Escape from Reason

I read an interestingly small volume entitled "Escape from Reason", written by Francis Schaeffer. Schaeffer was a pastor and a renowned theologian of the 20th century. Among his many contributions was the foundation of the L'Abri as a venue for those who are seeking answers to their honest questions. His commitment to historic Christianity and his compassion to his modernist contemporaries led him to write numerous volumes aimed to answer the questions of his age in a distinctively Christian paradigm.

Why is it interesting despite its mere 125 pages? This book was a clear reminder to not let the size of the book fool us for the weight of its content. A confession: I sloughed through this book. Also, this book is the second part of a trilogy consisting of "The God Who is There" (part 1) and "He is There and He is Not Silent" (part 2).

Schaeffer's aim was to track down why modern men think the way they/we think. Why do we have the society that we have now? This brief work is an assessment of the effects of philosophy (from ancient to modern) to the world we inhabit. The book feels like a crash course in major philosophies. But Schaeffer achieves this responsibly as a Christian.

What is engaging about this book is that Schaeffer adorned his academic critique with plain language. The book's brevity is so that it would reach a wide readership. There are also simple diagrams at the beginning of major chapters to illustrate the shifts in thinking. Even so, the contents are still quite meaty. Going through the history of philosophy is no cakewalk, yet necessary. There are some parts of the book that requires a deeper understanding of the philosophy under scrutiny. This is so unlike what usually is consumed by people these days: Facebook banter and Twitter bites. But a committed completion of this book provides a corrective lens to proper engagement with the secular thinking. Christian apologetics is only worthwhile with an adequate knowledge of the competing values of the world. Mr. Schaeffer provides the latter here.

I highly recommend this work, especially for Christian students starting out in their university life. Every chapter challenges the reader to assess his/her own thinking: Is my thinking a faithful representation of the Christian faith? Or is it a mixed bag of strange, fine-sounding, and plausible arguments? In a rather brief way, Schaeffer uncovers what John Bunyan's Vanity Fair looks like today. The book concludes that a rejection of the biblical God causes man to live in a world of illusion and irrationality, while greatly hidden under the guise of "rationalism".

For my part, I wish that I have read Francis Schaeffer earlier in my life. His critical yet meaningful engagement with the world around him, without great compromise to the Lord and the faith that he loves, is worthy of great imitation. He was a burning and shining lamp, and it continues to be a pleasure to live under his light.