Churches today are designed for women. Why is church not inviting for men? . . . it's because men are drawn to risk, challenge and adventure. "But these things are discouraged in the local church."
-- From "No men in the pews? Could be church's fault" by John Longhurst, Winnipeg Free Press 9/4/10
David Murrow . . . author of the book Why Men Hate Going to Church . . . asks: "What is it about modern Christianity that is driving men away?"
"This church system offers little to stir the masculine heart, so men find it dull and irrelevant," he states, adding that men who do go to church seem passive and bored.
At the same time, he maintains, the very definition of a good Christian has become feminized. Christians, he says, are supposed to be gentle, sensitive and nurturing, focused on home, family and hospitality. The godly are supposed to be calm, gentle, polite and sociable.
"Here's one of the great, unspoken assumptions of worship today: The more emotional the response, the truer the worship," he says. "Great worship results in sensation, passion and good feelings. The worship leader's job is to help the people generate a warm, gooey feeling in their hearts about Jesus."
All this adds up to making church a place where men don't feel welcome.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Prof says boys raised to be 'too soft' will be ineffective men" By Bob Allen, Senior Writer, Associated Baptist Press 8/23/10
Bumps, scrapes and bruises are not just associated with boyhood but are necessary in order to raise men equipped to exercise spiritual leadership in their homes [says] Randy Stinson, dean of the School of Church Ministries at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Stinson said one problem facing churches today is a "feminization" of the gospel that began early in Christianity with a "bridal mysticism" that applied poetry about the relationship between man and woman in the Song of Solomon as a metaphor for the church's relationship with Christ.
He said it comes across in music played on Christian radio and in churches with lyrics like "I want to touch you, hold you, feel you" and "I can't stop falling in love with Jesus."
"When we talk about the Christian life in terms of sensual, romantic language, why are we surprised when men don't get that and men are repulsed by that, they don't understand that?" he asked.
Stinson said churches should focus on "ministry by men, not ministry to men."
"Men solve problems. They fix stuff. They get stuff done," he said. "When we give men such weak assignments -- we put them on the bereavement committee and the flower committee and the grounds committee and the fellowships committees -- give men a God-sized task that they know requires a man."
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Read also, Masculine Christianity by Scott Lively (.PDF)
