Thank you for your courteous reply, brother. If my previous post sounded testy, it's because I've been burned by these people.

Actually, I found it superior to "Atlas Shrugged," but that's a literary judgment. The plot wasn't so far-fetched, the hero was principled but not crazy, and it didn't have a long, John Galt-type screed included.

Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. I have read all of her nonfiction books, including "The Virtue of Selfishness" and "The Romantic Manifesto." The book you mention was, in my judgment, nowhere near the same class as "Economics in One Lesson." I realize that not everybody can handle "Human Action," by Mises, but the Hazlitt book is the best introduction I've seen, except perhaps for Milton Friedman's "Free to Choose." I haven't read "I, Pencil."

The Boy Scout handbook was indispensable when I was a boy. It's terrific. I just hope it hasn't been "modernized", as the Girl Scouts have been: they now have Merit Badges for Ecology, Women's Studies, and all kinds of new-age crapola.

I know that he heard the Gospel a number of times; Billy Graham was on "Firing Line" back when he was still evangelistic. And I'm sure that lots of National Review subscribers wrote to him, expressing concern. But, toward the end of his life, he wrote a "spiritual biography" called "Nearer, My God," in which he very enthusiastically reaffirmed his Catholic faith.

When I shared my testimony with him in a letter, he responded: "I will have my priest make a mass of thanksgiving for you." That was lovely, but he completely missed the point.

Oh, yes. There are two authors who have, above all others, influenced the way I live as a Christian: Ruckman, and Francis Schaeffer. He coined the term "pre-evangelism," which is basically just planting seeds, that revolutionized my own witness. He shows how to present the Gospel to "modern thinkers." If you just add the King James part, it's a great approach, and it works. But we're talking about witnessing to "intellectuals:" the Schaeffer approach isn't necessary for everyone we meet. But he discussed the philosophical ramifications of everyone from Plato to Picasso and the Beatles. I'm telling you, you'd love this guy.

His greatest books on evangelism are "Escape from Reason" (very short, only about 125 pages) and, best of all, "The God Who Is There." The latter is absolutely indispensible. It's available in paperback, as are most of his books; there's also a hardcover edition of all the books together. Check Amazon.

He also did a book called "Genesis in Space and Time," all about the importance of the first three chapters of the Bible; and "Death in the City," which is a Jeremiah-like depiction of our modern world.

But if you only get one, it should definitely be "The God Who is There."

He also wrote an entire book on epistemology, "He is There and He is Not Silent."

But he was very "Reformed." Don't look to Schaeffer for prophecy, or church polity; he was a Presbyterian, although obviously a very evangelistic one. His son, Frank Schaeffer, has completely apostacized, written a foul, scurrilous book about his father, joined the Eastern Orthdox Church, and supported Obama. He's a bum.

The best way you can get a flavor for Schaeffer is from this site, which has quotes from each of his books. (I use them as my sig quotes at Pravda.) Just be sure to scroll all the way down, in each section, to see the actual quotes:

http://www.rationalpi.com/theshelter/

Just click on the "Writings" section for the quotes.

He also did a lot of anti-abortion work with C. Everett Koop, Reagan's Surgeon General; and wrote a book called "A Christian Manifesto" that would really appeal to Bro. Parrish.

Check it out: you'll be delighted.