Do we actually need men's ministry?

This week on The Good Book Blog we're going to be thinking about Men's Ministry. But first it's worth stopping and thinking: do we actually need specific ministries for men?

The whole trend of western society over the last 50 years has been towards integration of the sexes in every other area of life. We now routinely have co-educational schools, work in companies where men and women work together at all levels, and even the traditional divisions of family life are a matter of negotiation. Shouldn't we view separate ministries for men and women in the same way? A dinosaur relating to an age when social expectations were run on different lines, where women stayed home, and men were the main breadwinner?

It's certainly true that men and women, particularly younger men and women, no longer feel a deep urge to routinely join a men's only or women's group. And perhaps that's partly because the groups themselves, or the image of what they do lags behind where men in general are. Of course there are men who love to talk about cars, hunting and fishing, DIY and football. But when a group defines itself within this narrow masculine stereotype, it becomes irrelevant or even repugnant to the man who loves to bake, or who finds Formula 1 ridiculously overhyped, or who does not have the least interest in why Manchester United have signed a new Japanese midfielder.

And that brings us back to basics. If a men's group is to be of any real value in a local church, it has to be built on something other than a refuge for unreconstructed men who find it too difficult to survive in a world of sexual equality and hanker back for the days when "a man could be a man". It needs to be built primarily as a means of Christian discipleship and growth, and as a place for encouragement for men to live for Christ day by day. Because that is where the real value of single-sex ministries lie.

Because men still need Godly role models, they still need the mentoring hand of experienced older men. They still need strong Christian friendships where they can talk to one another from their hearts without the complications introduced when there may be romantic misunderstandings with someone of the opposite sex.

And men's ministries can also be very fruitful outreach vehicles for men who, for whatever reason, just prefer the company of other men.

The truth is that if there are men in your congregation, your church is already involved in men's ministry - even if there is no specific men's only group. The question is: is it a good men's ministry focused on the right things, or bad men's ministry that is wrapped up with less relevant issues of men's identity?

We'll look at this firm foundation in more detail tomorrow...