The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity [Hardcover]

Leon J. Podles (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1999

The current preoccupation with the role of women in the church obscures the more serious problem of the perennial absence of men. A Provocative new book argues that Western churches have become "women's clubs," that the emasculation of Christianity is dangerous for the church and society, and that a masculine presence can and must be restored. After documenting the highly feminized state of Western Christianity, Dr. Podles identifies the masculine traits that once characterized the Christian life but are now commonly considered incompatible with it.

In an original and challenging account, he traces feminization to three contemporaneous medieval sources: the writings of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, the rise of scholasticism, and the expansion of female monasticism. He contends that though masculinity has been marginalized within Christianity, it cannot be expunged from human society. If detached from Christianity, it reappears as a substitute religion, with unwholesome and even horrific consequences. The church, too, is diminished by its emasculation. Its spirituality becomes individualistic and erotic, tending toward universalism and quietism. In his concluding assessment of the future of men in the church, Dr. Podles examines three aspects of Christianity-through which its virility might be restored. In the otherwise stale and overworked field of "gender studies," The Church Impotent is the only book to confront the lopsidedly feminine cast of modern Christianity with a profound analysis of its historical and sociological roots. Dr. Podles presents the fruit of his meticulous scholarship in a lucid and readable style thoroughly accessible to the non-specialist.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This groundbreaking book should be read by everyone concerned about the future of Christianity." -- St. Anthony Messenger

"This volume will certainly invite an important discussion." -- National Catholic Reporter --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

LEON J. PODLES, a native of Baltimore, earned his bachelor's degree at Providence College and his Ph.D. in English at the University of Virginia. He later studied Old Icelandic at the University of Iceland. He has worked as a teacher and a federal investigator and is now the president of the Crossland Foundation. Among the numerous journals for which he has written are America, American Spectator, Crisis, and American Enterprise, and he is a contributing editor of Touchstone. Dr. Podles and his wife have six children and live in Naples, Florida, and Baltimore. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Spence Publishing Company (February 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890626074
• ISBN-13: 978-1890626075
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #310,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

103 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating examination, February 2, 2001

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Church Impotent (Paperback)

Many people have noted, and worried about, the fact that men are so much less likely to regularly attend church in the West than women. In this book, Leon Podles examines this phenomenon from a historical perspective, and concludes that it is not a new problem, but one that extends all the way back to the thirteenth century! Immediately following that, the author takes a powerful look at masculinity (as opposed to maleness, the mere fact of being a male of the species) from the viewpoints of biology, developmental psychology, and anthropology. Then, there are chapters that trace the evolution of Judaism and the first millennium church, neither of which suffered from a lack of men. Finally, the author examines the changes in Christian thinking that began in the thirteenth century, follows trends in masculine development in the absence of Christian influence, and finally provides some suggestions on reversing this "feminization" of the church.

As a man, I found that this book spoke to me. The author's examination of masculinity was powerful, striding far beyond what I have read in other "men's" books. The problem that the author proposes is both subtle and profound. I believe that the author's examination of the men produced outside of Christian beliefs (e.g. love, hope and charity) means that women should also be concerned about this problem. Therefore, let me recommend this book to all believers.

41 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars sanity at last, September 15, 2001

By 

Anthony M. Esolen (Rhode Island) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Church Impotent (Paperback)

There is a scene in C.S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles in which one of the children says to another, about the Christ-figure Aslan, "After all, you know, he isn't a TAME lion." And I believe it was Lewis also who said that perhaps Goodness was a more terrifying thing than we had imagined. Mr. Podles' book reminds us of at least one reason why men do not go to the modern mainline and Catholic churches: it is because those churches have tamed Jesus Christ, and NO LONGER TREMBLE BEFORE HIS MAJESTY. Those Churches are, fundamentally, not serious about what they are doing.

How many people realize that, in the whole of the Gospels, aside from his greeting Nathaniel with the words, "Behold, an Israelite in whom there is no guile," Jesus never praises his disciples, never says that they are good people, never allows them to celebrate themselves; he promises them rewards, but those are for giving up all they have and following him. Indeed, Jesus is often quite sharp with them: "If you, WHO ARE WICKED, know how to give good things," "Get thee behind me, SATAN," "O YE OF LITTLE FAITH." Yet the disciples follow him. Why? Mr. Podles knows why -- men look up to those who love them enough to strengthen them, to discipline them, to make them undertake the arduous adventure. Podles' description of the Penitentes in New Mexico made me wish that I, too, could show my love for Christ in such a drastic way; it nearly made me weep.

But I suppose what most endears this book to me, and what most infuriates me about the rather niggling criticism it has received in two of the reviews here, is that it bothers to take the winning of men's souls seriously, something which the Churches, in their lukewarm love, have found too inconvenient or upsetting to do! How comfortable our mainline Churches have become -- old biddies' clubs! Niceness and smiley faces are not going to save the soul of the tattooed man on the streetcorner: who, by the way, probably has a man's keen and ruthless insight into what is merely sentimental and phony. If he is to be saved, Christ must do the work -- and the one who preaches Christ to him had better have Authority in his -- and I use the pronoun advisedly -- voice.

30 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended, September 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity (Hardcover)

The reaction of the "READER BEWARE" review is not surprising. Yes, some people are going to say this book is highly distorted or narrowly focused. The book does not perfectly address the gender issues in Christianity. But it is, unequivocally, a scholarly analysis of the feminization of Western Chrisianity. The book is highly educational, without getting too abstract or theoretical. If you are a Christian and have any common sense at all, you will agree with much of what Podles has to say. Every pastor, church leader, or lay minister should read this book.