2024/02/04

기독교 철학자 프란시스 쉐퍼 - 위키백과, Francis A. Schaeffer

프란시스 쉐퍼 - 위키백과, 우리 모두의 백과사전


프란시스 쉐퍼

위키백과, 우리 모두의 백과사전.

프란시스 쉐퍼 목사(선교사)
라브리공동체 설립자
원어이름Francis A. Schaeffer
개인정보
출생이름Francis August Schaeffer
출생1912년 1월 30일
미국의 기 미국 펜실베이니아주 필라델피아 저먼타운
사망1984년 5월 15일
미국의 기 미국 미네소타주 로체스터
국적스위스의 기 스위스
교파장로교
배우자에디스 쉐퍼(Edith Seville Schaeffer)
가족자녀: 프랭크 쉐퍼

프란시스 쉐퍼(영어: Francis A. Schaeffer, 1912년 1월 30일 ~ 1984년 5월 15일)는 미국의 기독교 철학자이며 장로교 목사이자 복음주의 운동가이다.  쉐퍼는 신학적 모더니즘를 반대하고 역사적 개신교 신앙에 더욱더 촉진시켰으며, 그 시대의 질문에 대답할 기독교 변증학을 위해 전제주의 변증 방법을 발전시켰다. 성경을 통해서 철학과 문학 그리고 사회와 정치를 분석하고 예언적 방향을 제시한 그의 방식으로 많은 기독교인들에게 큰 영향을 주었다. 라브리공동체를 창설하여 오는 많은 사람들에게 성경과 기독교 세계관의 관점에서 토론하고 기독교 문화에도 많은 도전을 주었다.

경력[편집]

프란시스 쉐퍼는 1912년 독일계 이민 프랜시스 오거스트 쉐퍼 3세와 베시 윌리엄슨 사이에서 펜실베이니아 저먼 타운에서 태어났다. 1935년 웨스트민스터 신학교와 페이스 신학교(Faith Theological Seminary)에서 공부했다. 1938년 장로교 목사로 안수받았으며, 1949년부터 스위스의 로마 가톨릭 주인 샹페리 주에 정착했다. 1955년 신학적인 갈등으로 개신교 주인 보드 위에모(Huemoz)주로 이주했으며, 1955년 한국을 비롯한 전 세계에 있는 기독교적인 배움공동체 라브리 공동체(프랑스어: L’Abri)를 설립했다. 1984년 임파선 암으로 별세했다.[1]

쉐퍼의 문화관[편집]

성인경이 말하는 프란시스 쉐퍼의 문화의 특징은 다음과 같다. [2]

첫째, 쉐퍼는 모든 문화가 복음 안에서 통일되기를 추구했다. 그가 일했던 서구 교회는 16세기에 되찾았던 만물에 미치는 그리스도의 주재권(Lordship, 골1:17,18)을 17세기의 경건주의 시대 이후에 까맣게 잊어버리고 있었다. 문화를 그리스도로부터 분리해 버렸고 이원화시켰던 것이다. 특히 20세기는 기독교인들 사이에 반문화적(反文化的)인 사고가 팽배하던 시대였다.

대학생들은 학교에서 학문과 신앙을 통합하는 것을 포기했고, 직장인들은 일터에서 기독교 정신을 실천하는 것은 불가능한 것처럼 생각하고 있었다. 예술가들은 작품 활동에서 메시지를 상실한 채 심미적 형식주의에 빠져 있었다. 영화인들은 스크린에서 절망을 부르짖고 있었던 것이다.

그 와중에서 쉐퍼는 아퀴나스 이후로 제기된 자연과 은혜의 분리를 중단하고, 정신계와 물질계의 이원화를 배제하고, 신학과 타 학문 사이의 분열을 멈추고, 복음과 문화를 그리스도 안에서 하나 되게 할 것을 주장했던 것이다. 그에게는 복음과 문화, 그리스도와 세상이라는 분리가 허용되지 않았던 것이다. 베이스(Gene E. Veith)는 "쉐퍼가 그리스도와 문화 모두를 심각하게 받아들였고 그들을 대립시켜서 일치점과 차이점을 찾아내어 서로 싸우게 만들었다"고 말했다.

패커(J.I.Packer)는 다소 신학적으로 규명했다. "그는 하나님의 주권으로 창조된 실재의 전체성과, 기독교인의 삶이란 그에 상응할 수 있는 또 하나의 포괄적인 실재이어야 함을 강조했다. 즉, 진리와 선과 아름다움이 다같이 가치를 인정받으며 동등한 열정으로 추구되어야 하는 그런 삶을 말한다. 이러한 측면들이 제도적으로는 라브리에서 구현되었으므로 그의 사역이 주목받는 것은 이해할 만하다. 왜냐하면 그의 사역이 워낙 탁월했을 뿐만 아니라 너무나도 필요한 일이었기 때문이다."

둘째, 쉐퍼는 모든 문화의 가치는 하나님에게 있다고 보았다.

그는 예술의 가치와 본질은 '예술가라는 인간의 위대함'에 있는 것이 아니라 '지금도 살아계신 하나님'에게 있다고 보았다. 즉 하나님의 인격성(人格性)과 창조성(創造性)이 모든 예술의 근본이라는 것이다. 하나님이 탁월하고 창조적인 예술가이시기 때문에 하나님의 형상대로 창조된 인간도 그 분을 닮아 예술가가 될 수 있는 것이다.

즉 예술이란 인간이 하나님의 인격성과 창조성을 과시하고 증거하는 것이기 때문이다. 우리의 생명을 하나님이 만드셨다는 것을 발견하면 할수록, 탐구하면 할수록, 이해하면 할수록, 우리는 피조물들의 다양성은 물론 하나님의 창조력의 완전함과 그의 상상력을 깊이 이해하게 될 것이다.

제람 바즈(Jerram Barrs)는 그 점을 지적하여, "이 세상의 별과, 꽃과, 새와 같이 우리가 생각할 수 있는 모든 것들은 엄청난 다양성으로 가득 차 있다. 그리고 두 개가 똑 같은 피조물은 아무 것도 없다. 모든 호랑이의 발자국이 다 다르듯이 모든 것은 서로 다르다. 세상은 이 같이 놀라운 다양성과 풍성함으로 가득 차 있다. 이것이 바로 우리의 근본적인 출발점이다"고 잘 지적했다.

그러므로 현대 예술가들이 자랑하는 창조적 '예술성만이 만능이 아니라'는 점을 명심해야 한다. 아무리 창의성이 뛰어난다 하더라도 그것이 인격성을 파괴하는 예술은 하나님뿐만 아니라 인간들로부터 거부당하게 된다. 하나님의 형상과 인간의 인격이 지나치게 파괴되기 때문이다.

셋째, 기독교적인 주제에만 제한되면 안 된다고 보았다.

쉐퍼는 예술을 기독교적인 주제에만 제한시키지 않았다. 그는 어떤 작품이 속칭 '기독교적인 주제'가 아니라는 이유로 무조건 반대하는 태도는 옳은 것이 아니라고 보았다. 동시에 기독교적인 주제를 사용했다고 무조건 좋은 작품이라고 보지 않았다. 그는 기독교인들이 하는 비기독교적 주제의 예술 작품들을 무시하지 않았다. 이것은 예술가의 '상상력(imagination)'과 관련이 있는 것이며, 모든 예술가들의 생명이다.

쉐퍼는 우리의 예술적 감각, 즉 상상력은 "저 별들의 넘어까지도 나래를 펼 수 있다"고 말 함으로써 보이는 세계와 보이지 않는 모든 세계에까지 예술가의 영역이 됨을 강조했다. 그러므로 쉐퍼는 주제의 범위를 제한하지 않았다. 예를 들어, 종교 개혁적 영성의 열매라고 할 수 있는 바하(John.S.Bach)는 메시야와 같은 성가곡만 작곡한 것이 아니라 궁중 파티를 위한 춤출 수 있는 '세속적인' 곡이라 부르는 작품들도 작곡했다.

그 점은 미술에 있어서 렘브란트도 마찬가지였다. 그는 당시에는 엄두도 못 낼 피아노 앞에 앉은 아내의 엉덩이를 그렸고, 의사의 수술 장면을 그렸다. 쉐퍼는 '아름다운 감동'을 주는 노래나 그림 뿐만 아니라 '타락한 인간 세상의 아픔'을 담아내는 노래나 그림도 가능하다고 본 것이다. 그 이유는 기독교 문화는 '미(beauty)'뿐만 아니라 '실체(reality)'를 다루어야 하기 때문이다.

넷째, 쉐퍼는 작품을 통하여 작가와 시대, 예술성을 비평했다.

현대적인 예술 비평방법은 "창의성"에 모든 생명을 걸고 있는데, 예술가의 독창적인 "개성"에 지나치게 의존하기 때문에, 한 시대의 예술관과 세계관을 분석하고 설명하는데 있어서 예술 작품이 오용당하는 경우가 종종 있다. 루이스(C.S. Lewis, 1989-1963)의 말을 인용해 본다면, "현대 비평의 중심되는 단어들은 파행적, 전통에 반하는 독자성, 규칙에 반하는 자유 등이다" 우리 시대의 위대한 작가들의 명단에 들어 갈려면 파생적, 독자성, 자유가 마음껏 발휘되어야 한다. 어떤 의미에서 기독교인들은 이들보다 더 혁명적이고 개척자적인 예술가가 되어야 한다.

그러나 쉐퍼는 예술 작품을 완전히 반대로 접근했다. 즉 쉐퍼는 예술을 평가하는 새로운 방법을 제시했는데, '예술 작품의 분석을 통하여 그 작가와 그 시대의 세계관을 밝혀내는 것'이다. 이것은 새로운 예술 비평 방법인데, 마치 '역사에 있어서는 텍스트를 설명하기 위해 역사를 사용하지 않고 텍스트를 통하여 한 시대의 역사적, 문화적, 사상적 변동을 설명하는 방법'과 일치하는 것이다. 그러므로 한 작품을 감상할 때는 종교적 주제 여부, 혹은 찬성이나 반대의 입장을 먼저 비판하기 보다는 그 작품을 통하여 작가, 시대, 예술성을 음미해 볼 필요가 있다.

그래서 그는 문화 감상 방법을 제시했다. 그는 작품의 예술성(artistics), 기술성(technology), 사상성(message)을 중시했다. 작품 속에 비기독교적인 예술성이나 기술성이 지나치게 내포되어 있을 경우에는 때로는 폐기해야 한다고 말했지만, 많은 경우에 예술성은 배우고 감상할 것이 많다고 보았다. 사상성은 언제나 조심스럽게 음미해 보아야 하는데, 20세기 예술은 작가와 관객사이에 의사소통(communication)이 단절되고 있기 때문이다. 가장 좋은 예는 작품 이름이 "무제"라는 것이 날이 갈수록 늘어간다는 것이다. 그런 의미에서 왜곡된 사상을 전하는 작품은 아무리 예술성과 기술성이 탁월하다고 하더라도 재고해야 한다.

다섯째, 문화를 전도의 접촉점으로 사용해야 한다고 보았다.

쉐퍼는 분석뿐만 아니라 분석한 것을 복음 전도의 유용한 다리로 사용했다. 그의 "문화 변증학"이라는 것은 복음의 내용을 변질 시키지 않으면서도 문화를 접촉점으로 하여 복음을 전하는 것이다.

그의 변증학은 예수님이 유대 지도자들(제도, 외식)과 사마리아 여인(물, 물동이, 남편)에게, 그리고 바울이 루스드라(농경문화), 아테네(우상, 지식과 종교 문화), 벨릭스 총독(정치문화)에게 전도할 때처럼 복음을 듣는 사람들의 문화적 배경을 대화의 접촉점으로 삼고 토론을 전개하는 하는 것이다.

특히 그는 문화 속에 숨어있는 세계관에 주목했고 기독교 세계관으로 대결했다. "역사와 문명에는 하나의 흐름이 있다. 이 흐름은 사상에 근원을 둔다. 인간은 내적 정신생활에 있어서는 특이한 존재이다. 즉 그들의 정신세계는 그들의 행동을 결정짓는다." 그가 현대 문화의 사상적 뿌리를 심각하게 본 것도 바로 여기에 있다.

세계관뿐만 아니라 요즘 같으면 영화, 음악, 미술 등이 복음전파의 가장 좋은 다리로서 사용될 수 있다. 라브리에서는 음식이나 산책, 여행, 노동까지도 복음의 접촉점으로 사용한다. 21세기는 "문화의 시대"라고 하는데 그의 문화적 변증학, 문화적 전도학이 성경적 방법이라는 것이 인정되고 빛을 발할 때가 된 것이다.

저서[편집]

같이 보기[편집]

각주[편집]

  1. ↑ 복있는 사람 저자소개
  2. ↑ 프란시스 쉐퍼의 문화관, 크리스천투데이, 2002-01-18

외부 링크[편집]


===

Francis Schaeffer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Reverend

Francis Schaeffer
Founder of the L'Abri community
Born
Francis August Schaeffer

January 30, 1912
Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedMay 15, 1984 (aged 72)
Rochester, Minnesota
Occupation(s)Christian philosopher, Evangelical church leader, author
SpouseEdith Seville Schaeffer
ChildrenPriscilla Sandri
Susan Macaulay
Deborah Middelmann
Frank Schaeffer
Signature

Francis August Schaeffer (January 30, 1912 – May 15, 1984)[1] was an American evangelical theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He co-founded the L'Abri community in Switzerland with his wife Edith Schaeffer, née Seville, a prolific author in her own right.[2] Opposed to theological modernism, Schaeffer promoted what he claimed was a more historic Protestant faith and a presuppositional approach to Christian apologetics, which he believed would answer the questions of the age.

Biography[edit]

Schaeffer was born on January 30, 1912, in Germantown, Pennsylvania, to Franz A. Schaeffer III and Bessie Williamson.[3] He was of German and English ancestry.[4][page needed]

In 1935, Schaeffer graduated magna cum laude from Hampden–Sydney College. The same year he married Edith Seville, the daughter of missionary parents who had been with the China Inland Mission founded by Hudson Taylor. Schaeffer then enrolled at Westminster Theological Seminary in the fall and studied under Cornelius Van Til (presuppositional apologetics) and J. Gresham Machen (doctrine of inerrancy).[5]

In 1937, Schaeffer transferred to Faith Theological Seminary, graduating in 1938. This seminary was newly formed as a result of a split between the Presbyterian Church of America (now the Orthodox Presbyterian Church) and the Bible Presbyterian Church, a Presbyterian denomination more identified with Fundamentalist Christianity and premillennialism. Schaeffer was the first student to graduate and the first to be ordained in the Bible Presbyterian Church. He served pastorates in Pennsylvania (Grove City and Chester) and St. Louis, Missouri. Schaeffer eventually sided with the Bible Presbyterian Church Columbus Synod following the BPC Collingswood and BPC Columbus split in 1956. BPC Columbus reorganized as the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in 1961, and Schaeffer followed the EPC into the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod when the Bible Presbyterian Church's Columbus Synod merged with the Reformed Presbyterian Church, General Synod in 1965,[6] a denomination which would merge with the Presbyterian Church in America, in 1982.

In 1948, the Schaeffer family moved to Switzerland and in 1955 established the community called L'Abri (French for "the shelter").[1][7] Serving as both a philosophy seminar and a spiritual community, L'Abri attracted thousands of young people, and was later expanded into Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Schaeffer received numerous honorary degrees. In 1954, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Highland College in Long Beach, California.[8] In 1971, he received an honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts.[9][10] In 1982, John Warwick Montgomery nominated Schaeffer for an honorary Doctor of Laws degree, which was conferred in 1983 by the Simon Greenleaf School of Law, Anaheim, California in recognition of his apologetic writings and ministry.[11]

Schaeffer died of lymphoma on May 15, 1984, in Rochester, Minnesota.[12][13] He opened a L'Abri branch there before his death. Schaeffer Academy, a private K-12 school in Rochester, is named after him.[14]

Family relationships[edit]

In Crazy for God, Schaeffer's son Frank presents a portrait of his father that is far more nuanced and multi-dimensional than was suggested by his public persona. He states, for example, that Schaeffer's primary passions in life were not the Bible and theology but rather art and culture. "And what moved him was not theology but beauty".[15] Schaeffer's son claims he had frequent bouts with depression and a verbally and physically abusive relationship with his wife, Edith.[8] Those in the inner circle at L'Abri challenge Frank's account. Os Guinness, who lived with the Schaeffers and was a close friend of both the younger and elder Schaeffer, described Crazy for God as a "scurrilous caricature" and said, "[N]o one should take Frank's allegations at face value."[16]

Frank Schaeffer initially supported his father's ideas and political program, but has since distanced himself from many of those views, first converting to the Eastern Orthodox Church[17] and later becoming a liberal and a self described "atheist who believes in God."[18][19]

Apologetics[edit]

Schaeffer's approach to Christian apologetics was primarily influenced by Herman Dooyeweerd,[failed verification] Edward John Carnell, and Cornelius Van Til, but he was not known to be a strict presuppositionalist in the Van Tillian tradition. His approach to culture was heavily influenced by his friendship with Hans Rookmaaker. In a 1948 article in The Bible Today, Schaeffer explained his own apologetics and how he walked a middle path between evidentialism and presuppositionalism, noting that "If the unsaved man was consistent he would be an atheist in religion, an irrationalist in philosophy (including a complete uncertainty concerning 'natural laws'), and completely a-moral in the widest sense."[20] J. Budziszewski summarizes the article about this middle path approach by writing:

Presuppositionalists, he held, are right to assert that the ultimate premises of Christian and anti–Christian systems of thought are utterly at odds in relation to their origin. On the other hand, evidentialists are right to assert that between Christian and anti–Christian systems of thought there is always a point of contact in the shape of reality itself. The reason for this point of contact, he argued, is that nonbelievers cannot bring themselves to be completely consistent with their own presuppositions, and this inconsistency is a result of what many call common grace and is in fact the reality of God having made, and spoken into, a defined and unavoidable creation. "Thus, illogically", he wrote, "men have in their accepted worldviews various amounts of that which is ours. But, illogical though it may be, it is there and we can appeal to it."[21]

Schaeffer came to use this middle path as the basis for his method of evangelism which he called "Taking the roof off".[22] An example of Taking the roof off in written form can be found in Schaeffer's work entitled Death in the City.[23] Nancy Pearcey also describes two books by Schaeffer, Escape From Reason and The God Who Is There in this way:

In these books, Schaeffer explains the history of the two-story division of knowledge, often referred to as the fact/value split. He also describes his apologetics method, which combined elements of both evidentialism and presuppositionalism.[24]

Influence of Rushdoony[edit]

In the 1960s Schaeffer read the works of Reconstructionist theologian Rousas John Rushdoony with appreciation, and according to Barry Hankins, "it is quite likely that Schaeffer's belief that the United States was founded on a Christian base came in part from Rushdoony."[3] Schaeffer later lost this fervor because Rushdoony was a postmillennialist (holding the doctrine that the kingdom of God will be built on earth before the second coming of Jesus) while Schaeffer was a premillennialist (holding that the kingdom of God will only be ushered in with the second coming). Further Schaeffer thought that Rushdoony's system would require a merger of church and state, which he opposed. He held that the principles, not the actual details, of Old Testament civil law were applicable under the New Covenant of Jesus. He wrote "The moral law [of the Old Testament], of course, is constant, but the civil law only was operative for the Old Testament theocracy. I do not think there is any indication of a theocracy in the New Testament until Christ returns as king."[3]

Legacy[edit]

The Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation in Gryon, Switzerland is led by one of his daughters and sons-in-law as a small-scale alternative to the original L'Abri Fellowship International, which is still operating in nearby Huemoz-sur-Ollon and other places in the world. Covenant Theological Seminary has established the Francis A. Schaeffer Institute directed by a former English L'Abri member, Jerram Barrs. The purpose of the school is to train Christians to demonstrate compassionately and defend reasonably what they see as the claims of Christ on all of life.[25]

According to Michael Hamilton of Christianity Today, "Perhaps no intellectual save C. S. Lewis affected the thinking of evangelicals more profoundly [than Francis Schaeffer]; perhaps no leader of the period save Billy Graham left a deeper stamp on the movement as a whole."[26]

Institute of Church Leadership[edit]

In 1978, Schaeffer asked a group of Reformed Episcopal Clergy to research his thoughts and current trends, forming a church guild called "The Society of Reformed Philosophical Thinkers". This was merged in 1988 with "Into Thy Word Ministries", which was then transformed into "The Francis A. Schaeffer Institute of Church Leadership Development" in 1998. Its purpose is to strategize how to reach and train pastors and church leaders to focus on Christ centered principles. Its aim is to point the church back to "true-Truth" and "true spirituality". The foundation develops comprehensive curriculum for pastors, church planters and church leaders.[citation needed]

Political activism[edit]

Francis Schaeffer is credited with helping spark a return to political activism among Protestant evangelicals and fundamentalists in the late 1970s and early 1980s, especially in relation to the issue of abortion.[27] In his memoir Crazy for God, Schaeffer's son Frank takes credit for pressing his father to take on the abortion issue, which Schaeffer initially considered "too political".[8] Schaeffer called for a challenge to what he saw as the increasing influence of secular humanism. Schaeffer's views were expressed in two works, his book entitled A Christian Manifesto, as well as the book and film series, Whatever Happened to the Human Race?.[citation needed]

A Christian Manifesto[edit]

Schaeffer's book A Christian Manifesto[28] was published in 1981 and later delivered as a sermon in 1982. It was intended as a Christian answer to The Communist Manifesto of 1848 and the Humanist Manifesto documents of 1933 and 1973. Schaeffer's diagnosis is that the decline of Western Civilization is due to society having become increasingly pluralistic, resulting in a shift "away from a world view that was at least vaguely Christian in people's memory… toward something completely different."[citation needed] Schaeffer argues that there is a philosophical struggle between the people of God and the secular humanists.[improper synthesis?] In the sermon version of the book, Schaeffer defines secular humanism as the worldview where "man is the measure of all things".[citation needed] He claims that critics of the Christian right miss the mark by confusing the "humanist religion" with humanitarianism, the humanities, or love of humans. He describes the conflict with secular humanism as a battle in which "these two religions, Christianity and humanism, stand over against each other as totalities."[citation needed] He writes that the decline of commitment to objective truth that he perceives in the various institutions of society is "not because of a conspiracy, but because the church has forsaken its duty to be the salt of the culture."[29]

A true Christian in Hitler's Germany and in the occupied countries should have defied the false and counterfeit state and hidden his Jewish neighbors from the German SS Troops. The government had abrogated its authority, and it had no right to make any demands.

He then suggests that similar tactics be used to stop abortion. But Schaeffer argues he is not talking about a theocracy:

State officials must know that we are serious about stopping abortion… First, we must make definite that we are in no way talking about any kind of theocracy. Let me say that with great emphasis. Witherspoon, Jefferson, the American Founders had no idea of a theocracy. That is made plain by the First Amendment, and we must continually emphasize the fact that we are not talking about some kind, or any kind, of a theocracy.[30]

Christian Reconstructionists Gary North and David Chilton were highly critical of A Christian Manifesto and Schaeffer.[31]

Their critical comments were prompted, they wrote, by the popularity of Schaeffer's book.[32] They suggested that Schaeffer supports pluralism because he sees the First Amendment as freedom of religion for all; and they themselves reject pluralism.[33] Pointing out negative statements Schaeffer made about theocracy, North and Chilton then explain why they promote it.[34] They extend their criticism of Schaeffer:

The fact remains that Dr. Schaeffer's manifesto offers no prescriptions for a Christian society. We mention that merely in the interests of clarity, for we are not sure that anybody has noticed it up to now. The same comment applies to all of Dr. Schaeffer's writings: he does not spell out the Christian alternative.[35]

Influence on Christian conservatives[edit]

Christian conservative leaders such as Tim LaHaye have credited Schaeffer for influencing their theological arguments urging political participation by evangelicals.[36]

Beginning in the 1990s, critics[who?] began exploring the intellectual and ideological connection between Schaeffer's political activism and writings of the early 1980s to contemporary religious-political trends in the Christian Right, sometimes grouped under the name Dominionism, with mixed conclusions.[citation needed]

Sara Diamond and Frederick Clarkson[37] have written articles tracing the activism of numerous key figures in the Christian Right to the influence of Francis Schaeffer. According to Diamond: "The idea of taking dominion over secular society gained widespread currency with the 1981 publication of...Schaeffer's book A Christian Manifesto. The book sold 290,000 copies in its first year, and it remains one of the movement's most frequently cited texts."[38] Diamond summarizes the book and its importance to the Christian Right:

In A Christian Manifesto, Schaeffer's argument is simple. The United States began as a nation rooted in Biblical principles. But as society became more pluralistic, with each new wave of immigrants, proponents of a new philosophy of secular humanism gradually came to dominate debate on policy issues. Since humanists place human progress, not God, at the center of their considerations, they pushed American culture in all manner of ungodly directions, the most visible results of which included legalized abortion and the secularization of the public schools. At the end of -- A Christian Manifesto, Schaeffer calls for Christians to use civil disobedience to restore Biblical morality, which explains Schaeffer's popularity with groups like Operation Rescue. Randall Terry has credited Schaeffer as a major influence in his life.[38]

Frederick Clarkson explains that this had practical applications:

"Francis Schaeffer is widely credited with providing the impetus for Protestant evangelical political action against abortion. For example, Randall Terry, the founder of Operation Rescue, says: "You have to read Schaeffer's Christian Manifesto if you want to understand Operation Rescue." Schaeffer, a longtime leader in Rev. Carl McIntire's splinter denomination, the Bible Presbyterian Church, was a reader of Reconstructionist literature but has been reluctant to acknowledge its influence. Indeed, Schaeffer and his followers specifically rejected the modern application of Old Testament law."[39]

Analyses of Schaeffer as the major intellectual influence on Dominionism can be found in the works of authors such as Diamond[40] and Chip Berlet.[41] Other authors argue against a close connection with dominionism, for example Irving Hexham of the University of Calgary, who maintains that Schaeffer's political position has been misconstrued as advocating the Dominionist views of R. J. Rushdoony, who is a Christian Reconstructionist. Hexham indicates that Schaeffer's essential philosophy was derived from Herman Dooyeweerd, not Rushdoony, and that Hans Rookmaaker introduced Schaeffer to his writings.[42] Dooyeweerd was a Dutch legal scholar and philosopher, following in the footsteps of Neo-Calvinist Abraham Kuyper.

Congresswoman and 2012 United States presidential candidate Michele Bachmann has cited Schaeffer's documentary series How Should We Then Live? as having a "profound influence" on her life and that of her husband Marcus.[43]

Writings[edit]

The complete works of Francis Schaeffer.

Francis A. Schaeffer wrote twenty-two books, which covering a range of issues. They can be roughly split into five sections, as in the edition of his Complete Works (ISBN 0-89107-347-7):

  • A Christian View of Philosophy and Culture: The first three books in this block are known as Schaeffer's "trilogy", laying down the apologetical, philosophical, epistemological, and theological foundation for all his work.
  • A Christian View of the Bible as Truth
    • Genesis in Space and Time: Argues that the historical (as opposed to literalist or figurative) view of Genesis as historically true is fundamental to the Christian faith.
    • No Final Conflict
    • Joshua and the Flow of Biblical History
    • Basic Bible Studies: Biblical studies on the fundamentals of the faith.
    • Art and the Bible
  • A Christian View of Spirituality
    • No Little People: Argues that Christians should never despair of having a significant life of realizations, small as they seem to be.
    • True Spirituality: The spiritual foundation for Schaeffer's work, as a complement to the theological and philosophical approach of most other books. Useful for gaining a balanced view of the whole of Schaeffer's life and ministry.
    • The New Super-Spirituality: Claims the intellectual decadence of students and the counter-culture from the late sixties to the early seventies can be traced back to the conformism of their fathers, only with fewer moral absolutes, and predicts the contamination of the church. Offers an analysis of Postmodernism.
    • Two Contents, Two Realities: First presented as a position paper at the First International Congress on World Evangelization at Lausanne, Switzerland in 1974.
  • A Christian View of the Church
  • A Christian View of the West

In addition to his books, one of the last public lectures Schaeffer delivered was at the Law Faculty, University of Strasbourg. It was published as "Christian Faith and Human Rights", The Simon Greenleaf Law Review, 2 (1982–83) pp. 3–12. Most of his writings during his Bible Presbyterian days have not been collected, nor reprinted in decades.

In addition to the five volume Complete Works listed above there were also two books by Dr. Schaeffer published after his death:

  • Dennis, Lane T. (ed) Letters of Francis A. Schaeffer, Crossway Books, Westchester, 1985.
  • Schaeffer, Francis A. The Finished Work of Christ: The Truth of Romans 1–8, Crossway Books, Wheaton, 1998.

Films[edit]

Schaeffer was persuaded to adapt his book How Should We Then Live? The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture to film by Gospel Films, Inc. CEO and executive evangelical media producer Billy Zeoli who pitched the idea of hiring Schaeffer's then recently married son, teenage father, and painter Frank Schaeffer as a producer for the film project. Zeoli was instrumental in providing the Schaeffers with introductions to wealthy American evangelicals who would eventually bankroll the How We Should Then Live film project. This book is still being read and used today in American Universities as well as in various small group studies to help shed light on the contemporary cultural problems of the past and how they have led to many of the issues that America is facing today. Issues such as race, apathy, abortion, and the non-compassionate use of wealth are topics still relevant today. Schaeffer argues that the humanist base for morals is fundamentally a weak base upon which to build a moral framework for society. By contrast, the Bible, understood as the revealed revelation from God is able to provide a fundamentally sound basis for societal norms as well as a base for science. The president of Christian Leaders Institute (CLI), Henry Reyenga Jr., secured rights to post this film series in an ethics class at CLI. This freemium ministry training school lists "deceased" Francis Schaeffer on its faculty.[44]

The American distribution of the book and film was responsible for bringing many evangelical Protestants into the then largely Roman Catholic public protest movement against the United States Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision, 410 U.S. 113 (1973) supporting legal abortion in the United States.[45]

  • How Should We Then Live? The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture (1976). Frank Schaeffer produced his father Francis Schaeffer's film series, which was released with a book by the same title.
  • Whatever Happened to the Human Race? (1979). A Christian response to abortion, euthanasia, and infanticide, narrated by Francis Schaeffer and future Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop; it was released with a book by the same title.

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Jump up to:a b "Biographical Sketch", Francis August Schaeffer Papers, PCA Historical Center, archived from the original on May 17, 2014, retrieved August 26, 2006.
  2. ^ List of works by Edith Schaeffer, Amazon.
  3. ^ Jump up to:a b c Hankins, Barry (2008). Francis Schaeffer and the Shaping of Evangelical America. Eerdmans.
  4. ^ Duriez 2008.
  5. ^ Duriez 2008, p. 34.
  6. ^ Francis A. Schaeffer, "A Step Forward", The Presbyterian Journal, March 6, 1974, pp. 7–8. Retrieved September 7, 2007.
  7. ^ Hamilton, Michael S., "The Dissatisfaction of Francis Schaeffer", Christianity Today, A Tribute to Mark Heard, vol. 41, no. 3, p. 22, archived from the original on December 21, 2006, retrieved August 25, 2006.
  8. ^ Jump up to:a b c Schaeffer 2007, p. [page needed].
  9. ^ "Francis August Schaeffer Papers [Early Ministry] Manuscript Collection # 29, Box 134". PCA Historical Center. Archived from the original on May 17, 2014. Retrieved July 24, 2006.
  10. ^ Douglas, James Dixon (1992). Who's who in Christian History. Tyndale House. p. 609. ISBN 978-0-8423-1014-7.
  11. ^ Parkhurst, LG (1985), "Appendix A: Chronology of the Life of Francis Schaeffer", Francis Schaeffer: The Man and His Message, Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, pp. 213–15.
  12. ^ Duriez 2008, p. 210.
  13. ^ Saxon, Wolfgang, "Rev. Francis A. Schaeffer, 72; Founder of Spiritual Centers", New York Times, May 17, 1984.
  14. ^ "Founding".
  15. ^ Schaeffer 2007, p. 140.
  16. ^ Guinness, Os (March–April 2008). "Fathers and Sons: On Francis Schaeffer, Frank Schaeffer, and Crazy for God". Books & Culture. Retrieved May 23, 2008.
  17. ^ Ethics daily.
  18. ^ Winston, Kimberly (June 13, 2014). "Frank Schaeffer, Former Evangelical Leader, Is A Self-Declared Atheist Who Believes in God". Huffington Post. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  19. ^ Oppenheimer, Mark (August 19, 2011). "Son of Evangelical Royalty Turns His Back, and Tells the Tale". The New York Times. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  20. ^ Schaeffer, Francis, "A Review of a Review", in The Bible Today, October 1948, pp. 7–9. Accessed August 21, 2006. Reprinted at PCA Historical Center.
  21. ^ Budziszewski, J (May 2000). "Evidentialists and Presuppositionalists". Letters. First Things. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  22. ^ Edgar, William (Spring 1995), "Two Christian Warriors: Cornelius Van Til and Francis A. Schaeffer Compared", Westminster Theological Journal, 57 (1): 57–80.
  23. ^ Schaeffer, Francis, "Chapter 9: The Universe and Two Chairs", in Death in the City, reprinted at Nehemiah's Prayer Watch. Retrieved August 22, 2006.
  24. ^ Pearcey, Nancy (2004), Total Truth: Liberating Christianity From Its Cultural Captivity, Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, p. 453.
  25. ^ "Our Purpose", FSI, Covenant seminary, archived from the original on September 1, 2006, retrieved August 26, 2006.
  26. ^ Hamilton, Michael (March 3, 1997). "The Dissatisfaction of Francis Schaeffer". Christianity Today. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  27. ^ Jon, Ronson. "Things fell apart. Episode 1: 1000 dolls". BBC. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  28. ^ Schaeffer, Francis (1982), A Christian Manifesto (revised ed.), Crossway, ISBN 0-89107-233-0.
  29. ^ Schaeffer, Francis (1982), A Christian Manifesto, People for life, retrieved June 24, 2005.
  30. ^ Schaeffer, Francis, A Christian Manifesto, in The Collected Works… Volume 5, pp. 485–86.
  31. ^ North, Gary; Chilton, David (1983), "Apologetics and Strategy", in North, Gary (ed.), Tactics of Christian Resistance: A Symposium, Tyler, TX: Geneva Divinity School, pp. 100–40.
  32. ^ North & Chilton 1983, pp. 116–17.
  33. ^ North & Chilton 1983, pp. 128–29.
  34. ^ North & Chilton 1983, pp. 121–22.
  35. ^ North & Chilton 1983, pp. 127–28.
  36. ^ Tim LaHaye, 1980, The Battle for the Mind, Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell, p. 5.
  37. ^ Clarkson, Frederick (1994). "Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence". The Public Eye Magazine VIII (1 & 2).
  38. ^ Jump up to:a b Diamond, Sara (1994). "Dominion Theology: The Truth About the Christian Right's Bid for Power", Z Magazine (column) February 1995. Publiceye.org.
  39. ^ Clarkson, Frederick. (1995). "Christian Reconstructionism: Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence." In Chip Berlet (Ed.), Eyes Right! Challenging the Right Wing Backlash (pp. 59–80). Boston: South End Press. Revised and included in Clarkson, Eternal Hostility. Publiceye.org
  40. ^ Sara Diamond, 1995, Roads to Dominion: Right–Wing Movements and Political Power in the United States, New York: Guilford, pp. 246-249.
  41. ^ Chip Berlet and Matthew N. Lyons, 2000, Right–Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort, New York: Guilford Press, pp. 212-213.
  42. ^ Hexham, Irving, "The Evangelical Response to the New Age", in Perspectives on the New Age, edited by James R. Lewis & J. Gordon Melton, State University of New York Press, Albany, New York, 1992, pp. 152-163, and especially p. 322 Note 16.
  43. ^ Lizza, Ryan, "Leap of Faith: The making of a Republican front-runner", New Yorker Magazine, August 15, 2011.
  44. ^ "The Late Dr. Francis Schaeffer". Free Ministry Training – Ordination. Christian leadership institute. June 5, 2011. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  45. ^ Randall Balmer (May 27, 2014). "The Real Origins of the Religious Right". POLITICO Magazine. Retrieved May 4, 2022.

Cited sources[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • Bazinek, Leonore, "Schaeffer, Francis A. (1912-1984)", in Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon Vol. 8, 1398–1405.
  • Bazinek, Leonore, "Das Problem der Erkenntnis von Wahrheit im Feld der Begegnung von pluralistischer und biblisch-christlicher Weltanschauung, Regensburg: Roderer, 1990.
  • Boa, Kenneth D., and Robert M. Bowman, Faith Has Its Reasons: An Integrative Approach to Defending Christianity, NAV Press, Colorado Springs, 2001.
  • Burson, Scott R. and Jerry L. Walls. C.S. Lewis and Francis Schaeffer: Lessons for a New Century from the Most Influential Apologists of Our Time. Leicester: InterVarsity Press, 1998.
  • Coward, Harold, Pluralism: The Challenge to World Religions, Orbis Books, Maryknoll, 1986.
  • Cunningham, Stuart, "Towards A Critique of Francis Schaeffer's Thought", Interchange, 24 (1978) pp. 205–21.
  • Dennis, Lane T. (ed) Francis A. Schaeffer: Portraits of the Man and His Work, Crossway, Westchester, 1986.
  • Follis, Bryan A., Truth With Love: Apologetics of Francis Schaeffer, Crossway, Wheaton, 2006.
  • Fowler, Robert Booth, A New Engagement: Evangelical Political Thought 1966–1976, William B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1982.
  • Garber, Stephen S. (Spring 2002). "Substantial healing, one more time". Knowing & Doing: 8–11, 19.
  • Hankins, Barry, Francis Schaeffer And the Shaping of Evangelical America, Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 2008.
  • Hexham, Irving, "The Evangelical Response to the New Age", in Perspectives on the New Age, edited by James R. Lewis & J. Gordon Melton, State University of New York Press, Albany, New York, 1992, pp. 152–63.
  • Kubsch, Ron, ed. (2007), Wahrheit und Liebe: Was wir von Francis Schaeffer für die Gegenwart lernen können (in German), Bonn: VKW.
  • Morris, Thomas V., Francis Schaeffer's Apologetics: A Critique, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1987.
  • Parkhurst, Louis Gifford, Francis Schaeffer: The Man and His Message, Tyndale House, Wheaton, 1985.
  • ——— (1996), Francis & Edith Schaeffer, Minneapolis: Bethany House.
  • Ramsey, George W., The Quest for the Historical Israel, SCM Press, London, 1982, pp. 107–15.
  • Roper, D. L., "A Sympathetic Criticism of Francis Schaeffer's Writings", Interchange, 41 (1987) pp. 41–55.
  • Ruegsegger, Ronald W, ed. (1986), Reflections on Francis Schaeffer, Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
  • Stadler, G Thomas (June 1989), "Renaissance Humanism: Francis Schaeffer Versus Some Contemporary Scholars", Fides et Historia, 2: 4–20.

External links[edit]

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