Christian Research Institute — Research Resources

The Christian Research Institute (CRI) is a Christian apologetics ministry founded by the late Walter Martin.

After Martin died, CRI was taken over by Hank Hanegraaff. The ministry has been plagued by controversies ever since. Most recently the organization came out in defense of The Local Church, which — while theologically a cult of Christianity — was given a clean bill of healht by the Christian Research Institute.

While Apologetics Index points to — and quotes from — a variety of research resources published by CRI (usually those produced in the past), we can not at present recommend or support the ministry of CRI.

Articles

• CRI’s Hank Hanegraaff Supports a Cult of Christianity, regarding CRI’s defense of the Local Church
• Christian Research Institute (CRI) descends deeper into error and controversy, by giving the Local Church a clean bill of health
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• The Dilemma Called CRI by Don Veinot, of Midwest Christian Outreach
• Hank Hanegraaf Lawsuit Against Christian Apologist Thrown Out Of Court, regarding Hanegraaff’s lawsuit against Christian apologist Bill Alnor
• A Response to the Christian Research Journal’s Recent Defense of the “Local Church” Movement

Books

• Hard Questions for The Bible Answer Man: Hank Hanegraaff And His Takeover Of The Christian Research Institute Jay Howard
  

  Hank Hanegraaff has been president of the Christian Research Institute since 1989. He is credited with authoring several books and also has been the host of The Bible Answer Man radio program. However, over the last few years a great deal of evidence has been unearthed to indicate that Hanegraaff’s presidency is laced with multiple problems that need to be examined. In this ground-breaking book Jay Howard discusses many issues that show a blatant disregard for truth by the current CRI president. These and many more questions will be dealt with in the pages of Hard Questions for The Bible Answer Man:

  • Was Hanegraaff really Walter Martin’s “handpicked-successor”?
  • Did Walter Martin’s widow plan to endorse him, as the next CRI president, during the funeral?
  • Is it really necessary for a president of a Christian nonprofit
  organization to make over $250,000 a year?
  • Why did he fire so many key people after he took over in 1989?
  • Was he equipped to take over The Bible Answer Man program in 1991?
  • Why did CRI buy him a $66,000 Lexus sports car in 2004 while they were laying off staff?
  • Did the post office in Rancho Santa Margarita really misdirect CRI’s mail for three months at the end of 2004?
  • Is his Personal Witness Training manual a plagiarism of Evangelism Explosion by D. James Kennedy?
  • Why does he need to live in a one million dollar house in a gated community in North Carolina?

See Also

Older Apologetics Index entry on the Christian Research Institute
Additional Apologetics Index entries on the Christian Research Institute