Live Not By Lies, The Benedict Option, And The Future

At the start of a thought process introduced by OldAFSarge at Chant du Depart, I had reason to revisit two books that I had read some years ago by Rod Dreher, Live Not By Lies and The Benedict Option (links are to reviews).  

I have said in the past (and maintain) that I enjoy reading Dreher, someone who I could only describe as sort of a cultural/real world commentator that has the added bonus (in my opinion) of acknowledging where his life has gone awry and is not afraid to write about it (he writes a Substack here; there are occasional free articles as well as the paid subscription). He is (at least in my view) something of a futurist in that he looks at current trends and taking historical examples, points to reasonable possibilities of where they might go.

In re-reading Dreher - himself in a self-imposed exile in Hungary - it is useful to look at the point of time in which his books were written and ask the question "Have we moved further along the path he wrote about?"  If we have, then while perhaps not a prophet he is a certainly a predictor to at least be considered.

 In The Benedict Option (2018) he suggested building essentially modern islands of community (Christian communities or even non-Christian communities; Dreher himself is Orthodox) based on the model of Benedict of Nursia to fight the rising tide of modernism and its corrosive effects.  In Live Not By Lies (2020) he related the history of the rise of Communist control of media, thought, and religion in Eastern Europe. 

Is society more or less corrosive, throwing away social norms and history in the name of modern world that only recognizes true freedom in certain approved areas and seeks to make its own history?  As it turns out, these are pretty simple questions to answer:  Are we more or less free in our expression, our communication, and the exercise of our religion?  

It is perhaps not surprising that I find myself in the solid "Things are worse, not better" camp.

Which is fine, of course.  Others will see it differently.  The question is, as it is for all of us, what will I do.

Dreher's examples from Live Not By Lies is instructive in that (with two notable exceptions) Eastern Europe did not have the wherewithal for any sort of armed action (if I had to theorize, partially because of the destruction of World War II, partially because of the overwhelming numeric superiority of the Soviet Union in their various nations).  What they ended up doing as discussed in Dreher's book were three major actions:  strengthening their minds in learning and knowledge, strengthening their connections with others, and strengthening their faith.

It explains why - in the last few years or so - I have become rather insistent on books and especially historical books of classical Greece and Rome which have the original text and a translation.  it explains why I have been gathering knowledge in general.  I suppose it even explains why I am endeavoring to find a different church (although obviously the relocation has set that back some).

In that sense - the "preparing for bad times sense" - a relocation to a modern urban environment is not the best decision, especially starting out living in an apartment; we do the best with the situation that we are given.  But even in those sorts of situations, things can be done - and in some cases, things become available that were not before (a smaller living space, for example, combined with a complete change in activities and schedule, frees one's time for other activities that previously were not possible). 

I am reluctant to go so far as to say "Something Wicked This Way Comes" - I am also no prophet and I have limited success in seeing into the future.  But sometimes, one does not have to.  Preparing for the worst and being pleasantly supplied is almost always in fashion.