CCT 28-1_LR

w When God made males and females, He did so separately, distinctly, and definitively. He did so on purpose and with a purpose, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male AND (my emphasis) female He created them” (Genesis 1:27, NASB).

The way I understand it, males (notice I did not say men) and females are different in at least three distinct ways—biblically, experientially, and empirically. First, when I say our amazing genders are different biblically, I mean biologically. God made them “male and female.” To quote the inno cent kindergartener in the Arnold Schwarzenegger hit movie, Kindergarten Cop, “Boys have a penis. Girls have a vagina.” Enough said. Second, we differ experientially . Generally, we are different in our approach to life, relationships, and the human experience. Men and women, again generally, are filled with vastly different experiences. Recently, my bride, Shanna, was asked what filled my tank; she rolled her eyes and said, “If Jim is cold, wet, and suffering with nothing but his pack, gun, and a Jetboil™ (stove), he is happy.” The women in the room affirmed Shanna’s disdain with rolled eyes and a verbal “ugh” while the men nodded their heads in silent agreement with my suffering-equals-joy scenario. “Male and female, He created them.” Finally, and most controversially, we are different empirically . No one wants to talk about this in our males-and-females-are-equal masquerade— but it is true, nonetheless. All things being equal (and they are more equal than ever), we are created with unique, gender-specific, inherent passions that manifest in our career choices. You may remember the recent Benedictine College commencement cer emony, when Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s speech exploded over the news, causing an uproar that surprised many. Not me. I have served in full-time ministry for 35 years and in the Christian men’s space for a decade and a half. During that time, I have watched the cultural under standing of how men and women differ become increasingly warped to unfathomable degrees. Thus, when Harrison Butker made comments about the necessity of men in the family, implied that women might value their children over careers, and praised his “wife who leans into her vocation [as a wife and mother],” it struck a nerve of a false narrative that has been taking a deeper hold of the mindset of our anti-biblical culture. Of course, his words of praise for his wife were misinterpreted as misogy nistic (thank you, misandrists, for pointing that out) and another example of “toxic masculinity.” You do not know me, but can I share how sick and tired I am of the ignorant overuse of this oxymoronic phrase? The Oxford English Dictionary’s (Oxford Languages) definition of masculinity is a set of “qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men and boys,” 1 which begs the question, “What is an attribute?” According to Oxford, an attribute is simply a “quality or feature regarded as a characteristic or inherent part of someone or something.” 2

JIM RAMOS

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christian counseling today VOL. 28 NO. 1