He exalts clichéd Hollywood portrayals of masculinity. Indeed, Wild at Heart is a book that the integrated Christian ought to object to, for its vision of Godly manhood and womanhood is a specious one at best.Įldredge’s gender stereotypes present masculinity and femininity in a way that is incomplete, culturally dictated, and old-fashioned. Numerous readers testify that Eldredge has challenged them to “fan the flame” of the natural masculinity God intended with the creation of Adam.īut, while Eldredge is right to decry the alienation of men from contemporary church life, his solution to this problem seems to be flawed. Eldredge urges passion and courage instead of complacency-a message that men in today’s church desperately need to hear. We would be remiss to ignore the many young Christians whom Wild at Heart has inspired to abandon an anemic faith in favor of an adventurous relationship with Jesus. The author presents his book as an invitation. “The answer is simply this: We have not invited a man to know and live from his deep heart” (8). As a result, men are alienated from church life and dismissive of their wives’ religiosity: “The church wags its head and wonders why it can’t get more men to sign up for its programs,” observes Eldredge. Second, the church is not fulfilling these desires because it fails to discern the true nature of masculinity and defines the ideal Christian man as merely “a Nice Guy” (7). First, God has placed within the heart of every man an overpowering desire for three things-“a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue” (9). Thus, Wild at Heart is an essentially unhelpful contribution to the thought life of both Gordon College and the church as a whole. Although the author’s premise may be valid (men are bored with contemporary church life change must be made in an effort to address this problem), his corollary ideas are both untrue and harmful. Eldredge’s immense popularity, however, must not be allowed to disguise the fact that his suggestions are often incongruent with the teachings of Jesus. Many would agree with writer Charles Swindoll, who calls Wild at Heart “the best, most insightful book I have read in at least the last five years” (Eldredge, i). It seems a discussion of masculinity can scarcely commence at Gordon College without mention of John Eldredge’s Wild at Heart, a book enthusiastically endorsed by Christians nationwide.
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