When & where does Ratio Christi meet?
Please check our Schedule for the most up to date information.
What is Ratio Christi?
Ratio Christi (Latin “reason for Christ”) serves to defend the Christian faith in honest dialogue with both our skeptical & believing friends at Texas A&M. Together, we investigate the historical, philosophical, and scientific reasons for the truth, rationality, and significance of the message of Jesus Christ, a discipline known as apologetics. Ratio Christi is an international organization with university chapters around the world.
What is ‘apologetics’?
Apologetics is a branch in Christian theology that aims to provide a rational basis for believing in Christianity and defending it against objection. This includes things such as giving reasons to believe in the existence of God, reliability of the Scriptures, and historicity of the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
What does Ratio Christi believe?
Ratio Christi officially endorses what is called mere Christianity which consists of the essential truths shared by all branches of Christendom as summarized in the historic Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian creeds. (Click here to read these creeds).
We are not part of any particular denomination or church. Membership is open to adherents to any faith or no faith.
The Gospel Message: Humanity, both collectively and individually, has rejected God, the source of life and goodness. Seeking our own ends, we have become victims and agents of evil, death, and misery. God, not willing we should perish, entered a covenant of grace to deliver humanity from this miserable state by means of a Redeemer. Begun with the Hebrew people, this covenant reached its fulfillment in Jesus who overcame the powers of evil, death, and misery in his earthly ministry, death on a cross, and resurrection from the grave. Jesus calls for all people to turn away (i.e. repent) from evil to the Kingdom of God. To begin this journey, one must confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead.
How do I participate in Ratio Christi?
Come to our Thursday meetings
We have regular meetings on Thursdays at 8:30pm that are open to all; just show up!
Click here to view our upcoming schedule.
Join a Small Group
We have three small groups that you can sign up for at any point in the semester.
Foundations (Fridays at 5pm*) is for anyone who wants to discover basic principles for how to use things like science, history, and philosophy to share and defend their faith to skeptics. We cover three basic areas of apologetics: (i) arguments for the existence of God, (ii) historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus, and (iii) responses to the Problem of Evil, (i.e., if God is good why is there so much evil in the world?). No prior knowledge is required and all materials will be provided day-of.
Frontiers (Tuesdays at 7:30pm*) is our advanced reading group. We read a technical book in philosophy or biblical studies throughout the semester. This is our higher commitment small group.
Forum (Sundays at 3pm*) is our general interest discussion group. Each week is standalone and covers a different topic in philosophy, theology, or biblical studies. The essay/video/article/etc will be provided in advance of the discussion.
*Times reflect Spring 2024 schedule; subject to change.
Click here to sign up for a small group.
Apply for Membership
Join as an official member for special perks such as members-only socials and meeting with guest speakers.
Can I join Ratio Christi if I’m an atheist?
Yes, we welcome members of a non-religious or skeptical background, not as “conversion projects” but as fellow seekers of truth.
(That may sound a little pretentious, but we really don’t like echo chambers. “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.” – Proverbs 18:17)
Is Ratio Christi a Bible Study?
Strictly speaking, Ratio Christi is not a Bible study. We do discuss topics relevant to studying the Bible; for example,
- how to interpret difficult passages (e.g. creation narratives, peculiar laws in the Torah, the conquest of Canaan, and what the scriptures say about free will).
- the role of science, history, and cultural context in interpreting scripture
- how to understand descriptions of the nature of scripture such as inerrancy, infallibility, inspiration, authority, sola scriptura, etc.
However, we do not spend a semester studying a book or section of scripture week by week. Check the schedule to see what we have planned.
How can Ratio Christi partner with my organization?
We would be glad to work with your organization; contact us at RatioChristiTAMU [at] gmail [dot] com. Below are a few suggestions.
Collaborate on a Lesson/Workshop/Curriculum: If you would like to present an apologetics oriented topic to your group but are unsure of how to put it together, we can work with you to construct (and even help present) it. We would be able to accommodate the format or structure that is unique to your group. The material in our Foundations small group covers the basics of apologetics and is designed to be adapted to other contexts. We have used it to create standalone lectures, one-day workshops with other campus orgs and semester long Sunday School curriculum with local churches.
Joint Panel: Our “Grill-A-Christian” Panel (aka “Gorilla Christian”) is a favorite where, as the title implies, open questions are fielded by our RC panelists. If your group would like to get in on the action, we can host a joint panel with panelists from both groups. You don’t have be be a Christian! We have done previous panels with atheists, Muslims, and others under the “God Dialogues” label.
Guest Talk at your org: We have several topics we’d be glad to present in a guest talk at your org’s meeting. General topics include the existence of God, biblical reliability, historicity of Jesus, science & faith, challenges to faith, and more. Check out these lectures first, then browse our YouTube for more.
Crash Our Meeting: We have our own meetings every Thursday at 8:30pm (check schedule for location). If one of our topics (listed here) piques your interest, feel free to come as an organization!
Speak during your org’s announcements: If you think that some of your members may be interested in what RC does, but, you do not have the time to dedicate a full meeting to apologetics, we would be able to send one of our leaders to give a brief presentation on apologetics and answer any questions your members might have. We would then provide our contact information for anyone whose interested to contact us in their free time.
Create Your Own: If you have an idea that you think will maximize our resources for your group but is not listed here, be sure to contact us and we’ll do our best to work with you!
RC has had the privilege to partner with many of the wonderful organizations at Texas A&M including, but not limited to, the Thomistic Institute, Reformed University Fellowship, Pro-Life Aggies, the Christian Faculty Network, the Veritas Forum, and the Secular Student Alliance. If you support what RC does and if we can be a benefit to your group, please let us know, even if it is as simple as pitching your group in our announcements!
