n 2006, sociologist Philip Rieff (1922-2006) published My Life among the Deathworks, the first volume of his monumental Sacred Order / Social Order trilogy. In it, he argued that the West in general and the United States in particular is in the midst of an unprecedented attempt to desacralize the social order.
[Note: This article is an expansion of the comments I made in a July 12, 2017 panel discussion of Rod Dreher’s The Benedict Option. The discussion was held at the National Press Club in Washington, D. C. and hosted by the Institute on Religion & Democracy and moderated by its President, Mark Tooley. To view the video, click here.]
Historically, civilizations have always understood sacred order to fund social order by providing a world of meaning and a code of permissions and prohibitions. This meaningful and moral order shapes culture which in turn shapes the thought patterns and instinctual desires of the next generation. Thus sacred order, via culture, provided a powerful means of opposing social and cultural decadence.