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Yes, I think that's fair. I do criticise Dreher sometimes, because as a person he clearly does not have his life together and I can't help feeling a lot of pity for him, and his post-Benedict books are generally bad, but most of The Benedict Option is basically correct. Evangelical emphasis on mission is good and necessary, and even if not taking power, navigating a world of politics and enemies is also necessary, but neither of those tasks supply their own justification. Without the internal formation necessary to sustain their sense of purpose, both will fail or become corrupted. Constant internal renewal, which is nurtured through things like discipline, community life, study, and prayer, is necessary. Insofar as the Benedict Option calls for that renewal I wholeheartedly endorse it.
I just sometimes can't resist taking the cheap shot, which is... well, as much as Dreher is annoyed by people saying Benedict is about retreat, the fault is at least partly his for poor communication, and I'd argue that the book does advocate a kind of retreat. It doesn't advocate unilateral retreat or surrender, but it does say that Christians should avoid or reduce focus on some of the fights they've currently been having while renewing a focus on internal cultivation. I'd say it's a call to pull back, or perhaps to fortify. I'd characterise that as a tactical retreat. I see that Dreher is not saying "we're routed, abandon ship!", but the change of emphasis or redirection of effort he calls for strikes me as a kind of retreat.
Is just a personal observation. If you’re constantly connected to the firehose of culture, especially political culture, you’re going to absorb a lot of the ideas of that culture without thinking about it. I’ve found this post digital detox. A lot of political and social stuff seems crazy when you’re not swimming around in it. When your ideas come from your mind and your faith and your culture rather than whatever is current in the world.
And if Christianity is going to win the day in the political arena, it has to be real Christianity unique and different from the culture around it. It cannot be “American culture, but stick a cross on the flag.” It has to be Christianity, small o orthodox Christianity, and has to present itself as a zeitgeist wholly different from the rest of society. That will attract people. Christianity that says “this stuff is fine” and drinks from the same media and social media wells as the rest will just be American culture lite.
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