Armed Revolution as Apologetic? Reexamining the Upper Limits of Resistance by the Church to the State with a Focus on the Disagreement Between Francis Schaeffer and Norman Geisler
The research paper was presented in two separate 40-minute talks at “Apologetics in a Brave New World,” the 2023 meeting of the International Society of Christian Apologetics. Read a PDF of the April 2023 version of the paper here. Feedback is welcomed.
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Introduction: Our descent into the brave new world dares us to make brave new inquiries into the ethical limits of obedience to the state. As the state becomes more satanic, some measure of resistance from the servants of Jesus Christ is expected. But are there any conditions under which we should shift from the non-violent types of resistance to the armed variety that could leave the agents of the state bruised, bloodied, and dead? Christian intellectual Francis Schaffer (1912-1984) certainly thought so. Forty-some years ago, Schaeffer stirred up a controversy among evangelicals when he published four arguments in favor of defending the faith not just with words but with swords. Agreeing with Schaeffer generally, but opposing him on this one point, Norm Geisler (1932-2019) published seven arguments against armed revolution. Their disagreement in the last quarter of the 20th Century serves as a good entry-point into the debate for second quarter of the 21st Century.