Mere Orthodoxy

The Liberalism of George Smiley

jakemeador@gmail.com (Jake Meador) — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

Spy fiction is not ordinarily the place one goes to find moral wisdom. It tends to be a sordid place where bad people are opposed by slightly less bad people, where “there is as little of worth on your side as there is mine,” to slightly paraphrase the greatest spy protagonist of them all, John le Carré’s George Smiley. And yet in a moment when the illiberal and totalitarian is ascendant in the west, it may be that spy fiction has a unique sort of wisdom to offer us.

Meditation and the Giver of Things

Justin N. Poythress — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

How can I feel less anxious? If you take your question to the internet, then your first layer answer (probably from Google or ChatGPT) will be some kind of mindfulness practice.

From Libertarian to Authoritarian: The Devolution of Evangelical Politics

Gillis Harp — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

Since the 1930s, American evangelical elites have embraced successively two different and flawed political creeds. Both positions reflected their American identity more than their Christian faith. In this respect, the movement’s leadership failed to serve well the rank and file. When mainstream conservative political leaders didn’t provide astute, biblically informed analysis, white evangelicals had little such reflection of their own to draw upon, ultimately making illiberal authoritarianism an attractive option.

Of Holy Indolence, the End of All Life

Paul J. Pastor — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

There is the plum tree snowing on the grass.
There is the road that leads up to the pass.
Now I will brightly think, and take my rest.
I will turn pink and sink into the West.

A Hollow Crown: AI and the Formation of Students

Chris Sibben — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

The day after we showed our students Forevergreen, an Academy Award–nominated short film, something happened that I can't shake.

Man and Machine

Lucy S. R. Austen — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

Joel J. Miller. The Idea Machine: How Books Built Our World and Shape Our Future. Prometheus Books, 2025. $34.95. 344 pp.

Creating Membership

jakemeador@gmail.com (Jake Meador) — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 11:00:02 GMT

Wendell Berry. Marce Catlett: The Force of a Story. Counterpoint, 2025. $26.00. 176 pp.

Keeping Kids Christian: Bonus Q and A

Cameron Shaffer — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

Editorial note: On March 31, Mere Orthodoxy hosted a webinar with Cameron Shaffer, author of Keeping Kids Christian: Recovering a Biblical Vision for Lifelong Discipleship. Shaffer kindly agreed to answer in writing a few more of the questions that webinar attendees had submitted, but that for reasons of time, he was unable to get to during the webinar. We think these questions, submitted anonymously during the webinar, may be of interest to other readers and are grateful to publish this Q&A as a resource. The questions and answers have been minimally edited for clarity.

A Passage Through the Dark

Katy Carl — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 11:00:00 GMT

Wendell Berry. Marce Catlett: The Force of a Story. Counterpoint, 2025. $26.00. 176 pp.

George Scialabba’s Utopian Hopes

Andrew Kaufmann — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 11:00:02 GMT

George Scialabba. The Sealed Envelope: Toward an Intelligent Utopia. Yale University Press, 2026. $32.50. 288 pp.