This morning I was reading an article that I can't link to because of language about Ignite Church out in Joplin, MO that was headed by pastor Heath Mooneyham (more on that in a little bit).When he was pastor he would engage in sermons about being a guy, sex, guns, and etc. He even had a raffle one Father's Day where he gave away an AR15. What got me the most about him was how he would brazenly hit on women in bars using sexual innuendo. He was a guy who fit the profile of "The Art of Manliness" to a T.
And then he got a DUI and had to step down from his position as pastor.
After reading about him and the meltdown with Mark Driscoll I can't help but ask, "Are these guys trying too hard to be...well, guys?" I get that these men sometimes had good sermons and teachings on how a guy should live his life. I also get that they try to cater to men because so many Christian churches have become too feminized and when a man converts to Christianity usually his whole family converts as well.
However, there are things about "manly" evangelical churches that bother me:
The first point: sex. What I noticed about Driscoll and Mooneyham is the incessant topic of sex. I'm a guy and I love having sex with my wife as much as any other married man. However, if I have a problem in that relationship, I'm going to talk to my priest or a therapist in private or read books about it. I really, really, don't want to hear about it constantly from the pulpit. I find people who talk about sex all the time to be revolting. I get that our American culture is saturated with sex but churches don't need to make the same mistake. I also get that sometimes churches swing the opposite way and don't talk about it at all. This is also a dangerous position. The apostle Paul didn't have any fear of addressing the churches that he wrote to about sexual immorality and the proper way to relate to one's spouse. What needs to be found is a middle ground.
Second point: alienating women. After reading about Mooneyham's church I can't help but wonder if any single woman would go there of her own free will. You may as well as her to go to a biker bar. This is a huge hindrance because women are vitally important to churches. I feel like a church like Mooneyham's with their emphasis on "BRO!" would miss the fact that women have their own individual issues that they struggle with that men don't. Women need the gospel as well as men and need churches that help them with their needs.
Third point: manliness over holiness. It's fun to shoot guns, drink beer, get muscular, etc. However, that pales in comparison to my relationship with God. Holiness should be at the forefront of my mind moreso than trying to come off as "manly." I think that masculinity is important for me as a man, but I think that a holy life lived for God will bring rewards that ring into eternity itself. When I read about Mooneyham's church one of the things that shocked me was that he didn't even have a cross inside of his office. He had a deer head, a football jersey shirt, etc, but no crosses or other Christian symbolism because, as he said in the article, "I don't need a bunch of [stuff]1 on my walls to tell you that I love Jesus." As an Eastern Orthodox Christian I especially find such a thing especially appalling, but it would take too long and go off topic to list all of the reasons why. Suffice to say that even a cross inside of a church and a pastor's office is definitely appropriate and should be used at least to inspire the leader of the congregation to focus his attention on Christ. What better place where he thinks of writing his sermons and dealing with the multitude of church issues? Driscoll also had a problem of cussing and he even did it from the pulpit. Did these guys forget that such language is a vice and shouldn't be used in those contexts? Honestly, I cuss at work and the nature of my job being so stressful it's hard not to. However, I consider it a vice within myself that needs to be corrected. I want to eventually stop it but it is really hard. What me and many others who struggle with cursing know is that you don't curse in church. Cursing doesn't make someone more manly and I think these pastors tried so hard to be manly that they forgot about being holy which led to a big meltdown in both cases.
Well, that's basically my rant. What are your thoughts? It'd be interesting to hear from both men and women on this topic.
1. He actually cursed here. I replaced the word.
And then he got a DUI and had to step down from his position as pastor.
After reading about him and the meltdown with Mark Driscoll I can't help but ask, "Are these guys trying too hard to be...well, guys?" I get that these men sometimes had good sermons and teachings on how a guy should live his life. I also get that they try to cater to men because so many Christian churches have become too feminized and when a man converts to Christianity usually his whole family converts as well.
However, there are things about "manly" evangelical churches that bother me:
- The overemphasis on sex.
- Potentially alienating women.
- Emphasizing being "manly" so much that they forget about being holy.
The first point: sex. What I noticed about Driscoll and Mooneyham is the incessant topic of sex. I'm a guy and I love having sex with my wife as much as any other married man. However, if I have a problem in that relationship, I'm going to talk to my priest or a therapist in private or read books about it. I really, really, don't want to hear about it constantly from the pulpit. I find people who talk about sex all the time to be revolting. I get that our American culture is saturated with sex but churches don't need to make the same mistake. I also get that sometimes churches swing the opposite way and don't talk about it at all. This is also a dangerous position. The apostle Paul didn't have any fear of addressing the churches that he wrote to about sexual immorality and the proper way to relate to one's spouse. What needs to be found is a middle ground.
Second point: alienating women. After reading about Mooneyham's church I can't help but wonder if any single woman would go there of her own free will. You may as well as her to go to a biker bar. This is a huge hindrance because women are vitally important to churches. I feel like a church like Mooneyham's with their emphasis on "BRO!" would miss the fact that women have their own individual issues that they struggle with that men don't. Women need the gospel as well as men and need churches that help them with their needs.
Third point: manliness over holiness. It's fun to shoot guns, drink beer, get muscular, etc. However, that pales in comparison to my relationship with God. Holiness should be at the forefront of my mind moreso than trying to come off as "manly." I think that masculinity is important for me as a man, but I think that a holy life lived for God will bring rewards that ring into eternity itself. When I read about Mooneyham's church one of the things that shocked me was that he didn't even have a cross inside of his office. He had a deer head, a football jersey shirt, etc, but no crosses or other Christian symbolism because, as he said in the article, "I don't need a bunch of [stuff]1 on my walls to tell you that I love Jesus." As an Eastern Orthodox Christian I especially find such a thing especially appalling, but it would take too long and go off topic to list all of the reasons why. Suffice to say that even a cross inside of a church and a pastor's office is definitely appropriate and should be used at least to inspire the leader of the congregation to focus his attention on Christ. What better place where he thinks of writing his sermons and dealing with the multitude of church issues? Driscoll also had a problem of cussing and he even did it from the pulpit. Did these guys forget that such language is a vice and shouldn't be used in those contexts? Honestly, I cuss at work and the nature of my job being so stressful it's hard not to. However, I consider it a vice within myself that needs to be corrected. I want to eventually stop it but it is really hard. What me and many others who struggle with cursing know is that you don't curse in church. Cursing doesn't make someone more manly and I think these pastors tried so hard to be manly that they forgot about being holy which led to a big meltdown in both cases.
Well, that's basically my rant. What are your thoughts? It'd be interesting to hear from both men and women on this topic.
1. He actually cursed here. I replaced the word.
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