Cliffe Knechtle
Pastor who has answered students' questions on faith in open-air dialogues on campuses since 1979.
17 videos analysed · 44 quotes checked word for word · updated 2026-10-18
Key facts
- Born in New York City in 1954; senior pastor of Grace Community Church in New Canaan, Connecticut. Wikipédia 2026 · Cliffe Knechtle - Wikipedia
- His sons Stuart and Rob are pastors at Grace Community Church. Wikipédia 2026 · Cliffe Knechtle - Wikipedia
- In 2025 Christianity Today reported over two million followers on TikTok and Instagram and over 900,000 YouTube subscribers. Wikipédia 2026 · Cliffe Knechtle - Wikipedia
Positions
click a row to see the evidenceHe is a Christian pastor and apologist who says belief in God is reasonable because "the evidence points to God's existence" (a universe with a beginning, objective morals, information in DNA, the resurrection of Jesus). He invites students to follow Christ, read the scriptures and allow God to speak to them.
- He says he believes because of the evidence, not out of naivety. The universe had a beginning, everything that begins has a cause, so the universe has an uncaused cause. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
- The information packed in DNA points to an intelligent mind, and objective morals point to a moral lawgiver. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
- We can only know what God is like and that he loves us if he chooses to reveal himself. For him God did so most clearly by becoming a person, Jesus, not an abstract force. Video 1998 · Cliffe Classics - The Death of…23
- Asked why God does not heal amputees or prevent suffering, he says it is 'the height of human arrogance' to tell God when to intervene; he does not claim to know God's reasons. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…
Why does God not heal amputees or prevent suffering?
He says it is the height of human arrogance to tell God when to intervene. He does not claim to know God's reasons.
What is the difference between a transcendent God and an imaginary one?
A transcendent God is beyond the universe but can enter space and time, as in Jesus. The imaginary is a fertile imagination making something up; he believes because the evidence points to God.
See 1 more objections
Who designed the designer? Explaining complexity by a mind only moves the problem.
Defends : Whatever begins has a cause: the universe too, The moral law points to a lawgiver, Freedom has a price: evil does not contradict God, The watch and the eyeCriticizes : The problem of evil
Against Aron Ra he argues that there is a self above chemistry and instincts that chooses between them, and that love is more than biochemistry.
- There is more to reality than matter and energy: free choice shows a 'me' above the chemicals and instincts. Video 2020 · Atheists vs. Christians Debate…2
The mind is what the brain does: matter can think, so no separate self is needed.
He defends libertarian free will: he says we can choose to love or to hate, and that this choice shows there is more to reality than matter. He uses it to explain evil, which comes from human freedom.
- Everyday experience: we choose to love or to hate, to be apathetic or to care. For him this shows a self above chemistry and instinct that chooses. Video 2020 · Atheists vs. Christians Debate…2
- Love has to be free to be real: 'if it ain't free it ain't love'. So God limited his own power by creating people free. Video 2013 · Does God Exist? Debate - Matt…
- This answers the problem of evil: he defines evil as the misuse of God-given gifts, made possible by free will, and says life is unfair but God is just. Video 1998 · Cliffe Knechtle | You Can Love…2
Our choices come from brain chemistry and instincts shaped by evolution; compassion is measurable and material.
He appeals to everyday experience: we choose to love or hate. For him this shows a self above the chemicals and instincts that chooses between them.
The brain acts before we decide, so the feeling of choosing may come too late.
He says atheists can do good because they are made in the image of God and have a conscience that tells right from wrong.
- Moral absolutes are not arbitrary decrees of God but rest on God's good character. Video 2020 · Discussion/debate with…
- An atheist can do good because every human is created in God's image and has a conscience; human value comes from the creator who made us for a purpose. Video 2004 · Cliffe Knechtle | In The Bible,…2
Is something good because God commands it, or does God command it because it is good? Either way God is not the foundation.
He says moral absolutes are not arbitrary decrees of God: they rest on God's character, which is good.
One can be good without believing in God.
He agrees an atheist can do good: every human is created in God's image and has a conscience, and human value comes from the creator who made us for a purpose.
He says faith in Christ is "not blind faith" but based on historical evidence, and that a faith is valid by the reliability of what it trusts, not by its sincerity. He also calls the search for God "a spiritual issue" as well as an intellectual one.
- Faith is not blind: it is trust in something shown to be reliable, plus commitment. Faith in Christ rests on historical evidence. Video 2015 · Give Me an Answer - #2314 -…2
- What matters is not sincerity but the credibility of the object trusted, as with a person who sincerely trusts thin ice. Video 2001 · Cliffe Knechtle Explains Love &…
- Against the objection that faith is irrational, he replies that everybody lives by faith: we all trust things we cannot prove, like the pharmacist or the other driver at a light. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
Faith is believing without good evidence, and that is not a reliable way to find the truth.
He answers that everybody lives by faith, trusting things they cannot prove, and that his own faith rests on evidence of reliability plus commitment.
A miracle such as the resurrection cannot be believed on the word of ancient witnesses.
At Cornell in 2025 he argued that if God creates you for a purpose and a mind to develop, you should work to make a difference in the world. In debate he says people are "created by God for a purpose"; without God, any purpose we choose is arbitrary.
- Without God any purpose we give our life is arbitrary and not ultimate. With God we are created for a purpose: to love God and neighbour. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
Meaning needs no given purpose: we make sense of our own lives.
He calls himself a sinner who deserves hell and says Jesus' analysis of the human heart shows he is "not as good as I would like to persuade everybody that I am".
No sourced position yet on: Source of knowledge, Certainty.
On the big questions
Does God exist?Theism
A Christian pastor and apologist who defends faith in public dialogues.
- He says he believes because of the evidence, not out of naivety. The universe had a beginning, everything that begins has a cause, so the universe has an uncaused cause. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
- The information packed in DNA points to an intelligent mind, and objective morals point to a moral lawgiver. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
- We can only know what God is like and that he loves us if he chooses to reveal himself. For him God did so most clearly by becoming a person, Jesus, not an abstract force. Video 1998 · Cliffe Classics - The Death of…23
- Asked why God does not heal amputees or prevent suffering, he says it is 'the height of human arrogance' to tell God when to intervene; he does not claim to know God's reasons. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…
Why does God not heal amputees or prevent suffering?
He says it is the height of human arrogance to tell God when to intervene. He does not claim to know God's reasons.
What is the difference between a transcendent God and an imaginary one?
A transcendent God is beyond the universe but can enter space and time, as in Jesus. The imaginary is a fertile imagination making something up; he believes because the evidence points to God.
See 1 more objections
Who designed the designer? Explaining complexity by a mind only moves the problem.
Defends : Whatever begins has a cause: the universe too, The moral law points to a lawgiver, Freedom has a price: evil does not contradict God, The watch and the eyeCriticizes : The problem of evil
The question on the site: all the argumentsDoes life have a meaning?A given meaning
Life has a purpose given by God.
- Without God any purpose we give our life is arbitrary and not ultimate. With God we are created for a purpose: to love God and neighbour. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
Meaning needs no given purpose: we make sense of our own lives.
Are we free?Free will
We can choose to love or hate; free will is why God allows evil.
- Everyday experience: we choose to love or to hate, to be apathetic or to care. For him this shows a self above chemistry and instinct that chooses. Video 2020 · Atheists vs. Christians Debate…2
- Love has to be free to be real: 'if it ain't free it ain't love'. So God limited his own power by creating people free. Video 2013 · Does God Exist? Debate - Matt…
- This answers the problem of evil: he defines evil as the misuse of God-given gifts, made possible by free will, and says life is unfair but God is just. Video 1998 · Cliffe Knechtle | You Can Love…2
Our choices come from brain chemistry and instincts shaped by evolution; compassion is measurable and material.
He appeals to everyday experience: we choose to love or hate. For him this shows a self above the chemicals and instincts that chooses between them.
The brain acts before we decide, so the feeling of choosing may come too late.
What makes something right?God's will
Moral absolutes are grounded in the good character of God.
- Moral absolutes are not arbitrary decrees of God but rest on God's good character. Video 2020 · Discussion/debate with…
- An atheist can do good because every human is created in God's image and has a conscience; human value comes from the creator who made us for a purpose. Video 2004 · Cliffe Knechtle | In The Bible,…2
Is something good because God commands it, or does God command it because it is good? Either way God is not the foundation.
He says moral absolutes are not arbitrary decrees of God: they rest on God's character, which is good.
One can be good without believing in God.
He agrees an atheist can do good: every human is created in God's image and has a conscience, and human value comes from the creator who made us for a purpose.
Is the mind the brain?The mind is not matter
There is a self above chemistry and instinct that chooses.
- There is more to reality than matter and energy: free choice shows a 'me' above the chemicals and instincts. Video 2020 · Atheists vs. Christians Debate…2
The mind is what the brain does: matter can think, so no separate self is needed.
Should we fear death?The soul survives
He believes in eternal life, as God's gift through Christ; the worst fate is a Godless eternity.
- Belief in life after death should rest on evidence, not on fear of dying. For him it is God's gift through Christ; the worst fate is a Godless eternity. Video 2013 · Does God Exist? Debate - Matt…2
- He presents hell as God respecting a person's choice: if someone wants to live apart from God, God will not haul him into heaven against his will. Video 1998 · Cliffe Knechtle | You Can Love…
Eternal punishment for the faults of one life is unjust, so hell is hard to reconcile with a good God.
He presents hell as God respecting a person's choice: if someone wants to live apart from God, God will not haul him into heaven against his will.
Death is nothing to us: where death is, we are not, so there is nothing to fear or to hope for.
Should we believe without proof?Faith and reason agree
Faith is trust in a reliable object, based on historical evidence.
- Faith is not blind: it is trust in something shown to be reliable, plus commitment. Faith in Christ rests on historical evidence. Video 2015 · Give Me an Answer - #2314 -…2
- What matters is not sincerity but the credibility of the object trusted, as with a person who sincerely trusts thin ice. Video 2001 · Cliffe Knechtle Explains Love &…
- Against the objection that faith is irrational, he replies that everybody lives by faith: we all trust things we cannot prove, like the pharmacist or the other driver at a light. Video 2012 · Is Belief in the Christian God…2
Faith is believing without good evidence, and that is not a reliable way to find the truth.
He answers that everybody lives by faith, trusting things they cannot prove, and that his own faith rests on evidence of reliability plus commitment.
A miracle such as the resurrection cannot be believed on the word of ancient witnesses.
Can science explain everything?True, but not everything
He rejects the idea that science is the only judge of truth.
- He does not agree that science is the only arbiter of truth: the existence of a choosing self is something chemistry alone does not explain. Video 2020 · Atheists vs. Christians Debate…
Science will answer the big questions: physics fixes all the facts, and nothing is left over for a separate self.
He does not agree that science is the only arbiter of truth: the existence of a choosing self is something chemistry alone does not explain.
In their words
Follow Christ, read the scriptures, allow God to speak to you.
The reason that a person should believe in God is because the evidence points to God's existence.
You were created by God for a purpose, and that purpose is to love God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
The test for the validity of faith is not its sincerity. The test for the validity of faith is the credibility, the reliability of the object you put your faith in.
1 more quotes
Life is unfair, God is fair, don't get the two mixed up.
How the ideas evolved
Click a step for details1979Starts campus ministry
After a Master of Divinity at Gordon-Conwell, he begins open-air question-and-answer sessions on US campuses.
1986First book
He publishes 'Give Me an Answer That Satisfies My Heart and My Mind' (InterVarsity Press).
1991Television programme
Recordings of his campus events begin airing as 'Give Me an Answer'. The ministry's site says 'Since 1991'.
1998Evil and free will
On a campus in New York he defines evil as the misuse of God-given gifts: God gave us free will, so we can use our hands to help or to harm.
In their words« i would simply define evil as the illegitimate use of legitimate God-given gifts »He defines evil as the misuse of God-given gifts, made possible by free will. watch
« if I want to live my life separate from God God is not going to haul me into heaven against my will »He presents hell as God respecting the choice to live apart from him. watch
2000Help Me Believe
A book answering 39 questions raised by college audiences, on values, evil, Jesus and God. A reviewer notes a shift from 'evidences' toward the questions of a postmodern generation.
2001Founds Grace Community Church
He founds this church in New Canaan, Connecticut, and continues his campus work.
2012Debates Matt Dillahunty
In campus debates with the atheist Matt Dillahunty, he argues that belief in God is rational and rests on evidence, not blind faith.
In their words« I believe in God I believe in Christ because of the evidence »He opens the debate by saying he believes because of evidence, not out of naivety. watch
« everything that has a beginning has a cause the universe has a beginning therefore the universe has a cause »He presents the Big Bang as the first evidence that the universe has a cause. watch
« densely packed information demands an intelligent mind »He argues from the information in DNA to an intelligent mind. watch
2020Online debate with Aron Ra
With his son Stuart, he debates the atheists Aron Ra and Tom Jump online. He defends free will and the idea of a self above chemistry.
In their words« you choose to love or to hate you choose to be apathetic or to love that's my experience of everyday life »Against Aron Ra, he appeals to his daily experience of choosing as proof of free will. watch
« shows that there is a me that is above the chemicals and above the instincts and is making a choice between which instincts to follow »He argues there is a self above chemistry and instinct that chooses between them. watch
« i don't agree with the belief that science is the only arbiter of truth »He rejects the view that science alone decides what is true. watch
2023Dialogue with Muslim students
At a Texas campus he tells a Muslim student he trusts the eyewitnesses of Jesus over a source written 500 years later.
In their words« now I have a decision to make who am I going to trust a man who lived 500 years after the fact or people who lived during The Life of Christ »Against a Muslim student, he prefers the eyewitnesses to Muhammad as sources on Jesus. watch
2024Online audience grows
He visits Yale and speaks with Alex O'Connor; by 2025 Christianity Today reports over 900,000 YouTube subscribers.
2025Campus tour with his son
In 2025 he takes his open Q&A sessions to Texas A&M, Harvard and Princeton, partly with his son Stuart.
The arguments 5
The site's arguments they defend or criticize, and why. Click a title to see the full argument.
He argues that everything that begins has a cause, the universe began, so it has an uncaused cause.
He says "the evidence of objective morals points to a moral lawgiver".
On evil: "the all powerful God chose to partially limit his power by giving us a free will"; love has to be free.
He compares the information in DNA to a message written in sand, which demands an intelligent mind.
He says it is arrogant to tell God when to intervene, and that God judges evil because he is good.
Allies and opponents
Alex O'ConnorSparring partner
They spoke in 2024, notably about whether Matthew 27:52 is historical.
SStuart KnechtleClose
His son, a pastor, who joins him in campus dialogues.
Matt DillahuntyDisagrees
They debated twice, in 2012 and 2013, on whether belief in God is reasonable.
AAron RaDisagrees
Debated him online in 2020, with Stuart and Tom Jump, on free will, miracles and morality.
Debates and big conversations
Signature ideas
The open-air dialogue
Instead of confrontational preaching, he invites any student to ask any question, and answers in public.
Faith is trust, tested by its object
Sincerity is not enough: you can trust thin ice with all your heart and still fall. The test of a faith is the reliability of what it trusts, so he asks students to examine the evidence about Jesus.
Closest and furthest
how it is computedAmong the philosophers
Among today's voices
Take the Compass: 5 minutes to find out which philosophers you are closest to.
All sources (39)
- Cliffe Knechtle - Wikipedia Wikipedia · 2026
- Give Me an Answer Give Me an Answer · 2026
- Father and son pastors Cliffe and Stuart Knechtle bring faith-focused dialogue to campus The Cornell Daily Sun · 2025
- Help Me Believe (review) Publishers Weekly · 2000
- Alex O'Connor - Wikipedia Wikipedia · 2026 *
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Give Me an Answer - #3214 - Texas State University - Why Do You Believe That God Loves You? YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2014
- Cliffe Classics - The Death of Jesus Solved the Ultimate Human Dilemma (1998) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1998
- Cliffe Knechtle | The One True God Revealed Himself As The God-Man Jesus (Texas, 1999) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1999
- Give Me an Answer - Cliffe Says, "If Other Religions Speak The Truth I Am Going To Hell." (Texas, 2023) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2023
- Atheists vs. Christians Debate Pt. 1 - Cliffe, Stuart vs. Aron Ra, Tjump YouTube · 2020
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Is Belief in the Christian God Rational? (Dillahunty vs. Knechtle) YouTube · 2012
- Atheists vs. Christians Debate Pt. 1 - Cliffe, Stuart vs. Aron Ra, Tjump YouTube · 2020
- Atheists vs. Christians Debate Pt. 1 - Cliffe, Stuart vs. Aron Ra, Tjump YouTube · 2020
- Atheists vs. Christians Debate Pt. 1 - Cliffe, Stuart vs. Aron Ra, Tjump YouTube · 2020
- Cliffe Classics - The Death of Jesus Solved the Ultimate Human Dilemma (1998) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1998
- Cliffe Knechtle | The One True God Revealed Himself As The God-Man Jesus (Texas, 1999) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1999
- Atheists vs. Christians Debate Pt. 2 - Cliffe, Stuart vs. Aron Ra, Tjump YouTube · 2020
- Give Me an Answer - #2114 - Why Does God Allow Evil? YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2015
- Give Me an Answer - #2114 - Why Does God Allow Evil? YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2015
- Give Me an Answer - #2114 - Why Does God Allow Evil? YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2015
- Cliffe Knechtle | You Can Love God & People Jesus Style, Or Create Evil (Columbia, 1998) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1998
- Cliffe Knechtle | You Can Love God & People Jesus Style, Or Create Evil (Columbia, 1998) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 1998
- Give Me an Answer - #2314 - Science vs. Faith YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2015
- Cliffe Knechtle Explains Love & Free Will Can't Exist Without God (Cliffe Classics, 2001) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2001
- Cliffe Knechtle | In The Bible, Does Jesus Claim To Be God? (Michigan State, 2004) YouTube (Give Me an Answer) · 2004
- Discussion/debate with atheist/chemist Peter Atkins on "Science and Morality" YouTube · 2020
- Does God Exist? Debate - Matt Dillahunty vs. Cliffe Knechtle YouTube · 2013