L'Abri resources
L’Abri workers have developed lectures and discussions that explore how Christianity relates to areas of life such as philosophy, culture, the arts, psychology, gender, sociology, history, theology, politics, economics, science, and ecology. The Ideas Library contains over 1000 lectures. New ideas are added to the collection each month.
Podcasts from the branches:
REcommended Books
Great L'Abri reads:
In 1955 an American family moved in to a chalet on the side of a steep Swiss Alp. They did not know why God had brought them there, what he wanted them to do, or where the money to live would come from. This is the story of how God led them step by step.
Francis Shaeffer had been serving as a pastor for over a decade when he began to wonder if Christianity really made a difference in people’s lives. True Spirituality, a twentieth-century spiritual classic, outlines the result of his effort to “start at the beginning” and re-examine his faith.
There can be few people in the early twenty-first century who have not, at some time, asked the question, “Who am I?” or set out to “find themselves”. With creative insight and common sense, Dick Keyes offers a novel solution to the modern problem of identity that is found in the very creation of humanity itself.
Scroll further down for more book recommendations.
Video archive
L'Abri Blogs:
Canadian L'Abri blog
You’ll find us conversing over tea, fighting blackberry brambles in the yard, or laughing as we play games together. We believe God is involved in all aspects of our lives, so we try to embrace being fully human at L’Abri.
Swiss L'Abri blog
A simple blog with updates of refurbishment, strange weather and botanical growth in a lil' Swiss village. You'll also find updates on tech limitations at L'Abri and snapshots from around the community.
Southborough blog
We strive to be communities of “shelter” for people both inside and outside of the Christian faith, looking to address their doubts, concerns or problems with the claims Christianity makes on their lives and the world.
The L'Abri Statements
When the Swiss L’Abri began in 1955, the Schaeffers produced a 2-page document which summarised the Basic Principles of Operation of L’Abri Fellowship. (see Appendix II, pg 22) It sets out the core beliefs which underpin the work, and has guided the direction and development of L’Abri over the past 50 years.
More recently, the membership of L’Abri Fellowship has produced a further document, “The L’Abri Statements”, having the same objective in mind, yet without displacing the original. They are not meant to be exhaustive nor are they designed to be published (though we are happy to have them freely copied and distributed). We intend to use them actively within the Fellowship as a guide to those working or studying with us, but we hope they will also be helpful to others whatever their individual or organizational contexts may be.
As the opening paragraph of the section dealing with ‘Boundaries’ says, “We see the following statements as guidelines to lead us into truth together, not as credal formulations that would preclude further growth, correction and discussion.” And again, “Faithfulness to God must take shape and have certain parameters in specific, historical and cultural settings. Therefore we have outlined some of the areas where we feel accommodation (i.e. compromise) is a particular danger today.”
Books by L’Abri authors
Many of the books are available through Amazon, but can also be found at Barnes & Noble, BookDepository and other sites.
Francis Schaeffer
- True Spirituality
- Trilogy: The God Who Is There/Escape From Reason/He Is There and He Is Not Silent
- The Complete Works of Francis Schaeffer (5 Volume Set)
- Other Books by Francis Shaeffer
Edith Schaeffer
- L’Abri
- The Life of Prayer
- The Hidden Art of Homemaking
- What Is A Family?
- Other Books by Edith Shaeffer
Dick Keyes
- Beyond Identity: Finding Your Way in the Image and Character of God
- Chameleon Christianity: Moving Beyond Safety and Conformity
- Seeing Through Cynicism: A Reconsideration of the Power of Suspicion
- Other Books by Dick Keyes
Os Guinness
- The Call: Finding and fulfilling the central purpose of your life
- Dining with the Devil: The Megachurch Movement Flirts with Modernity
- When No One Sees: The Importance of Character In An Age of Image
- Other books by Os Guinness
Richard Winter
- Perfecting Ourselves to Death: The Pursuit of Excellence and the Perils of Perfectionism
- Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment: Rediscovering Passion and Wonder
- When life goes dark: Finding hope in the midst of depression
Greg Laughery
- Living Spirituality: Illuminating the path
- Living Reflections
- Other books by Greg Laughery
Wim Rietkerk
- If only I could believe
Jerram Barrs
- Being Human: The Nature of Spiritual Experience (With Ranald MacAuley)
- The Heart of Evangelism
- Other books by Jerram Barrs
Ellis Potter
- Three theories of everything
- Other books by Ellis Potter