What does it mean to be a man?

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That’s a loaded question: I think Jesus set the best example:
  1. Took care of his bride (the church)
  2. Took care of his children (his followers)
  3. Gave his family strength, protection and direction.
 
Read any of BamaRider’s threads, I think most of us women would say he has some great “manly” qualities.
 
A man is willing to sacrifice his time, money, energy, comfort, and personal safety in order to care for and protect his family. A man is faithful to his commitments. A man leads his family to God.
 
dhgray said:
That’s a loaded question: I think Jesus set the best example:
  1. Took care of his bride (the church)
  2. Took care of his children (his followers)
  3. Gave his family strength, protection and direction.
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I would say the same; I think St. Paul tells men how to live out their manhood in Ephesians 5. If you ever have the time/opportunity, Theology of the Body is an extremely effective resource as far as answering these types of questions. I am currently teaching the version for teens by Jason and Crystallina Evert, and it nails this very question. The short answer is exactly what dhgray posted, but the details of the course make it a fantastic experience (even for the teacher).
 
basilisk said:
A man is willing to sacrifice his time, money, energy, comfort, and personal safety in order to care for and protect his family. A man is faithful to his commitments. A man leads his family to God.
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Agree with this wholeheartedly. I think sacrificing for the needs of one’s wife, family, etc is also a very masculine attribute.

Hopefully, the world will start embracing these qualities again, because I see a lot of man-babies out there, instead of MEN MEN…like in my dad’s day. My dad and husband are strong, true men. I am not sure if radical feminism has caused the decline of men wishing to step up and be true men, or just a combination of things, but I think as parents of boys, we can do much good in teaching them how to be responsible, caring, thoughtful, and Godly men.
 
whatevergirl said:
Agree with this wholeheartedly. I think sacrificing for the needs of one’s wife, family, etc is also a very masculine attribute.

Hopefully, the world will start embracing these qualities again, because I see a lot of man-babies out there, instead of MEN MEN…like in my dad’s day. My dad and husband are strong, true men. I am not sure if radical feminism has caused the decline of men wishing to step up and be true men, or just a combination of things, but I think as parents of boys, we can do much good in teaching them how to be responsible, caring, thoughtful, and Godly men.
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The increased divorce rate in our country might have something to do with all the man-babies too.

:rolleyes: I’m married to a Man-baby. I think it was because his mom and dad divorced when he was little and his mom did everything in her power to spoil him and tell him how rotten his dad was. He didn’t have a real man around to give him an example.
 
redtech said:
The increased divorce rate in our country might have something to do with all the man-babies too.

:rolleyes: I’m married to a Man-baby. I think it was because his mom and dad divorced when he was little and his mom did everything in her power to spoil him and tell him how rotten his dad was. He didn’t have a real man around to give him an example.
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Excellent point! Very true. To be honest, I used to be a woman-baby, until I immersed myself back into the faith. I don’t think title is only reserved for men. It’s amazing how when we allow Him, God can get us back on track so quickly. You are so right about good male figures being around to raise boys. It’s crucial in a boy’s development into manhood. There are just some things I cannot help my son to achieve, as it relates to becoming a man, that my husband provides for him.
 
Part of the post modern agenda is to make us all the same. Not equal in dignity, but the same in everything.

It’s hard to be a man nowadays who wants to be responsible for one’s wife and family. We are accused of being patriarchal and bigoted and living in the last century.

Being a man means understanding and taking your place in society and in your family, and not be deterred by internal forces (that stupid-inducing testosterone) or external forces (society calling us obsolete).
 
To me it means I am a protector. I am charged with protecting my family in mind, body and soul.
 
A number of the answers deal with what it means to be a man in relation to one’s wife, and rightly so, since God created man to be with woman and vice versa, but what about men who remain single and/or celibate? Does maleness differ in anyway for them?
 
Epistemes said:
A number of the answers deal with what it means to be a man in relation to one’s wife, and rightly so, since God created man to be with woman and vice versa, but what about men who remain single and/or celibate? Does maleness differ in anyway for them?
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I think that all those old virtues that were made fun of in the sixties and seventies describe a man. It doesn’t matter whether he is single or married. A man takes responsibility for his actions. A real man keeps the commitments he has made even if he gets a new video game. Honesty, integrity are also important characteristics of a real man. Courage in the face of fear is a sign of adulthood. A real man sets an example that the women in his life are proud of, whether she is a mother, sister, cousin or whatever.
A real man can discipline his desires and actions and doesn’t rely on a woman to make him do what he is supposed to do.

I know that these characteristics can be applied to real women as well, but all apply to people who are adults. Some men babies feel if the women have all the above characteristics covered, they don’t need to have the characteristics themselves.:confused:
 
A man is simply (3 p’s)
Protector
Provider
Penetrater (as in aggressor).

He like Jesus is the sacrificial one. The more he gives himself in this way the more he is fulfilled.

One of the key attributes of man is his strength, not only in body but in character. You could say a rock. This prepares him for being the leader of the family.

Don’t let this “headship” get to our heads. A man may lead the family but it is the woman who tells him where to go. All men essentially need a female guide. For priests it is the church and for a married man it is his wife. Women have the attributes to see where help is needed and directs us to the problem.

God Bless,
John
 
I would argue about the Penetrator. Aggression isn’t a positive treat. Our Lord reached out a lot, but He is referred to as the lamb and as meek. That is hardly aggressive.
 
Epsitemes, I used the broad term family, because I was thinking about single guys too. They can still be protectors for mothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, even elderly fathers or grandparents. Sometimes they are even providers for same.

For priests or brothers/monks, they can be these things to their parishes or communities.
 
What I mean by penetrator, is man’s ability to go beyond the status quo, much like Jesus. For instance we can look at history and find that men, have lead the way in discoveries in science and exploration. It is our natural tendencies to push the boundaries.

John
 
John, you’re aware that Watson and Crick likely stole their breakthrough findings about the double-helix shape of DNA from their female research assistant, right? And that Marie Curie revolutionized the world with the discovery of radioactivity, with her husband as her assistant?

I think we can talk about manhood in a positive way without going so far as to say certain attributes belong only to men. Especially not intellectual ones.
 
Basilisk,
I’m not saying woman are not smart, but natural speaking, and numbers speaking men do push the envelope.

Heck if you look specifically into traits I would put women smarter than men. But men are brighter when it comes to figuring things out. I would put men as more goal oriented as complimentary to women being better at multi-tasking. It suits men to taking on hard jobs and women having a broader view of things like family.

Theology of the body clearly states that the sexes are equal and complimentary in their roles. But what people tend to miss is that each are better at certain things than the other thus “in their roles”.

Also - Women have better memories but men are better learners.
John
 
dhgray said:
That’s a loaded question: I think Jesus set the best example:
  1. Took care of his bride (the church)
  2. Took care of his children (his followers)
  3. Gave his family strength, protection and direction.
Click to expand...
I’m not a guy but speaking as a woman I say that covers it nicely. You might add treating his lady like a queen but I think that falls under 1).
 
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