Captain Marvel\u00a0<\/em>movie, and specifically its \u201cfeminist agenda.\u201d According to Morse, feminist ideology \u201ccontrasts so unapologetically with reality\u201d that it can only be sustained in an alternate universe. Morse writes:<\/p>\n\u00a0\u201cVerse after verse, story after story, fact after fact, study after study, example after example dispels the myth of sameness between the sexes. The alternative universe where an accident infuses the heroine with superhuman powers, however, seems to stand as a reasonable apologetic for the feminist agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is a classic strawman argument: studies say that men and women are not exactly the same. Therefore, the feminist agenda is mythology only suitable for a fictional alternate universe. Yet, Morse doesn\u2019t actually cite any studies or verses or stories or facts that \u201cdispel the myth of sameness between the sexes.\u201d And the reality is that it doesn\u2019t matter\u2014because that was never his real critique.<\/p>\n
Morse says himself that the movie is about the heroine finding her \u201cidentity as a woman.\u201d He quotes the president of Marvel Studios as saying that she\u2019s a woman who has been held back \u201cfrom being able to pursue the kinds of things\u00a0she wanted to pursue.\u201d\u00a0<\/em>Things she, a woman,\u00a0wanted<\/em>\u00a0to pursue. It\u2019s about learning to live into her identity and to overcome artificial boundaries placed on her simply because of her sex. She isn\u2019t trying to be the same as men; she\u2019s trying to be herself!<\/p>\nMorse\u2019s arguments against what he perceives as a case for men and women\u2019s sameness in\u00a0Captain Marvel<\/em>\u00a0stem from a desire to believe that no women are ever called and gifted to be fighters, leaders, or warriors and that protecting others is the sacred, exclusive role of men. But the Bible itself contradicts that in the book of Judges.<\/p>\nDeborah was a judge over Israel, leading an entire nation and its army. She was highly regarded, and no negative words are written about her in Scripture. Deborah ruled over Israel and was chosen by God to lead the Israelites to freedom.<\/p>\n
And then we see another fierce woman leader in the text. God delivered the enemy army commander into the tent of a woman named Jael. Jael drove a tent peg through the temple of the enemy commander. When Deborah\u2019s army commander shows up later looking for the enemy commander, Jael tells him she\u2019s got the man he\u2019s looking for.<\/p>\n
Deborah and Jael were not neglecting their \u201croles\u201d as women, or trying to become like men. They were both living into their identities as strong women, and doing exactly what God called them to do! They would\u2019ve failed if they\u2019d allowed manmade boundaries to hold them back! Israel\u2019s fate at that time depended on these women being the fierce, wise, and strong leaders that they were!<\/p>\n
Morse goes on to write, \u201cAs I consider Disney\u2019s new depiction of femininity in\u00a0Captain Marvel<\/em>, I cannot help but mourn. How far we\u2019ve come since the days of\u00a0Sleeping Beauty<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Snow White<\/em>\u201d (these examples have since been removed).<\/p>\nMorse seems to regard these Disney tales as biblical, but when I consider Disney\u2019s depiction of women in stories like\u00a0Sleeping Beauty<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Snow White<\/em>, I lament how far the cultural image of women strayed from God\u2019s story! And I\u2019m thankful to see women being portrayed in movies like\u00a0Captain Marvel<\/em>\u00a0as the heroes that God has designed them to be.<\/p>\nIn\u00a0Sleeping Beauty<\/em>, the princess, Aurora, is literally unconscious when the prince finds her and kisses her. Issues of consent aside, Aurora is completely and utterly helpless, with not even a voice to speak for herself. She is really nothing more than a prop for the majority of the story. Did God design women to be nothing more than a prop?<\/p>\nIn\u00a0Snow White,\u00a0<\/em>the poor princess is poisoned by the evil queen, and believed to be dead. She is even placed inside a glass coffin, and is only brought back to life by a kiss from the prince (again without consent from an unconscious woman). And it\u2019s notable that the villain in each of these movies is a woman as well.<\/p>\nThat the author holds up these two films as examples of a lost standard for womanhood worth lamenting is concerning. Why? Because women in these stories appear to be little more than props. Men are the true heroes. Men have the adventure. Men save the day. The women are barely more than bodies on display, waiting to be kissed. I hope Morse isn\u2019t actually trying to say that women should be props in the stories of men, but I also think the inclusion of these fairytales communicates that message.<\/p>\n
Morse goes on to say that the great evil of feminism is sending women to war to die, when only men should fight. Women should, presumably, just lay around, waiting for the men to win the war and come give them life. He then claims:<\/p>\n
But indeed, few actions display our resolve to honor our women more than\u00a0excluding<\/em>\u00a0them from the carnage of the battlefield. Where can we more clearly display our ultimate resolve to love our women as queens than to step into hell on earth as sacrificial pawns in their defense? Generation after generation has mobilized its men to be devoured \u2014 that its women might not be.<\/p>\nFirst, I\u2019m sorry that he seems to see the loss of men as less grievous than the loss of women. Created in the image of God, men\u2019s and women\u2019s lives are equally sacred. Second, whether he means it this way or not, the use of the possessive pronoun \u201cour women\u201d comes across as suggesting that women are possessions.<\/p>\n
Morse says women are too precious to fight, so men must take on the role of hero and protector. He then contrasts this ideal with the \u201cfeminist agenda,\u201d which he sees as eager for women to fight and die in war. But what feminism\u00a0actually<\/em>\u00a0says is that, though war is a horrible reality of the broken world we live in, some women are gifted and called to be fighters. And rather than advocating for strict gender roles, we should simply say thank you to the capable women who serve in the military every day, using their gifts and strength and wisdom to try and make the world safer for everyone.<\/p>\nMorse writes that our government is \u201csending our daughters\u2014stripped of photon blasts and the ability to fly\u2014to fight our wars.\u201d But as far as I know, our government doesn\u2019t\u00a0send<\/em>\u00a0our daughters into any battles they haven\u2019t\u00a0chosen\u00a0<\/em>to fight. \u00a0They simply allow women who are strong, brave, talented, and capable to fight for their country if they\u00a0choose<\/em>\u00a0(and are able) to fight.<\/p>\nMorse believes it\u2019s \u201cshameful\u201d for men to \u201chide behind their women.\u201d But he doesn\u2019t consider that perhaps men and women are both stronger when they fight together. Morse says it\u2019s a man\u2019s glory to die for women. But I hope that Morse knows his glory is in his identity as a child of God, not his ability to fight or die on behalf of the opposite sex. And what pleases God is seeking justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God (Micah 6:8).<\/p>\n
Morse finishes by stating that God\u2019s story is of \u201ca Son who slew a Dragon to save a Bride. Jesus did not put his woman forward, and neither should we.\u201d But he seems to be forgetting that he\u2019s not Jesus. He\u2019s the Bride.<\/p>\n
Jesus laid down his life for all of us equally, both men and women. He then empowered both men and women with the Holy Spirit, raising us up to do great things through his power and in his name (Acts 2:17-18). And we all are called to lay down our lives for each other. That often means discovering and cultivating strength in others, including women.<\/p>\n
The primary dichotomy driving Morse\u2019s article is the strength\/power of men and the contrasting helplessness of women. This is obviously not a biblical view of male-female relationships. Scripture clearly illustrates partnership, equality, and equal and free use of gifts (Gal. 3:28). So instead of elevating Disney fairytales as illustrations of God\u2019s ideal, we should look to the Bible, where we find countless examples of women heroes who answered God\u2019s call and used their gifts freely to make the world safer.<\/p>\n
It would be a great loss to the world if all the strong and gifted women laid around in glass caskets waiting to be rescued. No one should squander the gifts they\u2019ve been given because of artificial boundaries. If, instead of restricting, we choose to build each other up, helping each other to discover our gifts and strengths, we too will raise up great heroes like Deborah. And it will be good.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By\u00a0Kelly Ladd Bishop On March 12, 2019 From CBE Yesterday,\u00a0Desiring God\u00a0published an\u00a0article\u00a0(by staff writer, Greg Morse) lamenting the hit\u00a0Captain Marvel\u00a0movie, and specifically its \u201cfeminist agenda.\u201d According to Morse, feminist ideology \u201ccontrasts so unapologetically with reality\u201d that it can only be sustained in an alternate universe. Morse writes: \u00a0\u201cVerse after verse, story after story, fact after […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":83221,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
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