I've been working on a book on Dr. Schaeffer off and on for about fifteen years. While I consider much of his work simply brilliant, I have a few reservations about the man and his ministry. Much of Franky's bitter descriptions of his dad may be malevolent, but likely have some basis in fact.

Francis Schaeffer spent too many years off in Europe and was cut off from other Reformed people. He never really got over the fundamentalism of his early days and, as a Presbyterian, was a loose subscriptionist. Meanwhile, Francis lived in L'Abri, a parachurch la-la land -- and was essentially accountable to no one.

While Franky seems to be saying that Francis shouted Calvinism from the rooftops, the opposite was true for his public career. Francis' books tried to propose a "Christian Worldview" that was devoid of any serious theological foundation beyond inerrancy. Instead of directing people to John Calvin and Theodore Beza, he unintentionally pointed people to Ralph Reed and Pat Robertson.

Finally, the moral crises in the Schaeffer household should have been investigated. Where was the RPCES (now the PCA) during all this?

__________________
Chris Stamper
Park Cities PCA
(Dallas, TX)