{"id":8304,"date":"2019-01-22T06:07:20","date_gmt":"2019-01-22T06:07:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/?p=8304"},"modified":"2019-01-21T16:13:26","modified_gmt":"2019-01-21T16:13:26","slug":"the-best-a-man-can-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/the-best-a-man-can-be\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Best A Man Can Be\u2026?\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Over the past few days there has been a lot of activity on social media regarding the new Gillette advert. If you have not seen it, I would recommend watching it on <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"YouTube (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UYaY2Kb_PKI\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>YouTube<\/strong><\/a> as it has some really direct messaging to men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UYaY2Kb_PKI\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p>Essentially, Gillette are aiming their message at what has become known as \u2018toxic masculinity\u2019 and they attack what they perceive to be misogyny, bullying, disrespect and other forms of masculine stereotypes. Now I am not going to make any judgement on what Gillette are saying, but I was really interested in the responses that I got when I shared it on social media. The responses ranged from guys being inspired and spurred on, to others feeling really cynical about a multinational corporation being manipulative about social justice in order to sell their product. Whichever side of the argument people landed on, there seemed to be a lot of strong feeling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One guy tweeted:&nbsp;<em>\u201cWe are living in an era of \u2018woke capitalism\u2019* in which companies pretend to care about social justice to sell products to people who pretend to hate capitalism.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, I don\u2019t know what you, personally, make of all that but when I watched this advert with my wife, we both had the same reaction. As the advert unfolds, it becomes very clear that the younger boys are watching the older men, and this impacted me massively because my five-year old son watches me intently in virtually every situation. How I behave, and the things that I do, really matters to him. My son\u2019s world is being shaped by the way I treat his mother, our wider family, friends and crucially how I treat him.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I remember once hearing someone say that one of the greatest gifts a father can give a child, is to love their mother well. Children, whether they are ours or not, are constantly looking to us for an example\u2014what is the example that we want to give?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over the past few blogs, I have been sharing values by which I am living. There is a value that I live by which fits well with this advert from Gillette: \u2018I will father my son with a tender heart and a Godly spirit; always praying that he will grow up to know his true, eternal Father, God!\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are so many aspects to being a tender-hearted and Godly man, and I fail so many times, but whatever else Gillette may have got wrong, they gave me the reminder that my son is constantly watching me and I have a responsibility to live well and when I don\u2019t live well, to put that right with him and whoever else I may need to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this advert, Gillette replaced the slogan \u2018the best a man can get\u2019 with \u2018the best a man can be\u2019\u2014the best a man can be is to be like Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Aspirational, yes! Essential, definitely!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But always remember CODE XII: \u201cIf I fail, I will not give up. He never gives up on me!\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you, Gillette. Whatever else you intended through this advert, you have at least started some really good conversations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><p style=\"font-size:10px\">*<strong>Woke<\/strong>&nbsp;is a political term of African American origin that refers to a perceived awareness of issues concerning social justice and racial justice. It is derived from the African American Vernacular English expression &#8220;stay&nbsp;<strong>woke<\/strong>&#8220;, whose grammatical aspect refers to a continuing awareness of these issues.<\/p><\/p>\n<div class=\"linkwithin_hook\" id=\"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/the-best-a-man-can-be\/\"><\/div><script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png?w=750\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Over the past few days there has been a lot of activity on social media regarding the new Gillette advert. If you have not seen it, I would recommend watching it on YouTube as it has some really direct messaging to men. Essentially, Gillette are aiming their message at what has become known as \u2018toxic [&hellip;]<\/p>\n<script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":8309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[1634,1632,1633,125,845],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/the-best-a-man-can-be-e1570782241431.jpeg?fit=1000%2C667&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7PoLK-29W","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4831,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/carls-thoughts\/real-men-dont-drink-fruit-tea\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":0},"title":"Real men don\u2019t drink fruit tea","date":"3 December 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Carl Beech kicks off his all-male guest editor week with a challenge to all of us to realise that we are all deeper and more complex than might appear on the surface. Okay, before we get into this, I need to lay my cards face up on the table. I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Carl Beech&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1734,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/friends-of-cvm\/men-required-%e2%80%93-apply-within\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":1},"title":"Men Required \u2013 Apply Within","date":"9 September 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"(By Mandy Marshall) \u2018It\u2019s alright \u2013 I know what sex I am love\u2019 came the response from a man when I told him what job I did. The phrase Gender Advisor is not exactly the clearest of job titles. It does make it open for comments such as \u2018Do you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Friends of CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/friends-blog-640x360.jpg?fit=640%2C360&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":921,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/news\/the-pixel-project-mens-room\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":2},"title":"The Pixel Project &#8211; Men&#8217;s Room","date":"24 August 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"The Pixel Project are an online organisation (State-side) working hard to bring awareness to the cause to end Violence Against Women. For those of you already involved in this area, you'll know the horrifying statistics all too well. You'll be familiar with some of the cases. You'll know the scope\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9861,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/why-working-together-will-make-a-difference\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":3},"title":"Why working together will make a difference","date":"14 June 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Recently the men\u2019s group that I am part of ran an event called MOB (doesn\u2019t stand for anything, just a MOB of men!), and I think it has great potential to help us link up with other men\u2019s groups, churches and become something of a catalyst to encourage men to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Team CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/fireBLOG.jpg?fit=610%2C291&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3825,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/50plus\/thats-just-typical\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":4},"title":"That\u2019s just typical","date":"14 March 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I was on my way to my daughters for the Christmas holidays, heading north on the M42.\u00a0As I approached the junction where you have to take the exit to stay on the M42, a black BMW cut me up at speed (I was doing 70). I was so busy flashing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;50 Plus&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/CVM-50plus-blog-640x360.jpg?fit=640%2C360&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8906,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/friends-of-cvm\/who-is-the-greatest\/","url_meta":{"origin":8304,"position":5},"title":"\u201cWho is the Greatest?\u201d","date":"16 June 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Some years ago I was reading an evangelistic magazine in America when an advert from an evangelist caught my eye. He boasted that if he was invited to preach at any church he guaranteed that at least one hundred people would be saved! Probably one of the greatest evangelists that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Friends of CVM&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/thorns-1502665.jpg?fit=1029%2C792&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8304"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8304"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8304\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8310,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8304\/revisions\/8310"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}