Glenda Simms

In the September 25 edition of The Sunday Gleaner, Staff Reporter Athaliah Reynolds added to the distortion of the term 'feminisation' in an article titled 'Church not macho enough for men'.

According to the reporter, churches are proliferating in Jamaica, but the male of the species are avoiding the pews of these institutions.

Based on the observations and insights of a number of male pastors from a fairly wide spectrum of the church family, the following explanations are being proffered for what is being described as the 'feminisation' of the pews:

"Low attendance in churches by men is related to the feminisation of the services and other 'churchly' events. In fact, these men argue that the only sectors of the male population that have the stomach for these institutions are those 'too young to defy mother's rules' or 'too old to wander elsewhere'. In other words, only little boys who have not yet reached the age to defy their mothers or older men with reduced testosterone capacity need to be in churches."

In some macho-logical framework, the pontiffs of the Church explained the absence of the male as a result of the 'nuff gal syndrome'. This means that men are naturally promiscuous and they need to express, enhance and validate their manhood through control of a 'stable of women'. Unfortunately, the Church does not attract enough women who want to be members of the stable. The theory is that church women who are truly Christians shy away from 'wild' men. They prefer God-controlled men who supposedly would rather have 'one gal' than 'nuff gal'.

Another fascinating explanation for the absence of the male of the species in the modern church pew is that "the Church is too woman friendly". The definition of a woman friendly church in Reynolds' article is a place which provides a safe, nurturing, stable and predictable environment - ideas on which women thrive.

HATE ARGUMENTS

This is perhaps the most insidious of the hate arguments against women and the Church. Most enlightened human beings of both sexes have articulated over time the view that the home, school and church should be sites of safety, nurturing and love for everyone.

Most Jamaicans are not aware that the Church was not expected to be safe and nurturing. Perhaps if women were told this 'truth', they too would flee from the pews of these 'holy places'.

Another weak explanation for the absence of men in the pews is that "it is difficult for men who worship on Saturdays to give up their jobs and choose church going as a priority".

So, just when the society is being told that young men have no jobs because they are not making use of the educational opportunities, we are being told that it is their jobs that keep them out of church. One is left to wonder why the large battalion of unemployed, the male schoolteachers, doctors in private practice, lawyers and public sector workers are not in the pews on Saturday or Sunday.

Another curious argument is linked to the idea that the "message of the love of Christ which is the most important plank of Christianity appeals more to the emotions of women than men".

According to the reporter, one Pastor Allen used the lyrics of a popular church 'ditty' to demonstrate that Jamaican men are uncomfortable with expressing love for Jesus Christ. In this vein, the learned pastor emphasises that no hot-blooded Jamaican man wants to sing "draw me close to you … you are my desire, no one else would do" to any man, "even if he is Jesus".

This is a most curious logic that is being supported by men who have always had the right to define the meanings of biblical literature, determine the values and attitude of the Church and retain their direct line to the Godhead while they control the purse strings of the Church.

These are the same men who would have us believe that the Jamaican male is so insecure in his sexuality that he cannot express his love for Jesus because this expression might force him to acknowledge his love for a man.

Obviously, in the deranged crevices of the patriarchal mind, love is equated exclusively with sexual activity - a mind-boggling dilemma for an institution based on the love of God through the redemptive sacrifices of His Son Jesus Christ.

These questions need clear answers from other men of God.

Jamaican women see all these things and have come to the conclusion that their only choice is to pray.

Glenda P. Simms is a gender expert and consultant