August 1, 2022
Introduction
I’ve written before about masculine energy and how it’s very out-of-balance in the Church and in many of the men who attend church (especially in those who lead).
If you haven’t already, it might be helpful read this article first to understand my view of masculinity, femininity, and masculine and feminine energy.
As it turns out, one of the best examples of unbalanced masculine energy is the Christian God as he’s portrayed in the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament.
Let’s explore.
God is Obsessed With War
I’ve explored before how Christians always seem to be obsessed with war. For more information on that, read these articles:
- Masculinity Needs to Be Balanced, Not Suppressed
- Deconstructing Masculinity
- Christian Men and War: Preoccupied with Conflict, Violence, and Aggression
- My Take on Christian Musician John Cooper “Declaring War” on the Deconstruction Movement
It’s not hard to see why Christians are obsessed with war—they get it from God!
In the Old Testament, God is constantly leading the Israelites into battle. He even goes so far as to say that he takes “no pleasure in the death of the wicked” (Ezekiel 18:23, 33:11), which seems like a pretty strange thing to say given what he often commands his chosen people to do.
Not only does God seem to take pleasure in war, but he also requires unending warfare in order to maintain his power. When the Israelites are at war, they are constantly expanding their territory.
War is filled with unchecked and unbalanced masculine energy. It’s aggression, violence, and greed all manifested in some of the worst ways possible.
God Needs Domination
God is all about domination. He wants to be in control of everything and everyone.
He is constantly trying to control the Israelites, giving them rules to follow that are meant to keep them in line. He even tells them that if they don’t obey his rules, he will punish them severely (Deuteronomy 28:15-68).
And it’s not just the Israelites who God tries to control—he also wants to dominate all the other nations around them. He tells the Israelites to completely destroy them, even going so far as to say that they should kill every man, woman, and child.
This need for domination manifests in some of the most horrific acts imaginable, such as the genocide of entire populations.
Domination is an expression of unbalanced masculine energy. It is a need to control and be in charge at all costs, even if it means causing great harm to others. It’s a very masculine trait to lead and guide (which are usually good things), but when that goes too far, it warps into domination.
God is Jealous and Possessive
Another manifestation of God’s unbalanced masculine energy is his jealousy and possessiveness.
He’s constantly jealous of the other gods that the Israelites worship and he demands that they only worship him (Exodus 20:3-5, 34:14). He’s also very possessive of the Israelites, demanding that they be loyal to him and him alone (Joshua 24:19).
This jealousy and possessiveness leads to some very harmful behaviors, such as the murder of anyone who worshiped another god (Exodus 22:20).
Jealousy and possessiveness are both expressions of unbalanced masculine energy. They are a man’s need to be the only one that matters, to be the only one that is loved and worshiped. You see this most often manifest in romantic relationships when the man wants to keep his wife or girlfriend on a very tight leash because he’s afraid of what she might do behind his back.
God is Wrathful and Vengeful
Another manifestation of God’s unbalanced masculine energy is his wrath and vengeance.
He is constantly angry at the Israelites for their disobedience and he punishes them severely (Numbers 11:1, 14:11-12, 16:46-50, 21:5-9).
And he is always seeking revenge on those who have wronged him, such as when he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah or when he sent two bears to maul 42 children who made fun of a prophet (2 Kings 2:23-24).
Wrath and vengeance are both expressions of unbalanced masculine energy. They are a man’s need to lash out when he feels wronged, to strike back at those who have hurt him. This is a very primal instinct, and while it may have its place in very specific circumstances, it is more often than not a desire that should be reined in and overcome.
I’d say that handing out discipline is a positive thing that is borne from masculine energy. Imagine a calm and loving father sternly correcting his children. However, when discipline goes too far, it can warp into wrath and vengeance.
Pastors Actually Try To Balance God in Their Sermons
What’s amusing to me is that pastors know this about their god, so they constantly fill their sermons with assertions about the character of God that just aren’t really found that often in the Bible. Usually, these are traits borne from feminine energy. They try to balance their out-of-balance God. Examples include:
- God is love.
- God is merciful.
- God is forgiving.
- God is compassionate.
All of these are traits that are commonly associated with feminine energy. Yet these ideas are predominantly found in contemporary worship songs and in select sections of the New Testament—nowhere near as many times as the way God is presented in a majority of the Old Testament.
Conclusion
The Christian God is a manifestation of unbalanced masculine energy. He is domineering, jealous, possessive, wrathful, and vengeful. This leads to some very harmful behaviors, such as the indiscriminate slaughter of innocent people. So when people wonder why the Church is filled with out-of-balance masculine energy and out-of-balance men, they need only look to the character of the Christian God.