Troubling Tweets

BREAKING and Important News from RC Sproul Jr, “Beards are a Revolution,” Proving That Men and Women are Not Interchangeable

Julie Anne

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R.C. Sproul, Jr. in his comparison of men and women says beards are “revolution on the face”

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So my question to Mr. Sproul – what about this woman?

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/p>

And what if a man can’t? grow a beard  . . . . .

 

rc sproul jr, beards, manhood

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88 thoughts on “BREAKING and Important News from RC Sproul Jr, “Beards are a Revolution,” Proving That Men and Women are Not Interchangeable”

  1. I have had my beard for about 35 years now and the only reason I have it is to keep my face warm in the winter. I was a long distant runner years ago and grew the beard to keep from getting frost bitten in the cold. A revolution, what a crock. The farther north one goes, the more beards one will find. I wonder if there is a correlation to be found in that. Sproul’s idea is just stupid, at least in the north country.
    Jim

    Liked by 2 people

  2. So now a man who is a minister, in addition to all the other things people are told to do by men who are ministers, is telling men to grow a beard? And yes, what about men who can’t grow a beard? Should they buy a stick-on beard? Oh, maybe someone should ask him WHAT TO DO!

    Liked by 3 people

  3. i am already ducking as I know barrel loads of tomatoes will be slung at me for saying this, but …………I hate beards !! Ick. However extreme facial hair on a woman generally indicates some sort of hormonal issue so is not really ‘natural’ to see a bearded lady.

    I live in an area of Hassidic Jews and for 34 years have had to deal with long straggly bears and side curls, I’ve done my time. Men out there, please make this girl happy and have a good shave at the barbers ! LOL !!!

    Just kidding, be who and how you are.

    Elizabeth xxx

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Just did a Google Images search on R.C. Sproul Jr., then did one on R.C. Sr. R.C. Sr. is clean-shaven in every picture. Way to sell out your dad, Junior!

    Liked by 4 people

  6. Do a Google image search for R.C. Sproul Jr. You’ll find plenty of pictures of him without a beard. Was he less of a man when he wasn’t sporting a beard?

    Liked by 1 person

  11. BREAKING and Important News from RC Sproul Jr, “Beards are a Revolution,” Proving That Men and Women are Not Interchangeable

    Duck Dynasty — this has something to do with Duck Dynasty fandom, right?

    “RALLY ROUND THE BEARD, BOYS!”

    Like

  12. @RayAnselmo:

    Do a Google image search for R.C. Sproul Jr. You’ll find plenty of pictures of him without a beard. Was he less of a man when he wasn’t sporting a beard?

    “All Animals Are Equal
    BUT SOME ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS!”
    — G.Orwell, Animal Farm

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Most people – but apparently not Mr. Sproul, Jr. – know that some women have facial hair and some men have none. And what on earth does he mean by “If you can, step up”? Step up and grow a beard? Step up and be a man, but only bearded men are real men? He completely misses that all of us who are in Christ are already able to step up because the Holy spirit is in us and works through us all, women and men both.

    And if he wants a gender distinguisher, why didn’t he mention that women’s breasts produce milk while men’s do not? Then he could tell women to step up. Or is that too sexually related for him because I said “breasts”?

    Liked by 2 people

  14. Tim when you were talking about breasts and producing milk, some moms do not want to nurse their children and bind themselves so their milk production will stop. Just because women have breasts does not mean all women want milk, and just because a man has facial hair does not mean he wants a beard. To make those choices does not lessen one’s manhood or womanhood.

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  16. Precisely, Julie Anne. In fact, some women will never produce milk yet that does not mean they don’t meet the definition of being women. Beardless men are still men too. Whether Sproul had found a way to actually differentiate traits of one sex from another or not, he doesn’t get to define who is a real man or a real woman. Our reality is in Christ.

    Liked by 2 people

  19. I’ve had a lot of new readers since the Gothard story. Lest you think I’m just picking on Sproul Jr, because of this tweet, I’m pointing it out for a number of reasons:

    This man is in a position of leadership in the church and is highly respected. He has 26.4 THOUSAND followers on Twitter. People listen to his words as they would a trusted pastor.

    This tweet is not Biblical. It is not Christlike. It sends the wrong message to people. He is promoting his own agenda about gender roles, not using scripture, but his own ideas.

    Many men are unable to grow beards. Does that make them any less of a man? Certainly not.

    Look at this word he carefully chose: a revolution:

    “a forcible overthrow of a government or social order in favor of a new system.”
    synonymns: rebellion, revolt, insurrection, mutiny, uprising, riot, rioting, insurgence, seizure of power (google dictionary)

    Where do we see this kind of war-like talk about gender roles in Scripture?

    Liked by 3 people

  21. Oh, great. As John Piper weren’t enough, now we’ve got another self-styled leader of Christendom trying to palm off bizarre fancies as scriptural wisdom.

    I’m with Jayson Bradley — this is asinine.

    Liked by 2 people

  22. Well in light of all his craziness over a very extended period of time, personally I’m very relieved that he didn’t announce that he has had a vaginoplasty and will be growing breasts to become the woman he has always wanted to spank.

    Good luck on growing a full head of hair on the empty head of yours Rc Fool Jr.

    Liked by 1 person

  23. Elizabeth-Anne, you aren’t the only one. I do not care for beards in the least. My apologies to women who love them and men who grow them. 🙂

    Like

  24. nmp. I used to wear a beard. That’s also back when I was a tree hugger living in the redwood groves of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

    I know. Totally me, right?

    Liked by 1 person

  25. The day that the Church will let the genders just “be” without all the frilly-nilly pronouncements on how one should be male or female, I will sing the Alleluia chorus on my front steps. Since the former will never happen, I will not be practicing my (lack of) singing ability.

    Ahem.

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Tim – I learn something new every day. I can not picture you as a tree hugger! (or were you pulling my leg?)

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  30. JA – I KNEW I wasn’t spelling it correctly! Oh well, not enough coffee cups today or something like that.

    Oh goodness, yes, I am sick of it, too. It drives me up the ever-lovin’ wall.

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  31. Funny thing, nmp, I didn’t even pay attention to the spelling. 🙂

    Now I shall go take a shower and I’m debating whether or not to shave my legs.

    To beard or not to beard, that is the question.

    Liked by 2 people

  32. Tim, my husband lived in Northern California and was rather a hippie-like person about 20 years ago or so. He says the area is beautiful. I can’t image trees that big! I’m used to skinny pines and oaks.

    Liked by 1 person

  35. @Tim

    “Most people – but apparently not Mr. Sproul, Jr. – know that some women have facial hair and some men have none.”

    True that. As if women with PCOS don’t already have enough to deal with.

    My husband is one of those with very sparse facial hair. I’ve reached that point in middle age where I epilate my face almost every day. I think we’ll sit out this revolution.

    Liked by 2 people

  36. I promise I’m not trying to be flippant, but when I saw RCJ’s tweet, my mind instantly went to the slang definition of beard. And thought, “Boy, he might want to rethink that one.”

    Liked by 1 person

  38. @JulieAnne:

    This man is in a position of leadership in the church and is highly respected. He has 26.4 THOUSAND followers on Twitter. People listen to his words as they would a trusted pastor.

    Given the milieu, how many of those 26,400 Twits will take anything he Tweets as issuing from the very lips of God Himself?

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  39. Regarding Tim’s comments (and others) about men’s breasts not producing milk, they actually can, especially if the man drinks too much hard liquor, which evidently has an estrogen-like substance in it. Just google “male lactation”.

    Or, don’t. You’re welcome.

    And I’m all in favor of beards, and the differences between masculinity and femininity are wonderful, but….RC. Jr. is stretching things a touch here, to put it mildly.

    Like

  40. Ah, leg shaving ! When I was 11 I had very hairy legs, as I developed very very early ( bra at 9, cycles just before 11, deodorant at 10, etc ) being the typical southern Italian kid that I was. I begged my mother to let me shave as I felt humiliated wearing shorts in 1972 with such black hairy legs, she kept saying no, I kept saying yes, so went ahead and it did behind her back.

    Zoom forward to 2014, I would do anything never to have to bother with that awful job again.

    No happy medium !!

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  43. I wonder what this person would make of me. I must admit I do not know who he is as I went to Catholic school, and these days most of my praying is done in my bedroom, and I am a weird mixture of Catholic, Episcopal, heretic, New Age hippy mama, etc.

    Thru illness, menopause, traumatic bad news in 2005, yo yo dieting, I have lost about 35% of my hair, these days I am ‘ Ms Kojak ‘ and wear cute little head coverings.

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  44. @BikeBubba:

    Regarding Tim’s comments (and others) about men’s breasts not producing milk, they actually can, especially if the man drinks too much hard liquor, which evidently has an estrogen-like substance in it. Just google “male lactation”.

    The stuff I’m on for an enlarged prostate (which I think makes me male) also has that listed as a possible side effect.

    Like

  45. Junior will claim that mentioning breasts is a direct and specifically chosen reference to be cruel, though people who don’t follow him probably don’t know anything about it. HIs wife, Denise, died after a pretty long battle with breast cancer. Tim gave him additional reasons to complain that he’s being persecuted, though I comment about it here because I think that Tim mentioned breasts without knowledge about Denise.

    I will mention though, that many women in the Quiverfull movement suffer with PCOS and could sport a bit of beard if they left it grow. Maybe he got the idea from Mary Pride’s book, The Way Home (which found its way into my house because my husband obtained it based on Junior’s recommendation). Mary brags about how she will never suffer from hirsutism because she was so fertile — and childless women will grow facial hair. She says it cruelly as though it is a punishment for not cranking out kids.

    Don’t leave out that Junior referred to his wife as “barren” after she bore him five or six children. So I don’t take much of what he says very seriously. Not to bring any disgrace upon Denise, but I couldn’t help but wonder whether she ever suffered a chin hair or two? The condition tends to accompany perimenopause. Would that classify as being a disgrace, do you need to grow a full beard as a woman, or would it be associated with her “barrenness” which might be acceptable? These are serious things to consider when you’re running a fertility cult. And not that I believe this, but there are many superstitious Christians out there who claim that GYN related illnesses are God’s punishment and justice directed at individual women.

    I suspect that he didn’t consider that one “female scourge” might be parallel to another. What happens to your gender if you have your breasts removed? The ex-wife of one who eventually became one of his acolytes told me that her husband said that she was “no longer a woman” when she had to have a hysterectomy. She didn’t grow a beard. I don’t think that he thought much about his statement.

    There’s also the issue of just whom this revolution targets. Gothard claimed that beards were rebellious, so perhaps Junior is rebelling against the elements of the homeschooling movement who have rejected him. Who can say?

    I don’t like to mention Sproul because I don’t like to give him any press, and he feeds off of it. I comment here about it to state that I’m pretty certain that most people reading here didn’t know about Denise, nor did they know that she had breast cancer. I wept for Denise and prayed for her while my mother was going through the same experience. I also wept when I learned that Junior considered his wife to be barren.

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  46. Beards? Clearly a matter of Christian liberty. But my youngest gets miffed when I shave mine. Perhaps I am abdicating my male authority, but I like her to be happy.
    Seems a strange thing to be talking about, with our brothers and sisters in the middle east being the subject of genocide.

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  47. @Keith:

    Seems a strange thing to be talking about, with our brothers and sisters in the middle east being the subject of genocide.

    Genocide in the Middle East can’t be used as a weapon to Count Coup on the other guy here in America.

    Like

  48. “A Beard on the face is a revolution!”

    So says the bald guy….what a bunch of jack assery!

    I can grow a thick beard in about 4 days…but I shave it off every week because it makes my face break out if I let it grow too thick.

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  50. Julie Anne, You had to go and mention leg shaving….

    So that begs the question, does RC Sproul jr shave his legs when he wears his kilt / Skirt thingy.

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  53. Well, I know of men who would not allow any man to join the church where they pastor if they were not clean shaven. They even admit it is not taught in the Bible. They won’t have fellowship with churches that allow the facial hair.

    I wonder if each of these views cancels the other out? 😉

    “They have a choice indentify with the world or us? There are several churches in the area that would be happy for them to remain with their fuzzy face but this is not one of them. They want to be counted a member here then they shave. Never been an issue in all the years I have pastored. Latins-Blacks-Indians-Whites all have shaved. A good church is worth the sacrifice(used very loosely).” – Steve Epley pastor in Racine, MO 9/27/11

    “Here is how it works here and those I fellowship. If a guy wants facial hair I have many Pentecostal neighbors that would be glad to have them. They can go there. Very simple. If a preacher wants to fellowship guys who promote facial hair fine with me but I am not going to. Just not having it here if a man claims to be a member. By the way all these years it has never been a problem I can’t remember losing one man over this issue. I have been honest never told them it was a sin but a decision I have made and I am not going to change. Never mistreated anyone with facial hair and not going to start.” – Steve Epley 6/11/14

    “Every time I have seen a man grow facial hair he winds up going lib on other things. I will say that I have never had a man in the church I pastor grow facial hair. And I have never preached on it that I can remember.

    “I have hear men testify that the Lord convicted them of it. Say what you will doesn’t matter God does convict those who really want to live for God.” – An Anonymous UPC pastor in AR 6/11/14

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  54. You know what’s funny about men and beards? It is such a common Jewish tradition to have one that the expression for “Jew” in American Sign Language calls to put your open hand at your chin and close it as you sweep it downward as if grabbing and holding the hair of a beard. (Can’t you just hear Gothard saying that it would be unfeminine for women to use that sign when translating or speaking in ASL?)

    😛

    Liked by 1 person

  55. @ Lois:

    Sheesh. That reminds me of an Indian conversion account I once heard from the 1600s, where the poor Indian was torturing his conscience because the Puritans told him it was a sin for men to have long hair, and he didn’t want to cut his.

    Liked by 1 person

  56. Well, there are good beards and there are bad beards. Michael Pearl is a bad one. Very, VERY bad. But: is he more godly because his beard is bigger than everyone else’s? Maybe they should all try to beat this guy. His beard was 18.5′ long.

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  58. I guess I just don’t get what he’s trying to say by “interchangeable”. What’s that context? Is there something wrong with “interchangeableness”? Ugh – so much wrong in just a tweet.

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  59. If R.C. Sproul, Jr. really feels that way, he might want to direct his message at The Gospel Coalition. I just checked out the photos of their council members and the vast majority are clean-shaven.

    Yours truly has had a beard for about 25 years. I’d feel naked if I were to shave it at this point in my life, plus it hides a double chin quite effectively.

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  60. Cindy K wrote: Mary brags about how she will never suffer from hirsutism because she was so fertile — and childless women will grow facial hair. She says it cruelly as though it is a punishment for not cranking out kids.

    OMG. As a mama of 5, and italian- I know that NOT to be true!

    Liked by 1 person

  61. I wish fertility meant I didn’t have to pluck unwanted facial hair every day. Four babies in 8 years means I’m certainly not childless. But fair skin, dark hair, and middle aged hormones mean I can’t leave my tweezers behind when I travel.

    I’m pretty sure there’s not a verse that says, “And you’ll know their masculinity by their beards …”

    As a side note, the men in my family can’t grow beards. Probably a result of being descended from the Cherokees. If certain racial groups can’t grow beards, does that make Jr’s comment even more insensitive?

    Liked by 1 person

  62. RC Jr is a perfect example of why “christian” family franchises are so bogus. While I no longer agree with a lot of RC Sr’s theology, he actually has significant scholarship and intellect. I think Jr is riding along on Pop’s name alone, like many other “Juniors.”

    Like

  63. @ Lois:

    in those two churches I mentioned, they would consider that a sin, too

    I figured as much. What did they do with the fact that Jews were commanded not to cut their beards? Which means Jesus and the apostles probably had beards of some kind.

    Liked by 1 person

  64. Julie Anne,

    What if a man can’t grow a beard, is a good question.

    I didn’t start having any kind of facial hair until I turned 50 and at age 54 I have minimal facial hair and nearly no hair everywhere else.

    Luckily for my wife she prefers less hair on a man anyway.

    Liked by 2 people

  65. On a related note, friends of mine who went to Moody always found it odd that, with all those pictures of DL on the walls (glorious beard and all), they were to remain clean-shaven.

    And if a long beard is Godliness, does that mean I’ve got to get the guitar that spins on my belt buckle, too? Is “Sharp Dressed Man” a hymn now?

    Liked by 1 person

  66. @BikeBubba:

    And if a long beard is Godliness, does that mean I’ve got to get the guitar that spins on my belt buckle, too? Is “Sharp Dressed Man” a hymn now?

    No, it means you’ve got to start a duck call company and get your own Reality Show.

    Like

  67. @RachelMiller:

    I’m pretty sure there’s not a verse that says, “And you’ll know their masculinity by their beards …”

    Extreme Islam apparently does. The Taliban would even kill men who couldn’t grow proper Islamic-length beards as Apostates. Their religious police would check beard length on men as well as visible eyes and ankles on burqas.

    As a side note, the men in my family can’t grow beards. Probably a result of being descended from the Cherokees. If certain racial groups can’t grow beards, does that make Jr’s comment even more insensitive?

    I knew a guy who was part Cherokee. Despite getting those facial hair genes as well as the ones for high cheekbones, he also kept trying to grow a beard even though it took him two years to grow a visible mustache. Last I saw him, his “beard” looks more like he rubbed burnt cork over his lower face than anything else.

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  68. While we are splitting hairs over the issue, I have a question: Are their any manliness waivers for us clean shaven types that can grow a “full beard” on our back ? I’m paying $40 every couple of months to have my back waxed and if that would help the revolution…..

    Liked by 1 person

  69. This thread is great. I’m convinced that a whole lot of us hair problems: too much, not enough, in the wrong place, etc. I needed the laugh – especially after dealing with Alfred.

    Liked by 1 person

  70. Julie Anne,

    I wonder what RC going to talk about next. Shoe size?

    He’s going to have to be specific because I think size 12 in the U.S. is a size 13 in Asia and size 11 in Europe.

    Liked by 1 person

  71. @Lois,

    “Well, I know of men who would not allow any man to join the church where they pastor if they were not clean shaven. They even admit it is not taught in the Bible. They won’t have fellowship with churches that allow the facial hair.”

    The Holiness Standards are not consistent in every Pentecostal church. And they all claim to have The Truth(TM). 🙂

    Like

  73. Yea Tim, Alfred is on the Bill Gothard thread. After reading a few of his comments on Recovering Grace site and then reading what he had to say here, it’s important to put disclaimers and warn people that he is a Gothard sympathizer and good friend of Gothard.

    We have enough witnesses and the IBLP board has said enough to know that Gothard was out of line. I’m not going to allow minimizing of abuse here.

    Like

  75. Hey yeah, who is Alfred ? Do we need to form a mob and go shave his beard like those “Amish” thugs did on Amish Mafia ?

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  76. Oh A GothardITE, NOT worth the effort. Everyone knows they are brain washed as bad as the MOONIES. In fact I think I would rather sign up for one of those mass moonie weddings before attending another Basic LIfe Principles.

    Liked by 1 person

  77. “If certain racial groups can’t grow beards, does that make Jr’s comment even more insensitive?”
    Rachel, that was my first thought, too!!

    Liked by 1 person

  78. Tim,

    As per my comment further up the thread, I’m guessing that you didn’t know that RC Jr’s wife died after fighting breast cancer. Every time I look at this thread, knowing you just chose it as a somewhat random example to contrast with beards, I can’t help but think that RC might think that it was intended.

    Like

  79. Cindy K, I had no idea and meant nothing personal to him or his family by mentioning female breasts as another distinction. If it is a distraction to the discussion on this thread, JA can delete my earlier comment.

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  81. Every time I look at this thread, knowing you just chose it as a somewhat random example to contrast with beards, I can’t help but think that RC might think that it was intended.

    He may think that, but it wouldn’t be wise to assume that everyone knew of his wife’s breast cancer. I’d prefer that he spend his time really thinking about what he tweets to his twenty-something thousand followers.

    Liked by 1 person

  82. Tim,

    It was fine and a valid point. But Junior and family has a habit of claiming that critics of his teachings are being personal and mean. If Martin Sebrede ever comes back around and RC Jr makes the claim, he doesn’t really have any right to do so. I knew that you didn’t know. Just wanted to make it abundantly clear that none of these complaints or criticisms of teachings and shock jock statements like this beard nonsense is not personal. It’s about ideas that are outrageous.

    🙂

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  83. Julie Anne,

    A third of those 2K followers are probably all of the kinists who have been out to get him for adopting a non-white baby.

    Like

  84. comic relief: Does the beard revolution hold true for goats who may or may not sport beards depending on their species?

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  87. Another prime example of why pastor heroes need to get off Twitter. The need to constantly say something profound so that they might be noticed just leads to saying more crap that doesn’t even make sense. I’ll file this tweet right next to Piper looking at the teens making out.

    When are these idiots going to learn that if you don’t have something really useful to say, then it is okay just to shut up for a while?

    Liked by 1 person

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