America is in a lukewarm civil war over freedom rights with respect to abortion and sexual identity. On these two fronts Trump trumped the Democrats when he played the masculinity card to prevail in his presidential bid. A majority of his supporters believe “the gays” infringe on their sense of self and the pro-life tenet of their religious beliefs are violated by abortions. Albeit, their concern about life is mainly for the fetus and not so much for the mother. The Bible does state same sex marriage is an abomination (Leviticus 18:22) but interpretations of the Hebrew verse can vary. In the Republican world view the taboo is explicit and extends to one’s sexual identity dictated at conception when life begins. This ties up to their definitions of “innocence” and “purity” and hence abortion is a crime, or should be, and it is forbidden to change one’s gender after birth. However, in the biblical census system detailed in Numbers a newborn was not included in the count unless it lived for at least a month. There is still no formal requirement to hold a shiva, the Jewish 7-day funeral service, if a baby dies within the first month after birth since it is not considered a loss of life to the community.
In deed, some prohibitions in the Bible are not etched in stone and evolve to meet the times. As t'were, there seems to be a penchant to pick and choose which of God’s rules and laws to observe or forget about. For example: in the Ten Commandments adultery is considered a sin but the religiously inclined GOP voters find it irrelevant enough to make a notorious serial adulterer President; masturbation is no longer taboo and pornography is big business because it helps stimulate “spilling seed”, which was declared unholy (Genesis 38:8-10) and nourishment for the demonic. (The Zohar, Pritzker ed. p. 322, fn.1581); and finally, animal sacrifices are universally outlawed in most civilized countries and replaced with prayer. For a sample of the sacrificial legislation found in Leviticus go to the Side Street page on this website.
Importantly, negative sensibilities about the LGTBQ+ community puts a hyper emphasis on the notion of masculinity. This suits the purposes of religious Dominionists. They are a predominantly American group of Christians who believe man, and precisely the male born gender, are ordained to have dominion over nature. They extend this inherent status to control over society’s morals, the ways of governances, and women's bodies. These endeavors all trickle down to who holds the reins of power and has the economic advantage. It is a version of religious politics from the pulpit, and brute force or prison are promised against perceived enemies.
Trump won favor with the anti-LGBQ+ crowd. He played the masculinity card to focus their sentiments and promoted crude, uninhibited male energy in his presidential campaign. Might is right and the left is weak was the intent of his TV ad which featured prison scenes of male inmates while a voice-over claimed Democrat nominee, VP Harris’ championed their sex change operations paid for by the taxpayer. It ran constantly in the Santa Barbara, California area and Harris never answered it. Why not? She missed the opportunity and failed to recognize many voters were waiting for definitive answers on masculinity and gender identity. Earlier this month, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in US v. Skrmetti, a case challenging Tennessee's ban on transgender affirming care for minors. A New York Times article notes, "Of 28 states where Republicans control the legislature, 24 now restrict doctors from providing puberty blockers, hormone therapies or surgery to transgender minors. Two more states ban only surgeries."
I am no expert but venture to say, the will to dominate and the misogynist overtones about abortion might hide a male insecurity of a physical nature. Along these lines, a recent spam email caught my attention. It stated, “While half of all men over 40 are suffering severe cases of failure to stiffen up in bed…75 year old Tom can stay rock hard as long as he wants. And he has no trouble pleasing his wife night after night (and even in the mornings). But it’s NOT because Tom is taking some dangerous and artificial chemical pill… it’s because this 75 year old drinks a simple, delicious “tonic” every day that destroys the root cause of soft bedroom performances in men -- allowing him to stiffen up on demand. And today, he’s revealing the recipe to this potent “hardwood tonic”. . . .”
The email pegged 40-years as the onset of the decline. In my humble opinion, the anxiety over penis performance probably begins much earlier and is not new to our times. It is no surprise men would be drawn to the high testosterone Trump rallies. Men and women admire the strong-man attitude and his virility demonstrated by his teenage son and his beautiful, soft-porn wife. Plus the scandals around multiple sex-capades and indictments helped his tough, manliness image. Probably, confident people don’t even get the appeal of this 78-year old, and may have voted for him because of the presumed tax cuts. Nevertheless, masculine insecurity and confusion is likely rampant amongst the non-college degree, unemployed white males and perhaps in the marginalized minority communities where Republicans gained support.
I am reminded of the tarot card, The Chariot. In a traditional deck the first impression of the man standing erect in an ancient vehicle of war is the muscular Charlton Heston as Ben Hur steering four galloping horses. However some modern cards depict a well built or even a lithe looking charioteer seated cross-legged in meditation. This more advanced image leads beyond the familiar notions of hard-core masculinity to the card’s deeper symbolism of mental acuity, willpower, focus on desired outcomes, moving forward. Historically the male is associated with the "logical" mind and men drove chariots, which makes this a manly, man card. However, it also teaches not to depend on brute force. The quiet focus of a gentle determined mind, male or female, plus willpower can get you through most adversities. Ultimately, this is the type of person who can lead folks into battle and win the war, metaphorically speaking.
In a traditional deck, which is numbered from 0-21, the Chariot is the 7th or VII card in the Suit of Trumps. However, I prefer the tarot's association to the Hebrew letters, which goes from 1-22. To learn more check out the Street Smarts page on this website. The eighth Hebrew letter is Chet. Her shape resembles an enclosed space. Symbolically, she is the letter of life, or chaim and can also mean private, to separate, to protect, place of protection, to be cut off, grace, favor, a place of refuge, a protected garden, quiet place, to be silent and still in security, a fence, a sanctuary, or an inner room". This Hebrew letter encompasses both the conventional notions of male warrior as protector, as well as the modern sense of The Chariot when solitude can strategically enhance your ability to succeed. It can help bring your ideas into manifestation. Meditation is an epistemological realm, or one of the ways we can gain the knowledge to develop and move our lives forward.
There is a real issue related to masculine identity in our society. It must be addressed. I was born a female, identify as female, and prefer to date males. However, I am perfectly fine with any combination of the above genders or preferences someone chooses for themselves. Nevertheless, as a woman I am looking at the current situation from the outside in, and perhaps even upside down since I would never vote for Trump to lead this country. Nevertheless, based upon my observations machismo is a hot topic in some Christian and GOP circles these days. In a interview with NPR, an evangelical leader, Russel Moore stated multiple pastors raised an alarm when they told him some of their church members were upset while reading from ‘The Sermon on the Mount’. It is where Jesus “espoused the principles of forgiveness and mercy that are central to Christian doctrine”. The congregants thought Jesus was spouting “liberal talking points”, and “that doesn’t work anymore. That’s weak”. (NPR, August 4, 2023)
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