Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18the gospel. Readings from The Reckless Way of Love, a new book from Plough, reveal the source of the inner strength that allowed Day to do so without burning out (page 50). As dangerous as the temptation is to become disheartened in a year like this, there is a danger more insidious still: the voice whispering that despite the suffering and degradation around us it’s not really that bad. This voice, of course, is far more likely to speak to the comfortable and affluent than to refugees, poor immigrants, the incar- cerated, or the starving. It is also more likely to speak to those who believe that Christianity is doing just fine – that, setting aside a few inevi- table shortcomings, we Christians have no urgent need to repent, certainly not in a way that would visibly transform our everyday lives. A new book by Rod Dreher, The Benedict Option, has been garnering attention – and much of it amounts to a howl of protest against Dreher’s call for Christians to strategically retreat from seeking cultural power in order to build stronger Christian communities. (See Plough’s interview with Dreher in our last issue, as well as the thoughtful letters in “Readers Respond” on page 5.) Dreher’s various proposals can certainly be constructively criticized. But many reactions, it seems to me, altogether ignore his book’s basic insight: that Western churches, virtually across the board, have failed to cultivate faithful discipleship within a post-Christian culture. The symptoms of this failure are well documented, and damning. They include our ineffectiveness in passing the faith on to the next generation, as shown by sociologists such as Christian Smith; the extent to which materialism and consum- erism – and militarism and nationalism – have polluted our everyday lives; divorce rates as high among Christians as among others; and an epidemic of pornography addiction ­ afflicting Christian men. In the face of these alarming facts, it is not enough to simply cry, “No withdrawal from culture!” while quoting the Great Commission. If we Christians do not show forth the justice and faithfulness of the kingdom of God in the way we live, why should anyone pay attention to our preaching? And isn’t it obvious that our response to these ills – or rather, our repentance for our sins – must include pouring far more energy into building church com- munities in which children are educated in the faith, mutual care is a priority, accountability to the church is really practiced, and economic sharing ensures that no brother or sister is in material need? That doesn’t sound like a retreat to me. It sounds like simply doing what the New Testament tells us to do: bear one another’s burdens, watch over one another’s souls, love one another. We need courage, then, to see our Christian- ity with honest eyes – and to dare the tangible changes in our lives that the Spirit may then direct us to make. We’ll find this courage when we learn to see the world as God sees it. Jesus has overcome the world, and everyone in it belongs to him, even if many still resist him for the time being. This is the hope that Christoph F. Blumhardt points us to (page 56): hope for every human being and for all creation, because Jesus is victor. Warm greetings, Peter Mommsen Editor We need the courage to dare tangible changes in our lives.