One of the big criticisms of modern day Western Christianity is that it has colluded with the feminists and become feminised, losing its power and reaching the point where men are actively discriminated against it.
This is different from the attack of the militant atheists — That Christianity is untrue. People like Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins are fairly easily refuted. The damage done by betrayal is less easy to deal with.
W.F. Price summarised this as follows.
It’s probably confusing for a lot of people to hear that Christianity has essentially become a female sect, because for years we’ve been hearing about how awfully patriarchal and sexist Christian denominations (and other Abrahamic religions) are, and how the religion is a tool used to subjugate women. Given that churches are now about as female as college campuses (about 60%), folks must be scratching their heads and wondering what happened.
Many of the men writing on this issue, including Dalrock and Elusive Wapiti, are Christians themselves, and they’ve done a great job exposing the rampant man-bashing in contemporary Christianity. Dalrock recently pointed out how Christians even go so far as to excuse female-initiated divorce for trivial reasons, and cannot boast any more success in keeping families together than secular society.
So what’s the deal here? Why have Christians failed so miserably across the board in their sacred duty to uphold the sanctity of matrimony and prevent dissolution?
What’s happening is that Christianity has become an industry of sorts, and it caters to its consumers, who are overwhelmingly female. As wealth has transferred to women, who are the biggest discretionary spenders in the US by a wide margin, churches and preachers have turned to supplication to earn their daily bread.
Now these criticisms need to be taken into account. Paul reminded Timothy to preach the gospel “In season and out of season:. And Peter reminded us that there will be scoffers, but we will be held to account for what we have done.
1This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you; in them I am trying to arouse your sincere intention by reminding you 2that you should remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles. 3First of all you must understand this, that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and indulging their own lusts 4and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!” 5They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water and by means of water, 6through which the world of that time was deluged with water and perished. 7But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the godless.
8But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. 9The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. 10But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.
It is pretty clear that we have a duty to be as a rock. Not as shifting sands, moved by our emotions, or our circumstances. But as a rock. We cannot afford to pander to any group.
Our job is to preach always, using words only when needed (paraphrasing Francis of Assisi). Regardless of the season and the criticism. For the intellectual fashions of this year will pass, but the gospel will remain.