Defunct Newspapers Journals TV channels Websites Other Congressional caucuses Economics Gun rights Identity politics Nativist Religion Watchdog groups Youth/student groups Social media Miscellaneous Other The Benedict Option: A Strategy for Christians in a Post-Christian Nation is a 2017 book by writer and conservative commentator Rod Dreher on Christianity and Western culture.

"[6] The idea of a "Benedict option" involves finding the communities in which virtuous life can flourish, since Dreher argues that the existing culture has already forsaken the virtues.

These communities are not necessarily physical in nature and do not necessitate migration to Christian centers of life, but do involve institutions such as churches, schools, and other organizations.

What is needed is the Benedict Option, a strategy that draws on the authority of Scripture and the wisdom of the ancient church.

The goal: to embrace exile from the mainstream culture and construct a resilient counterculture.Answering a question after delivering a keynote address at University of Notre Dame in 2017, Alasdair MacIntyre, who according to Dreher inspired the Benedict Option, responded critically to the latter.