Thursday, April 19, 2007

GodMen - When Faith Gets Dangerous

We've all heard that "Nice guys finish last" - and I guess that is what GodMen and founder Brad Stine are hoping to curb when it comes to Christian men. They want guys to not be "nice" but "good" - the latter being acceptable by society and "nice" carrying a stigmata that generally indicates guys are too mushy, sentimental or just push overs. And women want men that will stand up for their family, their beliefs and themselves, right?

Although GodMen is still in its founding stages, their vision is very real already. Their home page describes the organization as follows:

The truth is that on any given Sunday, 60% of church attendees are women, and something about church today is keeping men away. We are attempting to create a worship place for men that looks nothing like church. It is a place where men of no religion and men who have left the church break bread with followers of Jesus. Where simply being a man, created in Gods image, is celebrated. An environment familiar with and conducive to the way men are made comfortable and the unique way men interact.

We have committed to see what would happen if, for one day, our faith and its struggles would be discussed with absolute honesty, transparency and openness - not sugar coated or framed in church language but instead spoken in frankness and maturity where men can see their innermost fears, shames, and secrets brought to light in a safe environment. Not for judgment but instead to reveal a commonality of unique male struggles shared with their own tribe, a band of brothers who promise to walk this journey with them to the end.


And they've gotten quite a bit of coverage already. ABCNews actually brought my attention to them with their cleverly titled article, "Christian Men...Too Wimpy?"

If you're a man who'd like to grow a backbone, hang out with other guys and play with power tools (or you're a woman who'd like to have a non-wimpy man), here's their upcoming events:
Mobile, Alabama - September 15
Austin, Texas - September 29
Jacksonville, Florida - October 6
Charlotte, North Carolina - October 13
Sacramento, California - October 27
Indianapolis, Indiana - November 3
Nashville, Tennessee - April 5, 2008

They also have a blog with news updates, photos of recent events and more.

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