Ep. #130 – A Lutheran’s Case for Catholicism w/ Dr. Robert Koons

Summary

Dr. Robert Koons was a Lutheran until he converted to the Catholic faith. In this new book, he explains the important issues that eventually moved him to the Catholic faith. What does he think about the burden of proof? Sola scriptura? Justification? He joins me to discuss those details.

Guest Bio

Dr. Robert Koons has earned degrees at Michigan State, Oxford, and UCLA. He’s taught at UT-Austin for over 30 years. He’s authored or edited many books, including The Atlas of Reality: A Guide to Metaphysics (with Tim Pickavance). And he also contributed an excellent chapter to the recent work Faith and Reason: Philosophers Explain Their Turn to Catholicism. You can find out more about his work, including many published papers over at robkoons.net. Today, we’ll be discussing his new book A Lutheran’s Case for Catholicism. 

Topics

• Why is this called a “Lutheran’s case” when you’re a Catholic?
• How do you structure the book?
• What do you say about the “burden of proof” in the opening chapter?
• What were important considerations regarding sola scriptura and authority when it came to your own story?
• How does the Lutheran view of justification compare with the Catholic view?
• Does Romans 3 fit better with a Lutheran view?
• Does Romans 4 fit better with a Lutheran view?
• What other scripture passages are important in the discussion of justification?
• What else do you emphasize in your book and where can listeners go to find more about your work?

Resources

Pat Flynn’s Interview with Dr. Robert Koons (This focuses more on the arguments related to the papacy, authority, and sola scriptura)

A Lutheran’s Case for Roman Catholicism by Dr. Robert Koons

Robkoons.net (Dr. Koons’ personal website)

Faith and Reason: Philosophers Explain Their Turn to Catholicism edited by Brian Besong by Jonathan Fuqua

Engrafted into Christ: A Critique of the Join Declaration (American University Studies) by Peter Lang

Related Episodes

Ep. #35 – Does the Universe Have a Cause? with Dr. Koons

Ep. #60 – A Natural Theology Seminar w/ Dr. Koons

Ep. #81 – A Natural Theology Seminar (part 2) w/ Dr. Koons