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What Schaeffer did find was the spiritual traditions his wife, Edith, brought into the family. He tapped into the principles of China Inland Mission (CIM), in which Edith's parents had served. So L'Abri, following Hudson Taylor's CIM, was started as a "faith ministry" for which the couple never asked for support, although Edith's "family letters" were distributed widely and frankly expressed their needs. CIM also emphasized enculturation—careful translation of the gospel into terms familiar to the local culture—and much of Schaeffer's work can be seen as an effort to translate the faith for the '60s generation. He also adopted the Keswick Movement's emphasis on holiness. While he and Edith never believed Christians could be "perfected," they did believe in the constant pursuit of sanctification and "substantial healing." By the power of the Holy Spirit one could know "moment to moment," as they liked to say, the will of God. Edith taught Francis that the "final apologetic" must be living out the love of Christ—which Francis would later call the "mark of a Christian."

Schaeffer came to Europe as a theological imperialist, but took on the posture of God's servant when his ambitions were thwarted. This shift was the wellspring of his compassion for the young people who came to L'Abri—a love unnatural to him that grew as he obeyed the Great Commandment. He knew what it was like to feel lost and to cling to God.

Finally, Hankins's biography tends to put Schaeffer on the shelf. He sees Schaeffer's intellectual contributions of little lasting relevance, essentially agreeing with the criticisms of Schaeffer's evangelical peers. His apologetics are unsuited to the postmodern era, in Hankins's view, and his social activism too wedded to the Christian Right. But Schaeffer remains a historically important and laudatory example for Hankins, one whose true legacy consists in the evangelicals he inspired who continue to engage the culture.

There are other ways, though, in which Schaeffer's life story remains relevant. The problems within evangelicalism that plagued Schaeffer have not gone away. Because evangelical Christianity's weak ecclesiology persists, evangelicals must find a means beyond church structures to maintain a consensus on Christian essentials. The usual strategies are to defend a particular view of the Bible, as Schaeffer did, to privilege experience, or to be so busy marketing conversion that the great remainder of Christian life is neglected. The questions of Schaeffer's life—how to balance faith and reason, doctrine and love, engagement and piety—remain at the heart of evangelicalism's dilemmas.

Harold Fickett was a student at Swiss L'Abri in 1973. His latest book, with Charles Colson, is The Faith (Zondervan, 2008)

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Previous articles on the Schaeffers and L'Abri include:

Not Your Father's L'Abri | The Swiss retreat now tends less to philosophical skeptics than to disaffected evangelicals. (March 28, 2008)

Francis Schaeffer, the Pastor-Evangelist | Bryan A. Follis on his book, Truth with Love. (May 22, 2007)

Learning to Cry for the Culture | Let's remember Francis Schaeffer's most crucial legacy — tears. (March 19, 2007)

L'Abri Turns 50 | Francis Schaeffer's ministry is bigger than ever. (May, 2005)

The Book Report: Things We Ought to Know | Charles Colson's apologetic—and call to action—is in the tradition of Francis Schaeffer. (January 10, 2000)

The Dissatisfaction of Francis Schaeffer (Parts 1 and 2) | Thirteen years after his death, Schaeffer's vision and frustrations continue to haunt evangelicalism. (March 1997)

Inside CT: Midwives of Francis Schaeffer | (March 3, 1997)

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November 2008, Vol. 52, No. 11