The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity

By Leon J. Podles

Book Overview

In all the discussion of women's roles in the Church, we've ignored a pressing question: Why don't men go to church anymore?Why are the most common traits of the modern Church doves and quilts and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1890626198
• ISBN13: 9781890626198
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Richard Vigilante
• Length: 286 Pages
• Weight: 0.97 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.8" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

sanity at last

There is a scene in C.S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles in which one of the children says to another, about the Christ-figure Aslan, "After all, you know, he isn't a TAME lion." And I believe it was Lewis also who said that perhaps Goodness was a more terrifying thing than we had imagined. Mr. Podles' book reminds us of at least one reason why men do not go to the modern mainline and Catholic churches: it is because those churches have tamed Jesus Christ, and NO LONGER TREMBLE BEFORE HIS MAJESTY. Those Churches are, fundamentally, not serious about what they are doing.How many people realize that, in the whole of the Gospels, aside from his greeting Nathaniel with the words, "Behold, an Israelite in whom there is no guile," Jesus never praises his disciples, never says that they are good people, never allows them to celebrate themselves; he promises them rewards, but those are for giving up all they have and following him. Indeed, Jesus is often quite sharp with them: "If you, WHO ARE WICKED, know how to give good things," "Get thee behind me, SATAN," "O YE OF LITTLE FAITH." Yet the disciples follow him. Why? Mr. Podles knows why -- men look up to those who love them enough to strengthen them, to discipline them, to make them undertake the arduous adventure. Podles' description of the Penitentes in New Mexico made me wish that I, too, could show my love for Christ in such a drastic way; it nearly made me weep.But I suppose what most endears this book to me, and what most infuriates me about the rather niggling criticism it has received in two of the reviews here, is that it bothers to take the winning of men's souls seriously, something which the Churches, in their lukewarm love, have found too inconvenient or upsetting to do! How comfortable our mainline Churches have become -- old biddies' clubs! Niceness and smiley faces are not going to save the soul of the tattooed man on the streetcorner: who, by the way, probably has a man's keen and ruthless insight into what is merely sentimental and phony. If he is to be saved, Christ must do the work -- and the one who preaches Christ to him had better have Authority in his -- and I use the pronoun advisedly -- voice.

A fascinating examination

Many people have noted, and worried about, the fact that men are so much less likely to regularly attend church in the West than women. In this book, Leon Podles examines this phenomenon from a historical perspective, and concludes that it is not a new problem, but one that extends all the way back to the thirteenth century! Immediately following that, the author takes a powerful look at masculinity (as opposed to maleness, the mere fact of being a male of the species) from the viewpoints of biology, developmental psychology, and anthropology. Then, there are chapters that trace the evolution of Judaism and the first millennium church, neither of which suffered from a lack of men. Finally, the author examines the changes in Christian thinking that began in the thirteenth century, follows trends in masculine development in the absence of Christian influence, and finally provides some suggestions on reversing this "feminization" of the church.As a man, I found that this book spoke to me. The author's examination of masculinity was powerful, striding far beyond what I have read in other "men's" books. The problem that the author proposes is both subtle and profound. I believe that the author's examination of the men produced outside of Christian beliefs (e.g. love, hope and charity) means that women should also be concerned about this problem. Therefore, let me recommend this book to all believers.

Highly recommended

The reaction of the "READER BEWARE" review is not surprising. Yes, some people are going to say this book is highly distorted or narrowly focused. The book does not perfectly address the gender issues in Christianity. But it is, unequivocally, a scholarly analysis of the feminization of Western Chrisianity. The book is highly educational, without getting too abstract or theoretical. If you are a Christian and have any common sense at all, you will agree with much of what Podles has to say. Every pastor, church leader, or lay minister should read this book.

A must read for pastors and lay leaders.

As an Episcopal priest, I've long recognized and been concerned about the absence of men in the life of the church. Dr. Podle's book is an outstanding contribution to our knowledge about how this situation came about. His handling of sex and gender issues, his knowledge of the Bible and the literature of medieval mystical writers is impressive. I urge pastors and priests, as well as concerned lay leaders, to read this book in the hopes that Podle's contribution will provoke a wider and more serious discussion of these issues.

Calm, Incisive, and Convincing

Leon Podles unpacks George Bernard Shaw's quip that there are three sexes: male, female, and clergy. He explains how this came to be in "mainstream" western churches, and how from the beginning it wasn't so. His tone is calm and his method exemplary. This is an important book that may provoke a long stream of published conversation. It brought to this reviewer's mind a number of Ann Douglas's observations in The Feminization of American Culture, which might be profitably read along with it..