Both young and old from the District Wesleyan group marching at the Men’s Rally under the theme ‘Men Arise! Let’s Save Our Sons (SOS)’ on Saturday evening at Independence Square.
be father figures
Mon, 06/13/2016 - 12:00am
By:
Patricia Thangaraj
All Barbadian men are being called upon to be responsible fathers.
The advice came from Pastor Renaldo Seale of the Horse Hill Church of the Nazarene who delivered remarks at the Barbados Men’s Rally under the theme of ‘Men Arise! Let’s Save Our Sons (SOS)’ on Saturday evening at Independence Square.
He said that unfortunately one of the reasons that men cannot fulfil this role effectively is that they are living according to the definition of what it means to be a man that has been stipulated by society, which indicates that men are not allowed to have any emotions at all or in the very least they are not allowed to show these emotions to the rest of the world even if they are hurting within.
“You see for too long men, we have grown up believing a lie that the definition of being a man is simply ‘Don’t be a women.’ Many have had no real definition of manhood except this and it has robbed us of our identity, our self-esteem, and out God-given potential. Many have grown up thinking that being affectionate and expressing emotions such as sadness, fear, or hurt is a female thing and therefore, to be male is to keep a poker face. We can’t let people know we are sad, we can’t let people know we are hurting even though inwardly we are dying,” he lamented.
Pastor Seale said that fortunately, he has a father that showed him what it really is to be a man, which is someone who is not afraid to love the Lord, to be there for his children and to show emotions when it counts.
“I am glad in my life that I have had a father who was willing to step away from the culture of absent or emotionally distant fathers and has shown me by example what it means to be a man; not afraid to love God, not afraid to love others and not afraid to stand up for what is right,” he stated.
Furthermore, his father was also an example that he could follow when it comes to being the man which is to be the priest of the household.
“As a son and young man, I am pleased to know that my dad has sought to be a good example and model for me to follow. In keeping with the first four values for this evening I submit that it is critical for men to be the priests in their homes and the nation. Women have their roles, but the divine design for the natural family is for the man to usher in the blessings of God on our land. ‘Blessed is any nation where God is the Lord’ and in this season ‘God is turning the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers’ as stated in Malachi 4:4-5,” he pointed out.