A Community of Men in a Rite of Passage

“For 95 percent of human history, boys weren’t launched out into adulthood, they were welcomed into it, into a lifelong support network that would work to ensure their contribution would be a good one.” – Steve Biddulph (Australian Psychologist & Author)

“A boy becomes a man only through the active intervention of his father and the fellowship of men.” – John Eldredge (Author)

John Eldredge in his book “The Way of the Wild Heart”, goes on to say… “Far too much has fallen on the shoulders of the fathers alone.
It takes a company of men to bring a boy into the masculine world, and to bring young men along in their maturity." 

I’ve felt the weight of that burden myself over the years.
Why?
Because too few men today experience real community with other men.
Most men have male acquaintances… guys they work alongside of… guys they share a drink with socially… but very few actually ever experience real friendships with other men, who share a common purpose, larger than themselves, like initiating this generation of boys into authentic manhood.

But I was extremely proactive over the last decade to ensure my sons would be able to have other good, masculine influences to draw upon, and be mentored by… men who have skills, gifts, talents, and abilities, that I myself lack.
But none of that came easy.
I had to actively seek out other men, offer them a vision worth pursuing, inspire them, lead them, serve them, and in some cases, actually mentor and father them.

Together as a band-of-brothers, we experienced adventures… with, and without our sons present.

We invited them and involved them in our missions to various other communities of men where we helped those men to establish bands of brothers themselves.

And we affirmed, validated, and played a part in initiating one another’s sons.

All of my sons know… what too few sons know these days… that they have men, other than Dad, who love them, who have invested into them, and who are there for them… no matter what!

So Dads, if you want your boys to one day be real men, then you too must be intentional in enlisting other men, and establishing a community of men of your own.
You’ll have to fight to find them, and you’ll have to fight to keep them, but it is worth it!

One of the things that I love about our guided “Rite of Passage” Son and Father Adventure experiences, is that a community of men are brought together from all over Australia, and the world at times, for a single purpose... to ensure the success of a great mission… to initiate their sons... to take part in an intentional rite of passage.
You can register for our one of those here, today.

So how about you?

Were you as a boy ever invited into a community of men by your father or another man?

And what about now?

Have you made it a priority to be a part of a community of men… to find, or establish one yourself, for yourself, and for you to invite and welcome your sons into, when they enter their teenage years?