Xtreme Ministries, An Evangelical Fight Club

photo by Fred R. Conrad

New York Times recently wrote about Xtreme Ministries, a small church near Nashville with the motto “Where Feet, Fist and faith Collide” is trying to attract young male patrons with a steroid dose of machismo by starting a “fight club” style league.

Recruitment techniques include television viewing parties and lectures explaining that “Christ fought for what he believed in”. The goal is to improve Christianity’s image by Manning up. One of the pastors believes “The man should be the overall leader of the household” and that “we have raised a generation of little boys” concluding that the churches have become too feminized by promoting kindness and compassion at the cost of strength and responsibility…