Many thanks to Rod Dreher for taking the time to interact with some of my arguments on the Kim Davis case. Our theological differences notwithstanding, I have appreciated having his voice as part of our public debates, especially now that the welter of voices is trying to drown out the few remaining sane ones like …
Little Bewildered Benedict Bands
Rod Dreher is to be commended for many aspects of The Benedict Option. But at the end of the day, it reminds me of a fistful of pearls, with no thread available to make the necklace. I am glad I read it, and I am glad for the stand that Dreher is taking against various …
The Classical Christian Option
In his next chapter, Rod Dreher spends a good bit of time singing a song I am very familiar with, and he says many good things. The cultural key is education, and what Dreher urges is, from one standpoint, very heartening. “This is why we have to focus tightly and without hesitation on education” (Loc. …
Benedict or Billy?
In the next chapter of The Benedict Option, Dreher makes a number of shrewd observations about the role of community in resisting the encroachments of the Leviathan state. What Hillary Clinton famously said in promotion of that devouring Leviathan turns out actually to be true in another sense—“it takes a village to raise a child.” …
The Boutique Option
The next chapter in The Benedict Option is well written, and makes many pertinent observations. A lot of true and necessary things are said, largely concerning the need for older doctrine and need for a liturgical worship that shapes cultures. But there is still a problem, and it is largely architectonic. The chapter has a …
Isker, Dreher, and Me
Introduction: Here's the plan, guys. I am going to begin with a brief review of Andrew Isker's book, The Boniface Option . After that, I am going to interact a bit more with Rod Dreher's review ...
Live Not By Lies . . . At Least Not Lots of Them
Introduction: So Christian Nationalism has feet apparently. Not only does it have feet, it has any number of feet, and in some places it is still getting those feet under it. In the meantime, it has ...
The Prodigal Son and Christian Nationalism
Introduction: What it all comes down to is that America needs an intervention. Suppose a loved one in your family decides to go on a bender, let's say, and it lasts for a couple weeks longer than it ...
In Which I Toot My Own Horn, Albeit in a Modest and Becoming Fashion
Introduction: In the month of November, recall, it is imperative that I write slashing and critical prose, and that I do so without qualification. This is a standard I believe all of us (by this point) ...
Audio Reading of Post
Letters That Shed Light, for Which We Are Grateful
Letter to the Editor: Okay, you said baptism doesn’t work ex opere operato, is this consistent with Romans 6 and the instrumental language regarding water baptism? “By baptism”? Is ...