Notable Quotable: “Edith Schaeffer and the Apologetics of Beauty” (A Tribute to Edith Schaeffer) – Nancy Pearcey

“What most impressed me in knowing Edith (Schaeffer) when I was a student at L’Abri was her emphasis on everyday beauty,” says Nancy Pearcey, who is director of the Francis Schaeffer Center for Worldview and Culture at Houston Baptist University and who lived with Debby and Udo Middelmann while studying at L’Abri. “Arriving as a critical agnostic, I was surprised to meet Christians who actually cared about the world of ideas and the arts. It was not merely that Francis Schaeffer lectured about the arts, however. It was also that Edith thought it important for the Christian to incorporate beauty into all of life — such as simple but elegant table settings with a wildflower and a candle. Not expensive items, not conspicuous consumption. But creative (expressing your unique personality) and natural (using items and themes from nature when possible).

“Though I had grown up in the church,” Nancy explains, “I had never before met Christians who understood that our souls hunger for beauty just as much as for truth and goodness. For me, as for many others who studied at L’Abri in the days when Edith still presided, there was an apologetics of beauty that made me want Christianity to be true, at the same time that I was working through a philosophical apologetics that was persuading me intellectually that it was true. Edith described her love of everyday beauty in Hidden Art (the title was later expanded to The Hidden Art of Homemaking).”

(Richard Pearcey quoting Nancy Pearcey; “Death, Revolt, and Resurrection: A Tribute to Edith Schaeffer” , The Pearcey Report)

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News of Note: Cy Young Award Winner R.A. Dickey on Baseball, Suicide, Dealing with Sexual Abuse, and His Relationship with Christ

1. “R.A. Dickey Feature” – Interview with Toronto Blue Jays knuckleballer R.A. Dickey about his baseball career, sexual abuse, suicide, and how he dealt with it all by trusting in Christ. (YouTube)

2. “Can Christianity survive gay marriage?” – Gene Edward Veith comments on Rod Dreher’s American Conservative article “Sex After Christianity” . (Cranach)

3. “Death, Revolt, and Resurrection: A Tribute to Edith Schaeffer” – Richard and Nancy Pearcey’s tribute to Edith Schaeffer (The Pearcey Report)

4. “Boy Scout Pledge: Morally Straight Has Become Crooked” – Janet Parshall reflects on Boy Scouts of America founder Robert Baden-Powell’s original intent for the scouting movement. (Christian Post)

5. “ESPN on Jason Collins” – ESPN’s Chris Boussard calls pro basketball player Jason Collins’ homosexuality sinful and not reflective of a Christian life style. Here is Chris Broussard’s ESPN Segment. (YouTube)

News of Note: Edith Schaeffer Goes Home to be with the Lord at 98

1. Articles on Edith Schaeffer

“Edith Schaeffer (1914 – 2013)” – Edith Schaeffer goes home to be with the Lord. (Challies.com)

“Goodbye Mom, Edith Schaeffer 1914 – 2013 RIP” . Frank Schaeffer’s touching tribute to his mother. (Patheos.com)

“Edith Schaeffer and the Apologetics of Beauty” – Nancy Pearcey remembers Edith Schaeffer. (The Pearcey Report)

“Edith Schaeffer” – Udo Middleman remembers Edith Schaeffer (Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation)

2. “The End of Men” – Is this the end of men? CBMW’s Candice Watters reviews Hanna Rosin’s book, “The End of Men and the Rise of Women”. (The Council of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood)

3. “Some Will Apostatize” – What makes an apostate? Tom Ascol explains. (Ligonier Ministries)