Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS) serves as the research home for the preeminent collection of personal papers documenting the life and ministry of Francis A. Schaeffer. This collection of correspondence, manuscripts, notes, annotated books and periodicals, audio recordings, and other materials created by Schaeffer during his ministry was given in custodianship to SEBTS by the Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation, which maintains ownership. Since receiving the collection, SEBTS Archives & Digitization Lab staff have processed the collection and created digital copies of all the papers and audio recordings it contains. SEBTS students and faculty, as well as, members of the broader research community with an interest in Christian apologetics, evangelism, cultural studies, worldview thinking, and the life and work of Francis A. Schaeffer are encouraged to take advantage of this unique resource and plan a research visit.
The collection is open for research at three approved research sites. The original materials and digital copies are available for approved researchers at SEBTS. Digital copies of the papers and audio recordings are also available for approved researchers at the Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation headquarters in Gyron, Switzerland.
A finding aid for the collection, including an item-level inventory, is available to help plan your research. Work is currently underway to optimize the descriptions in the inventory for digital research and create a searchable database for these resources. Updates to the inventory will be added on a regular basis.
Please note that the Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation has restricted access to the two research sites listed above and requires that researchers apply for permission to access the Francis A. Schaeffer Papers. Inquiries about research at the Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation should be directed to Udo Middelmann. See our policies and procedures governing research inquiries for more information about requesting permission to access the Francis A. Schaeffer Papers at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.