Whether you’re a Christian, an atheist, or something in between, you should find provocative ideas in my new book, 2-Minute Christianity: 50 Big Ideas Every Christian Should Understand. Perhaps this will also be a fit for someone on your holiday gift list.

2-Minute Christianity is aimed at open-minded Christians who think that if Christianity is true, it can stand a little critique. The tone is respectful, and the goal is to educate Christian readers, not deconvert them. An honest critique of Christianity should appeal to secular readers as well.

Here are some of the big ideas explored in 2-Minute Christianity.

• God gave Moses two very different versions of the Ten Commandments (Big Idea #30).
• God defined the rules for indentured servitude and chattel slavery, the same two forms of slavery found in the early United States (#14).
• The Bible documents its own evolution from polytheism to monotheism (#35).
• The “virgin birth prophecy” referred to in Matthew wasn’t about Jesus and wasn’t even about a virgin birth (#36).
• The God of the Bible was once defeated by another Canaanite god (#46).

The ideas are significant—these aren’t trivial Bible contradictions or copying errors. Each is a fundamental puzzle that questions Christian claims. The book is a short 120 pages.

The layout is part of the appeal. Each chapter is just two pages, has occasional tangents in the margins, and takes just a couple of minutes to read. Here’s an example.

The book is in the middle of a slow-motion release. The book and ebook are available now, and I’m giving away the content, one chapter per week for 50 weeks, through the book’s blog, podcast, and YouTube channel. Sign up for email notification of the release of new chapters here. More questions are answered in the FAQ.

Do you have contact information for your favorite bloggers, podcasters, or YouTubers? You could really help by spreading the word about 2-Minute Christianity to influencers, whether Christian or atheist. Tell them that I have a free copy of the book for them to critique.

Thanks for your continued support of my work!

Never doubt that a small group
of thoughtful, committed citizens
can change the world;
indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
— Margaret Mead

Chapters:

1: Map of World Religions
2: A Leaky Ark
3: The Bible’s Shortsighted View of the Universe
4: Christianity as Society’s Burden
5: Jesus, the Great Physician
6: Argument from Desire
7: Psalm 22 Prophecy
8: Ontological Argument
9: Original Sin
10: The Society that Christianity Gave Us
11: Paul’s Famous Creed
12: Christianity Answers Life’s Big Questions
13: Argument from Design
14: God Supports Slavery
15: The Bible Has No Recipe for Soap
16: Christianity Meets its Match
17: Euthyphro Dilemma
18: Morality, Purpose, and Meaning
19: Kalam Cosmological Argument
20: Gospel of Paul
21: God Loves the Smell of Burning Flesh
22: Thought Experiment on Bible Reliability
23: Isaiah 53 Prophecy
24: Atheists Need the Christian Worldview
25: Transcendental Argument
26: Women at the Tomb
27: When God Lies
28: Fruits of Christianity
29: Christianity Looks Invented
30: The Ten Commandments
31: 25,000 New Testament Manuscripts
32: Simplicity
33: Recreating Christianity
34: Why Is Christianity Conservative?
35: Biblical Polytheism
36: Virgin Birth Prophecy
37: God’s Hiddenness
38: Christianity Without Indoctrination
39: The Monty Hall Problem
40: Historians Reject the Bible Story
41: Who Wrote the Gospels?
42: The Combat Myth
43: The Crucifixion
44: Finding Jesus Through Board Games
45: Jesus on Trial
46: God’s Kryptonite
47: Christianity’s Big Promises
48: Religion Reflects Culture
49: Religions Continue to Diverge
50: The Great Commission