At a Glance
Bestselling author Nancy Pearcey joins us to announce her newest and most controversial book yet. In a day when The Washington Post publishes headlines such as “Why Can’t We Hate Men?” and hashtags like #KillAllMen trend on Twitter, we have to ask, what ideas brought us to this point? When did masculinity become toxic, how is this idea affecting our youth, and what worldview misbeliefs are holding us in this downward spiral of negativity towards masculinity.
Did you know that committed Christian men are statistically the most engaged and loving husbands and fathers? And the social sciences tell us that these family men who attend church regularly have the lowest rates of divorce and domestic violence of any group in America.
In this eye-opening discussion, Pearcey will lead you to understand God’s design for masculinity better and share ways to champion that for a culture in desperate need of virtuous men.
What You'll Hear
- Introduction (1:36)
- Why did you write this book? (5:07)
- Surprising finds in sociological studies about Christian men (10:14)
- The two scripts (19:55)
- Why was this Nancy’s most controversial book yet? (30:13)
- When did we lose sight of biblical masculinity? (36:54)
- Can we recover the healthy family model? (47:48)
- Fathers are the solution (54:46)
- Why is it so rare for Christians to address the Crisis of Masculinity? (59:35)
- How can the church provide a better vision for young men on what it is to be a men? (1:03:47)
- Conclusion (1:07:50)
Nancy Pearcey is the author of the new book The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes. Her earlier books include Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality, The Soul of Science, Saving Leonardo, Finding Truth, and two ECPA Gold Medallion Award Winners: How Now Shall We Live (coauthored with Harold Fickett and Chuck Colson) and Total Truth. Her books have been translated into 19 languages. She is professor and scholar in residence at Houston Christian University. A former agnostic, Pearcey has spoken at universities such as Princeton, Stanford, USC, and Dartmouth. She has been quoted in The New Yorker and Newsweek, highlighted as one of the five top women apologists by Christianity Today, and hailed in The Economist as “America’s pre-eminent evangelical Protestant female intellectual.”
Using the link above, you can read the transcript, listen along, and adjust the speed of the podcast while you listen.
"Christian men who are committed, authentic, attend church regularly test out as the most loving and engaged husbands."
Nancy (12:03)
Go Deeper
How the Script for Masculinity Turned Toxic–and How to Fix It
“Why Can’t We Hate Men?” asks a headline in the Washington Post. A trendy hashtag is #KillAllMen. Books are sold titled I Hate Men, No Good Men, and Are Men Necessary?
How did an ideology arise that condemns masculinity as dangerous and destructive?
Bestselling author Nancy Pearcey has a knack for tackling the tough issues of our day. A former agnostic, Pearcey was hailed in The Economist as “America’s pre-eminent evangelical Protestant female intellectual.” In this book, she takes readers on a fascinating romp through American history to discover how the secular script for masculinity turned toxic–and what action we can take to fix it.
We often hear that Exhibit A of toxic behavior is evangelical Christian men. But the social sciences tell a very different story. Studies find that family men who attend church regularly test out as the most loving husbands and the most engaged fathers. They have the lowest rate of divorce and–here’s the real stunner–the lowest rate of domestic violence of any group in America.
The sociological facts explode anti-male stereotypes and show that classic Christianity has the power to overcome toxic behavior and reconcile the sexes. That’s a finding that has stood up to rigorous empirical testing.
This book will equip thinkers and activists to challenge politically correct ideology and bring an evidence-based message of healing into the public square.
Love Thy Body: Answer Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality
Why the call to Love Thy Body? To counter a pervasive hostility toward the body and biology that drives today’s headline stories:
Transgenderism: Activists detach gender from biology. Kids down to kindergarten are being taught their bodies are irrelevant. Is this affirming–or does it demean the body?
Homosexuality: Advocates disconnect sexuality from biological identity. Is this liberating–or does it denigrate biology?
Abortion: Supporters deny the fetus is a person, though it is biologically human. Does this mean equality for women–or does it threaten the intrinsic value of all humans?
Euthanasia: Those who lack certain cognitive abilities are said to be no longer persons. Is this compassionate–or does it ultimately put everyone at risk?
In Love Thy Body, bestselling author Nancy Pearcey goes beyond politically correct slogans with a riveting exposé of the dehumanizing worldview that shapes current watershed moral issues.
Pearcey then turns the tables on media boilerplate that misportrays Christianity as harsh or hateful. A former agnostic, she makes a surprising and persuasive case that Christianity is holistic, sustaining the dignity of the body and biology.
Throughout she entrances readers with compassionate stories of people wrestling with hard questions in their own lives–their pain, their struggles, their triumphs.
The Grand Design
DNA’s Grand Design course will surprise and delight you. Many participants find they are engaging elements of worldview and the biblical narrative in ways they never have before. Their self-understanding has improved, as they realize what it means to be transcendently and biologically male or female. This has breathed fresh life and purpose into areas that previously felt mundane and unimportant, and their family relationships have improved. It’s time that you discovered the Grand Design.
Take your first step by starting our free course today!
Nurturing the Nations: Reclaiming the Dignity of Women in Building Healthy Cultures
By Darrow Miller
Our world is filled with nations that are impoverished largely because half of their people―the female population―are disenfranchised. But this is not just a book about women; it is a book that deals with the intersection of three seemingly very different subjects: women, poverty and worldview.
Nurturing the Nations explains how the ideas that societies embrace create healthy or impoverished cultures and supports that theory with information regarding domestic violence, murder and pornography. The book addresses one of the greatest causes of worldwide poverty, the lie that men are superior to women.
Quotes
- 12:03 “Christian men who are committed, authentic, attend church regularly test out as the most loving and engaged husbands.” Nancy
- 19:16 “Theologically conservative Protestant, family men, that’s his phrase, are consistently the most active and expressive fathers and the most emotionally engaged husbands.” Nancy quoting sociologist Brad Wilcox
- 38:40 “You have to understand where ideas come from, you know, the whole history of Western intellectual thought and culture.” Nancy
- 55:21”The long-term solution to toxic behavior in men is better fathers, better father-son relationships… raising our boys better.” Nancy
- 1:04:42 “Your view of God shapes your view of masculinity.” Nancy
