Previous Post – Practicing the Way of Jesus
When I first started going to school, I attended a small Christian school where my father had also just started working as a teacher. Around the same time, the regular bus driver for the school quit. Since my Dad had a bus license and we lived at the far end of the bus route, he took the job. And so each morning, my brother & I would load up on an empty bus as our Dad drove us the 50 km to school.
Our house was built in a forested area alongside a broad, beautiful river, miles from the nearest small town. I was well used to seeing wild animals wander through our yard- white-tailed deer, rabbits, foxes, porcupines, skunks, even the occasional black bear. However, one day, when the bus was less than a mile from our home, a huge bull moose burst through the trees in a wild rage and began charging the back of the bus. Entranced, my brother and I peered out the back window as the giant beast fumed only meters away.
For those who have never seen a bull moose in real life, it is hard to describe the sheer size and power of these creatures. They make most horses look like ponies. An angry moose can be a deadly situation. Yet in that moment, starring into the enraged eyes of that moose, neither of us was scared. After all, this is what moose do (especially during certain seasons). And besides, we were safely in the bus. Eventually, swinging its massive rack in anger, it gave up chase and watched us drive away.
Several years later, while at school one afternoon, I wandered into the playground during recess. From around a corner, I heard unusually shrill giggles of delight from some of the younger students, so I went around the corner to inspect. Our small school was located in a very small town of only a few hundred people, surrounded by farmers fields and patches of woodland. Be that as it may, I was not prepared from what I saw: standing in a circle of fascinated first graders stood an enormous moose, leaning down to curiously sniff the children.
The blood went cold in my veins as I slowly inched closer. I told the children gently to go inside. I didn’t want to startle them, so I smiled. As the son of one of the school teachers, the kids didn’t kick up a fuss, but went inside with me. The moose didn’t move, just casually (almost sadly, it seemed) watched the children leave, then turned and sauntered away. As the door shut behind me, I took a huge sigh of relief.
It might seem strange that I would be afraid of so gentle a creature, while not all concerned with the raging bull in the previous story. Apart from the obvious risk to the children, my concern was more acutely borne out of the knowledge the this second moose was not acting like a moose at all. Having grown up where I did, I knew that this kind of behaviour was indicative of a severe brain illness in moose that made their actions unpredictable. Thankfully, this poor creature did no one any harm and was put down by a neighbouring farmer.
While the novelty of the friendly moose might seem preferable to us, we would be exchanging its health (and the health of all other life it came in contact with) for our own comfort and happiness. While the raging moose might pose a legitimate threat in some situations (and require decisive action), given the context of the season and the location, we can at least be assured that this moose was generally healthy, behaving as it should.
With our recent discussions about what it means to be a godly man, these stories came to mind. I am not suggesting that men are of a certain nature and all must act accordingly- far from it! The diversity of human personality, culture and behaviour presents a far more complex set of dynamics than that of moose. Rather, my point is that when ever someone is pressured or socialized to act in ways contrary to the way God created them to be, something is wrong.
I am not ignoring the complexities of this issue and I do not suggest that this analogy offers any specific answers to the fundamental questions about gender identity, gender roles, masculinity/femininity, etc. Instead, my hope is that we will be more careful in recognizing how we might unintentionally (or intentionally) pressure people to behave in ways that are more comfortable for us- familiar, simple and “normal”. I have seen too many young women and men walk away from their God-given vocations because the pursuit of those vocations ran contrary to the expectations people had for them based on gender alone.
I am not unsympathetic to the challenges this presents. It is uncomfortable, requires fundamental and even costly changes, and confronts us with difficult questions about how to make these changes without compromise. However, with the stakes as high as they are, we can shy away from facing them head on. This will not only include stepping into unknown and uncomfortable territory, but also graciously, yet justly confronting realities in our families, churches and wider culture that stand in the way of this redemptive work.
May God give us the wisdom, grace and courage to be authentic disciples of Jesus Christ.
