Christian Thinkers Denounce Benedict Option

My eighteen-year-old self's commitment to the American political experiment came to mind during a recent discussion on The Benedict Option hosted by the Institute on Religion & Democracy. Rod Dreher's book, as readers of his blog in this space know, has elicited strong reactions from the American Christian community—both supportive and critical. The latter category was on display Wednesday evening in a lengthy conversation featuring adherents of diverse Christian traditions: Anglican Cherie Harder of the Trinity Forum, evangelical Alison Howard of the Alliance Defending Freedom, Joseph Capizzi of the Catholic University of America, Joseph Hartman of Georgetown University, and Bruce Ashford of the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Despite the panel's ecumenical nature, its members were more or less unified in their reluctance to endorse a Christian “retreat” from the public square.