Story by Joel Alexander

Local Coaldale church, ROC Christian Ministries opened their doors Oct. 20 – Nov. 24 for a community apologetics workshop designed to strengthen it’s believers’ understanding of their faith and improve their confidence in discussing Christianity in their everyday life. The event has drawn church regulars and local community members, many who said they hope to gain tools to better share what they believe and why they do.
Organizers of the workshop say their primary goal is to provide clear, accessible teaching on Christianity’s most significant claim: the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
“The main purpose is we want to put together an apologetics workshop that looks at the evidence for the resurrection of Christ.” Josiah Goudy, one of the workshop leaders explained. The session goes through historical sources, scholarly arguments and a handful of evidential approaches commonly used within Christian apologetics. For many of the participants, the focus on this provided both intellectual and spiritual encouragement.
Attendees arrive at the events with both a bit of curiosity and personal motivation. One participant, Travis Campbell shared that talking about faith had not always been easy for him, but he believed the workshop would help him grow in his confidence.
“I haven’t always been the most outgoing when it comes to sharing my faith and I feel like this will help me,” Campbell said. His experience mirrors a wider trend among Christians who not only seek to deepen their understanding but to also share what they believe more clearly in an increasingly more complex and cultural environment.
Throughout the workshop, leaders explained that apologetics is not about winning arguments but about engaging respectfully and compassionately with questions about faith. Attendees are encouraged to think about how historical context, manuscript evidence, eyewitness testimonies and philosophical reasoning all contribute to conversations surrounding Christ’s resurrection. Goudy also highlights the relational side of apologetics by approaching discussions with humility, building trust and listening actively with those who have different beliefs.
Every session ends with discussion time to allow attendees to talk with each other or ask the leaders more questions and go more into greater detail on topics. Many of the attendees left showing appreciation for the clarity of the teaching and how welcoming the events are.
As the interest grows for thoughtful faith conversations, ROC Christian Ministries has said they remain to stay committed to providing spaces for people to learn, ask questions and strengthen their understanding of the word of God. For many of the people who have attended the workshops, express it has been a meaningful step towards greater confidence in their knowledge in sharing their beliefs.