Study Guide for How Should We Then Live?

It is assumed in the film and the book that the past took place objectively and that our present is also not an illusion. It is also the position of the film and the book that just as individuals are responsible for their choices, notwithstanding hereditary and environmental influences, likewise society as a whole is responsible for the direction it takes. Dr. Schaeffer's master theme may be summarized in the form of a controlled experiment: (1) Take the history of the West since the time of the Romans. Consider what world view gave strength to the Christians of the Roman era. This strength rested on God's being an infinite personal God and on his speaking in the Old Testament, in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, and in the then-growing New Testament. (2) Examine the impact of this world view upon men's lives and hence upon the form and conduct of society as a whole. This involves a consideration of its survival and spread in the alien Roman world and the ups and downs of its treatment in the formally Christian West thereafter until early modern times. (3) Withdraw this world view (in other words, look at society in the past century or two when Christian influence has been fast waning) and see what changes take place in the life of the individual and society. Thus introduced to the overall structure of Dr. Schaeffer's theme, the job of the rest of this study guide is to take you through the detailed presentation, chapter by chapter. - Introduction.