Where have all the young men gone?

Even in the midst of the most awful atrocity (the murder of the young soldier in Woolwich) there can be both courage and humour. The Cub-Scout leader who confronted one of the murderers showed amazing courage, engaging him in conversation. What amazes me is not only her calmness, but that fact that he stopped to talk rather than flee or even attack her.

Then, a day later, there was a vox pop from Woolwich, with some young men from the area. One of them spoke of grandparents who had fought for their country in the war: 'if they were alive now, they'd be turning in their graves!' Wonderful lol moment: I was driving at the time, and it was hard to keep concentration!

But seriously, the fact that one of the murderers is from a devout Christian family and was converted to Islam, going on to be 'radicalised', has drawn much comment. The more so, since there have been several other examples of terrorists acting in the name of Islam who were not originally of that faith. What's going on here? By contrast, why is it that many of our churches have a predominantly female membership? It was noticeable last Sunday, when I attended a confirmation service where the majority of candidates were female. Our own group of 18 teens and adults consisted of 14 females and 4 males.

There was an interview this morning with a Muslim leader who converted to Islam from Roman Catholicism over 20 years ago. He was asked to explain why young men turn from Christianity to Islam. In his own case, he said, it was because Islam offered a 'way of life', something which concerned the whole of life. By contrast, he said, the Roman Catholic church (for which, I'm sure, you could read any other Christian denomination) seemed only to offer man-made rules and regulations for belonging to an insitution (I have been unable to find the exact words). Elsewhere, I have read of the need for challenge, adventure, a cause to fight for (I don't mean with weapons) which especially appeals to the male of the species. In fact, many men who do come to church are simply bored.

There is surely something for Church leaders to reflect on here. For myself, I have often thought that we need to reclaim the concept of Christian soldiers - of both genders. Complacency, indifference, a religion of comfort rather than challenge typifies many of of our churches. Read the lives of the earliest Christians in the Bible, and of saints down the ages and you will find they are men and women of immense courage with a tremendous spirit of adventure which took them to the ends of the earth.

There are signs that we are beginning to recover that sense of 'whole-life discipleship'. The community to which I belong (St Aidan and St Hilda, based on Holy Island) preserves that emphasis from Celtic times with a strong emphasis on a rule of life. The challenge is in keeping the three vows (based on monasticism) of purity, simplicity and obedience. No room for complacency there, especially as each of us makes ourself accountable to a soul friend. Might such an approach encourage more male disciples?