Metanoia Magazine Vol. 1 No. 1

metanoia MAGAZINE

CONTRIBUTORS

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Isabel Cumbelich

CONTENT DIRECTOR

Zoë Grimm

DESIGNERS

Isabel Cumbelich

Juliana Heroux

Maghee Fleischer

Margaret Kolesar

EDITORS

Henry Summers

Isabel Cleary

Javier Madan

Kate Walz

Lucia Ulizko

Mary deTar

Seb Ghering

Zoë Grimm

MARKETING/SOCIAL MEDIA

Finnbarr O’Reilly

Gwyneth Sawicki

Isabel Cleary

Isabel Cumbelich

Mary Lueck

ARTIST

Christina Burke

FACULTY ADVISORY BOARD

Dr. Kathleen Sullivan

Niall O’Donnell

Zach Smith

Dr. Joseph Brutto

Dr. Daniel McInerny

Dr. Hugh O’Donnell

Dr. Ben Reinhard

MISSION STATEMENT:

Metanoia is a student magazine that showcases the height of Christendom excellence in the areas of journalism, art, and design. It is meant to inspire thoughtful conversation among the student body and the broader Christendom community. Metanoia articles address issues concerning society, our immediate surroundings, and ourselves. Metanoia allows promising students the opportunity to develop their talents so that they can use contemporary media to “Restore All Things in Christ”.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Dear Reader,

It is our great pleasure to present to you Metanoia Magazine. The word metanoia means a change of mind, heart and soul or a spiritual conversion that brings about a new way of life. Like many of you, we believe intensely in the fruits of the education at Christendom and many of us also know first-hand how desperate the world is for the Truth we possess here. So the goal of Metanoia is ultimately twofold: convert within to convert the culture.

As an organization, one of our major initiatives is to keep up-to-date on the interests of Christendom students. What are the classes we scramble to take? What do we discuss during lunch? What are the unique interests and hobbies around campus? We want to gain new insights into the ideas, passions and quirks of Christendom students to then allow students, faculty, alums and donors alike to share in these thoughts. Maybe I am an optimist, but I like to think that when college students show how their faith is real, alive and relevant to them, it makes the world stop and think.

If we want to convert the culture, it starts with TV, social media, books, magazines; it starts by using popular channels of communication to expose people to life-changing truths. I hope this magazine will be a point of pride for our community, will enchant Christendom students, and will encourage them to believe in their talents, share their gifts, and seek what is true, good, and beautiful!

In Christ, Editor-in-Chief

Isabel Cumbelich

IN SIDE

SELF

weightlifting for dummies: the importance of heavy compound exercises

six ways to overcome feelings of anxiety

what’s wrong with junior: the pornography crisis fake news and the free press an afternoon with the oysters

TWIN FEATURES: HOW TO WIN THE CULTURE WAR

catholic political activism

V.S the benedict option

toxic masculinity: where feminists are right, and where they go completely wrong

WEIGHTLIFTING FOR DUMMIES

The Importance of Heavy Compound Exercises

WRITTEN BY Dylan Aiello

WHAT IS A “COMPOUND” EXERCISE?

A compound exercise is one that requires the engagement of multiple muscle groups working across multiple joints (i.e., bench press, push-up).

WHAT MAKES AN EXERCISE “HEAVY”?

What makes an exercise specifically a “heavy” compound exercise is the capacity to load more weight on over time to become stronger as a consequence.

WHY SHOULD I DO HEAVY COMPOUND EXERCISES?

You should do heavy compound exercises because they make you become stronger overall in a more efficient manner than non-compound or low intensity exercises would. By incorporating multiple muscle groups throughout the body, you are able to get more done in a shorter amount of

time. As a consequence of doing heavy compound exercises, you are able to do “fun” exercises (i.e., bicep curls) or cardiovascular exercise afterwards.

WHY DOES IT MATTER WHEN I DO MY HEAVY COMPOUND EXERCISES DURING MY WORKOUT?

Setting aside time to focus on these heavy, compound movements at the beginning of a workout matters because your energy levels are still high. This allows you to focus on performing the exercise with proper technique, hence keeping you safe. As the workout goes on, your energy will drop, your mind and muscle will fatigue, causing instability and poor technique execution. You are less likely to suffer an injury if one performs the exercises at the beginning because you are fresh and energetic.

6 WAYS TO OVERCOME FEELINGS OF ANXIETY

WRITTEN BY Bella Supples

Go to a quiet place where you can get air and not be overwhelmed by noise.

6

Last but not least, remember that most of the time, you are bigger than whatever is giving you anxiety. If it is out of your hands, worrying will do nothing except hold you back from doing the things you need to do.

Drink water. It’s always important to stay hydrated. Sometimes anxiety/stress can make you lightheaded or sweat, so drinking water can prevent that from happening. 1 2

If you prefer being around people rather than being alone, bring a close, trusted friend who can sit and comfort you. Make sure it is someone who will not stress you out more.

3 4 5

One of the most important things to remember: make sure to breathe. When you are anxious, your heart rate increases, sometimes making it harder to get air. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Doing that will slow down your heart rate.

Sometimes it helps to focus on something When I feel anxious, I count things such as the stars, how many cars are around me, the trees around me. Even playing a game on your phone that involves focus can help sometimes. This is because if you are thinking about something that is causing this anxiety or stress, focusing on something else will help you not think about whatever is causing the stress.

WHAT’S WRONG WITH JUNIOR?

The Pornography Crisis

by JOHN PAUL ADAMS‘23

There is a lot that John Doe Jr. is going through these days. Mom and Dad don’t seem to understand how their son, who used to be a ray of sunshine, exhibiting all the signs of healthy development at age nine, could have changed so much in five short years. He’s become antisocial, requires ADHD medication, has depression, and shows signs of extreme lethargy towards all the pursuits he once found new and exciting. What in the world has changed? What in the world is wrong with Jr.?

Before I answer that question, I should preface with an explanation of how I write. Please do not confuse the substance of what I say with my style of writing, as I have chosen to write this article essentially how I talk. While it covers intense material, this article is meant to bring about legitimate understanding and conversations rather than present an academic report, hence the colloquial tone.

“If the opioid crisis were a bomb, it would be a grenade, and pornography would be a nuclear warhead.”

All that being said, let’s talk about pornography. Don’t worry, it’s only going to get worse from here. Before we begin, let’s quickly go over the blueprint of what I plan to cover. Let it be clear that I have no interest in covering the morality of viewing porn; it’s immoral, you already know that. What I’m covering in this article is twofold. First, I will explain some of the brain chemistry behind viewing porn, and just how addictive it can be to developing brains. Second, I will examine the gravity and reach of pornography

Here’s the first in a long series of things you may not have known about pornography. First, sex and viewing porn actually have very similar effects on the brain; for the most part, they release the exact same chemicals. These chemicals include but are not limited to: Norepinephrine, Oxytocin, Vasopressin, a lot of Endorphins, and Dopamine. I’ve heard this best described as an ‘addiction cocktail’ that contains all the chemicals necessary to produce severe addiction and can result in massive imbalances in the brain.

Each compound plays a part in causing these effects. First, there’s Norepinephrine. This is basically adrenaline for the brain; it sharpens focus and causes hyper awareness. Like adrenaline, norepinephrine

use typically leads to neurological exhaustion, producing symptoms similar to ADHD. Next, you have Oxytocin and Vasopressin. Both are responsible for structuring ‘long-term’ memory within the brain. Essentially, this is a powerful chemical which causes the body to form a habitual response. Then there are Endorphins. For those who don’t know, Endorphins are naturally occurring Opiates that your body produces. In other words, you have access to naturally occurring morphine in your body, free of regulation. That’s right, I said morphine. Yikes!

And then finally, there’s Dopamine. Dopamine is the crown jewel of this equation. Massive amounts are released when watching porn. But here’s the funny thing: Dopamine is also released whenever pretty much anything good occurs. It’s one of the most basic brain chemicals; it is key to your brain forming a feeling of happiness at accomplishment. If this is out of order, you will be as well. And for those who watch pornography, insane amounts are released. To stress how important this high level of dopamine is, understand that companies measure the addictiveness of their pharmaceuticals by the amount of dopamine released in brains. And pornography releases more

than nearly any of these drugs. Dopamine is the biggest red flag of a chemical addiction, and with this in mind it’s not an exaggeration to say that porn, on a neuro level, contains many of the exact same red flags as cocaine. In fact, it literally releases more Dopamine than cocaine.

“The simple fact is that America, for the first time, is facing an addiction epidemic that likely involves more people than not .”

This leads me to the second part of my focus: just how widespread this infection has become. The answer to that question is best put as an analogy, as statistics do not do it justice. If the opioid crisis were a bomb, it would be a grenade, and pornography would be a nuclear warhead. Currently, the statistics report that about 10% of U.S. adults struggle with an addiction to pornography. This number, however, makes no sense. At least 40 million Americans view porn regularly. 90% of American men, when asked, admit to having watched porn. That’s 90%. If 90% of American men admitted to having tried cocaine, you would see an addiction rate much higher than 10%. Porn isn’t something you just pick up and put down when you are bored, it’s far too addictive for that. Furthermore, the average age for discovery of pornography is 10 years old. There is no way that pornography targets 10-year-olds and only manages to addict one out of ten. The simple fact is that America, for the first time, is facing an addiction epidemic that likely involves more people than not. So, what are the actual symptoms of this disease? Those who suffer from this addiction almost universally display signs of depression. This is no surprise, as they receive close to no dopamine from daily routines that would otherwise be rewarding. They’ve developed a high tolerance, leaving the new bar for regular happiness at cocaine levels. They show signs of ADHD. Again, Norepinephrine is necessary to focus,

and people with this addiction overstimulate their brain so much that this ability to focus is almost completely exhausted. ADHD has been steadily growing in diagnosis for the last twenty years; is this a coincidence? These addicts display extreme and unique amounts of lethargy, as their serotonin, the chemical that gives you energy and drive, is severely skewed. Addicts also have significantly higher tendencies towards other substance abuse. Furthermore, it is well known that pornography effectively obliterates many marriages, due to its destruction of romantic intimacy. And almost all diagnosed porn addicts display behavioral tendencies exactly like alcoholics: pathological lying, erratic mood swings, and yet again, depression. So now you know what’s wrong with Jr.

But how can we help him? Look, we already know that pornography is wrong. But you may not have known what is chemically going on, the bleak state of the nation, and the effects of porn addiction on its victims. The fact is we are incredibly blessed to attend a college where we can truly immerse ourselves in a Catholic culture. Places like these are hard to find nowadays, trust me: I’ve looked. But as unique of a college as we are, we aren’t so unique as to be entirely outside the norm of statistical behavior. That is, we as a campus need to address the simple fact that many of us certainly struggle with porn addiction. I have no idea how to begin a dialogue like this, but I do know that it is unacceptable for Christians to live in a society we know is bleeding and offer no aid. It is more than a good thing to do, it is our moral obligation to help.

“It is unacceptable for Christians to live in a society we know is bleeding and offer no aid.”

Now, before you reach out to someone to help with their addiction, I want to stress the necessity of prudence required for fraternal correction. Random-

24 Million (10%) of American men struggle with addiction to porn

ly talking to people about pornography without a filter is completely inappropriate. And similarly, prudence must also come in whom we ask for help. Not all people are worth seeking advice from. Do not ask a fish what water is, and don’t go to people who are still immersed in the same problem as you for advice.

90% of American men admit to watching porn

The person adjusts to higher dopamine levels, desensitizing what it has already seen. He/She must seek out more types of porn at more extreme levels, creating a cycle of addiction

The brain is regularly overstimulated, leading to ADHD, substance abuse, and depression

But here is some positive advice that I want to leave you with. First, if you are indeed struggling then never stop praying about it. Second, receive the sacraments as much as possible. Third, see a priest or read the Church fathers. Seriously, that’s why they’re here. Fourth, talk about it with your close friends. I know it sounds weird and uncomfortable, but particularly for young men, I think it is critical that we hold each other accountable. Fifth, God gave you a rational soul. Use it. If you are trying to quit and you don’t have a plan, then you are not going to quit. “But don’t plans and strategies almost always fall apart?” The answer to that is yes, but when they do fall apart, then you know it’s time to make another. These plans are meant to win battles, and to win in the end, the plans must change along with the war. And this leads me to my final and most fundamental piece of advice: if you fall seven times, get up eight. Never lose hope. Keep struggling and know that Christendom is a beautifully Catholic community that is more than happy to be there for you if you need it.

If you read this far, please say a prayer to end porn in America. Next to the abortion industry, it is by far the worst injustice we face as a society.

Fake News and the Free Press

TO SAY THAT

there is a great deal of polarization and distrust of the media would be a massive understatement. More and more, people on both the Left and Right tend to fall into one bubble of opinion or another, absorbing whatever news outlet conforms to their biases. These biases are becoming more and more extreme, with news outlets offering competing and contradictory reports of the same event. Why is this so? Why has the media in America surrendered to these biases so easily and so blatantly?

Hilare Belloc’s Solution to a Media

Landscape that Cannot be Trusted

by AIDAN MOOREHOUSE

To say that there is a great deal of polarization and distrust of the media would be a massive understatement. More and more, people on both the Left and Right tend to fall into one bubble of opinion or another, absorbing whatever news outlet conforms to their biases. These biases are becoming more and more extreme, with news outlets offering competing and contradictory reports of the same event. Why is this so? Why has the media in America surrendered to these biases so easily and so blatantly?

This is not an altogether new development. Catholic writer Hilaire Belloc published an essay in 1918, The Free Press, diagnosing a similar problem in the media of his own time. Belloc thought the main problem with the major news outlets of his day, which he called “The Official Press,” was that newspaper publishers relied on the money provided by advertisers to fund their operations, which meant that these papers could not publish anything that would ultimately be detrimental to the advertisers. The waters were further muddied as these advertisers gained political influence and could use news outlets to promote their own interests and ensure that any criticism would be a mere “simulacrum,” never “deal[ing] with matters vital to its [and the advertisers’] prestige.”1

Belloc’s argument can be similarly applied to the news networks and newspapers of today. The desire for profit also seems to drive the New York Times and the Washington Post, as is shown by their response to the rise of digital journalism. In an interview given to the New Yorker in 2017, then-NYT-publisher A.G. Sulzberger described the struggles traditional papers had with going digital: “almost all the growth in digital advertising is going to two companies—Google and Facebook. The rest of media is battling over the remainders.”2 Ultimately, both the Times and the Post switched to a subscription service. This ensured a steady cash flow, but that flow depended on reporting events primarily from the side of those who were paying the monthly subscriptions. The product had found a

market, and no business worth its salt would risk upsetting its customers by changing the formula.  Although liberal media has often been accused of being disingenuous, conservative media is often just as guilty. Take Rupert Murdoch, chairman of the Fox Corporation, a billionaire who has established a multimedia empire which includes Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post.

Although I do believe that he tends to be conservative in his personal politics, the media outlets under Murdoch’s control shift positions with the times, seeking to strike a balance between keeping the conservative market cornered and not maintaining a position that will damage the Fox Corporation’s profit margins. For example, Fox’s support for Trump fluctuated most notably before and after the 2016 Republican primaries and the 2020 Presidential Election.3 Some more popular news anchors will remain consistent in their views because of high ratings—

“The truthfulness of the articles does not ultimately matter, it must only be consumed.”

Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity come to mind— but nevertheless, profit seems to be the motivating factor here, not any deep-seated political belief.4

Although this profit motive seems sensible enough from the perspective of a corporation, it becomes extremely damaging when applied to the media, because the truth has now been subordinated to the company “brand,” i.e. the particular “brand” of truth which their target audience already believes and wants to have confirmed. This widens the divide between conservatives and liberals because both believe that their preferred media outlets are objective. The contradictions by opposing news networks with different target audiences causes them to decry those who hold to the other opinions as misled sheeple, a contention

encouraged by the networks themselves.  The best way to counter this poisonous trend is to not read the Official Press, but instead to read what Belloc refers to as “The Free Press,” media publications which are not beholden to financial interests, and instead have a clearly stated bias or agenda which can be anticipated by the reader. Belloc explains his own modus operandi: “When I want to know, for instance, what is happening in France, I read the Jewish Socialist paper, the Humanité; the most violent French Revolutionary papers I can get, such as La Guerre Sociale; the Royalist Action Française; the anti-Semitic Libre Parole, and so forth.”5 Although one would be hardpressed to find a useful Royalist perspective on current US politics, Belloc’s message is clear: read a wide variety of opinions from all across the political spectrum, not just the ones tailored to keep a corporation’s shareholders happy. If you read the National Review, try reading the Nation! Read an article from the Daily Wire, then saunter over to the Huffington Post! Trawl the personal blogs of rural paleoconservatives and urban socialists alike!  One project of which I am a personal fan is called the Flip Side: a team of liberals and conservatives who send out a daily email dealing with a major event, and provide major paragraphquotations from news sources on both sides of the aisle.6 Though you may find that one specific group is correct in the majority of its worldview, by reading widely and responsibly you will be equipped to intelligently and civilly discourse with people who hold an opposing viewpoint, and not remain in the narrow ideological grooves designed to maintain the corporatist status quo.

CITATIONS:

1.Hilaire Belloc,The Free Press(Norfolk, VA:IHS Press, 2002),50

2.https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/a-conversationwith-a-g-sulzberger-the-new-leader-of-the-new-york-times

3.https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/fox-news-cutsaway-from-trump-campaign-press-conference-cant-in-goodcountenance-continue/ar-BB1aRVk7

4.https://theconversation.com/courting-the-chameleon-how-the-us-election-reveals-rupert-murdochs-political-colours-149910

5. https://www.theflipside.io/

“Although liberal media has often been accused of being disingenuous, conservative media is often just as guilty.”

“The best lack all conviction while the worst are full of passionate intensity ”

-W.B YEATS

FOLLOW OUR INSTAGRAM @_METANOIAMAGAZINE_

A

N AFTERNOON WITH THE

Oysters

by DANIEL DUCA ‘22 featuring art by CHRISTINA BURKE ‘23

What is this young girl doing, you might ask, with her yellow number two pencil, a pocket of cheese, and the little blue notebook her brother gave her for her eighth birthday only three days ago? Well, what anybody should be doing sitting atop an ocean-weathered rock in a light white sundress: mostly nothing. You see, in Carlsbad, California they farm oysters. It’s more work than you might think. I’d challenge you to shake any man’s hand from out

there and find it smooth. During the week the men spend the whole workday stocking the waters on one side and harvesting on the other, while weekends are for shucking or transporting. One’s for the town and one’s for the state, respectively. Alice’s father had just retired his shirt and handed his manager’s patch to Alice’s older brother, but her brother still made the time to find her a gift. Some girls might have fussed and whined at such a small gift, but not Alice; she knew how much that little blue book meant. Always grateful.

Alice was enjoying her Sunday brunch away from the family. She wasn’t very hungry and was honestly quite disenchanted with the slimy salt balls that served as the main ingredient of her family’s coastal diet. So before she left, she snuck a sleeve of her favorite saltine crackers and some sharp cheese from Wisconsin into her pocket. Nothing tasted quite so delightful to her as the subtle crunch of the crackers with the salty nibble of cheese. The wind blew the crumbs into her sandy blonde hair, where they caught like blossom petals in tall grass. Below her perch innumerable oysters were huddling in bunches between crevices in the rocks. The ocean spray jumped high upon the splash, just

enough to bless Alice’s youthfully tanned skin. Today it was calm, she loved that. Normally, there would be strong young men making a ruckus as they carried barrels and buckets to the seaside, dumping or gathering those hard-shelled creatures. But not today. Today she sat and wrote little limericks for the oysters. One went:

‘Oyster, my oyster, why don’t you speak? You see so many things but shut your beak. I’d love to listen to what you have to say, But I’m plenty happy if you stay shut.’

And another:

‘Don’t be mad at the clams, little oysters, because they have pearls, Instead, be happy because,’

She struggled to finish the line because she really didn’t know what oysters had that clams didn’t, but that didn’t bother her. She’d heard before from her Aunt Zelda that even the greatest of poets encounter writer’s block, so it was only a matter of time. Instead, she let the seagulls distract her; their beaks were yellow just like her pencil. The noise they made from the soothing gray sky made her laugh: she enjoyed the sound when it was coming from out there, but they sounded so silly up close. Good thing she ate the crackers and cheese before they spotted her lunch— she would not be compelled to share with them again. She learned her lesson last time when they almost knocked her off the rock. And she wasn’t fond of how they picked on the oysters napping in their rock beds where the sun kept them warm with its soft touch. They sure did enjoy sleeping. What were the oysters dreaming about, she wondered. Was it flowing through the ocean currents with the tur-

tles? Dancing on the waves like the dolphins? Or was it just more sleeping? She never did understand sleep; the only reason that she slept was so that the morning would come sooner and she could say hello again to the fish in the sea, and of course, to her little oyster friends.

Alice was so content in her sweet contemplations that she didn’t notice that a boy named Jeremy had climbed with his greasy hands and dirty face over the rocks behind her and had descended barefoot into the water. He was the same age as her and they went to school togeth er. He was al ways trying to distract her in class, but she dis covered that he would leave her alone if she gave him taffy. Sadly, she wasn’t ex pecting him to show up here on a Sunday, so she had no such sweets to shoo him away.

“Hey, Alice,” he waved with a messy hand.

“Jeremy,” she acknowledged.

“Nice book ya got there! Whatcha doin with it?” he asked as he started up the rocks towards her.

“You stop right there! Don’t come near me all dirtied! You’ll soil my sundress and I haven’t any taffy for you.”

“Swell. Well, um, what about the book? I’ll stay down here, I promise!” and he crossed his heart and

hoped to die. Alice felt satisfied and decided she could trust him.

“Okay. Take a seat, Jeremy.” He plopped down like a pup. “I’ve been writing poetry.” She paused because he had his hand raised. “Yes?”

“Poetry like Mark Twain?”

“No, Samuel Lemons was a writer, not a poet.”

“Well, I like that guy. I wanna be Tom Sawyer one day. Or Huck Finn.”

“I sure hope not! They’re mean boys, that’s what my father says. Do you want to hear my poems or not?” she asked.

There was a pause; he was thinking. In that space of time Alice became distracted by the water flowing through the oysters, and she had a thought.

Her brother told her once “when the ocean rushes by the oysters, then the water becomes purified; it’s nature’s way of cleaning itself.” Jeremy, she imagined, was in just the right spot.

“Look, Alice! I found one!” He plunged his hand into the water

and pulled out an open oyster, showing off the slimy center to Alice. “Wanna touch it?”

“No, I don’t want to touch it! Keep it away!”

“Okay then,” and he let it slip back into the ocean with sad eyes. He quickly turned in an attempt to save his boyish pride.

“Hey, Alice, you look real cute today and it’s very distracting.” He repeated a phrase he heard his brother say to his fiancé.

“What does that mean?” Alice asked in disgust.

“Dunno.” He replied as he raised his shoulders innocently and continued his pursuit of entertainment.

“Well! Don’t you still wanna hear what I wrote?”

“Not really. Wanna go swimming?” He asked. She tried to turn her face an angry red, but he was just a silly boy, and she found him funny.

“Alright, I’ll swim with you. But only if you listen to my poems later. I’ve been working real hard, so it’s only fair,” she said as she carefully placed the blue notebook into a crevice of the rock.

“Whatever you say, Alice.” Jeremy responded. He didn’t show it, but he couldn’t have been more excited to have someone to play with, even if it was a girl. As Alice cautiously moved her way down to the water, she became worried.

“What if we wake the oysters?” she asked.

“Don’t worry none; they won’t mind.”

“What if the seagulls come down on us?”

“Ah that’s nothing. I’ll just throw rocks at ‘em.” He puffed his chest out, “My dad says I’ll be the pitcher for Little League next season.”

“Really?”

“Oh yeah!” He clutched the nearest stone and threw it as far as his short arms could send it— the longest twenty feet you ever saw.

“See? Nothing to worry about.” Jeremy grinned with confidence and Alice gave a satisfied shrug. By the time she reached him the mud had melted off into the water and he was clean. She had one more step to the edge of the water and was still afraid to jump in.

“Jeremy?”

“Yeah, Alice?”

“Can you help me down? I don’t want to slip and ruin my dress.”

“If I have to,” he said, rolling his eyes. He climbed to the lip of the rock and grabbed her hand uncomfortably, but he lost his footing and they both splashed down into the water. Upon coming up for air Jeremy apologized for causing her to fall, yet happily refreshed by the unexpected dip, she forgave him with a smile. They spent the next hour swimming in circles and playing children’s games all in the safety of the bay. The best afternoon they’d ever had. Eventually they’d have to get out and dry off; Alice’s pretty white dress would be powdered with sea salt and Jeremy’s hands would be scraped and pruned, but they weren’t thinking about that in the water. They were lost in the fun of it all, and the oysters slept peacefully. And when the time came, they would leave the oyster farm and Jeremy would pretend to forget that he promised to listen to the light limericks of her little blue book.

CATHOLIC POLITICAL ACTION

by MAGGIE BLACK ‘23

Tied up in the charge “Dare to be Great” is the inspiration for our mission statement: “Restore all things in Christ.” Both sentiments include an exhortation to form and articulate political positions in a persuasive manner with the goal of changing the culture for Christ. Since its inception, Christendom College has set forth a vision for alumni to be the principal actors in that fight. Now more than ever this applies to the political sphere. If Catholics do not implement a conservative and moral vision for the future, then who will? We must be tireless in our engagement with these issues, never cease our intellectual pursuits in political and moral philosophy and dare to actualize greatness in our society.

By encouraging Crusaders to engage in the political process, I would like to encourage a life which places a high priority on political engagement in all areas. I do not mean that we are all morally obligated to run for political office, though I do think it is worthy of consideration. However, the lay apostolate must recognize and promote the efficacy of proactive engagement in the political world. It remains important to pursue a strong faith life, educate your children in that faith, and maintain the highest priority: your relationship with God and your family. Political engagement is not meant to replace or supersede either of these relationships. But, in our current context, it has become necessary to protect family and faith life. It is more evident than ever that simply voting once every four years does not qualify as sufficient

participation; it is not enough to give a vapid show of support for our deeply held beliefs if we wish to preserve the institutions which uphold them. Since the founding of Christendom, abortion advocates are increasingly explicit, the scandal of legalized homosexual ‘marriage’ pales in comparison to modern-day sexual perversions, ‘gender reassignment surgery’ has become the answer to the adolescent identity crisis and the color of your skin now supposedly reveals the hatred in your heart. Yet instead of facing these issues head-on, many social conservatives now seem to believe that they can do nothing more than wait for the Supreme Court to correct these problems—a solution that has failed repeatedly for decades. Even more appalling, we increasingly see Republicans failing to stand up for conservative social positions. A majority of Republicans, unfortunately including my own representative from Wyoming, Liz Cheney, support gay marriage: a clear indication that our leadership has failed us. So, do we continue to bemoan our current state of affairs and fill in the bubble next to R

on election day? Or will we become tangibly involved in the political process?

Christendom students, alumni, and like-minded individuals have the responsibility to share and implement our perspective in the world. This responsibility includes looking for opportunities in our day-to-day lives to change the hearts and minds of our fellow American citizens. We must pursue a bottom-up approach if we wish to rid corruption from our government. This is the path we ought to pursue because we have the tools to challenge the misguided ideological norms of our world. There are specific ways Christendom students can strive to engage in the political word including, but certainly not limited to, the following: informed voting and getting involved in primary elections, attacking social issues in a grassroots way, and pursuing local leadership ourselves. This impact on the culture and humanity is a part of the greatness we as Christians are called to achieve. In the words of Pope Benedict XVI, “You were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness.”

There are some who adhere to another solution to our political woes called the “Benedict Option.” This call for further segregation in an already isolated and divisive society is unhelpful. With the influence of technology, everyone now has the ability to surround themselves with like-minded peers and unfriend those who disagree. Has this isolationism progressed our society? It is all too easy to fall into the trap of becoming comfortable with our environment while forgetting the reasons for the founding of our government and their role in preserving it. It is indeed tempting to try to pass the buck off to someone else

and pacify oneself with the comforts of today, but there is no one else and that is no way to live. We must not be complacent. In the words of our founder, Dr. Warren Carroll, “At this moment of history, Christendom can exist in small and self-contained places. But the Christian in such a place never settles for it, never hides in it, for he has a message to bring to the world.”

We must refuse to hide away our talents and instead share them with the world. This will require cultivating moral courage and a sense of activism. Catholic conservatives are familiar with ideals of courageous action such as the men of 1776, martyrs throughout the ages, and those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their cause. Courage today will look like standing up to rebukes we receive from an unscrupulous society. To capitalize on the efficacy of political action we first must be ready to rise above the political fray and critically analyze not only the issues we face but also the political party to which we belong. Secondly, we should strive to continue our intellectual growth in order to better prepare ourselves to engage with the culture. Lastly, we must engage creatively with the political world in order to impact our culture as conservative activists.

“You were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness.”

-Pope Benedict XVI

Thanks to the exceptional formation and education we receive here at Christendom, we all have an obligation to implement real change in our modern age. With this as our goal, we must live up to our mission statement and dare to be great conservatives in our society.

THE BENEDICT OPTION

by GERARD ADAMS ‘23

What are we to do in the face of our modern world and the culture of death? This question hounds every serious-minded Catholic today. This is not the first time we have been confronted with a question like this one. The first time it was asked, it was answered with the words: “Go forth and teach all nations...” (Matthew 28:19-20) The question has since been asked many times, and each time the directive–– Spread the Faith–– has remained. Yet, we cannot help but see that we are failing in this mission and the remedies so far tried have not yielded the desired results. So bad has it become that a litany of the evils rampant in this culture could fill up the entire length of this essay and not encompass the entirety of the story. An ocean of ink has been spilled to set the scene. Burdened with the knowledge that we must act, we intensely wish to know the steps that we must take. Some opine that great activity in the arena of politics will lead to a solution. Bolster the defenses of Conservatism! Thus sounds the rallying call. And so the people dutifully gather round, sign the petitions, march in the streets, and attend the rallies. They vote just as the Muses of political victory dictate, ever hopeful of a decisive victory that lies just barely ahead and out of sight. It never comes. A victory, just grasped each election cycle, is always found to be pyrrhic. Another solution— proposed by a man named Rod Dreher —

is known as the Benedict Option. This remedy for our society has, sadly, been mischaracterized by those seduced by the promise of political activism, but a correct definition of this remedy is found in Dreher’s book: it is a strategy that “draws on the authority of scripture and the wisdom of the ancient Church to embrace exile in place and form a vibrant counterculture.”1 This Option is not merely a radical withdrawal into a state of seclusion somewhere in the mountains of Montana. Caricatures like these display a reductionist understanding of Dreher’s formula. Dreher presents a broad strategy for surviving the onslaught against our remnant of values and for reinvigorating our response. His strategy may well be called radical, and it does include the concept of withdrawal from mainstream society. This withdrawal quite aptly might be recognized as one of Dreher’s main themes, pursuant to his emphasis on Benedictine spirituality. However, even Dreher acknowledges that the withdrawal of individuals may be metaphorical or literal according to opportunity. The foregoing obliges us to deal with two main prongs of Dreher’s approach to reformation in order to address the misconceptions about Dreher’s formula. The first is

seclusion and the second is formation of a counterculture.

The most well-known and contentious of these two prongs is the idea that seclusion is necessary for reformation-minded people to achieve victory. Most individuals miss what is proposed in this method. The idea of withdrawal is rooted in a coming together of good people inspired by the reform born of St. Benedict’s monasteries. The common accusation is that such a withdrawal is worse than capitulation, saying that it is an abandonment of our God-given mandate to evangelize the earth. Yet one cannot help but perceive that the heritage of Europe and the fullness of our Faith were saved in part because of the communities that were nurtured by the Benedictine monks. Following that model, and the precedent it sets, it seems that “otherness” and withdrawal from society do not, of necessity, equal an abandonment of our duty to teach the Faith. In a way, this has the

“We must be visible, yet we must be separate. We must lead by example, but we must emphatically oppose and deny the lifestyle of our secular peers.”

flavor of paradox. We are told that we are “the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:14) Doubtless the city on the mountain is quite separate from those in the valley; the monastery is vastly different from the village, and the Catholic is other than the atheist and agnostic. Yet, people still might migrate to the mountain city, flock to join the monastery, and the occasional atheist wakes to find himself Catholic. We must be visible, yet we must be separate. We must lead by example, but we must emphatically oppose and deny the lifestyle of our secular peers. In olden days, we were recognized by Tertullian: “See how these Christians love one another.” We, more than ever, must live up to the example of our older brothers and sisters in the Faith. And we do so by setting ourselves apart from the mainstream pagan culture, thereby preserving our very identity.

It is incredibly important to understand the util-

“If the culture war is lost, why have we left our children behind enemy lines?”

ity of literal separation regarding the family unit and its child-rearing function. This generation has been abandoned to the mercies of secular educators. From daycare through the higher levels of education, we let our children be formed by the ideals and beliefs of the world. Our public schools are cesspools of degradation. In them they are taught using pornographic materials, immersed in a pro-LGBTQ environment, and bombarded by anti-religious propaganda. Lately, they have been threatened by a new mode of thought called critical race theory which devalues segments

of our population based on color. This has been confirmed by researchers like Chris Ruffo. The minds of our youth are contaminated. If the culture war is lost, why have we left our children behind enemy lines? Given our present circumstances, this is a time for literal withdrawal from society and it is spurious to say that this constitutes capitulation. It is literal, not metaphorical, separation that will save our children. The preservation of the safety and innocence of our children and future culture fighters can only be considered a victory. In sum, separation is both crucial for our own survival and conducive to our evangelical mission.

The second prong of Dreher’s approach is less controversial and more conformable to modern sensibilities. Dreher thinks that political action taken in the ordinary sense of the term is nearly useless. He thinks that we have lost the public square and control over our public institutions irrevocably, at least by conventional means. Coupled with this disadvantage are our fragmented religious factions and their infighting and abdication of duty. Therefore, Dreher’s strategy involves a reorganization of our strengths and resources. Put generally, we must take back the education of our young, pick our political battles well, and associate day to day with people who will bolster our spiritual and mental strength. This means homeschooling and other Catholic education, close living conditions with like-minded folk, a rallying of the religious armies, and development of our economic influence. We will not win the culture war by political campaigns alone. Political action as such finds its only use in a rearguard action against the rising tide of the culture of death. It is not the solution. The sole reason why we must stay in that arena of action is to prevent precipitous defeat before our actual counterattack transforms the battlefield under their very feet. The institutions held to be crucial in the Benedict Option are the ones subverted by modern culture in the first place. Take them back, and you take back the culture.

CITATIONS: Dreher, Rod. The Benedict Option. New York: Sentinel, 2017. Page 18.

toxins & antidotes toxins antidotes

Where Feminists Are Right, and Where They Go Completely Wrong

by ZOË GRIMM ‘23

During a visit to West Point, feminist Michael Kimmel, a sociologist who specialized in gender studies, asked the male soldiers two questions: first, “what does it mean to be a good man?” and second, “what does it mean to ‘man up’?” Their answer to the first question was to have “honor, duty, integrity, sacrifice, do the right thing, stand up for the little guy, be a provider, be a protector;” their answer to the second question was “Tough, strong, never shows weakness, win at all costs, suck it up, play through the pain, be competitive, get rich, get laid.” This second answer refers to what Kimmel considers toxic masculinity.

In 2018, the American Psychological Association (APA) published Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Boys and Men. The work has since become a bedrock for feminist commentary on masculinity,

and here’s why: In the glossary of said publication, the APA includes the term ‘Masculinity Ideology.’ They define this term as “Standards that have held sway over large segments of the population, including: anti-femininity, achievement, eschewal for the appearance of weakness, and adventure, risk, and violence.” The qualities listed therein provide a plain framework for the feminists idea of ‘toxic masculinity.’

Are these ideas of toxic masculinity so radical? Anti-femininity, violence, winning at all costs, extreme stoicism––all these are clearly ‘toxic’ traits. And while a certain level of risk, toughness and adventure are healthy, when pursued to their extremes they become vicious. The feminists cited here are referring to these qualities in their excessive forms. Thus, I see only one genuinely concerning problem

with the feminist attitude towards toxic masculinity: the solution they propose to resolve it.

Their solution is to eliminate the idea of masculinity altogether. Kimmel’s proposed solution to toxic masculinity is to dismiss man and woman, and instead focus on right and wrong. He writes, “we need to de-gender those ideas [of being a good man], because being a good man is being a good person… Doing the right thing: that’s what people should be doing.” And one need only read one page of the aforementioned Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Boys and Men to understand that the APA puts little stock in biological masculinity. Instead, they think that gender is a social construct. If gender is merely ideological, then getting rid of it is no issue, and that is exactly what they propose to do. But to assert that masculinity is entirely sociological is unscientific and dangerous.

Biological masculinity is obvious. Genetically, males have XY chromosomes (as opposed to the female XX). Hormonally, men produce massive amounts of testosterone, which directly correlates to the “libido, self-confidence, and the drive for dominance.”1 Neurologically, men are wired to be tough and territorial. Psychologically, studies show that men tend to engage in activities that employ “roughness, dominance, toughness, and competition.”2 All the evidence asserts that biological masculinity exists.

Yet to say that masculinity is entirely biological is as serious an error as it is to say that masculinity is entirely sociological. Yes, men are naturally aggressive— territorial, competitive, driven to succeed— yet success can look entirely different from society to society, from family to family, from individual to individual. For example, one father may teach his boys that a PhD is the mark of success, whereas his next door neighbor might uphold handiness as a necessary qualification of manliness. What exactly makes an individual male and what makes him masculine is ambiguous. But regardless of what determines sex and gender, sex and gender exist; masculinity exists, and moreover, it is needed!

To suggest that a rejection of masculinity would

eliminate toxic masculinity is a serious miscalculation. If sex does not exist, and men and women are the same, then father and mother, too, are interchangeable. Fatherhood and motherhood become irrelevant, and parenthood is all that is left. Yet clearly, the ‘gender roles’ of mother and father are vital to society. According to the United States Census Bureau, children who are raised without a consistent paternal figure are significantly more likely to have behavioral problems, drop out of high school, experience teen pregnancy, abuse drugs, abuse alcohol, commit a crime, go to prison–– the list goes on, and on.3 In other words, boys without fathers are more inclined towards hyper-aggression, hyper-sexualization, and hyper-masculinity: toxic behaviors. The correlation is apparent: fatherlessness, a lack of masculine mentorship, is a direct cause of toxic masculinity.

So how do we fix it? When it was first coined by psychologist Shepherd Bliss in the late 1980’s, the phrase “toxic masculinity,” was used to explain the Mythopoetic Men’s movement. The Mythopoets posited that modern society had rejected important masculinity rituals “through which adult men initi-

“The solution to toxic masculinity, therefore, is not to reject ‘traditional gender roles’ or to ‘degender’ virtue, but rather to embrace the important role that only men can play in society.”

ated boys into a deep and essential manhood.”4 Further, they claimed that this rejection caused men to affirm their masculinity in unhealthy ways, either by turning towards a “destructive hypermasculinity” or by rejecting it altogether and embracing a “femininity that softens and deadens their masculine… potential.”5 It is the former type of unhealthy masculine expression that Bliss was referring to as “toxic masculinity.” The other unhealthy extreme seems to be what far-left feminists want men to become. When it was first used, “toxic masculinity” was a phrase that

did not tear down masculinity, but rather one which highlighted the negative effects of a society without it.

The solution to toxic masculinity, therefore, is not to reject ‘traditional gender roles’ or to ‘degender’ virtue, but rather to embrace the important role that only men can play in society. Society must encourage men to exhibit masculine virtue, to embrace masculinity as the mean between extremes, and to treat masculinity once again as an expression of virtue in men.6 Masculinity is achieved when masculine traits are treated as a mean between extremes. Adventurousness as a mean between recklessness and cowardliness becomes prudent boldness. Toughness, which falls between total vulnerability and total lack thereof, becomes the ability to use emotions with strength and discretion. Sexual drive, instead of being perverted, is healthily ordered to its proper ends. True masculinity embodies virtue, masculine behavior directed towards the mean is virtuous behavior.

In the end, toxic masculinity is a burden on society; this is where we have common ground. Strong, virtuous masculinity is the antidote which will combat toxic masculinity; this is where we need to establish a common ground.

CITATIONS:

1.Aristotle. 2012. Nicomachean Ethics. North Charleston, SC: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform American Psychological Association. 2018. “Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Boys and Men.” https://www.apa.org/about/policy/boysmen-practice-guidelines.pdf.

2.“Definition of MASCULINE.” n.d. Merriam-Webster.Com. Accessed March 25, 2021. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/masculine.

3.Fortin, Nicole M. “Phenomena of Sexual Differences” in Masculinity and Femininity: the Complementarity of Man and Woman by Douglas Flippen. Front Royal, VA: Christendom College, 2021.

4.Kimmel, Michael, and Lisa Wade. “Ask a Feminist: Michael Kimmel and Lisa Wade Discuss Toxic Masculinity.” 2018. Signs 44, no. 1: 233–54.

5.Messner, Michael A. “Politics of Masculinities: Men in Movements.”

Oxford: AltaMira Press, 2000.

6.US Census Bureau. n.d. “Historical Living Arrangements of Children.” Accessed March 31, 2021. https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/families/children.html.

7.Witchel, Selma Feldman. 2018. “Disorders of Sex Development.” Best Practice & Research. Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology 48: 90–102.

THE LAST WORD

In the words of Michael Jackson, “If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change.”  If we want to “Restore all things in Christ,” we must first look within, and restore ourselves. This is the essence of METANOIA: internal conversion. As a community, we must work towards the betterment of Christendom before we can better the world. As individuals, we must look within in order to change the community, and continually dedicate ourselves to internal conversion: turning our hearts towards beauty, truth, goodness, and unity in Christ. And so, we hope that our small offering has alofted your thoughts and senses, and that you, the reader, will be inspired to elevate Christendom culture by discussing, reading and perhaps participating in future editions. Thank you.

Best,

Content Director

Zoë Grimm