In 1054, there was a historic split in Christianity (but come to think of it, there’s always been splits going on in Christianity) when the Eastern Church of the Byzantine Empire split from the Western Church, known today as the Roman Catholic Church. The Eastern Churches have always been known as the Orthodox Church, with certain regional flavors – Greek Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, and Russian Orthodox. At the time of the split, they were and still are following the Patriarch, formerly of Constantinople, now of Moscow, though today not all Orthodox churches accept his authority. They see the Pope as just the Patriarch of Rome, not as head of all the church as the heir of Peter (the Petrine Doctrine). The point is, the Orthodox Churches in America are booming these days – the fastest rate of growth of any religious group, as far as I can tell. The reason generally given for this growth is the appeal of the Orthodox Church to young men.
Young men today fight a feeling of deprivation. They feel that society demeans maleness as testosterone-fueled madness that must be restrained by the sane women – and trained out of men from their early years. Men are expected to be weak, full of empathy, easy-criers – in other words, feminized. By contrast, Orthodox Christianity is seen as demanding, structured, difficult – in other words, masculine. That perceived masculinity is its appeal.
Many of these young men are coming out of our evangelical, Protestant churches. They find that our churches are often too feminized. The decorations are what women like – crosses draped in long cloth, hearts and flowers, pastel colors. The music in many evangelical churches is “Jesus is my boyfriend,” long songs with lots of emotional repeats, all about loving Jesus. Everyone is expected to sway and hold up hands and “experience the love.” Sermons are about feelings, centered on “Jesus just loves you,” with no hard teaching or doctrines, and a softening of a stance against the “alphabet soup” of alternative lifestyles (LGBTQXYZMNOP+).
Contrawise, Orthodox Christianity demands long worship services, with a format that has over a thousand years of tradition behind it. It demands confession, and fasting, and provides structure. The priests are married, real men with beards and families, who have surprisingly macho attitudes about things – men should be leaders in the home and society. It’s masculine and affirms the masculinity that many young men feel is being questioned by the rest of society.
Where does Cascades fit into this continuum, from the masculine extremes of the Orthodox Church to the extreme of feminization, especially seen in the old mainline churches? We hit the center fairly well, I would argue. Our pastors have been willing to hit the hard things of scripture, we stand behind the man as the head of the home, our songs tend toward the meaningful, even quite thoroughly doctrinal that engage the mind as well as the emotions (shout out to Jordan!). Our decorations don’t get too feminine, but admittedly we don’t have dead animal heads on the walls (unfortunately).
I would warn against the allure of the Orthodox Church. They don’t fully teach justification by faith, and many of them are tied to Moscow in not wise ways. But I see the allure of tradition and self-sacrifice and demanding practices.
So how about this idea – be more demanding of yourself. Have you fasted? It’s a great spiritual discipline. I personally had a wonderful answer to prayer from a fasting experience. (It also made me sicker than a dog the next day.) Do you discipline yourself to read and pray, to lead your family in reading and prayer? Discipline, in being a real man who takes charge of his own spiritual growth and developments and leads his family to do the same – God wants those kind of men. That’s a real man, who stands boldly for truth in his family and in society, without losing a sense of compassion and empathy for the lost and struggling. Be a real man.
For thought:
- There’s a struggle right now in our American churches over empathy. Some reject it as feminine and misguided to have care and consideration and acceptance of the misfits; others say it is at the heart of the Christianity. What does the Bible say?
- Is there a backlash against the feminization of society right now, or is that process continuing? What positives/negatives are there on both sides? Where should the church stand on this issue?
- Are you a real man in your faith and life and family? What do you need to surrender to Christ and change?
Written By: Tim Barsuhn
🥳 HAPPY NEW YEAR 🥳
