Essential Debating Tactics

On A Mission: Lessons From St. Francis de Sales

In being an effective debater you need two things. You need proper debating tactics and you need information. Information comes with time and reading but if you never master the proper debating tactics, it’s almost uselss. The key to debating is not to defeat your opponent but to let your opponent defeat himself. This is done by asking the right questions.

I remember talking with a friend of mine who is quite intelligent. Though he wasn’t an apologist, he was very clever and quite well read. I asked him what he would do if an atheist confronted him told him that there was no good evidence for the existence of God. He then told me that he would proceed to pull out arguments such as the cosmological argument, the fine-tuning argument, the argument from design and others.

I then told him how I would respond. I would have simply asked the atheist what kind of evidence would convince him that God exists. What evidence does he require that he doesn’t see. Usually at this point, the atheist starts to defeat himself. He’s never thought through this before and realizes that it might not have been the best thing to say. Regardless, they usually come up with a really bad answer because in their mind, a bad answer is better than no answer. I then ask that if they saw this, they’d be in Church next Sunday? Most atheists at this point are honest enough to tell me that they wouldn’t. Although you haven’t converted them, you’ve at least shown them that their attack on the Christian God is inconsistent and groundless.

The key to any debate is to not let your opponent get away with any ground that he hasn’t earned. Most people in the West don’t know how to use logic so this tactic is rarely employed. If you know how to ask the right questions, you’ll expose your opponent.

If Christianity is true, than any other theological or philosophical system is false whether it be Islam, Mormonism, atheism, communism etc. If you’ve studied these systems you’ll know where their weak spots are and you’ll know where to focus the attack. You’ll have to ask the right questions to guide the discussion to this area where they can’t defend themselves.

I recently read a book by Patrick Madrid called On A Mission: Lessons From St. Francis de Sales. Chapter 7 in my opinion is worth the price of the whole book. Madrid talks about how he’s engaged in certain debates with people. He tells about how he debated an ex-Catholic Reformed Baptist.

On page 96 Madrid says: “I had no intention of allowing her to take control of this conversation, so I kept up my own volley of Bible verses in response to her claims and kept pressing her with my own questions for her to answer.”

Madrid supplies the information with the Bible verses but keeps the questions coming at her. This allows you to keep your opponent on the defensive.

Much more can be said about this method of debate. Entire essays and books are written on this issue. How to debate effectively is something that everyone needs to know, even if you’re not an apologist. Proof of this apologetic methodology comes from our Lord Jesus Christ himself in Luke Chapter 10: 25-37. He asks questions. Let’s read it.

And behold a certain lawyer stood up, tempting him, and saying, Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?

But he said to him: What is written in the law? how readest thou? He answering, said: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind: and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said to him: Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he willing to justify himself, said to Jesus: And who is my neighbour? And Jesus answering, said: A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, who also stripped him, and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead.

And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by. In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by. But a certain Samaritan being on his journey, came near him; and seeing him, was moved with compassion. And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And the next day he took out two pence, and gave to the host, and said: Take care of him; and whatsoever thou shalt spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay thee. Which of these three, in thy opinion, was neighbour to him that fell among the robbers? But he said: He that shewed mercy to him. And Jesus said to him: Go, and do thou in like manner.