Female Strength

Human beings do strange things when it comes to definitions. I’ve spoken before, multiple times, about the strange things we do to the word “belief” when it comes to religious belief, the way we redefine it. I’m mentioned the dangers of redefining the word “person” as well. In this post I would like to talk about two words – “strength” and “courage” – and how their meaning too often shrinks when the word “female” is added in front of them.

The Active and the Passive

No one doubts that women should be strong and courageous, but the devil, as always, is in the details. What does it mean for a woman to be strong and courageous? In a moment, I’ll share with you one answer I’ve heard too frequently, but first we should examine the concepts on their own.

The concept of strength may be divided into two different categories: active and passive strength. Active strength overcomes obstacles and accomplishes its goals. Passive strength refuses to give up, even in the face of difficulty. For the sake of clarity, in this post I will refer to active strength as “power” and passive strength as “perseverance.” Power is what I have when I effectively use my resources to close a business deal or pass an assessment. Perseverance is what I have when the deal falls through, I fail the test, and I don’t give up hope.

The concept of courage may also be divided into its active and passive sides. Active courage pursues its mission in the face of danger and harm. Passive courage refuses to cave in the face of danger and harm. I will refer to active courage as “valor” and passive courage as “fortitude.” Valor is what the soldier has when he charges across the beach at the enemy. Fortitude is what he has when he is captured and refuses to give up his friends.

Now, it should be clear that the active and passive sides of these qualities go together. It does no good to be powerful if you give up as soon as you run into difficulty, and it does no good to keep fighting if you aren’t competent enough to ever win. It does no good to have fortitude if you lack the valor to ever fight for anything, and it does no good to charge into battle if you are going to cave at the first sign of defeat. We need both sides of the coin if we are to be strong, courageous people, if we are to begin the battle and carry it through to the close.

The Male and the Female

Now, to return to my point. When many Evangelical pastors talk about wanting “strong” and “brave” women, and give examples of such, I too often find a common thread. That is, all the women they describe have perseverance and fortitude, but none of them ever evince power or valor. In point of fact, putting the word “female” in front of the words “strength” and “courage” has the same effect as putting the word “passive” in front of them. These men would give me one half of the coin without the other; they would have me fight with one hand tied behind my back.

I do not mean that these men are evil or that they mean me ill. What they say about the passive side of strength and courage is well-meant and perfectly true. But half-truths can be the most dangerous kind of lies, and this half-truth uses vague language and nice words to cover up a troubling reality: many men are uncomfortable with powerful, valorous women, and they are only willing to allow us the passive side of the virtues they claim to uphold.

I am not writing this post to rant and rail about how my rights have been curtailed or my dignity disrespected. It is the insecure who must constantly be reaffirming their worth, and I am not insecure. I am powerful, and I am valorous, and I will not be stopped. But I am afraid that these teachings are going to stop some people, some women who could be great leaders and warriors for God if allowed to flourish in their capabilities and callings. And this is a problem.

Pray for More Laborers

Because we need great leaders and warriors. This world is full of darkness and pain and evil and despair. It is full of the strong taking advantage of the weak, the cunning taking advantage of the naïve, the ruthless taking advantage of the innocent. The fields are ripe for harvest, and the ground cries out with our brothers’ blood. There is much to be done, and the workers are few.

A few years ago I and several other students in my ROTC unit had lunch with then-Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. We didn’t know it at the time, but the next day he would announce the admission of women into all areas of the armed forces. He told us that it was foolish to try to meet the threats of today while cutting ourselves off from half the country’s labor pool.

We have a still more important war to fight. So let us be powerful and persevering; let us be valorous and fortitudinous. Let us be strong and courageous. And then let us go forth.

“All-Army Boxing upper-cut” by The U.S. Army is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0