How Should We Then Live? by Francis A. Schaeffer
Week 1: Introduction — The Flow of History
Read the Introduction and Chapter 1 of How Should We Then Live? by Francis A. Schaeffer.
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Schaeffer opens by inviting us to see history not as a random sequence of events but as a flowing stream of ideas — and to ask what happens when the source of that stream runs dry.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Schaeffer argues that the history of Western culture can be understood as the outworking of underlying philosophical and religious ideas. Before reading further, what assumptions did you bring to the question, 'How should we then live?' Did you think of it as primarily a personal or a cultural question?
2.Schaeffer draws a sharp distinction between two kinds of ultimate foundations for a civilization: the infinite, personal God of the Bible on one hand, and finite or impersonal 'gods' (including the god of autonomous human reason) on the other. Why does he argue this distinction is decisive for how a culture develops?
3.The title of the book comes from the prophet Ezekiel, who spoke to a people on the brink of cultural and spiritual collapse. What does Schaeffer suggest Ezekiel's situation has in common with our own? Do you find the parallel convincing?
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