I was recently sent, by a religious bookseller, a listing of books, that “as a man of God” I might want to review to recommend to my congregants or “men’s group”…

Let me start by saying I haven’t read any of these books…My flippant responses are based solely on the descriptions of and/or quotes from these books that were included in the promotional materials. Not wanting to slander any author, I’ve deleted their last names….


Manly Dominion in a Passive Purple Four-Ball World
By Mark C…

From the book… “The constant imbibing of feminism, mixing together with man's native sinfulness, has resulted in an epidemic of passive-purple-four-ballism in modern marriages. Men have permitted themselves to be emasculated into a company of wimp eunuchs, who believe it should be their goal to strive toward being passive nice guys in their homes. We've been told, and actually now believe, that "authority" is a naughty word, that male headship is abusive, and that aggressive leadership is rude. Thus, husbands have abdicated the driver's seat and taken a back seat in their marriages.”

I’m not sure I need to say anything….I think that quote says it all. Perhaps I’ll go imbibe a little more feminism and drive away any burgeoning sense of masculinity I might feel…like vampires drive away death by feeding on the blood of innocents...


Preparing Your Son for Every Man’s Battle
By Stephen A…

The male Christian chastity manual for the 21st century (over 250 pages!!!)

At least they advocate a conversation. All my brother and I got was a pamphlet. :-) Still, as important as the conversations about sex must be between parent and child, must we couch it in war terminology? And is sexual morality really so important that it earns the moniker “Every Man’s Battle”?


Stonewall Jackson: The Spiritual Side
By David M…

This spiritual biography lifts up the former Confederate general as a paragon of family virtue and church leadership. At least from the blurbs I’ve seen, it doesn’t seek to deal with the paradoxes of faith and war, or of Christianity and slaveholding. Rather, it concentrates on lauding Jackson as a “warrior spirit in prayer.” Um….no thanks.


Anchor Man
By Steve F…

From the ad: “Anchor Man presents the high calling of fatherhood, the traits of a Christian father, the adventures that await him as he interacts with his children, and the significance of his role as a family man for generations beyond his own children.”
"When a man gets serious about following Christ with his whole heart," F… says, "God desires to not only pour out His blessing on that man, but on his children, and his children's children."

The apparent assumptions contained in that one statement by Mr. F… bother me…Is it some new form of “prosperity gospel”? Does it really lift up a God who materially rewards the Godly (I mean that would be cool and all, but it doesn’t jive with reality)? And where is the Mom in this scenario? Does God not care about her or want to bless her? It smacks of a misogyny that gives me the creeps.


Thoughts?