Gender is not enough

Lesley Leyland Fields writes,

A man or woman, a boy or girl who tends toward the features considered “the other” may question his or her identity in a way that may not have happened a few decades ago.

It seems to me that men are hit particularly hard on this, from two directions. Women and girls enjoy a generous allowance that encourages the athlete, the supermodel, the CEO and the mother as equally valid expressions of femaleness. Many parents, like me, encourage our daughters to be pitchers and point guards (and fishermen) rather than princesses. But cultural expectations of masculinity are far more stingy. If a man is gentle, compassionate, artsy, empathetic, cultivates beauty in his life, talks with his hands, enjoys the friendship of women, his masculinity and sexuality is instantly questioned.

Nor are the stereotypes themselves gender equitable. After suffering generations of sexism, women fare much better than men under the current spotlight. Women are lauded for their neural plasticity; are seen as flexible, cooperative, compassionate, honest. Women outpace men in higher education, in employability, and in a score of other measures. And at the movies, they’re as glamorous and sexy as ever but they’re also Avengers, superheroes, as kick-ass as the men. Angelina Jolie, all 100 pounds of her, can flick a 300 pound villain over her gorgeous head. Women can do and be it all.

And men? Yes, athletes and superheroes, but not much else. They’ve been lame pathetic fathers in sitcoms for more than 20 years. The moral failures of male politicians has come to feel like the norm. Physiologically, men are critiqued for their single-lobed rigidity, for their lone-wolf leadership style, leading one social observer, Hanna Rosen, to her 2010 provocative cover story for The Atlantic, The End of Men. In my day, many girls wanted to be boys, myself included because the boys held all the power. No longer. Now it is men who want to be women: three times as many men as women are undergoing sex reassignment surgery.

I’m not explaining away Jenner’s transformation on the media-ized ascendency of women in our time, though it may be a contributing factor. That double image of Bruce and then Caitlyn is a fitting poster for the increasing gap between the genders. But even more than this, Jenner’s interview and his Vanity Fair coverage poignantly highlights that our sexualized obsession with gender is failing us.



This is my hope, that whoever we are, we will be known not for our gender category but for our mercy, our wisdom, our kindness, our humility, our grace, and our love. If we allow the Holy Spirit to do this in us, we will be exactly who we were created to be, inside and out.

Read more here.

The candle light service at the new age church

Last night after work I went to a candle light Christmas Eve church service at the Mile High church in Lakewood, Colorado. A fellow employee at work invited me. He has been very kind to me. I had recently apologized to him for making fun of his new age beliefs. I prefer Victor Davis Hanson to Deepak Chopra.

He asked me to meet him in the parking lot of a church just west of where I work. He said that church was a "sin and fear" church on the north side of the road. That church was dark, having already had its candlelight service two hours earlier. I parked my car there under a light, and he drove me into Lakewood, which was about an hour away.

The Mile High church tells its audience members that "you are the ones you have been waiting for!" I audibly winced and almost jolted out of my seat when I heard those words come from the pastor's mouth. I thought I was listening to Barack Obama!

Divine? I know that I am one hundred percent human, and zero percent divine. I am real clear about that. If there is any divine in me, it is the Holy Spirit, not me. I want the Holy Spirit to be able to make me a gift of His grace to others, but I know the difference between divine and human.

Peace on Earth? Not as long as there are jihadists killing Christians and preparing nuclear warheads aimed at Israel. Not as long as there are brutal totalitarian regimes building up their militaries while we scale down ours.

The church was packed to its 1100 seat capacity. The music was fabulous. The cellist was superb, as was her fellow acoustic musician who played several guitars. There was also an organist/piano player who was excellent, and a drummer who was outstanding. There was a large exuberant choir and a smaller children's choir. One of the children had the most beautiful, pure soprano voice, and she sang a breathtaking version of O Holy Night. There were several other soloists who were first rate. My favorite was the black man who led us in singing Joy To The World, which was the most rousing rendition I have ever participated in. Throughout the hour and one-half music and dance was interspersed with the new age message from the various pastors.

I was wishing my three children would have been with me. They have been going to a Catholic Church with Colleen in Santa Fe. They hate it. "Boring" is always how they describe the experience. Colleen loves it, though. The priest is an escapee from North Korea, and she admires him greatly. She also like the reverence and discipline of the service. She believes church is a place where you go to worship God, not be entertained. The kids would have enjoyed Mile High church, though.

One God, one truth. Rejoice and be glad!

Ten ways to advance the Kingdom of Christ in this world

David Warren, devout Catholic and Canadian, has

ten specific practical suggestions, on how to advance the Kingdom of Christ in this world.

The first is, absolutely refuse to give obeisance to the various idols which the “politically correct” specially define, and then demand that we worship, such as “equality,” “fairness,” “human rights,” and the other specious abstractions to which they attribute a gnostic and mystical power. And symmetrically, refuse to worship in the temples of the gods of money and power and coolness.

Second, make conscious, reverent references to God — even to God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — an audible part of our lives in the world, and love God in our hearts. Conversely, carefully avoid speaking of any divine thing in a cute or irreverent way.

Third, unfailingly attend the Mass, each Sunday, and daily where we can; and let the Mass do its work upon our souls. (Non-Catholics should likewise be punctilious in their own religious observances.) Let the enemy see our churches filled. Observe and participate in all other sacraments, which includes, for Catholic Christians, the crucial one of making a good Confession, frequently. In any event, prayerfully ask God’s forgiveness when we fail.

Fourth, defend our families, by keeping as aloof as possible from the bureaucracies of Nanny State. Do not neglect the needs of our parents in their time of sickness and old age; do not fail to instil in our children, by our own upright and sincere behaviour, the respect they owe to us as their parents.

Fifth, do not participate in any way in what a recent pope so eloquently described as “the culture of death.” Do everything in our power to streetproof ourselves and our children against its demands, and do not hesitate to spell out the basic facts of life, behind all life issues. Be sure our children understand them, and that they grasp the sanctity of all human life.

Sixth, reject sexual liberation in all its insidious forms. Do not even think about fornication and adultery. Truly respect and accommodate the opposite sex.

Seventh, be consistently honest and honourable in all business and social transactions, with everyone, regardless of race colour or creed, even when it must be at some cost to ourselves. Do not play with temptations to corruption. Yet, assiduously avoid being “holier than thou.”

Eighth, be truthful in speech, fair and even charitable in speaking of other people, and look constantly for whatever good we can find in them. Be encouraging rather than discouraging by habit, and most important, do not spread personal gossip and lies, even against our worst enemies, and even when we think they deserve it.

Ninth, be content with what we have in our family and religious life, make ourselves happy with the homes we have to return to, and do not look covetously upon the Joneses. Accept with humility our station in life; have ambitions, but make them unselfish.

Tenth, be content with our fate more generally, and trust in God to deliver His justice in the fullness of Eternity: “Thy will be done.” Take only what comes our way, including all knocks, and use what we have been given, including all talents and skills, generously to God’s glory. Indeed, give, according to our means, a little wildly. See and sympathize with need. And rejoice, always, in the life we are given, and in the knowledge that what we leave upon the face of time can only be our example.