I am an apologist. Six days a week I work in the area of apologetics.

For that I make no apology.

Because apologizing has nothing to do with apologetics.

Perhaps you already knew that. Many people don’t.

Almost everyone realizes that to apologize means to express regret. But many folks do not know that an apologetic is simply the defense of a position, system or product.

The English word apologetics derives from the Greek term apologia, which is defined as “a formal defense or justification.” In its simplest historical form, the term just means “a reply.”

Technically, an individual can be an apologist for any number of things. For example, one could be an apologist for the Ford Motor Co., for Big Red chewing gum, for astrology or for women’s rights.

The term apologetics is perhaps most often associated with Christian theology. But even in Christian circles there can be confusion.

Not long ago a man in Robertsdale, Ala., received material from our apologetics organization. He wrote back in a big dark scrawl: “This concept of apologizing? Just what have Christians done … that needs an apology, and to who?”

He obviously did not understand that apologetics is the branch of theology that deals with tough questions about the Christian faith.

For instance, have you ever wondered whether there really is a personal God? Have you ever wondered why God, if he is good and all powerful, would allow suffering and evil in his world? Have you ever wondered whether man is the result of divine creation or naturalistic evolution? Was Jesus who he claimed to be? What is a cult? Does absolute truth exist?

Answering such questions is the job of Christian apologetics.

Apologetics has been a passion of mine for a long time. It is the means through which my own mind was settled about matters of faith.

In my youth, I searched for truth among the world’s religions, philosophies and thought forms. I explored Zen. I studied immaterialism. I became entangled in a terrifying concept known as radical solipsism.

Finally I came to the conclusion that there is more and better evidence for Christianity than for any other faith system in the world. That happened in 1972. Not long afterward I entered the Christian ministry. I was ordained in 1979. In 1991 I founded an organization called the AIIA Institute. AIIA specializes in apologetics.

Judging from the number of people who explore the mega-Web site of which AIIA is a member, many are searching for truth these days.

ChristianAnswers.Net records much more than 1 million hits every day of the week – actually, some 54 million hits per month. Parts of the site are translated into one or more of 33 languages.

Every week I answer questions from all over the world about matters of faith. In the days directly preceding my writing this article, a high school student asked how to deal with doubt. A man from California wrote to discuss Taoist belief. A young woman from Michigan wrote to protest a caution in our literature about a particularly aberrational church group.

Individuals from Nigeria, the Philippines, England, India, Gambia and other nations have contacted AIIA in recent months, all asking for Christian-apologetic resource material.

As more and more people search for truth and meaning, more and more people need guidance through the maze of religious views that are part of today’s pluralistic culture. “How can anyone know what to believe anymore?” is an increasingly common question.

Through history a few intellectually sharp apologists have addressed such concerns. In 1952, C.S. Lewis published “Mere Christianity.” It remains an apologetic classic to this day.

In our generation, Ravi Zacharias, Josh McDowell, Dr. Francis A. Schaeffer and Dr. Norman Geisler have effectively defended the Christian faith. More recently, Lee Strobel, a former investigative journalist for the Chicago Tribune, has authored “The Case for Christ” and “The Case for Faith.” Both books make a powerful case for Christian belief.

Can Christianity be proven? No. By definition it is a faith system. The Bible says that faith pleases God – but not blind faith. God created men and women with minds. Every Christian should know why he or she believes what they claim to believe, and to be able to defend the reason for their hope (1 Peter 3:15).

Citing credible evidence for Christianity in order to convince the minds of thinking people is the task of Christian apologetics. I am delighted to be part of such an endeavor in my generation.

The Rev. Daryl E. Witmer is pastor of the Monson Community Church and founder and director of AIIA Institute, a Christian apologetics organization. He may be reached via the AIIA Web site at ChristianAnswers.Net/AIIA or at AIIAInstitute@aol.com. Voices is a weekly commentary by five Maine columnists who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.