WHAT DO WE WANT MEN AND BOYS TO LIVE FOR?

Christianity, like several great traditions, offers men a demanding vision: use your strength in service of something greater than yourself.

Provide. Protect. Take responsibility. Build families and communities. Love sacrificially.

Pastor Al Stewart describes healthy masculinity as being prepared to “give your life in the service of others”. Sometimes through extraordinary courage, but more often through the slow sacrifice of the “death of 10,000 commutes.”

There’s something deeply noble in this. But there’s also a tension we need to confront…

For decades, Western culture has increasingly told women: know your worth, pursue your ambitions, establish boundaries, become independent, don't organise your life around serving men or children.

Meanwhile, men continue to hear: step up, provide, protect, sacrifice, serve.

Add strands of feminism that frame masculinity principally through patriarchy, privilege and toxicity; an empathy gap around male suicide, workplace deaths, homelessness and boys falling behind; and a materialistic consumer culture relentlessly promoting autonomy, comfort, optionality and short-term self-interest.

Eventually some men ask: Why should I accept the old obligations when reciprocity has disappeared?

MGTOW offers one answer: don't. This asserts an important truth:

A man's life has intrinsic value. Men are not utility vehicles. Their bodies, health, time, dreams and earnings don’t exist merely for the benefit of others.

But complete withdrawal cannot be the answer either.

A civilisation of autonomous consumers maximising personal freedom while minimising enduring obligations will not sustain families, communities and future generations.

We need an enlightened middle path.

Keep the Christian call to responsibility, service and sacrifice—but rebuild the social contract around it…

Wind back adversarial feminism, one-sided female empowerment and sex-specific entitlement (but not women's equal dignity, liberties or opportunities).

Restore genuine reciprocity.

Take boys' education and men's health seriously. Honour fatherhood. Recognise male vulnerability as readily as male agency. Stop treating men's sacrifices as an unlimited natural resource.

Tell every boy:

Your life matters.

Your health matters.

Your dreams matter.

Your suffering matters.

You aren’t disposable.

Then challenge him: Because your life is valuable, make it count.

Become strong. Build. Create. Love. Form deep friendships. Become a husband and father if that is your vocation. Serve worthy people and purposes. Accept responsibility. Leave something behind.

And call women to the same principles of fidelity, responsibility, service and sacrifice.

The answer is neither:

 

MEN EXIST FOR OTHERS

nor

 

MEN EXIST ONLY FOR THEMSELVES.

It is: DIGNITY → AGENCY → RECIPROCITY → RESPONSIBILITY → SERVICE

We need to build families, institutions and communities in which men and boys can once again see a future worth growing into, and something worth giving themselves to...

By Celebrating Masculinity.

From Digital Anvil

 

 

New Moral Code of the West

For generations, there has been an agreed moral code in Western nations which centred around basic Christian ethics. It was the foundation of our legal system. This has changed and a new moral code has emerged. Authors Lyons and Kinnaman wrote that there are new guiding principles. 

here are four:

1. To find yourself, look within yourself

2. People should not criticise someone else’s life choices

3. To be fulfilled in life, pursue the things you desire most

4. Enjoying yourself is the highest goal in life

We are so used to these principles that we don’t notice them anymore. But we need to see that this has been a massive shift. We have moved from looking to a creator God as our central motivation, to ourselves.

Humanity now worships itself. Is this how we want to live?

Share this daily - reading.

My thanks to  my occasional " mentor" Karl Faase.

From Digital Anvil.

 

Re-Posted by design 

 

Christian Families

There is a narrative developing that Christian men who follow the Bible are exhibit A of 'toxic masculinity'. It is suggested they follow the Bible teaching that men should head up their family and as a result become abusive. Is that true?

Nancy Pearcey, academic and author, and a guest on our series for men, True North, made the point that research demonstrates that it is not true.

Christian fathers spend more time with their children, Christian couples divorce at a lower rate and have the lowest rate of domestic abuse of any group. As Pearcey says "... this totally shatters the negative stereotypes."

There is one caveat. These husbands are not nominal Christians, but active in their faith attending church three to four times a month. Active faith makes all the difference.

Thanks,Karl Faase.

Share this daily- reading.

(From Digital Anvil )

¹

Drawing An Image

What does a cave painting from thousands of years ago have in common with the most expensive paintings in art galleries today?

It is the ability to see and create an image of something that is distinct and separate from the object being painted. You may believe this is obvious, but as author Anthony Kronman states:

“...so far as we can tell, this peculiar way of seeing is the power that resides in human eyes alone.”

This is another way humanity is different from the rest of the created order. God created us with the ability to think, create and build a spiritual life.

Humanity is not just a slightly more evolved part of the ecosystem; humans are completely different because we are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:17).

Share this daily-reading.

Thanks to Karl Faase.

(From Digital Anvil)

 

The Yellow Canary:

The Yellow Canary:

 

 

 

How a society or nation treats the Jew in their midst is the litmus test of  that nation or society ?

If a nation treats the Jew with respect, allows them freedom to co- exist and  with other due democratic values then that nation is likely to be a true, stable democratic country.

But if the society or nation state treats the internal population of Jews with disdain, disrespect and subjects them to persecution, then that society is sliding towards authoritarian and totalitarian ideology.

The Jew is the canary in the coal mine.

Capitalism is the opposite of communism.

Is the Global Community of the World the opposer of the tiny state of Israel?

Think?

Why should the whole Global Community oppose the tiny State of Israel? Does it? What's abundantly clear?

Disturbingly  Insane Irrationality versus Logic and Reasoning and Sanity.

How should the tiny nation of Israel surrounded by the Arab and other Muslim nations with the most advanced Western civilised nations feel about this entire dire situation?

How can a nation of approximately 13 million people be the Enemy of the whole world of almost 8 billions? Who is the aggressor? Flea versus Dragon.

 

Think? 

Is might right? Is the coal face of this ridiculous enmity of the global community a true snapshot of the globally  (free?) elites and( free?) populations?

 When should love- your - neighbour become the default domicile of the world?

 

If the Jew-- as i stated above, is the litmus test of the East and the West, what price freedom?

The question becomes" who is supposedly evil and who is really good?"

( Jesus is able to save the guttermost.

Jesus reaches deep to the uttermost)

( Opinion by Digital Anvil)

 

 

This was originally posted in 2025. 

Determinism, Not Free:

The opposite of free will is determinism. 

In this philosophical concept, it is believed that all events, including human actions, are predetermined and influenced by external factors.

 Determinism suggests that individuals have no control over their choices and actions, as they are simply the result of a chain of cause and effect. This perspective is supported by scientific evidence, which demonstrates the influence of genetics, environment, and past experiences on human behavior.

 Embracing determinism can lead to a deeper understanding of the world and alleviate the burden of personal responsibility. By acknowledging the absence of free will, individuals can focus on accepting and adapting to the circumstances they find themselves in, fostering a sense of peace and contentment. 

Ultimately, the opposite of free will offers a refreshing perspective that encourages individuals to embrace the inevitability of their actions and find solace in the intricate interconnectedness of the universe.

.

By Digital Anvil.

Body and Soul.

Joseph gave sustenance for the world's body.

Jesus gave love for the world's soul.

By Digital Anvil.