Is apologetics all about saying you’re sorry about something? Of course not; it is derived from the Greek word apologia, which refers to giving a reason. Christian apologetics includes both 1) defending the Christian faith when speaking with non-Christians and 2) encouraging and strengthening the faith of believers. Christians are encouraged, actually commanded, in the scriptures to be able to give the reasons for why they believe and have the hope in them.
In The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins argues that morality is grounded in evolution rather than in God or religion. He explains morality through his concept of the “selfish gene” by which genes, through natural selection, ensure their own survival by selfishly encouraging altruistic behavior. He proposes four types of such behavior. First, a gene may program an organism to favor its genetic kin. Second, through reciprocal altruism an organism grants favors and receives favors in return. Third, through altruism an organism can acquire a reputation of being generous and kind and thereby benefit itself. Fourth, an organism can use generosity to demonstrate its superiority. Dawkins then asks why we are good to people we have never met and will probably never see again. He suggests that it is a byproduct of our distant past.1
