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Unmasking the Male Soul
Power and Gender Trap for Women in Leadership
Imprint: Wipf and Stock
Unmasking the Male Soul is about freedom that confronts the innate and enslaving obsession for power and control in destructive ways. At the core of this liberating process, we must acknowledge that we cannot escape the sociocultural matrix in which every human being emerges. In denying their fallen nature, human beings set aside their dependency on God and become self-centered and self-reliant.
It is from their self-centered hearts that human beings foster dynamics of coercion, domination, competition, and distorted self-realization at the expense of others. This cycle of shame and guilt is well-disguised behind a mask which enables them to enact these dynamics in subtle ways. At times even in the name of religion, men followed the illusion of their internal insecurities and became dependent on masks of power and control.
It is time to break away from the chains of exclusion and devaluation of women in Christian leadership. Masculinities have only perpetrated a narrative of exceptionalism as the apex of humankind, and often they have contrasted to subservient expectations of women in leading others. Each chapter responds to the implicit male silence on the issue in a multidisciplinary way with historical, sociocultural, theological, and scriptural implications. In this book, I will endeavor to challenge the masks of masculinities and dismantle several mental models that foment a gender divide in Christ-like leadership in the twenty-first century.
Wilmer G. Villacorta is Associate Professor of Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. He teaches for the Master of Arts in Global Leadership (MAGL), a pioneer program in online graduate education since 2004. He and his family reside in the city of Colorado Springs. He is author of the Tug of War: The Downward Ascent of Power (Cascade, 2017).
“Wilmer Villacorta delivers on his promise to unmask the male soul. His analysis of the distressing behavior and rhetoric surrounding the issues of hyper-masculinity are eye-opening. Focusing on human relationships, particularly those of men toward women, he adds new understandings of the nature of abuse and the urgent need for transformation. Villacorta’s outstanding contribution to the conversation invites men and women to think again about relationship to God and one another in humility with integrity.”
—Douglas McConnell, Fuller Theological Seminary
“Unmasking the Male Soul is a careful historical, cultural, and scriptural study of masculinity that dissembles the bounds of gender roles and shifts the disposition towards greater strength, through wider imagination. It pushes us to nuance our learned perceptions of performed gender, urging us to challenge institutions that stifle human equality. Wilmer G. Villacorta takes us on a personal and theological journey, probing female strength and the vulnerability of God so women and men can be courageous enough to live harmoniously.”
—Grace Ji-Sun Kim, Earlham School of Religion, author of Embracing the Other
“Unmasking the Male Soul is an important book; it is a rare occurrence for a Hispanic man to write about true and equal partnership in the gospel between men and women. The author has pulled together a wide variety of insights from different academic disciplines and spiritual leaders to diagnose a spiritual illness with grave consequences. I hope that young men seeking guidance and support in developing a Christ-centered way of being male discover this book; I also believe that it would be encouraging in important ways for young women as well.”
—Alexia Salvatierra, Fuller Theological Seminary
“Wilmer G. Villacorta explores the dark side of the male soul and the wounds that have been perpetuated in a dehumanizing patriarchy since the beginning of time. Villacorta points out that men, women, and children suffer under the power-keeping regime, but suggests a surprising path to freedom from the male-centered system—transformation through men and women leading together in mutual respect. This book is a must read for multi-culture teams working in our globalized world.”
—Anita Koeshall, Evangel University
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