Gentleness and Men: How is it possibile?

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Is it possible for men to be gentle in a society that values different in them? I know that women supposedly manifest the virtue differently, but how is a man suppose to show it? I am not the gentle type, but I know that it is neccessary to have gentleness to be Christian.
 
Yes, it is possible.

Read Gentleness - a form of Love

Remember Gentleness is not weakness, but a virtue and one that a true man will choose. If the culture says aggressiveness is good, look at the crimes commited throughout the world based on aggressiveness and see the lie for what it is.

A true man is Gentle.
 
Consider the life of Christ. That is exactly what you should be imitating-not only the gentleness he exhibited, but every other aspect. We can see without even reading the entire Gospel, that Christ was incredibly gentle with everyone he came in contact with. (The pharisees seem to be a common exception perhaps.) I would suggest that you pick one of the Gospels to read and meditate upon. O Lord is by nature gentle, so I believe that by reading the Gospels, and even with simple meditation on our Lord, you will come to see how you can play out this gentleness in your own life. Peace be with you, and God bless!
 
Kevin42 said:
Consider the life of Christ. That is exactly what you should be imitating-not only the gentleness he exhibited, but every other aspect. We can see without even reading the entire Gospel, that Christ was incredibly gentle with everyone he came in contact with. (The pharisees seem to be a common exception perhaps.) I would suggest that you pick one of the Gospels to read and meditate upon. O Lord is by nature gentle, so I believe that by reading the Gospels, and even with simple meditation on our Lord, you will come to see how you can play out this gentleness in your own life. Peace be with you, and God bless!
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The Pharisees are a question I have. Did Jesus really love them?
 
Image_of_God said:
The Pharisees are a question I have. Did Jesus really love them?
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Of course he did love them very much. If He had not, He would not have provided them with correction. Furthermore, He prayed for their forgiveness while He was on the cross. (“Father forgive them, they know not what they do.”) While the Pharisees were not solely responsible for His crucifixion, they did play a role in it, so you can imagine that this prayer of forgiveness did include them. He loved them more than we can imagine, and even though he was stern with them, He was still in some ways gentle in the way that He dealt with them.
 
Image_of_God said:
Is it possible for men to be gentle in a society that values different in them? I know that women supposedly manifest the virtue differently, but how is a man suppose to show it? I am not the gentle type, but I know that it is neccessary to have gentleness to be Christian.
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Gentleness is still an admirable quality, though society doesn’t really expect it of us anymore- they set their standards too low. The kind of gentleness men should have, I guess, can be seen in old movies- the father figure is compassionate, responsible, and gentle- but certainly not someone you can walk all over either.
 
Gentleness requires strength.

Gentleness is the fruit of wisdom, and humility is the pre-requisite for achieving it.

Prayer is the path to transformation toward this virtue.

Jim
 
It is indeed difficult for one to be a gentle man in our society, which prides itself on stepping on others to achieve our goals.

I am by nature gentle, and spent a large part of my life trying to adapt to society’s expectations, especially given that I had a father who saw gentleness as weakness and made that abundantly clear. I thus spent a good part of my life feeling like a failure, my spirit crushed.

It has really been over the last few years that I have learned that is possible to be a gentle man of peace, trying to reconcile the opposites as Jesus did, without having your spirit crushed. The caveat is that, like Jesus and the prophets, many will want to crucify you. But it comes with an inner peace, “knowing” that you are trying to live the love of God to and for others, that can’t be taken away from you.

In the end it really comes down to Jesus’s admonition to store up the treasures that thieves can’t steal and moths can’t eat. A peaceful, gentle spirit is really the only way to truly spread the gospel of the Prince of Peace. And the only way to start the change that will turn the world in that direction.
 
Real confidence in your manhood, skills and faith. Some of the most gentle of men I’ve met where some of Special Forces deadliest soldiers. In the world they seemed submissive at times. It was the “loudmouths” that they had fought for as well. They held the moral upper ground and knew it. No need to make a big deal about it, just defuse the situation. Knowing that the fight belonged with the real enemy. As a christian it is the same. You know who the real enemy is and in faith you hold the upper ground. Learn from the Lord in how to fight. Tim
 
These are very interesting posts. I never thought of them this way.
 
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