Rod Dreher: “Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents” By James Reed
Rod Dreher has a new book which is recommended reading for all Christians concerned about the perils facing Western civilisation, Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents (2020):
As a brief back story, this Christian conservative writer, wrote for a number of mainstream journals before getting a blog at the American Conservative. He has published numerous books, but highly relevant to the themes of the present blog writers is his 2017 book, The Benedict Option, which takes up a thought made by British conservative post-liberal philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre in After Virtue (1981), who also saw a collapse of society coming, and thought that high culture could be preserved in monastic retreats, much as in the medieval period. Dreher sees the decadence of the West as a direct threat to traditional Christian faith, and recommends that those who want to preserve their faith, and their souls, also distance themselves from modern secular society. Dreher’s position on the gender agenda, transgenderism and the like should be clear. He is opposed to mass immigration and is a defender of Western civilisation, which he identifies as having fundamental Christian roots.
Live Not By Lies, continues these themes, drawing on experiences of emigres from the former Soviet bloc who warn about the coming of a similar totalitarianism to America and the West. This dystopia has arisen from the perfect storm of uncontrolled technology (Big Tech), rabid consumerism and anti-Christian materialism, and lack of public resistance, that has created the corporate surveillance state. All was ready to roll when Covid came around, taking it to a new level.
Dreher believes that Christian must resist this. They see to see the situation for what it is, as painful as that is. Then judge it in the light of the Christian faith; obviously enough it is evil. Then take action to oppose it. He details that the core unit of resistance is the family, and families can network into a bigger structure of resistance. Christian faith though is the core fuel of opposition, and without this we will be lost. With it, we march to victory. A very good book, a little pricey new, but get a second-hand copy like me if inflation is killing you.
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