nit apleasure and join me in welcoming rod dreher. [applause] [applause] >> thank you for that generous introduction, anybody who buys a copy of the book will be get an a on the way out. it's so great to be back in new york tonight. the happiest heres of my life were spent here and i'm happy to say old friends here, father jerry murray, and friends from all over and new friends, too. so thank you very much. i do believe that this is a really important time for all of us people i i consider small os, christians, evangelical, rockie catholic and eastern orthodox to couple together and talk about what to do in this moment, what to do with the time we have. and i want to thank so much plow magazine and my only magazine, american conservative, for sponsoring this event you may have seen some criticism of me and the benedict option for being alarmist. the critics are right. i am alarmist about the state of our culture and civilization and the condition of the church within it. if you are a faithful christian and you're not alarmed, i think

to introduce our speaker as an accomplished author and then of course, tonight teeleven really rod dreher is a teacher where tens of thousands of people come regularly or daily it is the only place on-line real can eavesdrop but they are responded to and ideas are developed as a more general in conversation. and charles taylor can serious ideas and serious people or where else can you go in before the same posting it is an ongoing summer as they are trying to think about other things and as those role as teacher and followed by a panel discussion is remarks how to live as christians in the 21st century it is my pleasure please join me to welcome rod dreher. [applause] >> as your teacher tonight anybody who buys the copy of the way out will receive and they produce great to be back in the york and i am happy to see old friends and from all over. thank you very much. this is a really important time for all of us to come together and talk about what we do in this moment with the time that we have so you may have seen recently criticism of meat and teeleven to be alarmist but the critics are

a provocative argument, said rod dreher -- the author of a new book, "the benedict option," a strategyhristians in a post-christian nation. our money may say "in god we trust" but cultural christianitc is practically extinguished and in many ways, americans are now hostile to christian religious beliefs. rod, thank you for coming on. a post-christian america, people look at the demographics and say wait a second, it's like 75% professed christians. >> most americans identify as christians but christianity as it has been historically understood is no longer at the center of our nation and how we think of ourselves. if you look at the numbers in the united states, of the people who are falling away from christianity especially in the millennial generation, it is catastrophic. we have never seen anything lika it. the content of the belief thaten christians have is very far from historic orthodox christianity. the notre dame sociologist has talked about we believe now this total feel good, squishy, a christianity that is not biblical christianity. this is what i mean. we are in a post-chri