“Womanpriests”, “Pope Joan”… and a side of PC
Lately, I’ve come across several stories, websites, conversations, etc. about ‘womanpriests’. [Some of the websites 
claim to be in communion with the Roman Catholic Church. They aren’t. No matter their claims, they aren’t.] One story is about a movie that’s out, exclusively in Europe right now, about the legend of a female Pope that lived during the 9th century. This claim is unsubstantiated and completely fabricated. One story, which I saw posted on Facebook, spoke of a ‘womanpriest’ from the St. Louis area who is pregnant. “The first female Roman Catholic priest to be pregnant in history.” What is the obsession with women being priests?!?!
I think the obsession is the false understanding of freedom in our culture, mixed with a heavy dose of moral relativism, topped with a false sense of equality… served with a side of PC. In our culture, fairness has been turned into a “if they get one, I deserve one too” system. Society completely distorts the understanding of gender, gender roles, equality, fairness and the intention of God in regards to gender and sexuality. The world has turned everything into a competition and some people believe that in order to be considered ‘equal’, they must have the same opportunities as everyone else. Think about that – it doesn’t make sense.
Why is it, that as soon as a man is allowed (created) to do something, some women automatically insist that they should be allowed to do the same? The insistance includes many such things that are outside the scope of a woman’s role. See, when a man is ordained a priest in the Catholic Church, he becomes the spouse of Mother Church. Plain and simple. No apologies here… politically correct or not.
Being politically correct is not Catholic. It’s not charitable, it’s not what Jesus did, it’s not what we should do. Being politically correct asks us to waterdown our faith, to become “tolerant” of everything that’s going on around us – whether morally acceptable or not. No thanks.
As always, I’m not diggin’ on women. I’m not trying to deify men. What I’m saying is that we were each created for something great, as a man or as a woman. Those things can be (and most likely are) different.
Stand up for the dignity of each person. Respect life. Respect what God created you for. Stand up for Truth. Stand up against the notion of tolerance. Ruffle feathers, if that’s what it takes. Christ wasn’t a fairweather prophet… He didn’t take the position of “acceptance”… See, what Christ did (which is what we are supposed to model our lives after) is that He loved sinners too much to allow them to stay where they were.
TrueMan up!
What Makes Porn So Bad?!
So last post (Porn Gone Mobile) I said that I would talk about why porn is so bad. The totality of the answer can’t fit into this post, so here’s what I’ve got for you today. A great number of people, even those who do not currently look at, use, buy or sell porn, believe that there is nothing wrong with porn. This is a sign of a culture that has completely lost its moral compass. Not only has the moral compass been lost, it has since been replaced with a compass (better stated as a philosophy) that is so far from the truth that it actually denies that absolute truth exists! This philosophy… moral relativism. Relativism states that all things are relative. If you really believe that the composition of the stuff that makes up the ocean is not H2O, but actually H3O7, then in relativism, H3O7 is “truth for you”.
Sure, that’s a silly example, but it can be extended onto any philosophical issue… any issue related to morals, ethics, virtue, choices, life, death… you name it. You may believe that abortion isn’t murder of a human life, but that doesn’t make your belief true. The problem with moral relativism is, well, everything. It denies the absolute truth and leaves everything for the individual to determine. Not a good place to start. If relativism is true, then what Christ did on the cross doesn’t matter. If relativism is true, then God isn’t the ‘unmoved Mover’. If relativism is true, then there’s no definition to what manliness is. So…
That brings us back to porn and why it IS so bad. It’s not that porn is only bad for me and for some other select group of people. It’s not that I’m ‘trying to force my morality on someone’. It’s not that only certain kinds of porn are bad. It’s all intrinsically evil. Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 2354, states: “It offends against chastity because it perverts the conjugal act… It does grave injury to the dignity of its participants… It is a grave offense.” The production of, distribution of and/or the use of pornography damages the individual, causing them to enter into mortal sin, a total turning away from God. It is a lie. It is repulsive.
On another note, porn is intrinsically evil because it destroys our brain’s ability to function properly. When porn is viewed/used, a chemical bond is created. The chemical involved is a hormone, called oxytocin. Oxytocin exists in both males and females. One of the most commonly known occurrences of oxytocin is in child birth. It is one of the bonding agents between a mother and a newborn child – a very powerful bond. Oxytocin is also released in sexual orgasm, thus creating a bond. When the bond is based on a fantasy, ie porn, the bond is incredibly detrimental. This false bond distorts the understanding of the sexual act. Once the distorted bond is in place, often times, the bond continues to deteriorate. Many men choose to allow this bond into their life and then wonder why real intimacy and actual giving of oneself in marriage is so difficult.
If you haven’t been exposed to porn, I urge you to do everything in your power to stay away from it. Porn is just like meth… it only
takes one time. If you have been exposed to porn, it will continue to bond you to the fantasy, to the sexual act, to the addiction. If you’re a single man using porn, the distorted bond will damage your relationships, it will be a stumbling block to finding the right spouse, it will become your motivation. If/When you get married, it will cause you to be selfish in regards to intimacy with your wife, not to mention in day-to-day activities and interactions. If you’re a married man using porn, I’m almost 100% certain that the intimacy with your wife is distorted by your addiction. Not only does it distort your relationship with your wife, it distorts the relationship you have with your children, friends and co-workers.
The good news, as stated before many times, is that freedom from porn exists! I’m walking proof. I had these distortions in my life. It takes a ton of hard work to get over them, as well as daily prayer, the Sacraments and God’s grace. You can do it! Get rid of the porn today!
TrueMan up!
GE Knows What’s Really Going On
Although the technology of a 4-Dimensional Ultrasound isn’t brand new, it’s relatively cutting-edge. I’ve seen a 4D ultrasound of my own children, it’s incredible. You can see facial features and expressions, you can make out every movement and can see the chest expanding as the lungs take in oxygen from the mother. In the discussion of embryo, zygote, fetus, blob, tissue mass, etc. this technology should end the discussion as to what’s in a woman’s womb. It’s a human being.
It’s plain to see that even a secular company like General Electric knows that a baby inside its mother’s womb is a living, breathing, moving, (did I mention living?) human being… and still, the laws in America allow for the murder of that child. It’s ridiculous to think that we have technology like this (as if common sense wasn’t enough) but still allow someone the ‘choice’ to murder their own child. Absolutely ridiculous.
If you can’t view the video, click HERE.
Men, sometimes abortion is portrayed as a woman’s-only issue. Not true. As always, we are called to provide and protect, which must start with the defense of the defenseless. The unborn need men to step up and fight for their rights, their well-being and their life. If you need ideas of how you can help, please email us directly at Info@TrueManhood.com.
TrueMan up!
The Female Version of Cultural Manliness
Have you seen the trailer for the upcoming [atrocity] “Sex and the City 2”? I’ve unfortunately seen the trailer 3 or 4 times now and
have been more and more disgusted by it every time. I can proudly say that I haven’t seen the first movie (although I know it did really well at the box office) and I never intend to watch it. The trailer, as well as the name of the movie/show, tells me plenty. What it tells me is that the characters in the movie are out for, what I’m going to refer to as, “Cultural Femininity”. For those who may not know, I use a term coined “Cultural Manliness” to describe the world’s view of manliness… that the more power, money, sex and stuff a male has, the more manly he is. On all levels, I tear this idea down, showing that it is riddled with emptiness, loneliness, despair and sorrow. The same goes for “Cultural Femininity”.
The trailer depicts the characters in the movie gallivanting around the world, searching for meaningless sex, pleasure and anything else that seems ‘fun’. The trailer attempts to glorify promiscuity, drunkenness, infidelity, homosexuality and the glamor and allure of money. A tag line used in the trailer says “Discover how much fun forbidden can be.” The trailer tells me that many people (women and men) will have their view of marriage ‘shaken up’ a bit… which is most definitely not needed in our culture. The four women in the movie are female versions of “cultural manliness”. In the same way that “cultural manliness” ends in emptiness, loneliness, despair and sorrow, so too does “cultural femininity.”
Movies like this make this behavior seem ‘normal’, as if ‘everyone is doing it’, and in fact, many people live like this. Movies like this degrade women, encourage all the poor behavior mentioned above and highly encourage men to be “culturally manly”. It really is a shame.
TrueMan up!
Supposed To Do
I just returned from a weekend trip to a private midwestern university where I gave a talk on manliness and Christian brotherhood. I mentioned the topic of Adam from the creation story in Genesis. In the story, Adam disregards the command that God gave to him to “shamar” the garden. From his neglect, sin entered the world. This, naturally, led to discussion about gender roles. During the Q&A session, a young man in the front row asked me “what do you mean when you say ‘what a man should do’ and ‘what a woman should do’?” I think it’s a great question and deserves some explanation and distinction here on the site.
When I say one of those statements (‘what a man (or woman) should d0’), what I mean is that men and women have been called to a specific role in humanity. (For instance, fatherhood, or motherhood.) The young man wanted to know if I thought that women shouldn’t work, or be in leadership or do anything outside of mothering children, cleaning and cooking. Obviously, I am not of that opinion. I can understand the question though, because our society tells us constantly that it’s either one, but not both.
Being called to a specific role in humanity means that a male or a female is embracing their nature. Men are naturally designed to protect, guard and care for. We are more rugged. Our bodies are made for laborious tasks. Women are naturally more nurturing, motherly and tender. These differences aren’t pointed out to say one is better than the other, only that they are different. John Paul II said many times, “Men and women were created equal in dignity, but different in role.” This is an important distinction.
For men to be TrueMen, we must embrace what is naturally placed on our hearts by God and follow the commands that God has given to us.
TrueMan up!
A Way for a Woman to Guard Her Heart
I was asked not too long ago what “guard your heart” really means. The answer isn’t cut and dry, especially because each of us has different experiences, different relationships, different baggage, etc. However, when asked this question, I attempted to answer with an analogy that I’d like to share with you now. I told the young woman the following:
(For the Ladies) Imagine that your heart is inside a giant mansion. Imagine that at the outskirts of the mansion there’s a guard tower
with an armed guard inside. Surrounding the mansion is a 15′-high electrified fence. Inside the fence are several Dobermans who haven’t eaten lately. On this side of the dogs is a large, triple-thick, rock wall with a gate that has a special code used to get in. Inside the rock wall is a large bullet-proof metal door with 7 deadbolts.
Now imagine that you’re early in a relationship with a man. Guarding your heart is prudently allowing the guard to take an extended leave of absence. The fence is still electrified, the dogs are still there, the gate is still down and the door is still locked – 7 times no less. The man gets a little closer to your heart, but still doesn’t have unlimited access. Little by little you reduce the security and over time, through prudent thinking and decision making, you begin to allow the man closer to your heart and allow him to have more access to you. He gazes into your heart from a distance… sort of like looking through the windows of the mansion… and from his gaze, he begins to learn about your heart. Seeing into the heart is different than having unabated access to the heart.
For many people, it may seem too hard to guard their heart. For many people, it may seem too late to guard their heart. If pain from relationships-gone-bad, lack of trust after a break up (or after every break up) and utter disappointment in relationships in general is fun for you, then keep up the common mistakes and lack of protection for your heart. If, however, you come to understand that your heart is worth guarding because you are a precious daughter of God and because you deserve only the best in life, then take the necessary steps to start guarding your heart now. If a man in your life is too close to your heart (or maybe inside the mansion), do what’s best for you and ask him to take a few steps back. It will be hard at first, and may even seem pointless, but in the long run, it will be a blessing. Trust me.
The analogy is based on the context of a relationship, but we should each be guarding our hearts from evil, sin and unclean outside influences as well.
Men, if you are too close to a woman’s heart, or inside the mansion, do the respectable, virtuous thing and take some steps backward. This is not to suppress your feelings, your love or your desire for her. This behavior is to show her that she’s worth the very best. At the right time, you take the proper steps to win over her heart fully. Once married, hearts become one in the Sacrament.
TrueMan up!
What is a Woman’s Role in Helping to Create a Culture of TrueManhood?
— GUEST POST from CATHERINE DiNUZZO, MA LPC (Wife of Dave DiNuzzo) —
When Dave asked me to write a guest post on his site, I was very excited because I believe that to truly change the current situation of manliness in society and to be able to change it to a (virtuous) culture of TrueManhood, men are only a portion of the solution. Another important part in this change are women!
When I first met Dave he was not the man that he is today. Now, I am not going to say that it was because of me alone that he has decided to “change his ways”, but I will say that it was a series of challenges that I posed to him, that began his transformation into the man he is today.
Dave has always been a man who was not afraid to fight for justice and for what he believes in. However, when I met him, he was focused on doing it “Dave’s way”. I remember one time when we were dating when we got into a fight about something trivial, and he told me, “there’s Dave’s way and the wrong way”. This was the way he dealt with stuff – his way… and passionately! Now, what I have always loved about Dave is his passion and self-confidence, but this was an example of a time in his life when he was less-than-virtuous. What I feel Dave was lacking in his life when I first met him was – what I feel most men are missing – a woman to challenge and expect virtuous behavior. Looking back on it now, I don’t think Dave ever knew what to strive for because the women in his life never challenged him to obtain TrueManhood.
The question I pose is “how are we to expect men to behave a certain way, if we (women in general) lower our standards and accept mediocrity?” We simply cannot.
My goal as a guest blogger for Truemanhood.com is to help give women the tools to believe in their own value enough to expect the best out of the men in their lives. I agree whole-heartily with Dave, that if we are going to change the world, we must create a world of truly virtuous men; aka: TrueMen! Also, if we are expecting men to make this change then is it going to take the women of the world to step up and embody their roll in the change.
I hope you continue to check the site as I will be posting regularly. Please pass this along to your female friends… this is a journey that is meant for all of us.
Woman up!
~Catherine
