What does it mean to be a man? Today’s answer to that question is far different from what it would have been generations ago. Some may not even have a clear answer.
What does it mean to be a courageous man? It used to be that men were compared to knights in shining armor. Valiant protectors of women, children and families.
Tomorrow, Caitlyn Jenner will receive ESPN’s Arthur Ashe Courage Award. Caitlyn, who used to be Bruce. So is/was he a courageous man in their eyes? Or a courageous woman? Man or woman, the human being called Caitlyn Jenner is today’s representative of courage. How sad that a self-mutilated effeminate man gets the Courage Award. Even the Cowardly Lion would be appalled.
This kind of in-your-face audacity is today’s norm. The Supreme Court legalized sin by allowing same sex marriage. Like the blatant flesh parade splashed on screens and in streets, the proud display of nakedness (sin) abounds. People are boldly, courageously, exposing their sin. And the sin is called good.
Shame is dead.
“…the unjust knoweth no shame.” – Zephaniah 3:5
Before we delve into male identity crisis, allow me to interrupt this blog for a brief commercial break. Cadillac’s recent ad campaign used the phrase Dare Greatly (dare defined: to have enough courage or confidence to do something) to sell their cars. Listen carefully for the worldly atheistic interpretation of who we are and what our purpose is, and note the gender neutrality represented.
As you view this, remember our original question for this series : Who are we and what are we to do? based on Gen. 1:27:
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
There are seven different spots in the ad campaign, but this one really resonated with me:
Take note:
Young male -“My mother bought me a sewing machine…she let me play with dolls…dared to let me be different…”
A female – “We’re here to make a difference”
An older male – “What are definitions of good? What will you do to be a good person in the world?”
These are statements and questions from a world gone mad. A world that has blurred male and female identity. A world that defines what is good on its own terms, tries to be good without God, whose warped purpose is to make a difference, whose religion is humanism and the brotherhood of man. Dare Greatly. It follows other cliches I abhor – like be all you can be, discover your purpose, achieve your greatest potential, etc., ad nauseum. It reeks of new age philosophy: the oneness of all humanity, good works save us.
New York Times bestseller Daring Greatly was published in April 2015, a few months after the February airing of Cadillac’s Dare Greatly ad campaign during the Oscars TV presentation. All media was ablaze with their hellish philosphy simultaneously while an unsuspecting American public sat mesmerized on couches. I didn’t waste my time reading the book, but I checked out some unbelievable quotes it contains about shame:
“We live in a world where most people still subscribe to the belief that shame is a good tool for keeping people in line. Not only is this wrong, but it’s dangerous. Shame is highly correlated with addiction, violence, aggression, depression, eating disorders, and bullying.”– Brené Brown, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
What??? That is a dangerous statement and it’s an outright lie.
Both the book and Cadillac ad campaign were based on a quote from Teddy Roosevelt:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; . . . who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”—Theodore Roosevelt
I’m not sure if even the progressive Teddy R would approve of the dares of our day. Continue reading
Divorced, Reformed and Remarried 