Category: Blog

Helpful resources

For those looking to learn more about L’Abri and engage with some of the most commonly-discussed topics and ideas, we have compiled a list of resources below. For students who will be attending L’Abri, we recommend that you read at least one of the books listed here before your arrival. This should help you focus your potential areas of study, begin the thinking process before you arrive, and to help you gain an understanding of the type of learning and discussion taking place here.

Thoughtful and critical engagement is encouraged when reading any of these recommended books or articles.

Our recommendations of non-L’Abri material come with a caveat. We do not necessarily endorse or agree with all of the content within these publications, but include them for your interest and reflection. They should be considered important works be aware of concerning our world, culture and the Christian faith.

For L’Abri audio lectures, see the L’Abri ideas library

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)

Edith Schaeffer

  • L’Abri
  • The Life of Prayer
  • The Hidden Art of Homemaking
  • What Is A Family?

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

Greg Laughery

Wim Rietkerk

Jerram Barrs

Ellis Potter

Note: Most links are directed to Amazon.com*, but books may be found on other popular sites. BookDepository deliver books at the same price without delivery fees.
*For deliveries to Europe, Africa and South East Asia, try local Amazon addresses first.

Metaphor and Worldview by Aaron Fortune

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A look at the notion of metaphor, informed by the work of Lakoff and Johnson, and what it adds to the how we understand systems of belief.

You can subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri or
listen to it here:

Grappling with Grace — Richard Bradford – Swiss L'Abri

Grace is something we talk about all the time and is central to the Christian message. But it is all too often not our lived reality. This episode is a wrestling with that tension and a call to better understand the love of God in the face of our legalism and perfectionism.
  1. Grappling with Grace — Richard Bradford
  2. Metaphor and Worldview – Aaron Fortune
  3. Singleness and Disenfranchised Grief – Katrina Fortune
  4. On Living in the Desert – Jacob Marques Rollison
  5. Is God a Social Construct? – Dave Friedrich

On Living in the Desert by Jacob Marques Rollison

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This guest lecture examines what we may learn from looking at the theme of desert in the Bible. To do this, Dr. Marques Rollison presents a look at a newly published essay by the late french theologian Jacques Ellul. (Q&A at end of talk).

You can subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri or
listen to it here

You can also find it in your podcast app.

Imagination and Hope by Aaron Fortune

 

 

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Our imaginations are things that we talk about a lot, but sometimes its hard to take them seriously. We will look at how they are important to our lives and their role in our ability to see hope or despair in situations. Also, there a discussion about Hume, Kant, and some assorted poets if that’s interesting to you.

You can subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri or listen to it here

You can also find it in your podcast app.

 

 

Irony, Cynicism & Hope by Richard Bradford

Swiss-Labri-podcast-logoWe live in a society that many of us feel leaves much to be improved. As we are trying to imagine a better world, we can get trapped and discouraged. We can become cynical and even hateful. This is all the more frustrating when hatred is one of the things that we are trying to fight against. There are no easy answers to this, but the ideas in this lecture can be helpful reminders when thinking of these things.

You can subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri

 

 

You can also find it in your podcast app.

Coping with Depression by Prisca Sandri

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This episode is the personal reflection of former worker Prisca Sandri on her depression and how she advises others who also struggle.

You can subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri/episodes/Coping-with-Depression-by-Prisca-Sandri-efeitq  or listen to it here

 

You can also find it in your podcast app.

Resources for Grappling with Suffering (Interview with Katrina Fortune)

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In this episode we have an interview discussing the topic of suffering. This includes reviews of a couple of books on the topic and also a discussion of things that can help or not help when times are tough.

Listen here or subscribe to our podcast at: https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri/episodes/Resources-for-Grappling-with-Suffering-eem1h8

 

A Sociological Approach to Doubt/De-conversion with Dr. John Marriott

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This week we are pulling out a lecture that was given last summer by one of our  guest lecturers, Dr. John Marriott. Professor Marriott teaches at Biola University and has done some very interesting work on the sociology of religion. This lecture addresses what he has discovered through studying the reasons people have left the Christian faith. For more info about Dr. Marriott and his work check out his website https://www.johnmarriott.org/.

You can listen here, subscribe to our podcast at https://anchor.fm/swiss-labri/episodes/A-Sociological-Approach-to-DoubtDe-conversion-eeduuj or check it out in your podcast app.

If you are curious about the discussion episode mentioned in the launch post, we are shelving that for now. Feel free however to discuss in the comments below.