'Christian men are wimps!' The charge is often to be heard on the lips of non-Christian men and Christian women. What is the true meaning of masculinity?
Previous generations of schoolchildren were stirred by the words of Hugh Latimer to his fellow-bishop Nicholas Ridley, as they were burned at the stake during the reign of Queen Mary: 'Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day light such a candle by God's grace in England, as, I trust, shall never be put out.'
Few today would use the phrase 'play the man', except in jest or with considerable embarrassment. But are there fundamentally manly qualities which has been instinctively recognised in all times and cultures? Or have we in the last few years finally recognised that it was all a massive confidence trick?
