The Biggest Mistake Christian Men Make? Fighting the Wrong Enemy.
Most men think they're battling people. Scripture says the real fight is far deeper—and until we understand that, we'll never become the leaders God calls us to be.
Written by Dylan Johnson, Tehachapi’s COR Men, Ministry to Men
The Enemy is the Enemy
I was recently listening to historian Darryl Cooper’s Martyr Made podcast, Episode 24, Enemy, Prologue: Enemies of All Mankind, when he made an observation that stopped me in my tracks. He suggested that in our modern secular world, Adolf Hitler has, in many ways, become the symbolic embodiment of evil, replacing the devil in our cultural imagination. Whether or not one agrees with every aspect of his analysis, it forced me to wrestle with a deeper question:
Have we forgotten who our real enemy is?
As Catholic men, we should know the answer.
Saint Paul reminds us that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood…against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).
This is not poetic language. It is a sober description of reality.
The Battle We Often Miss
Yet many of us live as though our enemies are merely external: political opponents, cultural trends, difficult coworkers, or even members of our own families. We spend our energy reacting to visible conflicts while neglecting the invisible battle that underlies them all.
If we misunderstand the nature of the enemy, we will inevitably misunderstand the nature of leadership.
A man who believes his primary task is to defeat other people will become combative, defensive, and ultimately isolated. But a man who understands that the true enemy is sin, and the one who tempts us toward it, will approach leadership very differently. He will recognize that his first responsibility is not to conquer others, but to master himself.
RECOMMENDED READING
FEATURE
Leadership Begins with Discipleship
This is where the formation of men must begin.
We cannot raise leaders if we are not first raising disciples. And we cannot raise disciples if we are not teaching men how to fight the right battle.
The Church has always been clear about this. The spiritual life is not passive. It is a struggle. It requires vigilance, discipline, and grace. It requires men who are willing to stand firm in the truth, even when it is uncomfortable or costly.
But too often, we avoid this language. We speak about growth, success, and influence, but we hesitate to speak about sin, temptation, and the devil. In doing so, we unintentionally disarm the very men we are trying to form.
A man who does not believe he is in a battle will not prepare for one, and a man who is unprepared will not lead well when the battle inevitably comes.
So What Does the Right Battle Look Like?
So what does it look like to form men who understand that the enemy is the enemy?
It begins by teaching men to take responsibility for their own souls. Leadership starts with interior discipline: prayer, examination of conscience, frequent Confession, and a commitment to remain in a state of grace. A man who cannot govern himself cannot hope to guide others.
It continues by rooting men in the truth. The lies of the enemy are subtle and persistent. Without Scripture and the teaching authority of the Church, men are easily carried away by the shifting narratives of the world.
It requires courage, not the courage to hate our enemies, but the courage to love them while resisting the evil that seeks to enslave every human heart.
The Victory Has Already Been Won
Finally, it points every man to Jesus Christ.
Christ is not merely our example. He is the victorious King who has conquered sin and death. Every authentic Christian leader first learns to follow Him.
If we want to raise men who lead with courage, humility, and faith, in our homes, our parishes, and our communities, we must first raise men who know who their enemy is.
Because until a man understands the battle he is in, he will never become the leader God is calling him to be.
By: Dylan Johnson
Tehachapi’s COR Men, Ministry to Men
Grand Knight, Council #7821|
Saint Malachy Catholic Church
Tehachapi, California
Prayer Request on Motorcycle Ride
From July 30 to August 18, a segment of our team will traverse thousands of miles on motorcycles through Western Canada and the western United States. We would be grateful to carry your prayer intentions with us.
Please send us your requests, and we will lift them in daily Mass with Bishop Scott McCaig and Fr. Mariusz, praying rosaries as we ride along the open road.
For those interested, here’s the full quote from Darryl Cooper’s Martyr Made podcast, “Episode 24, Enemy, Prologue: Enemies of All Mankind”, that inspired the opening of this article:
“Hitler is taking the place of the devil in our modern secular world. His followers are his legion of demons. Auschwitz is his kingdom in hell. The devil is the source and cause of all evil in the world, the deepest moral abyss beneath which it is impossible to descend, but we live in a world today where Satan has lost his menacing aspect. Become something of a comic figure. Kids who want to shock their parents and rebel against the conventions of our society, they don’t flash a pentagram—that’s cringe. They read Mein Kampf and wear a swastika and say, ‘Mom and Dad, what do you think of this?’ And they do that because years of conditioning by the educational system and media propaganda and social pressure has taught them that it isn’t the Gospel anymore but the official narrative of the Second World War that is the real symbolic nerve center of our society.”
What struck me wasn’t his cultural critique, but the deeper question it raised: Have we forgotten who our real enemy is? That question immediately brought me to St. Paul’s words in Ephesians 6:12 and Father John Riccardo’s reminder in The Rescue Project that “the enemy is the enemy”. If we lose sight of the reality of spiritual warfare, we’ll struggle to form men who can faithfully lead their families, parishes, and communities.