Andrew Tate and progressive culture both get masculinity wrong. The third way.
While the WNBA struggles to define the word woman, politicians can’t figure out masculinity. The campaign ad “Man Enough” failed to guilt men into voting for President Kamala Harris. Even “White Dudes for Harris” couldn’t stop Donald Trump from returning to the Oval Office with 55% of the male vote. As both major parties now battle for the midterms, their manhood playing cards are on the table.
James Talarico is a seminarian candidate for Senate in Texas, complete with a 50’s-style haircut. Despite his choirboy exterior, he believes “God is non-binary.” His love of “trans children” is second only to family. With ads of eating barbecued meat and driving a pickup truck, Talaico is trying to put political hair on his chest by appealing to masculine traditions in the Lone Star State. Graham Platner looked the part in Maine, but his gruff exterior couldn’t hide a steady stream of female abuse scandals.
The “manosphere” of the political right isn’t much better. Andrew and Tristan Tate built a following among young men who are tired of the emasculating politics from the Left. These youth know the culture is stigmatizing their male potential. Unfortunately, the Tate brothers replace political victimhood with brutish vanity. This isn’t the kind of “masculinity” young men need.
While drag shows and pride parades destroy male virtue, Atilla the Hun isn’t the solution. Neither respects women. Must we choose between two harmful models? Perhaps we've lost a better third way: the biblical standard. It’s not a compromise or a middle ground; it’s everything missing from the other two. Let’s consider three characteristics of biblical masculinity.
Strong and tender
We may think of masculinity as coaching a football game, pumping iron in a gym, or shouting drill instructions to an army battalion. It may show itself in those ways, but masculinity shouldn’t just be actions that fit a stereotype.
Biblical masculinity marries two things that seem to conflict with each other: strength and tenderness. This isn’t schizophrenia. It’s maturity, discipline, and balance. A man must be more than his strength. He must use it for good and protect the innocent.
A man’s tenderness isn’t quite the same as a woman’s. While a mother brings the comfort of nurture, a father brings the comfort of protection. After drowning the reader in the love of God, the Apostle John wrote to young men that they were “strong” and “have overcome the wicked one” (1 John 2:14). The Apostle Paul also told men both to “be strong” and to do everything “in love” (1 Corinthians 16:13-14). The tender love of biblical masculinity provides safety through strength. With a bit of “tough love” a man may even push someone in the right direction. When duty calls, out of love, he should use commanding force against a threatening foe.
Leads sacrificially
Heroes put their lives on the line for valor and something greater than themselves. Risky or dirty roles like police, firefighters, military, even construction attract mostly men. Many wonderful women do these too, but men make up the lion’s share. Far more men enjoy war movies and revel in the glory, not only of winning battles, but of dying with honor.
Biblical masculinity takes sacrifice much further. It’s not all life-and-death stuff. If we men can take a bullet for family or country, how much more should we sacrifice in little, daily matters. If we can march to the front lines with bullets whizzing near our eardrums, we can march to take out the trash without being asked. The Apostle Paul said that men should love their wives like Christ did for the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Jesus told his male disciples that the greatest among them would be a servant (Mark 10:44). That’s initiative and sacrifice.
Controls passions
Imagine if Superman went on a power trip. We wouldn’t even have a story. What makes the comic book superhero great is how he controls his power with virtue. The Man of Steel uses his awesome abilities to save and protect vulnerable humans. He could easily destroy an entire city, but he masterfully avoids that flex. When he captures bad guys, he gives them to the police. Lois Lane knows she can trust him. She wouldn’t have a crush on him otherwise.
Masculinity is more than abilities on display. If a man can bench 250, but terrorizes his wife and children, he’s still a child in adult skin. If he builds muscle but won’t help put dishes away, fold laundry, or play with his kids, he’s a slave to his passions.
Taming passions includes fighting lust. Healthy workouts and diet are wonderful, but if a man can’t control his impulses and base desires, he’s still another type of wimp. Pornography is neither a tool nor a reward. It’s the most destructive addiction a man can have. A child loose in a candy store can harm himself. A man playing with the fire of porn wrecks his body, his reputation, and untold other lives.
The alternative to emasculation isn’t promiscuity. It’s virtue and self-control. That’s hard. Good! Men are built for hard things. The goal of the male drive to build and conquer isn’t narcissism. Temptations are strong; for real men the duty to virtue is stronger. The Bible says to run from lusts and embrace love and purity (2 Timothy 2:22).
Conclusion
What’s the difference between Nazi-tattooed Graham Platner and manosphere influencer Andrew Tate? Not much. They both treat women as objects. They’re both immoral facades of masculinity. We shouldn’t care if the vice president can hunt pheasant or a senator catches oysters. Symbolic actions don’t define masculine virtue.
Biblical manhood suppresses pride and sacrifices for the innocent. It directs strength to virtue. Empty it of integrity and it becomes useless at best and dangerous at worst. Maybe that’s why vain masculinity is politically appealing.
The solution isn’t to rid society of male characteristics. It’s to return to the balance and virtue of biblical masculinity.
Daniel Mynyk hosts the weekly Christian podcast Truthspresso and has published two books. His opinion pieces can be found in The American Spectator, American Thinker, Across Voices, and The Libertarian Christian Institute.
