English L'Abri: Recent Episodes
English L'Abri
Lectures old and new from workers and guest lecturers at English L'Abri, a residential study center and community open to guests seeking a welcoming place to ask life’s many questions. For more information, visit englishlabri.org
englishlabri.substack.com
In April 2025, the Bible Society published a report which showed a 'Quiet Revival’ in UK churches, with a surprising increase in young people attending church. Since then, the results of this study have been discredited. Nonetheless, there does currently appear to be a cultural change in attitudes to Christian faith in the UK and Europe, with many anecdotes of young, unchurched people coming to faith. In this lecture I will be exploring some possible causes for this change, what we can learn from it, and where potential pitfalls might lie.
Click here to see the visual presentation from the lecture.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What does it mean for a society or individual to believe things in common, when contemporary society is marked increasingly by customized news sources, a collapse of consensus, loss of societal authority, and the normalization of doubt?
Rashomon, the 1951 landmark film by Akira Kurosawa, shook the notion of a single narrative account of a crime by presenting multiple, conflicting viewpoints — marking the postwar collapse of binding narratives concerning Japanese society.
This lecture explores the contradictions of today’s Rashomon moment for the West, which on the one hand is experiencing fragmentation, a loss of narrative unity — owing to digital, consumer technology — while on the other hand exhibiting the opposite, i.e. new forms of conformity expressed across various fields.
Click here to see the visual presentation for this lecture.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Our culture's crisis of confidence in knowledge is the culmination of a long history of the search for certainty. The Bible's picture of knowing, however, rests on fundamentally different assumptions and thus restores our confidence in seeking and knowing the truth.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How do we hold on to hope and a sense of meaning when life is difficult? We’ll explore what the psychiatrist Viktor Frankl discovered in his search for Meaning and look into how it can be relevant today in our everyday lives.
Dr. Frankl was imprisoned in a concentration camp during WWII and fascinated by the power of hope for humans as meaning-seeking beings and Professor of Sociology,
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Amy Julia Becker, a Disability Theologian says “I’ve come to believe that if I understand God’s logic around disability, I’ve come to understand God’s logic about humanity.”
Drawing on personal experiences of parenting a child with Downs Syndrome and Autism and supporting a husband with a chronic health condition, Ali introduces us to the work of Disability Theologians to explore questions such as: Why does contemplating how God sees Disability matter to each of us? What can it teach us about being made in the image of God, our intrinsic worth, the importance of belonging, and the joy found in doing life differently?
Click here to see the presentation used during the lecture.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
“My hope is to put forward a positive vision of what God created our bodies for. Why did God give us bodies?” - Joel Barricklow
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, we identify three common barriers that rob our felt sense of God and rediscover where God might be found.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What does it mean to live creatively in a world shaped by pressure, productivity, and performance? Drawing on his forthcoming book, Grace In the Making, Alastair leads us in exploring the relationship between art, faith, and the slow work of becoming.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Internationally acclaimed Romanian sculptor, Liviu Mocan, explores some of his works to show how art can be a window between heaven and earth — an ark where we can meet with the presence of God.
Click here to view the presentation deck from the lecture
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture explores the promises, products, and people of 'Wellness Culture'. After a brief history of the movement, we explore how capitalism, science, and technology have shaped it in the 21st century. We'll then articulate an alternative understanding of health and wellness seen in Christianity—a much more accessible, inclusive, and hopeful vision, particularly for those in society who need health the most: the sick, the elderly, the disabled, and marginalised.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
While some dream of a society where perfect justice is enacted or where technology allows us to live in pleasure and plenty, others foretell nightmares of climate catastrophe, cultural collapse or Artificial Intelligence making humans obsolete. Amidst these competing utopian/dystopian futures, what does it look like to have Christian hope?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In 1944, fifty-two year old Dutch watchmaker Corrie ten Boom was arrested by the Gestapo for sheltering Jews. After surviving Ravensbruck and losing most of her family, she embarked on a three decade ministry, sharing a message of love, forgiveness, and hope. Who was Corrie ten Boom and how did she become the kind of person who builds secret rooms, undermines Nazis, survives a concentration camp, and then goes on to share the gospel with refugees, prisoners, and the Nazis who killed her family?
Lecture resources: PowerPoint presentation
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
People are more important than things. And yet our lives are full of interactions with invisible strangers who make our things. Who are they? And how do we treat them? This lecture will focus on how we can dignify these strangers in the face of consumer culture, new technologies, fear, greed and the lure of convenience.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture covers different artistic interpretations of Jesus’ Ascension, from early Eastern Orthodox icons to Renaissance and Baroque paintings, highlighting how artists have grappled with the theological implications of the Ascension. The lecture also encourages reflection on the visual representation of theological concepts and the role of art in understanding and interpreting religious events.
Lecture Resources: PowerPoint deck
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What have the cluttered landscapes of Pieter Bruegel the Elder to do with the complex plots of Fyodor Dostoevsky? In each, we find subtle allusions to the holy, hidden and tucked away in the least likely of places. Why do these artists hide the holy? And what are the implications for theology and the arts in our age?.
Lecture Resources: PowerPoint deck
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
At the heart of the Bible’s understanding of what it means to be human is the concept of dominion: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over all the earth’” (Genesis 1:26). This lecture will explore how human dominion is misunderstood, corrupted and blocked in our age of artificial intelligence, and why it must ultimately be embraced.
Lecture Resources: Opening "Creation story" video
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What does home mean in a world of fracture and individualism, when moving house, job and even country is common, and even if we stay, the places we love are changing around us? All of us have a profound need to belong. In this talk Jo explores how the longing for home shapes the way we live, love and worship. Through storytelling, cultural reflection, and gentle spiritual insight, Jo invites us to consider where we have sought home, what we have lost or found along the way, and how a richer, more hopeful sense of belonging is possible.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this special episode Evan Shelton interviews John O’Callaghan about his book The Doors of the Ocean - Hope for the Hurting. John’s book features poetry, prose and photography focussed on the theme of suffering. For those outside Australia, an e-version of the book can be purchased from Amazon. Our apologies that the audio is muffled at times.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The New Testament presents Christ as the one in whom the deeper meaning of the Scriptures is disclosed. How does Chrsit transform the way that we hear the words of Scripture? Does this do violence to the literal meaning of the biblical texts?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This year marks the 250th Anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth. While much attention is given to Austen’s romances, her novels are rich in depictions of the deeply formative nature of family relationships, for good and for ill. Join us to discuss how her characters—and we—are shaped by the messy, the healthy, and everything in between.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In his most recent books The Master and His Emissary (2009) and The Matter with Things (2021), psychiatrist and neuroscientist Ian McGilchrist has explored the meaning of the asymmetry between the right and left hemispheres of the brain. His thesis is that we are in a period in history where the West has become obsessed with the reductionistic, decontextualised, algorithmic thinking of the left brain, whilst devaluing the holistic, integrated and lived experience of the right brain. I will be exploring the implications of McGilchrist’s thesis for Christian faith and asking whether his ideas might help us understand why many Christians today feel their faith lacks a living experience of God.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Spiritual Exercises offer an experiential process of pondering (originally in a silent retreat of some 30 days) the Bible story, focusing on observing in prayer how the creation and fall led to Jesus’ incarnation and earthly ministry, His redeeming sacrifice, resurrection and ascension. The aim is to integrate the personal, social and spiritual dimensions of life, and so arrive at a renewed Christian vision and vitality. This talk will explain the process of undertaking the exercises and discuss an evangelical Biblical approach to this discipleship tool created within the Catholic Church and how it fits with Schaeffer’s legacy of ‘all of life’ Christianity.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Though we live in a beautiful world, we don’t have to look far to see that creation is groaning. And much of this groaning is under the weight of our sinful desires and actions. How can we as Christians be a force for the substantial healing of our sin stained world and become a blessing to Creation? This lecture will explore how the agrarian philosophy of Wendell Berry can help form us into the kind of stewards that creation longs for, and that God intended us to be, through the lens of Berry’s most famous line of poetry: “Practice resurrection”.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Composer Sir James MacMillan describes music as “the most spiritual of the arts” and yet the making and hearing of music is such a physical, embodied event. This lecture will explore how music reveals spiritual realities and interacts with the supernatural, how the simple act of setting air in motion can so deeply affect our hearts. In a world saturated by music like never before, we will seek to understand what music is and where it comes from.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Bible calls us to live in several realities that can at best seem like a confusing tension sometimes, at worst a contradiction. Two such realities we are called to hold together are maturity and childlikeness. How do we do that well? This talk is a practical discussion on how we navigate this straddle.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To flourish as human beings, we each need to be connected to creation, others, ourselves, and our Creator. In this lecture Ed unpacks material from his latest book ‘The Intimacy Deficit’
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Mark Vernon provides a fresh route into Blake, taking him at his word. Exploring his writings, artwork and life, Vernon illuminates Blake’s vivid worldview and shows how his thinking is still relevant for us today.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The entire Bible, both Old and New Testament, can be seen as one unfolding narrative of redemption told by One Author. However, the Bible can often be mystifying in its various genres and ancient context—in other words, very much not like a story when one tries to read it through! This lecture traces the speaker’s journey through seminary and learning to track with, treasure, and translate for today the story Scripture tells.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Western world has been shaped by two sexual revolutions. In a previous lecture, we saw how early Christianity ushered in the first revolution with a cosmic sexual code that overturned the oppressive sexual code of the ancient world. In this lecture, we'll explore how the sexual revolution of the twentieth century overturned the Christian code, resulting not in liberation but in disintegration of intimacy, trust and of our very humanity.
To listen to the first lecture in this series click below.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To be human is to be limited. Many of the most triumphant moments of history have occurred, however, when mankind has found a way to exceed beyond these limitations and grasp that which seemed impossible. Yet in our day-to-day lives, we all experience the angst derived from expecting to live beyond our limits and many have found relief in accepting these limitations as God’s plan for humanity. Still, the Christian faith encourages supernatural living, and seemingly-impossible sacrifice. So what can we do? How do we humbly accept our limitations and also exercise our call to glorify God with our gifting and achievements? Should we embrace the sacrifice of living beyond our limits?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
We will explore how Polanyi’s concept of tacit knowledge offers a path forward in an era of uncertainty and ideological division. As truth becomes increasingly contested, Polanyi’s insights remind us that knowledge is not merely objective data but a lived, embodied reality shaped by tradition, trust, and personal commitment. We will examine how reclaiming tacit knowledge can help restore coherence in public discourse and navigate the complex challenges of our fragmented world. What is at stake is not only truth, but justice and liberty.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Joyce will incorporate her research on MacDonald's love for Pilgrim's Progress as well as the influence of Thomas Chalmers's sermons.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How should we think of ageing? Is it the same as getting older? Is ageing or getting older good? Is being young and youthful the same thing? Does Christianity offer insights about ageing that are different from our secular culture?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Truth-telling through illusions and the suspension of disbelief. Mark will play around with a pan-arts approach and show that every art form is inevitably an illusion but that is necessary for their truth-telling.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How we think of nature is vitally important for shaping our relationship with the natural world. Many Christians are functional materialists in their attitude to nature, whilst many environmentalists tend towards pantheism. This lecture aims to help us understand a biblical view of the relationship of God with his creation, one which will help us better care for and love our world.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Philip Yancey is one of the highest-selling evangelical authors in the modern era, with over 15 million English books in print. He has made an impressive career writing about his doubts and questions of faith. Yancey recently released a personal memoir, which his wife labelled a ‘prequel’ to all of his other books. Together, we will look at Yancey’s life story and his large body of work, and consider his reputation as a beloved spiritual guide for the doubting and suffering.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Peter presents his recent work on Christian leadership. What makes someone a "leader"? What does leadership have to do with spirituality, rhetoric and values? What is the specific nature of "Christian leadership"? And what resources does "Christian leadership" have to offer that can mitigate against the abuse of leadership?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Whether we consider ourselves Christian or not, the Jesus movement is the most disruptive, influential and enduring revolution in history. Even critiques of Christianity turn out to be thoroughly Christian critiques. What does that mean for a culture that considers itself to have moved on from institutional Christianity? And what opportunities does the church have to proclaim Christ in a post-Christian culture?
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
After forty-plus years studying the understanding of womanhood throughout time, philosopher Prudence Allen confidently asserts that there are but ‘two fundamental principles of gender relation.’ Grasped together, they bring harmony. Grasped in isolation, there is frequently pain and injustice. This lecture will unpack the two realities of gender from the early pages of Scripture and encourage us to hold on to both.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Some philosophical reflections on the problem of divine hiddenness.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Since Peter and Miranda Harris co-founded A Rocha in 1983, it has grown into an international family of Christian conservation organisations. After Miranda’s tragic death in 2019, their daughter Jo found her mother’s diaries in which she described the beginnings of A Rocha in their home in Portugal at which there was always ‘A Place at the Table'. These stories became the inspiration for Jo’s recent book which explores the transformative way in which sharing food is at the heart of a shared life. This talk will be a conversation around the theme of the book, and of A Rocha, and how they may resonate with L’Abri’s own calling.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Statistics of people reporting that they are feeling lonely is going up, and the number of people in cities living on their own is on the rise. Justin Whitmel Earley writes in his book Made for People, “The current of modern life is to become busier, wealthier people who used to have friends”. Is loneliness our future or can we move towards connection and friendship? In this lecture we will look at some of the components of building friendships, and why it is necessary that we keep pursuing the community we were made for.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Panpsychism is the theory that consciousness (or mentality) is fundamentally present throughout the natural world. It has been gaining popularity across a variety of disciplines, from author Phillip Pullman, to neuroscientist Iain McGilchrist, to philosopher Phillip Goff. Jordan Peterson’s ideas on consciousness intersect with panpsychism and it has a following amongst ecologists who want to advocate that non-human nature has rights. This lecture will attempt to describe and then evaluate panpsychism from a Christian perspective.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Sin has “surprising collateral benefits” writes Watkin. Chesterton said sin’s results were “pathos and brotherhood, and a thunder of laughter and pity”. In this lecture we will re-explore a core L’Abri theme, Living in the Shadow of the Fall and apply this truth to some of the current dilemmas facing our society.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, we will explore the world of economics from a different angle. Borrowing upon the language of economics, we will be looking at transactions that do not require money and what they tell us about what it means to be human, discussing how they can enlarge our understanding of social life. From this perspective, our very categories of poor and rich are challenged and put in a different framework.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Although now spread all around the globe, universities first came into being in the middle ages in Western Europe and nowhere else. What was it about mediaeval Western Eruope’s culture that allowed for the rise of these particular communities of learning? This lecture will examine the roots of the university in relation to key aspects of the mediaeval Christian mind, namely its emphasis on rationality, logic, and the unity of all knowledge, pagan and Christian, under the God of the Bible.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This December marks the 200th anniversary of George MacDonald's birth. He is regarded by many as the father of modern fantasy literature, and wrote books that have baptised many people's imaginations, including C.S. Lewis, who said that he thinks he has "never written a book in which I did not quote from him". We want to spend an evening introducing him to those of you who might not know much about him, sharing a few of our favourite books (The Princess and the Goblin, Phantases, At the Back of the North Wind), and honouring this man, whose every printed word points to a God whom he believes comes to meet us wherever we are and to point and draw us to Himself.
Please note that the ideas expressed in this lecture do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Marsh facilitates a discussion which seeks to examine some of the societal transitions that have taken place over the past 150 years and ask the question, “What do these transitions mean for us today?”
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Despite the increasing secularisation of the West, Justin Brierley believes we may be seeing a renewed interest in faith, even in our post-Christian culture. Having hosted conversations between Christians and skeptics for over 18 years, Justin will be speaking on why new atheism has grown old and secular intellectuals are considering Christianity again.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Western world has been profoundly shaped by two sexual revolutions. The first brought liberation, the second disintegration. This lecture will take us to the first century CE to explore the liberating effects of the first sexual revolution in light of the rise of early Christianity.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over two thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
“Be the change you wish to see in the world,” declared Mahatma Gandhi. There is a profound awareness of the need for change as individuals reflect on the impact of global and system challenges as well as community challenges. People cannot just “be the change” until they themselves are first changed. Beauty is a powerful catalyst for change that begins with the individual, expanding to the community. We'll explore this both in traditional non-profit categories and then consider how beauty can be incorporated into intentional relational engagements.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Far from primitive stone figures, the biblical idea of an idol is an extremely sophisticated concept. It helps us understand how even the best people, ideas, and goals can actually come to control our lives. Given this, how can we identify the idols of our hearts? When do good things become something that enslave us? And ultimately, how can we be freed towards lives even more full of good things without our security and significance resting in them?
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Why do we have the New Testament in written form? What was the rational that drove the writers of the four gospels and the letters that comprise the New Testament? In this lecture, Dirk Jongkind seeks to answer these questions.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What's happening at the cutting edge of culture today, and what does it mean for the mission of the church? Christian philosopher Peter S. Williams will explain the nature of spirituality and culture and unpack the relationship between Abrahamic pre-modernism, modernism, postmodernism and metamodernism.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
According to the legends, King Arthur was the Christian king of a Christian kingdom. But as the story has been retold in a post-Christendom culture, that's often been radically reinvented. How can the legend of Arthur help us think about the tension between the two cities, the city of man and city of God? How does the Arthurian mythos give us an index of changing attitudes to Christendom? From Geoffrey of Monmouth to recent retellings,the story of Arthur can both inspire us with dreams of a better kingdom, and warn us of the dangers of confusing earthly and heavenly kingdoms.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
It is in the regard and delight filled gaze of mothers, fathers, and family that we receive the essential philosophical dimensions fundamental to our entire lives. The mother’s rapturous smile of welcome, beheld first by the newborn, forms us philosophically. Throughout our lives, the noticing regard of friends continues this essential philosophical service.We’ll explore how this “frontline philosophy” shapes our sense of our existence, of reality and our involvement with it, our regard for others and our longing for the face of God.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
I have been fascinated by the recent conversion to Christianity of two high profile eco-activists (apologies for the imprecise term) - Paul Kingsnorth and Martin Shaw. Both have found their longings for a spirituality of nature, as well as their critique of modernity, satisfied in Jesus Christ. Using CS Lewis’s essay ‘A Christmas Sermon for Pagans’, I want to explore what has drawn these two to Christ and ask whether Christianity is a better paganism.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Eliss Potter is a former L’Abri Worker, Pastor and Evangelist. This lecture, based on his book “Comprehensive Spirituality”, explains a holistic view of what it means to live a spiritual life as a Christian.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Everyone is a philosopher and everyone is an artist, but our modern mindset discredits both philosophy and artistry. This lecture offers a philosophical reorientation to who we are, what reality is, and how it is we are involved with it, particularly in our artistry.
Note: Unfortunately this recording is missing the first ten minutes of Esther’s lecture. Our apologies for this.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
I’m a filmmaker and a dad. What were the key things that shaped your worldview as a child? Did one of your parents taste in music impact how you saw the world/your values/your style? How about films? Did your carer take you to watch films? What impact did that have on you? As a parent who loves cinema there's a temptation to try to get my daughters to watch what I believe are key formative films. I will talk about the 5 films my parents got me to watch as a kid and how it impacted my whole life.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How often do we forget who God is, what He has done, and what He has promised to those who love Him. To be able to remember the Lord seems essential to a healthy Christian life. In this talk, we will reflect on how memory and faith intersect, as we seek to grow in the knowledge of our God.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Five hundred years ago losing one’s faith would have been unimaginable, but today it is commonplace (and even celebrated). To many, the Christian faith seems unbelievable and life seems filled with reasons to set it aside. Both belief and doubt have become increasingly fragile as individuals inhabit a liminal space between the two. What are the factors that have contributed to this shift? Can faith actually be lost? If so, how can it be found again?
Andy’s original lecture on this topic can be found here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
It seems that our culture often confuses love and agreement and as a result, more than ever, we are seeing a spreading “cancel culture” and the liberal use of the term “hate speech” where the word “discourse” would perhaps have sufficed in times past. In this lecture, Priscilla shares some thoughts on this matter and a helpful framework with which to consider love and agreement.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Dan Siegel is a very influential psychiatrist/therapist in the USA. He loves to weave together insights from many disciplines and has written numerous books on how we can change our brains, families, and culture: Brainstorm: the power and purpose of the teenage brain, Parenting from the Inside Out, Mindsight, The Yes Brain Child… We will be exploring his ideas and finding significant places of agreement and disagreement with a Christian view of life.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Bible’s final book was given to reveal, not conceal. This lecture will walk through the entire book of Revelation and seek to reclaim it as such. For a head start, read Daniel 7 and Matthew 23-24:35 beforehand.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Artists are imaginative and scientists are more rational. Is that a true observation or merely an unreflected assumption? What happens if the imagination and reason do not work together? What does healthy integration lead to? These are some of the questions Marsh Moyle will explore in this lecture.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Sarah Pawlett-Jackson will compare two types of “fundamental hope”, drawn from the writings of Rebecca Solnit and Rowan Williams. In particular, we will look at how these two accounts differ in their claims about the relationship between hope and necessity. While both accounts are insightful, one of them provides a more philosophically robust foundation.
To view a transcript of this lecture, listen here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Peter will introduce an overview of his latest book, “An Informed Cosmos: Essays on Intelligent Design", examining the key theoretical and empirical claims of “ID” and reviewing the discussion about whether “ID” is “science”.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How art and literature help us imagine God’s good future.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What would you associate with the word "Christian"? A church building? A cross? A political party? Kindness? Closed mindedness? Scandals? Hospitality? In one of his smallest but, arguably, most important publications, Frances Schaeffer issues a call to all Christians to be known by one thing. While revisiting this book, Dawn will explore failure, forgiveness, the tension between truth and love, and how to pursue unity in the midst of our differences.
To view a transcript of this lecture, listen here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Hyper-individualism and consumerism are failing to satisfy our hunger for meaning. We face an identity crisis in which real community is increasingly hard to find. The culture wars have been painful and polarising and have proved a poor way to agree any kind of moral standards. Is it even possible to find a vision for goodness that can bring us together?
Rumours of a Better Country addresses our hunger for justice and a better way of living by awakening our moral imagination to the potential of a trusting community. Drawing on ancient wisdom and looking through the lens of daily reality, it shows how trust and trustworthiness must be the foundation for any kind of meaningful freedom.
Join us in celebrating the launch of Marsh Moyle’s book: “Rumours of a Better Country: Searching for trust and community in a time of moral outrage".
To view a transcript of this lecture, listen here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
There is a lot of hype these days about what AI can do and perhaps in the near future be able to do. Questions arise: Will humans be out of work? Will human dignity and unicity be compromised with the rise of real thinking machines? Stefan argues that there are solid theological and philosophical reasons why a machine will never be able to think and that the greater problem is that we think that they will.
To view a transcript of this lecture, listen here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Since the rise of the MeToo movement in the mid-2010s, masculinity has reentered the cultural conversation with force. On the left, masculinity is often seen as a problem and rarely referenced without “toxic” as a descriptor. Men simply need to shape up and stand down. On the right, a pro-male movement has bubbled up in response. Men simply need to own their dominance and take charge. Does Christianity have anything different—or better—to say?
To view a transcript of this lecture, listen here.
For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture looks back at the ideas in Richard Winter’s book, “Perfecting ourselves to Death” and its relevance today.
The slides to this talk are available here.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Artificial Intelligence is progressing more rapidly than most of us expected. Chatbots have become scarily good at answering questions or generating just about any genre of text. A.I. image generation, video generation and voice cloning are making great strides. How do we evaluate and navigate such changes? What do such developments mean for our human identity, agency and relationships?
The slides to this talk are available here.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The books known as ‘the classics’ can seem intimidating, boring or culturally oppressive. However, they tend to represent the most psychologically and thematically complex, as well as the most technically accomplished and aesthetically satisfying, depictions of the reality in which we find ourselves. In spending time with these works throughout our lives, they and their authors become our teachers and friends, as we participate in ‘the great conversation’ that has been going on for centuries. We can receive solace, goodness, beauty, truth, growth in empathy for others, and experience delight and enjoyment. In pointing us toward that which is real, they can help to point us to God.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
We want to get our relationships right, particularly our romantic and family relationships, but often end up tired, discouraged, and feeling like failures. A primary cause is when we set out to control & change others, making rules (mostly unwritten) and attempting to modify their attitudes & responses. Understanding the difference between God's job and ours, allowing grace to replace manipulation & legislation, is a step to healthy relationships.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, Merran Paul (L’Abri Worker) engages cultural approaches to parenting. Sharing her first-hand experience as a “Christian Mum”, she presents a practical vision of Love, Authority, and Freedom for families.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, Merran Paul (L’Abri Worker) engages cultural approaches to parenting. Sharing her first-hand experience as a “Christian Mum”, she presents a practical vision of Love, Authority, and Freedom for families.
This lecture is also available on all major podcasting platforms!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, Mary McCampbell (Author, Associate Professor of humanities at Lee University) will look at how the arts expand our imaginations and, in so doing, embolden our ability to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Additionally, from now on this email will exist to deliver the podcast every week for those who prefer listening through email. If you prefer to subscribe and listen through another platform, feel free to unsubscribe!
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, Mark Meynell (Author, Langham Partnership) will explore how to understand the impact of living in a secular context for Christian witnesses and show how the Arts are crucial for breaking through the intellectual barriers that secularism uses to prevent people from grasping the gospel.
Additionally, from now on this email will exist to deliver the podcast every week for those who prefer listening through email. If you prefer to subscribe and listen through another platform, feel free to unsubscribe!
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In this lecture, we will be thinking about the (still) deeply Christian nature of what we could call the soul of western culture and the importance of having a robust sense of this in light of the challenges of our time.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture explores the way both church and Western culture have interpreted the Biblical word soul (nephesh) through a Greek philosophical paradigm, leading to a strong body-soul dualism which reduces the real person to a state of inner consciousness. This has led Christians to be disengaged from the worlds around us of nature and culture, and is the great-great-great-grandfather of transgender theory where our inner psychological sense of ourselves trumps our physicality.
Click here for a PDF of the slides.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Bible describes reality in a unique way. All other worldviews are fundamentally different from the Biblical one, although many details can be the same. This lecture looks at the similarities and differences between Monism, Dualism and Trinitarianism and works to bring clarity concerning many questions and confusions.
Purchase a copy of Ellis’ book on the same topic here.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Andrew shows readers how secularism has reshaped church culture, changing the way many Christians and churches live and worship without being noticed. Both provocative and practical, he challenges Christians to live with radical Christ-like distinctiveness that requires both reformation by the church and revival by the Holy Spirit.
Purchase a copy of Andrew’s book here.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Christians rightly argue for the legal protection of plural political visions and excessive regulatory bureaucratic constraints on both personal and institutional religious freedom. They do this pursuant to a theologically well-grounded commitment to religious toleration and a limited state. But how does this championing of pluralism relate to our equally compelling duty of solidarity with our fellow citizens, facing common human challenges and possibilities, needing cooperative action, and with whom we share the image of God? In an age when many claim religious grounds for extreme political positions, how can we defend religious pluralism without destroying society itself?
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture will explore the way that the purpose of education has changed through time and what this tells us about how societies have viewed reality and what it means to be human. The purpose of education has always been connected to the idea of human flourishing. This lecture will explore the theme of telos or purpose in education and what this tells us about the values and goals that various societies pursue.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In a culture that encourages us to explore and keep our options open, we've forgotten the joys to be found in radical acts of commitment to particular things–whether that be people, places, vocations, or even to a particular idea of the good life.
Joel helps us understand what commitments are and how they function in our lives. He unpacks why it’s so difficult for us to commit in this cultural moment and then offers some thoughts on why it’s still worth trying as we look at the joys found in committing. Lastly, for those who are interested in attempting a committed life, he’ll want to offer a few simple ideas of how we might view commitment as an apprenticeship.
Click here to download a brief outline of the lecture.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Trust is the glue of a healthy social life. This lecture will reflect on how trust grows and how questions of identity disrupt the process.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
How does the renewal of our imaginations shape our Christian life and witness? How do we cultivate the renewal of our imaginations by the Spirit through the Word, for life in the world? This lecture explores the nature of the imagination and how it connects to the biblical theme of the heart, the importance of imaginative renewal for our discipleship, and suggests some steps we can take to help participate in God's redemption of our imaginations.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The German sociologist Max Weber used the term ‘iron cage’ to describe the modern project, founded on control and rationality. Modernity brought us a series of ideas that conceptualize reality as if we live in a closed universe (as Francis Schaeffer put it), where there is no real meaning and significance. This lecture will present some of modernity’s main concepts, challenging them from a Christian perspective.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Sally Rooney is the 31 year old Irish Marxist author of 3 best selling novels—Conversation with Friends, Normal People and Beautiful World, Where Are You. Normal People was adapted into a hugely successful 12 part BBC series and a TV adaptation of Conversation with Friends is about to air this year. This lecture explores the worlds the novels create and reflect and why they resonate so deeply amongst many within the millennial generation.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Everyone wants to live in harmony. But what does it mean? Harmony is a musical term, and in music it’s about relationships, unity and diversity, and dealing with (or accepting) dissonance. We explore what music has to teach us about community life. Listen carefully!
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The fact that Jesus Christ has been represented over 150 times in cinema shows us how much this question still moves us: "Who do people say I am?” This lecture shows how the representations of Jesus in cinema speak more about cinema than about Christ himself, as well as how our own views about Jesus can speak more about us than about Christ himself.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The creation has been groaning since the events of Genesis chapter 3, yet for much of the church's history, scant regard seems to have been paid to the duty that God's people might have to alleviate non-human dysfunction. What notable exceptions can we celebrate, and what is our calling today? In a culture declaring a "climate emergency", how now should we live? This lecture shares a personal perspective and invites insights from others.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The central aim of this lecture is to reflect on the impact of major culture shifts in the last century—namely, the emergence of gender studies, the affective revolution and the advent of computer technology—on the way dating and relationships are perceived and experienced.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Health and well-being have been popular topics of books, research and dinner table conversations in the recent decades. Although it is true that humans have exercised and practiced sports since ancient times, our contemporary society seems to have a very high interest in how to best treat our bodies to improve our lives. In this lecture, we will look at this topic from a Christian perspective, aiming to understand its roots and motivations, and what the biblical view of our bodies has to say about it.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The return to the biblical text in England from the late sixteenth century challenged the then current expectations of masculine behaviour. The lecture discusses this, and argues that it continues to be an important (and neglected) source for a more rounded masculinity in contemporary culture.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Francis Schaeffer was a church man. He pastored three churches in the States before going to Europe and founded a church in Switzerland before he started L'Abri. Several of his books focused on the church, including his last, The Great Evangelical Disaster. What were his concerns for the church, both the local congregation and the wider evangelical movement, and how have those played out nearly forty years after his death?
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Debates around race and racism have become increasingly polarised, both in the church and in our wider society. How can we as Christians think well about race? How can we engage in the current conversations about racial justice in a way that is thoughtful, biblical, compassionate, and humble?
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In almost any category—social status, education, life experience, economic resources, influence—being lowly (humble) is a disadvantage. And yet, from a biblical perspective, being humble is a very good thing. In the previous lecture, we explored how acknowledging our humble position opens us up to receiving what we need. This lecture clarifies what it means to choose to lower ourselves before another and explores why that would be good—for them or us.
You can find a handout to this lecture here.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In a recent survey of scientists around the world, the majority of scientists experienced awe in the lab, at least several times a year. Ruth delves into the experience of awe, looking at the experience of Christians both in and outside of the sciences, as well as scientists with other worldviews. Awe often leads to worship, so she also looks at how science can fuel Christian worship in helpful ways.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Shame has had consistently bad press in the popular psychology world. At the same time we see shame being widely used as a tool of social control, mostly online. With Te-Le Lau, in his book Defending Shame, Richard compares contemporary ideas of shame with Graeco-Roman, Chinese, and Judeo-Christian ideas. We will explore the relationship of shame to guilt and the possibility of healthy and unhealthy shame.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Going to Sunday School was a familiar routine for many of us in our childhoods, but when Sunday Schools began in the late 18th century they were both radical and controversial. Their meteoric growth over the next 50 years on both sides of the Atlantic opened up opportunities for women to contribute to Christian education and had a transformative effect on many poor communities. Can the history of the Sunday School movement teach us any lessons regarding Christian social engagement today?
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Apologetics typically grounds itself in the truth that Christianity is reasonable. This talk looks at how meaning provides another important starting point – one that is vital in our engagement with sceptics.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Our physical selves, how they look and what others think of them demand a lot of thought and work from us. We are daily confronted with images, ideas and advice on how we should be dealing with our bodies. In this lecture, we think about body image and what it means when we understand that we are made in the image of God.
Listen to and download recent lectures at englishlabri.org/podcast. For more resources, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Akira Kurosawa’s film RAN is one of the greatest Shakespearean adaptations ever brought to screen. As well as a visual masterpiece, it illuminates how one man’s hubris can have catastrophic effects on nature, family and society. The themes of Lear have become resurgent in recent prestige drama—from The Terror, to Chernobyl, to Succession. What do the themes of Lear and its heirs tell us about a world that is haunted by tragedy?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Jesus begins his teaching with what have long been called the beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12). These statements of ‘blessing’ are some of the most comforting words in all of Scripture, but there is much confusion about what they mean. Is Jesus providing entrance requirements for the kingdom of God? Is he telling us about God’s favourite people? In this lecture, Phillip Johnston makes the case that Jesus stands on the mountain as a philosopher casting his vision for true human flourishing. The beatitudes are Christ’s invitation to the good life.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
If pride is the root of all sin (and therefore death), then humility is the root of all that leads to life. But what does it actually look like to be humble? Where do we begin a journey towards humility? Should we be willing to ‘consider others better than yourselves’? Must we deny our own abilities or needs? Joel explores all of this and shows that ‘humility is not so much a grace or virtue along with others; it is the root of all…’.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
In December 2021 a significant and tragic milestone was reached: 10 million abortions took place in the UK since the UK Abortion Act was passed in 1967. How have we got to such a milestone? What are some of the consequences for us as a society? What developments are ahead? And what can we do?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
This lecture reflects on the ways we represent reality and how it expresses what it means to be human in one hand, and how, on the other hand, that can go wrong, leading us to reduce reality, losing the meanings given to humanity by the Creator. Josué explores questions such as: What is a representation? How different dimensions of reality can be represented? Are there things that cannot be represented? And finally, in the background of this reflection he analyses the current growing rating culture and its implication for how we live our lives.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Many of us don't find prayer easy. However, there is much that those who have gone before us over many centuries have left behind that can teach us and help us as we seek to rest in and struggle before God. In this lecture Peter considers the liturgy of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer as a rich framework for drawing close to God, enjoying Him, and being reminded of who He is and who we are before Him, with a particular focus on the form of prayer known as the collect.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
The concept of worldview has become widely used by many of us and certainly within L’Abri. In this lecture, Josué looks at the origins of this concept and some of the critiques of its uses, attempting to respond to them, reassessing how and why we employ this term, especially as we engage with culture.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Jim looks at visions of the new creation in art and literature as a way of helping us imagine the good life, both now and not yet.
You can view the slides for this lecture here: https://bit.ly/3EtMFYJ
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Our culture views power and authority with the greatest of suspicion. Exploring The Divine Comedy, Romance of the Rose and The Consolation of Philosophy by way of Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra and That Hideous Strength, Caleb Woodbridge look at how Lewis in The Discarded Image and the medieval tradition can help us not simply assert the truth of a Biblical view of authority, but see and live out its beauty and goodness.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
In Part 1, Joel defined and unpacked what maturity looks like through the lenses of relationship and responsibility. This lecture offers a new model of growth in Christ - ‘The Abiding Apprenticeship’ and tries to answer three basic questions:
Why do we have trouble getting started on the road to maturity?
What in life does push us towards maturity?
What are our primary barriers to maturity?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Sociologist Philip Rieff said ‘No culture has ever preserved itself where there is not a registration of sacred order’. What does that mean for 21st Century Western culture? What do we call ’sacred’ and what kind of culture, if any, are we cultivating?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
In part I, Marsh described how we become cynical or romantic to avoid the pain of reality. In part II we will ask how we get beyond cynicism and romanticism to begin the journey to encounter the real.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
When we think about our faith, it is easy to reflect on how it is relevant for our souls, our hearts and even our intellect. But what does it mean to our bodies? What does the faith in the Incarnated God have to say about our physical selves?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Do you struggle with commitment phobia? Whether the choice is for a spouse, a job, a community or even what to watch on Netflix, modern people frequently find themselves overwhelmed by possibility. This is a new cultural phenomenon rooted in a revolution in our understanding of freedom. In this lecture, we’ll trace that revolution and see how an older, richer and deeper understanding of freedom offers a cure for our anxiety.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
In the 1966 film Alfie, the hedonistic anti-hero confronts mortality and betrayal, and asks "What's it all about?”. A perennial question. Douglas Adams’ computer famously gave the answer: 42. In 2004, Julian Baggini gave a humanist’s response in his eponymous book “What’s it all about?: philosophy and the meaning of life”. But long before Baggini or Adams, Christians had reflected on this question. This lecture will focus on the answers given in the English Non-Conformist tradition, answers which remain relevant in the contemporary world.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
More than a year on from the murder of George Floyd, many in the UK church are still grappling with how to make progress in the area of racial reconciliation. Jason Roach reflects on a biblical perspective in the light of his personal experience as pastor of a multi-ethnic church on an estate in West London and co-chair of the Racial Justice Priority Group in the Diocese of London.
We apologise for the poor audio quality during some sections of this lecture.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Both Francis and Edith Schaeffer believed passionately that all human persons are made in the image of God, and thus have a glory inherent in who they are. This conviction impacted everything they taught, including what they taught about how we are to communicate the gospel to people who are not-yet believers in Jesus. Even more clearly, this conviction of the dignity of all persons impacted the way they treated people, both believers and unbelievers, and it shaped very deeply the manner in which they shared the gospel of Christ with people.
You can read the article Jerram mentions in the lecture, A Review of A Review by Francis Schaeffer.
Also, here are links to more resources from Jerram on the topic of evangelism and the work of Francis and Edith Schaeffer.
Books by Jerram
The Heart of Evangelism
Learning Evangelism From Jesus
Free Courses from Covenant Seminary
Francis Schaeffer: The Early Years
Francis Schaeffer: The Later Years
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
To desire is part of human experience. We often try to escape our desires or indulge them. But desire is a God-given force that, when ordered rightly, can bring us to Him. We will look at the purpose of desire and how it can be put to its proper use.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Critical Theory is a powerful force of influence in modern culture, but many do not understand its sources or the ways it has exerted an influence on modern society. This lecture will attempt to outline the main points developed by Critical Theory and trace its development to the modern-day.
Listen to Part 1 of this lecture here.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
The popular and controversial Franciscan priest and Christian mystic, Father Richard Rohr, has become an elder statesman for disenfranchised evangelicals and spiritual seekers of every stripe. He presents a version of Christianity that syncs with modern progressive values, but changes the meaning of almost every central Christian teaching. His unique theological mashup of Christian elements with Buddhism, New Age thinking, and modern intuitions has proved to be a “theology for the modern era” and many people find what he has to say both attractive and personally helpful. This lecture will survey and critique both his approach to Christianity and the places where his views diverge from an orthodox understanding of the faith.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
Critical Theory is a powerful force of influence in modern culture, but many do not understand its sources or the ways it has exerted an influence on modern society. This lecture will attempt to outline the main points developed by Critical Theory and trace its development to the modern-day.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
To download this lecture on your mobile device, click “Listen in podcast app.”
In a world of turmoil, art matters more than ever. Art reminds us of the things that really matter; it lifts our eyes to eternity and shows us the importance of the here and now. We will look at the importance of art for all, not just the professionals and how creativity helps humans to flourish and reflect the character of a creative God.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture will explore the continuing relevance of Schaeffer’s concept of true truth.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What do you want to be when you grow up? A question we’re often asked as children, but not often enough as adults; what are we aiming for? Not many of us would answer ‘I want to be mature’. Yet, it is with the goal of presenting us ‘mature in Christ’ that Paul strives ‘with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in’ him. So why maturity and what is it actually? Is it something we can actively pursue or a by-product of a way of life? What are signs of maturity? We’ll explore the surprisingly rich category of maturity and why it might prove a more helpful goal than we’d expect.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Building on the idea of a clear literary strategy in the Gospel of John, we will look at the thought-world that forms the basis of the Gospel. How do the Hebrew Scriptures shape John’s language? How does the author think about God speaking in his days, and about his own role in this? There is a literary strategy in how John deals with these questions, with some familiar and some unexpected results.
You can find Part 1 of this lecture series here.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
For many of us, the question of calling and significance looms large. Our culture struggles with questions of equality and hierarchy. In this lecture, we will re-examine one of Francis Schaeffer's most well-known sermons and discuss being small and yet significant because we are consecrated to God in the place where we are.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The way we raise our children has changed significantly since the late 1970s. We’ll explore the impact of Therapeutic culture on the way we see our children and the task of parenting.
2021 is the 50th anniversary of L’Abri here in Greatham. Current director Jim Paul will be in conversation with Ranald Macaulay, who together with his wife Susan founded English L’Abri, exploring the story of how English L’Abri started and the enduring legacy of Francis and Edith Schaeffer.
Although many people think that political life is a neutral zone walled off from religion, it is actually in the grip of competing visions, each of which tells its own story of salvation.
Pledging allegiance to the American flag and to the “Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” was once a common practice to begin the school day. But from the beginning of the American Republic, women were only one group not included in the “all!” We will be considering the rise of American feminism as a response to the long history of the abuse of gender difference and asking what light the Bible sheds on these issues.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
As we continue into the 21st-century, our culture, including the church, is increasingly focused on outcome measurements and efficiency. But in “The Lord’s Work in the Lord’s Way,” Francis Schaeffer emphasized that to do the Lord's work we need also to do it in the Lord’s way. Ends are not all-important, but means are crucial in the kingdom of God.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Reflections on how Francis Schaeffer and L’Abri shaped Richard Winter’s thinking in the relationship between theology, medicine, psychiatry and counseling.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Forty years ago Francis Schaeffer urged the church to live up to its calling in order to be ‘fit for purpose’ in a post-Christian world. The core of his message speaks with a relevance and vibrancy the church needs to hear more than ever. In this talk, we explore what ‘Schaeffer’s burdens’ were and why they are applicable today.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Protestant Reformation’s 500-year anniversary and recent calls to reform the religion of Islam prompt the question of what reformation might entail for Muslims. What has and what will reformation look like in Islam? Keefer considers this question by exploring the history of the religion and its theological tenets.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Transgender rights have gone from a minor issue to becoming the cultural battlefield of the past few years, with major gains made by the transgender lobby in terms of law, educational policy, media coverage and celebrity endorsement. How has the transgender lobby been so successful in changing public opinion and the voices against transgenderism so unsuccessful in holding back this cultural change?
A lecture given by Jim Paul (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 19th January, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further study:
"The Gender Equality Paradox" (from NRK 1's Hjernevask series)
"Susie Orbach on women’s bodies and why the panic about gender is disturbing" (Janice Turner, The Times, 11 January 2018)
Roots of Western Culture (Herman Dooyeweerd)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The current gender debate often flattens out the meaning of gender - male and female are merely the result of evolutionary developments and therefore we can construct and reconstruct gender in any way we see fit. But the Bible sees a deeper meaning behind gender, as well as giving a more nuanced account of our experience of what it means to be male and female.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In the early days of the modern 'green' movement, Francis Schaeffer published Pollution and the Death of Man, a short book occasioned by impoverished assumptions about humanity's place in nature among both evangelical Christians and secular environmentalists. This lecture will look at Schaeffer's Christian ecology and put his ideas in dialogue with an influential preacher (John MacArthur) and a lauded novelist (Richard Powers).
To celebrate release of his new book, What On Earth Is Heaven?, we present a discussion on the theme of heaven between Jim Paul, Dr Mary McCampbell (associate Professor of Humanities, Lee University and Andrew Peterson (singer/songwriter, author and co-founder of The Rabbit Room) with Lindsey Patton facilitating.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
All too often, Christian imaginations show evidence of having been hacked by the materialistic consensus in which we live. When it comes to the invisible dimension of reality, most Christians live as functional materialists, giving lip-service to the reality of the supernatural but denying its power. This lecture explores how materialism became so rampant in the church and how to live, as Francis Schaeffer said, in the “supernatural now”.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library atlabriideaslibrary.org.The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Exploring ethical and theological understandings of hospitality.
-Lois Lindholm, Former L'Abri Worker
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions that explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Curiosity is a quality that most children seem to possess. It is this hunger to know and understand that spurs on their many questions. While some people remain curious into adulthood, for many of us it does not come as naturally as when we were young. Neither do many Christian people consider curiosity to be significant to the life of faith. What are some ways in which being genuinely curious can aid us as we live under Christ's lordship? Is there any hope for the jaded among us to grow in curiosity?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions which explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In ’The Last Battle’, the final book in CS Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, the children witness the end of Narnia before walking through a door between worlds into a land of "warm daylight' and "blue sky, with flowers at their feet”. They eventually come to see that this ’new’ land is the real Narnia, “which has always been here and always will be”, and that the old Narnia was only its shadow or copy. Digory Kirke (the Professor in ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’) comments by way of explanation that “It’s all in Plato, all in Plato." What did Lewis mean by this and how does Plato help us understand the relationship of creation to new creation?
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions which explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
What is a Map? How does it work and what does it do? In a general way, maps help us to orient ourselves. As we talk about this broad category such as reality, is it even possible to map it? This panel will explore the way we engage, think and represent the world around us, reflecting on the different sources we use to make sense of everything that is around us.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions which explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Social Sciences have become central in the way people think about our times and the issues of the day. Its constitution and origin as a science need to be understood if we are to reflect on the roots of the contemporary social movements. Besides, as we go deeper into its roots we may come to a clearer perspective on how meaning is framed within the modern times. So, this lecture will explore its history and impact on ideas and its consequences for the way we experience reality.
For more lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library at labriideaslibrary.org. The library contains over one thousand lectures and discussions which explore questions about the reality and relevance of Christianity. We ask you to respect the copyright for this audio file which belongs to L’Abri Fellowship. Please note that views expressed in the lecture and discussion times do not necessarily represent the views of L’Abri Fellowship.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In the last 20 years the world seems to have rediscovered the concept of gratitude, and found to its surprise that it is strongly related to health and well-being.We will look at the science that has explored this, including a quick assessment of our own gratitude levels, and consider the overlap with the age-old Christian understanding of the concept, which emphasises seeing ourselves as receivers of gifts. How can we employ gratitude in every possible way in our lives?
Tom Smiley, Psychologist
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What is genuine human flourishing and how do we come close to experiencing such? Chiefly drawing upon Scripture but with secondary insights from Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Wendell Berry, and James K.A. Smith, this lecture may point us in the right direction.
Gavin McGrath, Associate Rector at St Nicholas Church, Sevenoaks
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Christians don’t have the monopoly on seeing what’s wrong with the world. This talk examines three secular sin labels as a diagnosis of the problem. Each adds something significant to our understanding of why everything is so bent out of shape. While each of these labels are useful they are inadequate to the Bible's better diagnosis.
-Andrew Fellows, Director of Christian Heritage Cambridge
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What is resilience? Why is everybody on about it today? In our search for hope and meaning, we will also look at the art of G.F.Watts.
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An introduction to the background and the claims of the Intelligent Design movement.
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This lecture will explore the relationship of subjective experience to the objective world around us. Jim will be using C.S. Lewis’ argument in the first chapter of “The Abolition of Man” to develop the idea that reality is found in the relationship between subject and object.
Jim Paul, L’Abri Worker
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Whereas Christianity once shaped the values of our culture, the historical Christian view on matters of personal choice (such as sexual morality and the value of human life) is now increasingly seen as fundamentalist and immoral. Do we look to this future with fear or excitement? Should Christians react with compromise, withdrawal, silence or assertiveness? We will review these options and look at how biblical characters responded to opposition and how we can respond to the challenge.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Dmitri Shostakovich is arguably the greatest composer of the 20th century. There is not a musical form he couldn’t write for. But his brilliance made him an easy target in Stalin’s Soviet Union, especially when ruled by a dictator who fancied himself an aesthete. His lifelong battle was to preserve his artistic integrity at the same time as avoiding the gulag and execution. Amid intolerable suffering, he somehow composed some of the most powerful and sublime comforts for others who suffer.
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Stephen King has written 61 novels, has won numerous literary awards, has had more film adaptations made of his work than any living author, and has been called the “Master of Horror”.
If a task of the Christian is to seek and treasure God’s goodness, truth, and beauty wherever they are found, how should Christians interact with King’s work and with the horror genre in general? This lecture will explore King’s oeuvre, his life, and why our culture is so fascinated with the products of his strange and delightful imagination.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This lecture will explore the nature of faith in Christ as expressed by three clergy in three recent TV shows, Rev, Broken and Fleabag. We’ll reflect on doubt, brokenness and the erotic as experiences in which we might know God.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Populism has brought a special kind of confusion for Christians, especially as Christian values can be part of the rhetoric of populism. Which loyalties, if any, should Christians feel in all of this? How should Christians respond to their cultural moment while remaining rooted in the reality of their identities in God?
Henk Reitsema, L’Abri Worker – The Netherlands
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What is power and why is it important? Is there such a thing as good power? We will look at the accounts in the first section of Matthew's Gospel for examples of power and subversion to see what Jesus makes of it all.
See the slides here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1UFAXQq3tfddosYGkBmOHil7jZshpXo5Q
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Figure of fame and controversy, Jordan Peterson is loved and hated with the same intensity for the polarizing views he expresses. In this lecture, we will continue the discussion of his rules for life, looking at their philosophical and theological framework trying to understand what he is saying and why it’s been so influential and try to offer a Christian response to some of the ideas he’s developed.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Every disappointment is an expectation revealed. Should we get rid of them altogether or can we expect good things in a broken world? We’ll work towards a recipe for healthy, realistic and resilient expectations that aim for the good life while taking into account our often painful and disappointing reality.
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We are undergoing an ‘affective revolution’ in which our feelings define reality. This is driving much of the current debates around gender, but it also affects many other areas of our lives. What is the status of statements of our feelings in relationship to truth and reality outside of ourselves?
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Made to be in relationship with the Creator and with others, humans are meant to share life. The reality of loneliness in contemporary society is keeping many from this essential aspect of life. In this lecture, we will discuss the reasons for the rise of loneliness, its effects on individuals and communities and how can we respond to the challenge.
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This lecture addresses the significance of J. R. R. Tolkien’s table motif as not only a time to enjoy the feast but also an opportunity to replenish the soul. In both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings the sharing of meals are episodes of wonder, hospitality, and renewal in contrast to the travail and despair of the road. Furthermore, Tolkien’s table motif signals the importance of establishing positive cultural liturgies in our age of distraction.
-Arthur W. Hunt III, Professor of Communications at The University of Tennessee at Martin
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Why is Munch’s iconic image still so popular today? Why does it resonate so powerfully with us? Some reflections on the work of Edvard Munch and the current exhibition at the British Museum.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Figure of fame and controversy, Jordan Peterson is loved and hated with the same intensity for the polarizing views he expresses. In this lecture, we will discuss the first six rules of his most famous book, looking at their philosophical and theological framework trying to understand what he is saying and why it’s been so influential and try to offer a Christian response to some of the ideas he’s developed.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In the 18th century, Naturalists referred to beauty as that which was functional. The 19th century Romantics said it was the sublime. Many 20th century artists just resorted to shocking people in the name of art and beauty. Art conferences and critics in the late 20th century have shown a renewed interest in the concept of why beauty matters, increasingly using the word "beauty" again. But, the concept appears to have lost some of its meaning. What do we mean by beauty? Could the answer lay in how beauty relates to our brokenness and need for restoration? As Isaiah 61:3 says, "He gave me beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning …"
Download the slides: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1s0Rs8bFHJSaTwYqyXQd_0776z8kYCviJ
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The quest to find one’s self is an ancient one, but modern people pursue it with new means and new ends. People today often build their identities on the pillars of freedom, self-expression, disenchantment and authenticity. What resources and challenges can Christianity bring to the questions of the self? Can there be truth and beauty to an idea that is anathema to many moderns: an identity is best founded not on one’s self at all, but on God?
Download the slides: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1FwSPVNgS9J4aYj8rjYYrxcNPUeS1HcSk
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Legacy is best judged after 20 or 30 years or more, but there are elements of a lasting ministry which are evident much sooner. Julia Cameron will outline John Stott’s life and point to some of its effects which are already visible. He was, she argues, a man of colossal influence, like his mentor, Charles Simeon.
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This lecture will continue a series on the Dutch Christian philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd. We will explore the way humans experience reality in all its various facets. Dooyeweerd’s Christian ontology is a powerful perspective which challenges contemporary perspectives that reduce and degrade life.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Can you understand the Psalms without understanding the first two chapters of Genesis? Much of the imagery of the Psalms is built upon a handful of core images found in Genesis that appear again and again in the Psalter and throughout Scripture. We will look at where these metaphors come from, how they have shaped biblical poetry, and what they reveal about God himself.
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What is love? What does it have to do with the ethical life of the Christian? What is at stake when we get love wrong? In an age in which love seems increasingly sentimental and maudlin, this talk aims at a course correction by first proposing a framework for the character of Christian love and then applying the proposal to cases, including war.
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As embodied creatures, to be human is to be in a particular place. But does it matter where that is? What value is there in committing to a place? We will consider the ideas shaping our decisions to stay or to go, to engage or to escape.
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We will examine the themes of dislocation and homecoming and discuss the nature of the Homeric gods. This lecture will include a comparison with and critique of the Homeric cosmos and worldview from a Biblical perspective.
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A collaborative study of Rembrandt’s artwork and exposition of the text implementing insights from Henri Nouwen and Tim Keller.
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The Gospel of John has been analysed with the help of literary categories more than any other book of the New Testament. Literary criticism is not so much about the good story, but about how the story is told. Looking at John through a literary filter shows features that would have been easily missed otherwise. In this lecture, we will develop some of the literary concepts and see how they work in reading John.
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We are living in times of polarisation. It seems that in every aspect of life, there are those who are right - us - and those who are wrong - them. What is pushing us into this position? How can we find a way to truly encounter one another? We will look at how conversation can help us to engage with others in ways that reflect reality and enable us to grow.
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For some work is about survival. For others it involves issues of identity. Many are unsure they are in the right type of work at all. Yet, almost everyone seeks meaningful work. The narratives of purpose and meaning around our work are deeply rooted in our time, place, and experience. This lecture will attempt to reframe our understanding of work as a core element of being human, yet one keenly affected by the Fall—moving from how work fits into our lives to how we fit into the work of God.
Download the Powerpoint slides: https://bit.ly/2EuQNwg
Recommended reading on the topic of faith & work: https://bit.ly/2CgoAHt
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Five hundred years ago losing one’s faith would have been unimaginable, but today it is commonplace (and even celebrated). To many, the Christian faith seems unbelievable and life seems filled with reasons to set it aside. Both belief and doubt have become increasingly fragile as individuals inhabit a liminal space between the two. What are the factors that have contributed to this shift? Can faith actually be lost? If so, how can it be found again?
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Love seems to be a very unstable feeling. What do we mean by the word? Does it have any real place in modern life?
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The Enneagram is a personality typing system which offers a framework for understanding oneself and others through nine interconnected personality types. In recent years, it has risen in popularity, especially among Christians. We will look at the nine types, how the Enneagram can be used and misused, and what insights it can offer individuals and communities.
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In the buzz and busyness of life, it is important to make choices for ourselves and for those we love (especially our children!) to slow down, to carve out spaces for connection and healthy interactions, and foster a safe environment in which we can explore life's greatest questions, encounter dragons and villains, and develop a taste for goodness, beauty and truth.
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Francis Schaeffer was a Christian apologist whose remarkable breadth of cultural interest and penetrating insights into modern life, led many to a profound spiritual reality. Hans Rookmaaker was an art historian whose Christian insights in art, music and culture had widespread influence. Both had vibrant personalities, striking charisma, and focused on how to engage with reality while creatively living out a relationship with God.
For further reading:
William Edgar, Schaeffer on the Christian Life
Bryan A. Follis, Truth with Love: The Apologetics of Francis Schaeffer
Colin Duriez, Francis Schaeffer: An Authentic Life
Linette Martin, Hans Rookmaaker: A Biography
Laurel Gasque, Art and the Christian Mind: The Life and Work of H.R.Rookmaaker
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The aim of this lecture is to present a panorama of a movement born in our era called “transhumanism”. From computer scientists and tech experts to philosophers and theologians, transhumanist thinking has been spreading quickly as a belief system to various areas of life. My goal is to analyse their concept of singularity and its centrality as a driving force for their enterprise, offering a Christian response to the main themes developed by transhumanists.
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Many traditional accounts of ethics focus on the concept of virtue, the cultivation of the self towards an elevating telos by shared practices in community. Since the advent of social media, there has been a remarkable transformation in our relationships and in the realities that lie at the heart of such ethics: self, character, community, and shared practices. Understanding how we are being changed will equip us to act more prudently.
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This lecture will outline the principles and findings of the Integrated Character Project: a programme of psychological studies, biblical and theological reflection, and practical application. We will address the implications for Christian living, education, work life, and mental health.
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Peter Merz offers an in-depth analysis of Homer's Odyssey as an invitation to explore the classics in general and discover their beauty and wisdom which has stood the test of time.
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Interpersonal conflict is painful and yet confrontation is necessary if we are to have more than superficial relationships. What issues have to be addressed if we are to negotiate the minefield and a way that is profitable for them (and not necessarily for us).
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The event of Christ’s Transfiguration is a more important one in the New Testament than we often appreciate. Properly understood, it gives us a key for reading the Bible as a whole.
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Dorothy Sayers, a contemporary of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien and an unofficial "female Inkling," the literary coterie that gave birth to The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings. In this lecture, Dawn Merz explores her life, letters, and powerful, but often overlooked, contribution to Christian literature and thought.
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Christian artists often struggle to integrate their faith with their artwork and end up with a sacred-secular split. We will look at an array of artworks to help us see what it looks like when we try to shut Christ out of a big part of our lives. This false dichotomy splits our hearts, and this problem is in no way limited to artists. Isaiah 29 and Colossians 2 will help us think about what it would look like for us to recapture the wonder of Christ working in our hearts with “wonder upon wonder” (Isaiah 29:14).
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Our capacity to pay attention is central to human flourishing. A whole influential industry—powered by modern technology and our proximity to our smartphones—has been targeting our ability to attend in order to keep us hooked to their products and invest our time in a way that is profitable for them (and not necessarily for us). In this lecture, we will look at how the Attention Economy works, how it influences our lives, and how we can respond to it in a healthy way.
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Andrew Fellows interacts with Abraham Heschel's book "The Sabbath" and builds a theology of rest by looking at how we interact with space and time.
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Taking inspiration from Romans 12:2 about being transformed by renewing our minds, this lecture looks at the cult of busyness. Are Christians too busy? How do we cope in a world where we will never finish everything we have to do? How did Jesus manage all the demands on his time?
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Prompted by recent interest in Dr. Rookmaaker’s work, Peter Smith reflects on the decade-long relationship he had with the art historian. Through personal meetings and letters from 1967 to 1977, what kind of influence did Rookmaaker have on a young painter and printmaker? How do we understand his legacy in today’s context? Did he open doors that we have yet to walk through?
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In this lecture, Pat Harvey leads a whistle-stop tour of 20th-century French chanson. She surveys notable singers from the niche genre and introduces a few of their most well-known songs.
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Andrew Fellows, former L'Abri worker, walks us through the development of modernity and proposes life in community as a buffer against the more negative aspects of modern life.
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Many today feel uncertain about how to respond to a changing technological landscape. Having previously outlined a few rules for what technology is and how it behaves, this lecture explores what we should do about it and proposes a response that avoids the double dangers of fear and utopianism.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 23 June, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
What Technology Wants (Kevin Kelly)
Reclaiming Conversation (Sherry Turkle)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Many today feel uncertain about how to respond to a changing technological landscape. If neither technophobia nor technophoria are adequate responses, can we chart a middle way? This lecture outlines a few rules for what technology is, how it behaves, what we should do about it, and proposes a response that avoids the double dangers of fear and utopianism.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 18 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
What Technology Wants (Kevin Kelly)
Understanding Media (Marshall McLuhan)
Technopoly (Neil Postman)
The Technological Society (Jacques Ellul)
The Singularity Is Near (Ray Kurzweil)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
When asked what happened when Jesus was crucified, many Christians can give little more than short, pithy summaries: 'He was dying for our sins' or 'He was taking our punishment' or 'He was showing how much God loved us.' The Bible has more to say. As preparation for Good Friday, this lecture explores the deep terror and unspeakable comfort of the brutal execution at the heart of Christian faith.
A lecture given by Phillip Johnston (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 23rd March, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further exploration:
Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament (Christopher J.H. Wright)
The New Testament and the People of God (N.T. Wright)
The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ (Fleming Rutledge)
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The culture is polarised—not just left and right but the centre and the periphery, the cosmopolitans and the provincials. This lecture will sketch some trajectories for where this might lead and consider what we should do about it.
A lecture given by Marsh Moyle at English L'Abri on 16th March, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974) are widely regarded as two of the greatest films of the twentieth century. The Godfather: Part III (1990) is often dismissed as a pale failure. This lecture explores how the trilogy as a whole reflects the work of a specifically Catholic imagination where the moral universe is viewed through the sacraments of the Church.
A lecture given by Andrew Jones (Vicar of Grace Church Hackney, London) at English L'Abri on 9th March, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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This talk explains what other-centred love looks like and how ‘the inferno of self-love’ works against it. We consider how Christ alone is the reference point for understanding the greatness of the highest love.
A lecture given by Andrew Fellows at English L'Abri on 24th February, 2018. Andrew is director of Christian Heritage, a study centre community serving Cambridge. Andrew was the former chairman of L'Abri International Fellowship and director of English L'Abri from 1995-2015.
For further study:
Radical Alterity (Jean Baudrillard)
In the Self's Place: The Approach of Saint Augustine (Jean-Luc Marion)
The Agony of Eros (Byung-Chul Han)
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In a time of busy, workaholic, multitasking, tired people, is there a space for rest? This lecture looks at reasons why rest has become such a distant concept and explores its powerful and transformative offer to our lives.
A lecture given by Lili Reichow (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 16th February, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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This lecture articulates a theological and philosophical definition of thankfulness, trying to find broader categories to think about a common concept in a more comprehensive way.
A lecture given by Josué Reichow (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 9th February, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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There is a renewed recognition in education, politics and business that character is crucial for the future of society and human flourishing. But what is character? Can it be educated into children? And what about us? This lecture will consider these questions with a look back to ancient wisdom and forward to the latest psychological research.
A lecture given by Tom Smiley (Clinical Psychologist) at English L'Abri on 2nd February, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further study:
Virtue Reborn (Tom Wright)
The Science of Virtue: Why Positive Psychology Matters for the Church (Mark McMinn)
The Psychology of Christian Character Formation (Joanna Collicutt)
Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification (Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
From Genesis to Revelation, God uses many threads—themes, narratives, characters, and symbols—to weave a single story. This lecture introduces ‘Biblical theology,’ a way of reading the Bible that seeks to trace each thread as it develops throughout scripture to better understand God's work in Jesus, the one to whom all the threads lead.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 26th January, 2018. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further study:
Videos and resources from The Bible Project
Handbook on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (G.K. Beale)
Reading Backwards: Figural Christology and the Fourfold Gospel Witness (Richard Hays)
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Worldviews influence and shape our beliefs and the way we see the world, but what influences these worldviews themselves? This lecture will explore how deeper engagement with low-level creeds—our deeply held, often repeated, mantra-like confessions or beliefs—should be considered part of our worldview discussions.
A lecture given by Tom Price (Senior Tutor at The Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics) at English L'Abri on 1st December, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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Many Christians live with a hard divide between the sacred and the secular, a type of imaginational segregation that isolates Christianity from the rest of human experience. As a pastor’s kid who always loved fairy tales and fantasy novels, Andrew shares how story, art, and music were the breadcrumbs that led him to faith in Christ and to a sacramental view of a world ‘charged with the grandeur of God’ (G.M. Hopkins).
A lecture given by Andrew Peterson at English L'Abri on 17 November, 2017. Andrew Peterson is a songwriter, author, and founder of The Rabbit Room, a community of songwriters, authors, and artists interested in storytelling, faith, and fellowship.
For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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After five centuries of history, the principles and beliefs of the Protestant Reformation and the Renaissance are still at work in our society. This lecture looks back to these movements to discern their similarities, tensions, and contribution to the birth of modernity.
A lecture given by Josué Reichow (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 10 November, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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Drawing on research conducted in a small town in the American Midwest to explore some of the motivations and meanings attached to white evangelical support for Donald Trump, this lecture reflects on the puzzling relationships between religion, race, and politics that have unfolded in the United States over the last eighteen months.
A lecture given by Jessamin Birdsall (PhD candidate, Princeton University) at English L'Abri on 3 November, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further study:
"White Evangelicals for Trump" (Jessamin Birdsall)
Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A History from the 1730s to the 1980s (David Bebbington)
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Many voices in our culture extol the value of authenticity. But what does it mean to be authentic? Does it mean being real, genuine, not fake—completely honest? Or is our current use of the word closer to the Latin root author, i.e. to be your own author, true to yourself no matter what? This lecture explores these definitions of authenticity as a way of approaching an even bigger question: Is God ‘I am’ or am I?
A lecture given by Edith Reitsema (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 27 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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A look at how the theology of Martin Luther and John Calvin effected significant changes in the musical forms of the medieval church.
A lecture given by Judy Raines at English L'Abri on 21 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Many today feel uncertain about how to respond to a changing technological landscape. If neither technophobia nor technophoria are adequate responses, can we chart a middle way? This lecture outlines a few rules for what technology is, how it behaves, what we should do about it, and proposes a response that avoids the double dangers of fear and utopianism.
The second part of this series is now available.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 18 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
What Technology Wants (Kevin Kelly)
Understanding Media (Marshall McLuhan)
Technopoly (Neil Postman)
The Technological Society (Jacques Ellul)
The Singularity Is Near (Ray Kurzweil)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
In their recent book Modern Art and the Life of a Culture, Jonathan Anderson and William Dyrness offer a rereading of the history of modern art, including such important artists as Van Gogh, Kandinsky, Warhol, and others. In the book and this lecture, Anderson explores episodes in modern art history that are more shaped by religious contexts and theological concerns than they are usually given credit for, questioning the narrative Hans Rookmaaker offered in his influential book, Modern Art and the Death of a Culture (1970).
A lecture given by Jonathan Anderson (Assosciate Professor of Art, Biola University, USA) at English L'Abri on 13 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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The sixteenth-century reformer John Calvin is not generally know for his enthusiasm for the visual arts. Yet he widely praised the arts in general as good gifts of God's creation for the common good and enjoyment of all. In this 500th anniversary year of the Reformation, this lecture takes a closer look at Calvin's comments on the arts in his Institutes of the Christian Religion and considers what may still be of value.
A lecture given by Adrienne Chaplin (Independent Scholar and Visiting Research Fellow, King's College London) at English L'Abri on 6 October, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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T. S. Eliot is among the greatest poets of the twentieth century. However, his masterpiece The Four Quartets, remains an evocative mystery to many readers. In The Four Quartets we see a Christian poet at the height of his maturity. It is a meditation on time, suffering, modernity, God, the human experience, and much more that rewards an evening's study and a lifetime's reading.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 29 September, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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Contemporary sociologists argue that the way we see the world is socially created within cultures. “Girls wear pink and boys wear blue,” for example, is not a universal law but something created within twentieth-century Western culture through discourse around what it means to be male and female. If reality is socially created, then it can be recreated. But is this true of all of reality? Can gender, religion, morality, and even our own humanness be shaped and reshaped as we choose?
A lecture given by Jim Paul (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 22 September, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
The Social Construction of Reality (Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann)
The Abolition of Man (C.S. Lewis)
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The third and final talk from our summer day conference on the Bible. Printed materials from the event are available at this link. This is a partial recording of a longer, interactive session.
For further study, visit Myrtlefield House for a very useful source for ideas about reading the Bible as literature.
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The second of three talks from our summer day conference on the Bible. Printed materials from the event are available at this link.
For further study:
Jesus and the Eyewitnesses (Richard Bauckham)
How We Got the Bible (Neil R. Lightfoot)
The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? (F. F. Bruce)
The Historical Reliability of the Gospels (Craig Blomberg)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The first of three talks from our summer day conference on the Bible. Printed materials from the event are available at this link.
For further study:
Scripture and the Authority of God (N.T. Wright)
Words of Life: Scripture as the Living and Active Word of God (Timothy Ward)
Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament (Christopher J.H. Wright)
Additionally, you can find the two videos from The Bible Project played during this talk at the links below:
"What is the Bible?"
"The Story of the Bible"
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Saint Augustine once wrote, 'For when we ask whether someone is a good man, we are not asking what he believes, or hopes, but what he loves.’ This lecture explores the primacy of love in the Christian life by encouraging the cultivation of a love for God which deepens our enjoyment of God’s good gifts.
A lecture given by Phillip Johnston (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 4 August, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit (James K.A. Smith)
Making Sense of God: An Invitation to the Sceptical (Tim Keller), particularly the fourth chapter, ‘A Satisfaction That is Not Based on Circumstances’
The Confessions (St. Augustine)
’The Making of Modernity’ (Andrew Fellows), available at the L'Abri Ideas Library
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The present time is filled with an incredible amount of options in practically every aspect of life. Our job is to choose—to exercise our abilities to understand, analyse, and decide. This lecture discusses how we arrived at a time of such abundant choice and explores the consequences of this reality for our daily lives.
A lecture given by Lili Reichow (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 30 July, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
The Tyranny of Choice (Renata Salecl)
The Paradox of Choice (Barry Schwartz)
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The modern world is desperate to live and to die. Medicine has never been more able to prolong and protect life, yet many are equally determined to end their lives. This lecture explores the effects of psychological trauma on a person’s relationship to life and death, the place of shame in suicide and self-harm, and what can be done to help those who are suffering.
A lecture given by Tom Smiley (Clinical Psychologist) at English L'Abri on 21 July, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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This lecture focuses on the circumstances that gave rise to the #BlackLivesMatter movement, as well as the American evangelical church’s response to both the racial climate of the USA and the Black Lives Matter movement.
A lecture given by Mary McCampbell (Assosciate Professor of Humanities, Lee University, USA) at English L'Abri on 14 July, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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Having previously explored the Dutch Christian philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd's context, critique of modernity, and philosophical anthropology, this lecture discusses his understanding of Western cultural development with a particular focus on his unique philosophy of history and concept of the religious ground motive.
A lecture given by Josué Reichow (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 7 July, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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The philosopher Alvin Plantinga recently wrote, “There is superficial conflict but deep concord between science and theistic religion, but superficial concord and deep conflict between science and naturalism.” Both Christianity and Judaism rely on Biblical passages to describe the way God acts in the world. This lecture develops an approach to reading these texts that is generally in line with Plantinga’s insight.
A lecture given by C. John "Jack" Collins at English L'Abri on 30 June, 2017. Jack Collins is Professor of Old Testament at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missiouri (USA).
For further reading:
The God of Miracles: An Exegetical Examination of God's Action in the World (C. John Collins)
Where the Conflict Really Lies: Science, Religion, and Naturalism (Alvin Plantinga)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
Many today feel uncertain about how to respond to a changing technological landscape. Having previously outlined a few rules for what technology is and how it behaves, this lecture explores what we should do about it and proposes a response that avoids the double dangers of fear and utopianism.
The first part of this series is now available.
A lecture given by Andy Patton (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 23 June, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
For further reading:
What Technology Wants (Kevin Kelly)
Reclaiming Conversation (Sherry Turkle)
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit englishlabri.substack.com
The Bible mentions a cloud in many places. Sometimes it is referred to as a cloud of fire or a cloud of darkness. This lecture explores how we can understand these various cloud events and how we can avoid some major and popular misunderstandings of them.
A lecture given by Ellis Potter (Christian minister, missionary, and international lecturer) at English L'Abri on 16 June, 2017. A native Californian now residing in Switzerland, Ellis Potter is a former Buddhist monk who became a Christian under the influence and ministry of Francis Schaeffer. He worked for many years at Swiss L'Abri was the pastor of the Basel Christian Fellowship for ten years. With his wife, Mary, he founded Eastern European Renewal (EER), an evangelical mission to Central and Eastern European countries.
For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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The here and now usually determines the nature of our gods. What has taken place philosophically in our view of knowledge, freedom and language to mould us into our current idols? Serving the god of our times means self-worship. This lecture points to the One who said, “Heaven and Earth shall move with the times, but My words shall not move with the times” (C.S. Lewis on Matthew 24:35).
A lecture given by Edith Reitsema (L'Abri Worker) at English L'Abri on 6 June, 2017. For more information, visit labri.org/england and for more L'Abri lectures, visit the L'Abri Ideas Library.
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When the integrity of Christianity becomes eroded and compromised, reformation is an inevitability. In light of the 500-year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, this talk explores why the history of the church follows this pattern and imagines what reformation might look like today.
A lecture given by Andrew Fellows at English L'Abri on 2 June, 2017. Andrew is director of Christian Heritage, a study centre community serving Cambridge. Andrew was the former chairman of L'Abri International Fellowship and director of English L'Abri from 1995-2015.
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Christians, even those who say much about ‘incarnational’ faith, can say surprisingly little about the way that God claims our bodies. This lecture explores the intensely bodily character of baptism as a pledge and seal that anticipates future resurrection, adoption, and the redemption of our bodies.
A lecture given by Alastair Roberts (PhD, Durham University) at English L'Abri on 26 May, 2017. Alastair writes in the areas of biblical theology and ethics, but frequently trespasses beyond these bounds. He participates in the weekly Mere Fidelity podcast, blogs at Alastair’s Adversaria, and tweets at @zugzwanged.
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This lecture discusses the life and work of Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh as seen through the lens of his deep longing—expressed in his letters and art—for a place to call home.
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