or false. Questions, commands, requests and exclamations are not statements, so they cannot be premises or conclusions, though they may appear nearby in a passage.
How can you tell an argument from an explanation?
Ask what the writer is trying to do. An argument gives reasons to accept a claim that may be in doubt. An explanation tells why something is so when its truth is already accepted. The same words can serve either purpose, so context decides.
Name three words that often signal a conclusion and three that signal premises.
Conclusion indicators include therefore, so, thus, hence and consequently. Premise indicators include because, since, for and given that. These words help but are not always present, and they do not guarantee that an argument is being made.
Why can a good argument have a false conclusion?
If a premise is false, even a well-formed argument can lead to a false conclusion. Quality of reasoning and truth of premises are separate matters, which later lessons treat as validity and soundness.
Think it through
- Think of a recent disagreement. Could you state the argument on each side as a set of premises and a conclusion?
- What are some sentences in religious speech that are not statements? Are they less important?
- When has a bad argument convinced you of something true?
- What does it say about a person if they cannot say what reasons they have?
Independent assignment
Find the arguments
In your own notebook, write 400 to 600 words. Choose a page of a newspaper opinion column, a sermon text or a chapter from a book. Copy three short passages. For each, decide whether it is an argument, an explanation, a description or an assertion, and say why. For any argument, list the premises and conclusion in numbered form. Keep this for yourself.
Further study
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Fallacies Read the introduction for the basic ideas of arguments and what makes them go wrong.
- Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I, Q. 2: The Existence of God Read one of the five ways and mark the premises and conclusion.
- C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity Choose a short passage from Book 1 and decide what the argument is.
- Luke 1:1 Read the first four verses of Luke and notice the stated purpose of the author.