Pilgrim's Rock, LLC Online Apologetics Course REVIEW

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Christian Apologetics is key when it comes to defending our faith.  I have stressed this in our homeschool for years now.  I loved having the chance to review another wonderful resource, The Unbreakable Faith Course online course, and the two textbooks, God the Reason and The Box, from Pilgrim's Rock, LLC.  I received 2 years of access to this 36-week online course and PDF copies of each book.  It qualifies for 1 unit High School credit if you purchase that option and take it as directed in the syllabus which is accessible in your online course.  It is also a wonderful study for adults who want a good foundation in apologetics.  The course can be used for individual study, group study including co-ops and also for a church or college ministry.

Course syllabus

The syllabus contains all the information you need to complete the course including contact information for Dr. Craig Biehl.  It includes the course description, student learning outcomes, course requirements including grading and a grading scale, and a course calendar.

For High School credit there are approximately 80 hours of coursework that includes watching the videos, study time, quiz/exam time, and reading time.  The course is broken down into 6 parts that include 14 main videos (38 videos total - some of the videos have multiple parts that are each approximately 10-12 minutes long) and 5 quizzes broken down into the following sections:

• Introduction to Apologetics; The Implications of God Having No Beginning or Needs
• The Implications of God as Unable to Be Known Unless He Reveals Himself, Infinite, and Unchanging
• The Implications of God as an Undivided Unity, Spirit, Perfect in Knowledge, and Perfectly Wise
• The Implications of God as True and Truthful, Good and Love, Holy, and Righteous
• The Implications of God as Infinitely Powerful and Sovereign; The Unbelieving and Believing Worldview
• Final Exam

Sample of Part 1 assignments

My thought was to go through the course with my High Schooler and then have him take the quizzes and exam for credit.  We watch the videos together and discuss the topic(s) covered.  I use the books as read alouds to be sure we are covering the whole book and not just parts of it (if you know what I mean).  It is helping to reinforce what we have already covered in other apologetics lessons but it definitely has a different approach to it that is causing us to look at things from a different perspective that I like.  I really like the heart of the creator, Dr. Craig Biehl.  "Pilgrim’s Rock exists to exalt the infinite excellence of God and the Gospel, boost joy, comfort, and faith in Christ and Scripture, and immunize believers against the unreasonable arguments of unbelief." 

The Box (Answering the Faith of Unbelief) consists of a conversation between Mr. A and Mr. C.  Mr. A is the atheist and Mr. C is the Christian.  Mr. C uses the box as an example of our finite wisdom.  We don't and can't know everything and to presuppose that God doesn't exist means that "we believe that we must know everything in the universe and beyond."  I like what he said at the end of Chapter 4, "Some of the soundest logical arguments are false because they are built on faulty premises or assumptions."

God the Reason (How Infinite Excellence Gives Unbreakable Faith) consists of a great resource for a strong foundation in a Biblical Worldview.  Within the 15 chapters Craig breaks it down into the following topics: In the Beginning God, God Needs Nothing, God Cannot Be Known Unless He Reveals Himself, God is Boundless Perfection, God Does Not Change, God is Undivided, God is Spirit, God Knows Everything, God is Wise, God is True and Truthful, God is Good and Love, God is Holy, God is Righteous, God is Infinitely Powerful, and God Rules Over All.

We had some challenges with this review in that we got a little bit of a late start and then we had flu hit our house hard the last week before it was due.  I am enjoying the course and really like the foundation it is laying for my son to be thinking from a more biblical worldview and the approach that Dr. Biehl uses in his teaching.  I especially like the inclusion of the classic hymns in the videos.  We are just now into Part 2 and I am excited to get through the course.  You can complete the course in whatever time frame fits your schedule.  We try to cover something at least 3 times weekly if not 5.  You can see from the sample above what Part 1 looks like.  It actually has a total of 9 videos to view, all of The Box to read and several chapters of God the Reason before taking the first quiz.

Online course progress

I also like that you must complete each assignment before going on to the next.  It will not let you progress forward until you have completed the current assignment.  This is great for me because my high schooler likes to skip around a lot and then things tend to get confusing.  This forces him to take it one thing at a time and to complete things in order.  I found the course easy to navigate online and the syllabus and course directives were all very clear to understand.  It is a win for us and we give The Unbreakable Faith Course online course, and the two textbooks, God the Reason and The Box a big thumbs up.

You can connect with Pilgrim's Rock, LLC on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, PINTEREST, and YOUTUBE.  Also, be sure to click on the graphic link below to see what my fellow Crew members thought of this wonderful resource.