Muscular Muslims, Weak Christians, and a Response to Andrew Tate

Zealots at the Gate

Christianity in the West has grown soft and effeminate—or so says a growing groundswell on the right. These agitators argue that values like diversity and tolerance are signs of weakness and moral decay: Christians no longer stand up for the truth. They call for a muscular and “masculine” public voice—a religious and political movement that won’t make nice with secular liberalism but rather crush it. The controversial former kickboxer Andrew Tate argues that Islam fits the bill for this kind of rejuvenation and recently switched faiths to make his point. Others believe that an unapologetically orthodox and strident form of evangelicalism or Catholic integralism can point the way to a new Christian future. Still others think that a “muscular liberalism” is the cure for what ails Western democracies. Can “muscular” faiths such as these be reconciled with a pluralistic ethic? Are they in fact actually invested in Christianity’s revival, or something else disguised as such? Links: • Andrew Tate explains why he became a Muslim: https://youtu.be/vnTiTg0Ouhs • Andrew Tate’s discussion of his conversion to Islam and his critique of Christianity (explicit): https://youtu.be/FT8tiMK3aRE?t=218 • The Guardian on how Andrew Tate’s arrest for alleged sex trafficking could bring down “toxic masculinity”: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/06/andrew-tate-investigation-could-bring-down-king-toxic-masculinity • David Cameron’s on why state multiculturalism has failed: https://youtu.be/z3xsnEzA8Fw • Shadi’s podcast conversation with Sohrab Ahmari: https://wisdomofcrowds.live/sohrab-ahmari-part-one/ • The Economist “Who is the misogynist Andrew Tate”: https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/12/30/who-is-andrew-tate-the-misogynist-hero-to-millions-of-young-men

• Shadi's book "Islamic Exceptionalism": https://bookshop.org/a/65404/9781250135131

• Shadi's article for The Atlantic on "Islamic Exceptionalism": https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/06/islam-politics-exceptional/485801/

• Twitter fight between Andrew Tate and Greta Thunberg: https://twitter.com/gretathunberg/status/1608056944501178368?s=46&t=QsYTGmmyVBbxv5vfIZ2aXQ • Rod Dreher’s “Islam: The Last Badass Religion”: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/islam-the-last-badass-religion/ • Latifa Abouchakra on “muscular liberalism”: https://youtu.be/1F6_0xM0xQQ?t=27