“The Benedict Option” was the biggest headline in this weekend's Wall Street Journal (February 18-19). It headed the front-page article by Ian Lovett in the paper's Review section. The subtitle quickened curiosity among those of us charged with commenting on religion in public life: “Longing to lead more religious lives—and wary of the wider culture—a growing number of traditional Christians are creating their own small communities.” The name “Benedict” was alluring to me. Behind my right shoulder as I type is a cherished picture of namesake Bishop Martin Marty, O.S.B.—as in “Order of Saint Benedict.” Through the friendly fixing of one of his successors, he opened doors for me at the Second Vatican Council. Through the years I have published with, accepted the hospitality of, and preferred personal devotions printed under trademarks of the Benedictines and their offshoots. My spouse and I are going to sup and worship with Benedictine sisters one day this week, etc.
Note that all of those references and reminiscences are Benedictine, while the WSJ headline lacks the suffix “-ine.” A small matter, you'd think. But my Benedictine friends distance themselves from the strictly “Benedict” version, despite some corollaries, coincidences, and common sources. Typical of such distancing is “The Virtue of Staying Put,” by Gerald W. Schlabach for Commonweal (September 26, 2016). A Benedictine oblate himself, Schlabach references the decisive inventing book Crunchy Cons by Rod Dreher, of The American Conservative, 10-plus years ago. Schlabach summarizes Dreher: “…faithful Christians should turn their primary attention away from the public square… and instead focus on building local communities, sheltered from the hopelessly fallen larger culture, where Christian values and practices may survive.”
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