6 Steps to Break Free from Marxist Feminism and Find Happiness

While men can‍ still articulate a “good man” versus a “real man,” no ⁤categories remain for a “good woman” versus a “real woman.” Most ⁤of us operate unwittingly with ‍the Marxist categories force-fed to us by ⁢feminism, particularly Betty Friedan’s propaganda about the‌ toxicity of home and ‌the freedom⁢ to be obtained through work. These little-scrutinized ideas‌ about womanhood now provide the ideal for us ⁣today. ⁤Utility, productivity,⁤ power, and control have supplanted the virtues of what we used to equate with a​ good‌ woman, such as kindness, compassion, and fidelity.

How, ‌then, do we detox from this cultural and anthropological poison?

A feminist ​detox ⁤is ‍particularly challenging because most⁢ women are not even aware of‌ the brackish water in which‌ we swim. The result is an inchoate idea about ‌how healthy womanhood and humanity ought to look. Feminism has defined its own‌ position and has also defined ⁤its​ opposition, the non-feminist, so‌ effectively that flashes of women in red‍ bonnets​ and robes in fertility cults, Stepford Wives, and doormats are all that come to mind.​ We’ve been fed an unhealthy binary cultural model.

Our daily life and personal relationships, however, can often ⁢offer a glimpse of women who don’t fit either ‍extreme; women who are a lot ​more interesting, engaging, healthy, compelling, and ⁣even good. These are the kind of women we‌ ought to aspire to be. But⁣ getting there takes some effort. Here are six ways to start:

1. Let Go of Guilt

Feminists‌ frequently remind ​us ⁣that‌ we should feel ‍guilty for not ⁢being grateful for all that ​feminism has done for us. Like Mommy-dearest, feminism nags us into⁢ conformity with⁢ a reminder that we owe it a debt of gratitude for our careers and education. ‍This tactic keeps ⁢most ‌of us feeling guilty⁣ instead of looking behind ⁣the curtain. Maybe we didn’t ⁤need ⁢to ⁣destroy the whole culture for⁢ professional opportunities to have improved? Maybe men and children didn’t need to be thrown under the bus‌ for ‌such advantages to materialize?

Allowing ourselves not to feel guilty about feminism frees us to ​look at the positives and the negatives of the movement, instead of letting the negative aspects hide in plain sight. We certainly ​don’t treat other areas ‌of life like this, such ​as‌ the government or media, so why ​should we do ⁢it for ⁣feminism?

2. Stop Hoping to Reform Feminism

One objection​ I hear frequently about ‍feminism, particularly among Christians, is that we should ‌use it as a place⁢ to build bridges. The⁢ expectation is that if Christians⁤ can claim to be feminists themselves, then ⁤they ​have common ground among secular women ‍to extend what they hope ⁢would be the olive branch of faith. ​This assumption, however, is based on the notion that feminism is elastic and ​can mean whatever we want it to mean.

Sadly, the regnant threads of feminism, for centuries, have clearly embraced three defining characteristics: smashing the ‌patriarchy (or radical egalitarianism), ​free love⁢ (or the ‍end⁣ of sexual monogamy),⁤ and the‍ occult as detailed in ‍my book The Anti-Mary⁢ Exposed: Rescuing the Culture from Toxic Femininity). No bridge ​can be built when these three elements are fundamentally opposed ⁣to the Christian faith and truths of ⁢human flourishing.

3. Figure Out What a Woman Is

Matt Walsh has made “What is a woman?” a popular question, but there are ​still‌ few who‍ can answer⁢ it with anything more⁢ than “an‍ adult female human.” Here again, women need richer concepts when thinking ‍about‌ what women are. Feminism generally⁣ started with the question, “How do we make women more like men?” instead⁢ of “How do we‌ help women as women?” Our understanding of womanhood has been erased because it ⁢prioritized the masculine over the feminine.

The most obvious answer that puts flesh⁤ on the definition ⁢of a woman is‌ motherhood. Women ‍are mothers — not just biologically, but also psychologically and spiritually.‌ Women mother others. We see this in the ⁣richness of ⁤our relationships with ‌family, friends, ‍and colleagues. A mother creates ⁣a shelter⁣ where other people can​ be nurtured, loved, and protected to ​reach their full potential.

4. Stop ⁤Fighting Men

Most of us have been ​taught since early childhood ⁤that⁢ we can do anything as ⁤well as men, if not better. This programmed⁤ voice takes a ⁢lot of work‌ to turn off because of the frequency with which it is repeated. Men are not meant to be our enemy. Yes, ​certainly, there are bad men out there, just as there ⁤are bad women. Vilifying all men while elevating (and believing) all women ‌hasn’t given women any kind‍ of a moral high ground. It has only fueled the worst kinds ‌of envy and distrust, ⁢while heightening the ‍war between the sexes to ‍a new ⁤pitch.

5. Don’t Be Afraid of ⁣the‍ ‘H’ Word

The last decade ‌has seen ⁤a surge in what⁤ could be called the home arts: baking, cooking, knitting, interior design, and gardening. Despite their popularity, homemaking is still a taboo word, one​ that frequently​ evokes‍ condescension. Here too is a vestige of Friedan’s⁢ success in calling the home a “comfortable concentration camp.” This knee-jerk reaction to home needs scrutiny to help ‍clear out ⁤feminist‍ programming.

The home isn’t meant ‌to just be a hotel but is the place where a family learns how to love and ⁤be loved, and‍ where children learn who they are.⁢ The ‍home⁤ is the foundation, the⁢ place of solace, growth, ‍comfort, safety, and authentic charity. ⁤Women ​play an integral role in all of that‌ in the manifold seasons​ of life. Like the other seasons, being home offers its own gifts that⁣ can form ​and define a woman’s character.

6. Put God ⁣Over Self

Feminism⁣ feeds on narcissism and the myth that a woman can⁢ be an island.⁢ It ⁤has​ preached a vision of‍ self-reliance and self-creation that ⁣erases ‌the guidance, love,⁤ providence, and rules of God. The eradication of​ the ‍Ten Commandments ‍and​ the rewriting of Genesis 3, the temptation and fall‌ of Adam‍ and Eve, into ​a story where Eve acquires special​ knowledge from the serpent, was written early into the feminist script.

The erasure⁤ of these guiding principles has given way to the idea that women can live‍ in any way we wish and still flourish as human beings. But human nature isn’t nearly as flexible as⁢ feminists might like, which is why female​ happiness metrics show clearly that women today are ‌deeply unhappy — more unhappy than⁢ during the arrival of ‌the ‌second wave of feminism in the ’60s.

Flourishing, fulfillment, ​and a fruitful life have clearly‌ been laid out for us through ⁣the Judeo-Christian tradition. We have⁤ a roadmap. And we have a ​direct means ⁢of reaching God,⁢ to hear His voice ⁤while He hears ours, ⁤and to live His love. Here is where our identity should be found, not in the fleeting and ephemeral values feminism has to offer.