Women Warriors
Female assassins in movies and transgender boxers in Paris at the Olympics put the lie to the notion that men and women are physically equivalent
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).” This verse is often taken out of context. The purpose of this powerful statement by Paul was not to eradicate all differences but to eliminate preferential treatment of people who are different. However, there is no doubt that Paul recognized and appreciated many of the physical differences between men and women.
Pete Hegseth, SecDef, recently ordered our military to get back to basics in a 60-day review to make sure women in combat roles aren't getting a free pass on the grunt work. He believes that units including both men and women in combat are a recipe for chaos and casualties. Christian leaders affirm the God-given role of men as protectors and warriors: “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong (1 Corinthians 16:13).” Over 4,800 women currently in Army combat jobs will have to maintain readiness under the same standards as men. Navy and the Marines’ PT standards will be standard too. Let’s see how this changes our forward deployment, recruitment, strategic focus, and war-fighting capacity. Hoorah.
Real war is mimicked in fiction. Our stories tell us a lot about our culture. Historically, in 1979, Women were begrudgingly allowed to enlist in the military under the same rules as men but kept far from the front lines. Congress finally opened the cockpit doors for women in the early 1990s, and by 1994, it permitted women to take on roles in combat units. But they did not get too gritty below the brigade level. After 9/11, when the world changed, women were sent to the frontlines in Iraq and Afghanistan, rewriting the playbook. We have over twenty years of data on women in combat, and now Hegseth is reviewing this policy. During this era, I have observed a clear shift in the way that women are portrayed fighting in films and how this affects our perception of women fighters in competition.
Hollywood attempts to paint the picture that women routinely take down men nearly twice their size. Superhero movies from Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, and Ms. Marvel to Sci-Fi movies like Woke Star Wars and the Star Killer (a big-budget Star Wars rip-off on Netflix) have female protagonists who use supernatural powers or unusual skills to wipe the floor with brutish men. Cartoon characters like Moana, Mulan, or Elsa show young enhanced wiry, willowy, Mary Sue protagonists kicking everyone else’s butt or leading a girl-boss revolution. This is not specifically an argument against women in leadership - I think that Kristi Noem rolling up on Tren De Aragua members in the El Salvador max security prison is great.
But for combat leadership and military strategy, an intimate familiarity with war and skill in fighting is important. Technically, weapons can level the playing field and no one thinks that Thor, Yoda, or even the Fast and Furious fight scenes are realistic. However, the question is how far can we stretch credulity and credibility in movies that are meant to inspire the next generation and give us all an aspirational narrative to reach for.
Disney movies are meant to provide young girls with role models and challenge the White Knight trope of men who rescue princesses from evil dragons. We’ve seen this for years, and it can be funny in certain circumstances. Back in the 1980s, we had Princess Leia wasting Stormtroopers and even freeing herself from sexualized slavery in a compelling scene as she strangled Jabba the Hutt. This ploy may sound great, but it overlooks the fact that this archetypal story lies at the core of what it means to be a man - strong, courageous, a provider, and a protector. Luke and Han fight over the love of a princess, and they are the knight and rogue in the story. Leia is a woman-beautiful, caring, treasured, and defended - this dangerous universe.
Our movies used to give us something to cheer for that was rooted in human nature and Biblical truth. Anyone can fight against evil with prayer, fasting, and supplication to our Lord, “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4).” But men defend the homeland. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).” Throughout the Bible, men fight like David and physically confront opponents like Jesus did with the money changers.
Gritty and real movies are just as fantastic and outrageous as Disney ones when they slip into this ditch. If women don’t have superpowers, directors give them modern ninja training and special agent abilities to raise the stakes in spy movies. La Femme Nikita, Black Widow, Colombiana, Gunpowder Milkshake, Red Sparrow, Salt, Atomic Blonde, Hanna, House of Flying Daggers, and Kill Bill all portray female assassins. Women killers have existed throughout history, however, the approach and methods used are pretty consistent. The fairer sex tends to use poison or precision knife work on inebriated or unconscious victims. Live confrontations are almost universally avoided because strength and raw power will always add an unpredictable element that heavily favors men. Period.
Take female empowerment movies and turn them into trans-rights sports, and you have a recipe for disaster.
Athletics have become a hotbed of controversy in the woke LGBTQ wake. In the summer of 2024, Imane Khelif an “undisclosed” transgender boxer, won the Women's 66kg category in the Paris Olympics. He was born male but identifies as female. How is he supposed to disclose his maleness? Despite having male chromosomes (XY), Khelif has been allowed to compete against women. Beating women to a pulp has sparked significant controversy. Khelif's biology gives him an unfair advantage in terms of strength and physical structure. Allowing men to beat on women raises questions about the fairness and integrity of women's sports. This was a sad, sick, ridiculous situation that should have eliminated transgender athletes in women’s sports. But the insane European liberals reveled in a man smashing the face of women athletes who have trained for years for the chance to win a gold medal in their chosen sport.
Maybe this draws into question the entire concept of women's boxing and martial arts overall. Tell me if you’ve heard these before: “Girls and boys are the same!” and “A woman can do anything that a man can do!” Really? While movies allow for make-believe, warfare is all too real. Further, sports demand a level of distinction and merit that elevates our everyday entertainment to dreams of success. We can enjoy athletics and competition, and encourage health and participation for boys and girls, on separate teams and games. Trump has taken a strong stand on these issues, going as far as enforcing his position by withdrawing grants and funding to states like Maine and universities like the University of Pennsylvania.
But does this hyper-egalitarian mentality also affect our churches, governments, and workplaces?
God values every human being. We are all made in God’s image, male and female. And through Jesus Christ, we all have direct access to the throne of grace. But these kinds of statements conflate issues of sex with general equality under the law, individual value, and educational disparities. Spiritual equality has nothing to do with physical strength or fighting. Yet, pretending that women can and should fight men is dumb. Instead, the differences between men and women in power and personality preferences are apparent even in the most egalitarian societies on earth. “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. (Genesis 1:26)” Biblically, men and women together are created equal, in the image of God, and should share the same rights under the law.
While the Nordic countries are known for their gender equality, they do not claim that there are zero differences between the sexes. Women and men work in different occupations and advance at different rates due to life choices, which can contribute to a gender wage gap. Women make up the majority of workers in caring professions, such as daycare and elderly care. Sweden, Norway, and Denmark exhibit greater horizontal segregation by sex than the rest of the EU. Despite the Nordic countries' high levels of gender equality, gender gaps in labor participation and employment persist. With a long Christian tradition of laws and values that have often gone unappreciated in recent years, these countries, which respect individual rights, allow men and women to pursue their talents and vocations while also enjoying family and leisure activities.
What we see happening today is the logical extension of sexual confusion.
Homosexuality and transgenderism have created many issues in America today and this is bleeding into the church. Second-wave feminism was a pernicious lie that wormed its way into the church and our nation. This doctrine of demons perverted women’s suffrage into the feminist movement, which revolutionized relationships and struck repeated blows against the traditional family. Some men are reactionary and go as far as seeking to renounce the voting franchise for women and revert to a household vote rule that would favor men as the head of each house. I would suggest that removing this now-ensconced right to vote from women is a bad idea. We should realize that married women tend to vote more conservatively, so we need to continue to press the advantage and raise children who want to be mothers and fathers together in holy matrimony.
If we can get this right, maybe our heroes will be more realistic and our stories more compelling. Military, sports, and entertainment are areas where this pronounced confusion is being used to alter our understanding of what it means to be human.
We read in the beginning, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27).” Further, “Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them man when they were created (Genesis 5:2).” And Jesus, reiterates this truth, “He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female (Matthew 19:4).” We have mistaken the importnace of proper relationships in our nation. As goes marriage, so goes the family, and the state, the nation, and the world.
Women in leadership may work in certain organizations, but it has been twisted in our country. Churches that hold to Biblical authority and endorse male-only pastors are challenged and derided for being chauvinists. I greatly support women going to school and getting the most out of a solid education. I even support some women leaders in the workplace under certain conditions. But politicians are in public positions that often require Joan of Arc-like leaders who inspire men to step up as well.
We must not prohibit women from learning and working in this world - it is part of their calling to be fruitful, multiply, steward, and take dominion over this planet. Consider Kim Reynolds, Kristi Noem, and Tulsi Gabbard, who have become more conversative stahlwerts in many ways. Also, historical leaders like Deborah in the book of Judges 4-5, who shamed weak men, Indira Gandhi, Britain’s Elizabeth I, or Margaret Thatcher, who starred in her role, show that in certain cases, countries need women leaders.
But what about our own homes? Shouldn’t women focus on their children and caring for the domestic front? Yes, of course, but that does not rule out working in some capacity. Look, our economy has incentivized two-income families by reducing the overall salaries that once were the purview of men and decreasing the purchasing power of the dollar through inflation. Farming and textiles are not practical for many families. These factors diminished the economic impact of women at home and encouraged other skills for homebuilding. Being a ninja is not a viable career track for most women.
I believe that a woman can learn any topic in our undergraduate curriculum and gain marketable skills for the industry. But, they will have to balance their career with a greater burden in childbearing and rearing. This will “set them back” in career progress, and therefore, men will often advance more quickly. Our culture sets women up for disaster and disappointment when it promotes the do it all super superwoman who needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle, and instead nurtures her cats, alone at 35. That does not mean that women will not gain prestigious positions that require great skill, simply that the pace of their career advancement will be more measured. And that their greatest fulfillment will probably be found in marriage to a husband and father who loves his wife and children.
“Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing[a] her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless... (Ephesians 5:22-27)”
Men tend to prefer working with objects or things as a proportion of the population. They also tend to test themselves in physical acts of strength and bravery. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9).” A much smaller percentage of women like this kind of work. Next, some men are very interested in ideas, but must be able to do some work with their hands. Men who enjoy relationships and helping people are in the minority. Women tend to thrive in caring and compassionate roles. Men must be more calloused in general to advance despite
Men lead the household, set the cultural tone in the family, and orient hearts toward worship. Men provide and protect their loved ones, communities, and nations. They say that behind every great man is a great woman, and there is truth in this saying. Biblically, we see the role of women in Sarah, Rachel, and Esther, who serve well and speak up when needed. Women and men work better when working together the way that God designed us, instead of getting into fights, with swords, guns, or fists.