Richard Simmon’s book was written
after the American economic recession, and confronts the issues men have faced
as a result of the downturn. His
premise is that financial instability forced many men to reconsider what
priorities they have pursued, because it has crumbled the façade of
success: “under an exterior life
of confidence, there exists in almost all men a hidden life of fear, pain and
loneliness.”[1] This pain and isolation is the result
of men not being able to build community but to constantly feel unfulfilled in
their present situations.
The paramount question, Simmons
argues that every man struggles with is, “What will people think of me?”[2] This question constantly produces fear,
inadequacy and shame within a man’s life; he is afraid that his iniquities will
be discovered. Therefore, most men
are consumed with comparison that leads to dissatisfaction with the present:
One of
the reasons we struggle to find meaning and joy in our lives is because no
matter where we are in life, no matter how well things might be going for us
right now, we always seem to be able to contemplate a better life in the
future, better than what we are experiencing right now.[3]
This dissatisfaction results in a loss of meaning and
purpose to life. As a result
option, Simmons’ challenges the masculine perspective that performance,
accomplishments, and titles set their identities.
Having deconstructed the male
perspective, Simmons seeks to offer an alternative identity source. Rather than being based upon
performance, the true measure of a man resides in Jesus Christ. The emphasis is upon character traits
like humility, courage, self-restraint, and relationships. While Simmons manages to expose the
emptiness resulting from a performance based identity, his attempt to rebuild a
Christ-centered identity lacks a theologically and biblically robust argument.
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