Using Karl Popper's The Open Society and Its Enemies as a departure point, R. R. Reno argues that the political consensus guiding the West since 1945—emphasizing openness and lowering the stakes in public debates—has become dysfunctional. Our postwar consensus, built to stave off the threat of totalitarianism, now undermines solidarity and atomizes Western culture. Reno posits a solution: what we need in the twenty-first century is a politics of shared loves.

R. R. Reno serves as the editor of First Things. He taught theology and ethics at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska for twenty years. He has published in many academic journals, and his opinion essays have appeared in Commentary, National Review, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, and other popular outlets. His most recent books include Resurrecting the Idea of a Christian Society, Fighting the Noonday Devil, Sanctified Vision, and a commentary on the Book of Genesis. He received his Ph.D. in theology from Yale University.