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“It was such a pleasure to meet like-minded people who are interested in becoming, to borrow from St. Irenaeus, ‘human beings fully alive.’” — Reader Summit Participant
Dear
Reader,
Have you ever come across a fellow reader of FIRST THINGS out “in the wild?” Maybe it was on the subway, at a coffee shop, or in church . . . or perhaps even a less likely place.

Regardless, it’s a marvelous experience. Between two strangers, a hint of understanding is kindled: “So you read FIRST THINGS too!”

Sparked by the same kindling, our Readers of FIRST THINGS (ROFTers) groups bring together local subscribers for monthly gatherings of fellowship, discussion, food, and drink. If you do not already belong to a local ROFTers group, take a look at our growing list of active and forming groups here ([link removed]) . If there is not yet a ROFTers group in your area, email us at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) to take the first step toward remedying that!

I cannot overstate how encouraging the growth and flourishing of our ROFTers group network is to our editors and staff. Given our own limited involvement—maintaining the ROFTers webpage and highlighting new groups in our “While We’re At It” section—it is clear that we’ve stumbled onto something good here.

I want to thank our ROFTers leaders for their tireless dedication to coordinating schedules, preparing discussion questions, circulating reminders, and much more. They labor in the confidence that this magazine—these conversations, this community—is of vital importance.

This year, FIRST THINGS is preparing to become a more useful co-laborer in the ROFTers project. As featured in our 2022 Annual Report ([link removed]) , in October we took a first step by partnering with Belmont Abbey College to host our inaugural regional readers summit in Charlotte. Eighty devoted readers joined editor R. R. Reno and instructors from the college for a Friday lecture and Saturday morning seminars on “Friendship in an Age of Polarization.”

In the coming months, we plan to use targeted emails, social media posts, and regular reminders in the magazine to introduce readers to their local ROFTers groups. At the same time, we hope to identify prospective group leaders with whom we can partner to establish new groups and expand our footprint.

We know that there is far more that we can do to support our network of ROFTers groups. And we want to hear from you! Please email [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) with any ideas you have.

Thank you for your readership of FIRST THINGS.
Gratefully,
Carter Skeel
Director of Development
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