Author: Gavin Brown, Lecturer in Religious Education, Australian Catholic University

Most people recognise organisations such as the YMCA and the Boy Scouts, or events such as the Modern Olympic Games, summer camps and wilderness retreats. Few, though, have ever heard of the movement from which they took their principal inspiration: muscular Christianity. The term sounds odd indeed, conjuring up images of Jesus with an impressively chiselled physique or, for devotees of the eighties, Vangelis’ memorable soundtrack to Chariots of Fire.However, the term arose because it once carried Christian hopes of a solution to a longstanding problem: men. That is, in the 19th century especially, Christian churches became particularly alarmed more…