The March 2, 1959 Letter

On March 2, 1959, Francis A. Schaeffer wrote, “Christianity is the greatest intellectual system the mind of man has ever touched.” The sentence came from a pastor-apologist who had watched modern people strain under skepticism, moral confusion, and the fear that faith cannot survive honest thought. For Schaeffer, the claim was not chest-thumping but testimony: the Christian gospel is true in history, coherent in reason, and personally demanding.

His words reflected a settled confidence that Christians need not retreat from questions. Scripture calls believers to love God with the whole mind as well as the whole heart, and to let truth shape both worship and witness. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Romans 12:2)

Francis A. Schaeffer (1912–1984)

Schaeffer was an American Presbyterian minister whose ministry combined careful thinking with tender shepherding. He resisted the temptation to reduce Christianity to slogans, insisting instead that Christ addresses reality—meaning, guilt, beauty, suffering, and hope—with authority.

His courage was often quiet: listening for long hours, praying with the troubled, and refusing to offer easy comfort where repentance and faith were needed. This kind of heroism is not spectacle but steadfastness—bearing witness to Christ while bearing with people.

L’Abri Fellowship (Huémoz, Switzerland)

L’Abri (“the shelter”) began in the Swiss Alps at Huémoz near Villars-sur-Ollon. In a Europe wrestling with postwar disillusionment and rising secular philosophies, seekers arrived with books, burdens, and doubts. Francis and Edith Schaeffer opened their home to conversation, meals, and community shaped by Scripture.

L’Abri’s method was simple and demanding: take questions seriously, take sin seriously, and take Jesus seriously. Truth was not treated as an abstract puzzle but as a call to reconciliation with God and a life of obedience.

Enduring Significance

Schaeffer’s 1959 line continues to encourage believers facing hostile or indifferent cultures. Christianity does not fear investigation, because it stands on the living Christ and the trustworthy word of God. “Always be prepared to give a defense to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope that you have. But respond with gentleness and respect.” (1 Peter 3:15)

His legacy reminds the church that clarity without love becomes harsh, and love without truth becomes empty. Faithful courage holds both together.