To my fellow-men–
Listen up!
This past week I was driving home and heard the following story on the radio:
I was in the supermarket waiting in line to check out. Behind me was a mother and her 13-year-old daughter. The mom had clearly gotten a boob job. As the daughter started admiring the celebrities on the tabloid magazines, the mother put her hands on the daughter’s shoulders and looked up from her breasts toward her daughter’s chest. “If you want to be like them, we’re going to have to get you a set of these.”
The radio host followed up by chastising the woman, exclaiming that she was a terrible example of a mother. The mom was reinforcing the view of our culture–that the worth of a woman is based solely on her looks.
After digesting this story of the current state of our society’s view on women, I am reminded of Archbishop Fulton Sheen‘s quote:
“To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more noble her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women.”
The Church on the Dignity of Women
You don’t need to look far to see that the Catholic Church tends to get a bad wrap for how it approaches women’s issues. While there are plenty of misconceptions from either side of this topic, I think it is fair to say that this mindset springs from the ideals of the liberal feminist movement, which pushes the pro-choice agenda, contraception and women’s equality by presenting it under the guise of women’s rights.
Now let me make myself clear, I am not saying women should be treated any less than equal to men, but treating someone equally and treating someone the same are two different things. If people would simply stop and do a little bit of research into what the Church truly believes and the logic behind this belief they would see that the Catholic Church is one of the few organizations fighting for women’s dignity.
My friends, the Church can not fight for women’s dignity alone. It begins with us.
Gentlemen, we in a distinct way are called to respect our female counterparts. As protectors at heart, we need to man up and put some action behind the Church’s teaching. From pornography to contraception, there is too much in our society that diminishes the spirit of women. I am fed up with this B.S., we can do better men.
A Challenge For Men
Even though the value of women is not held highly in our society, I challenge you (myself included) to hold women in higher esteem. It starts with small things. The next time you see a woman wearing revealing clothing, instead of checking her out, say a quick prayer for her.
Single guys, do not rush into a relationship and drag a woman’s heart along for the ride. Set boundaries for your relationships that are respectful to a lady.
If you are married, the next time you speak to your wife, praise her for the gift her femininity brings to your life and the life of your family. Thank her for the sacrifice of motherhood.
If you are a father, tell your daughter she is beautiful, not just pretty… Beautiful. Let her know that you delight in her as our Heavenly Father delights in each of His children.
A cultural shift does not just happen overnight. It begins and ends in the heart of every man. So men, join me and let us begin today!
