An Abundance of Benedict Options
by John Meinert, Crisis Magazine:
The last few years we have seen a lively debate and discussion over how Christian believers should interact with our increasingly secular and hostile culture. These different possibilities have come to be known as “options.” The most famous is certainly the Benedict option popularized by author Rod Dreher. But others have written about the Dominican option, the Dorothy option, the Escriva option, the Buckley option, the Boniface option, etc. I have no problems with these suggestions or reflection on this question. It is vital and important to prepare for the full flowering of western liberalism and its possible collapse under its own weight. However, most who are writing on this topic miss the contingency of this question, the participatory nature of the Church, and Ecclesial unity.
It is no surprise that with as large and multifaceted an issue as engagement with secular culture, we have multiple positive plans on how we should proceed. This is to be expected. The deeper one descends into particulars the less clear it is what one should do. Our intellects are not that powerful, even collectively. The ‘options’ outlining the multiple possible positive responses are dealing with just such a case. What should Christians do in the face of ascendant secularism? How can we grow in holiness and evangelize the world?
Because the answer to this question deals with means to an end, as long as nobody puts forth an option requiring one to do something intrinsically evil, sinful, or contrary to virtue then we are dealing with suitability to particular circumstances. Certainly, one must rule out certain (sinful) possibilities, but none of the options (at least the ones following saints) strike me as sinful. The question is not good/bad, but good/better given the circumstances in front of the person(s) at that moment. That is not to say that one option is not more fitting than another, but that this is a circumstantial judgment. The realm of prudence is not an a-moral realm, but it does deal with contingencies. Virtue perfects all our actions, but also allows for maximal creativity in meeting the circumstances.
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