Renewal and Reformation

In the next chapter, Rod Dreher outlines a modern description of and rationale for the Benedictine order. And in the particulars, he says a number of wise and good things. Dreher sees one of the most essential things. “We need to embed ourselves in stable communities of faith” (Loc. 760). And living by rule is …

Finding the Seven Thousand

The second chapter of Dreher’s The Benedict Option is really quite good overall. I found myself agreeing with much of it, and agreeing also with the various qualifications Dreher made as he went along. What he does in this chapter is give a brief intellectual history of the West’s apostasy, and in the main, he …

Catacombs or Cloister?

So I would like to invite you to read through The Benedict Option with me. For the most part we will go a chapter at a time, although this first time out we will take the Introduction and Chapter One together. For various reasons this is an important book, and how we respond to it …

Review: Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer

Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was a very fine book on writing. Some really shrewd wisdom in this thing. One of my favorites is this: Choose words the average writer avoids but the average reader understands. Rarely used words are not …

But the Happily Part Takes Work

I was privileged to contribute three of the devotionals in this book of 30 devotionals for married couples. Other contributors include Francis Chan, John Piper, David Mathis, and more. It is published by Desiring God, and they are currently running a Valentine Day special on it. All this being the case, why wouldn’t you head …