Why Atheists Can't Handle Christian Meekness

How Critics Mistake History's Most Disciplined Power for Weakness

Matthew 5:5: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” Painting: “Sir Isumbras at the Ford” by John Everett Millais (1857)

Why do Christianity's critics keep missing the revolutionary power hidden in its most gentle teaching?

The doctrine of Christian meekness represents one of the most profound yet frequently misunderstood theological concepts within Christian orthodoxy. Since the apostolic age, the Church has grappled with harmonizing Christ's teachings on meekness with the divine mandate to confront evil and pursue righteousness. This theological tension emerges most prominently in the interpretation of the Beatitudes, where Christ elevates meekness (πραΰς) to a foundational virtue of the kingdom of God.

The Patristic tradition, particularly through Augustine's "City of God" and Chrysostom's homilies, established that Christian meekness manifests not as weakness but as divine strength anchored in complete submission to God's sovereignty. This understanding radically counters contemporary critics—particularly from secular humanist and neo-atheist perspectives—who misconstrue Christian meekness as moral abdication or spiritual timidity.

These critics often advance philosophically incoherent arguments that betray their superficial understanding. Nietzsche's critique of Christian "slave morality," for instance, fails to distinguish between weakness and voluntary restraint—a crucial philosophical distinction. Similarly, modern detractors frequently conflate meekness with cowardice, revealing their inability to comprehend the profound difference between someone who cannot assert power and someone who chooses not to. Such critics ironically demonstrate their own intellectual weakness by attacking a caricature of Christian meekness rather than engaging with its actual theological and philosophical foundations. Their portrayal of Christians as passive weaklings ignores two millennia of Christian martyrs, reformers, and leaders who demonstrated that true meekness requires greater strength than unbridled aggression.

For example, take Nietzsche's critique of Christian morality as “weakness”, it misses the mark entirely. Meekness is not the absence of power, but its mastery: the discipline to wield strength only in service of something greater. Restraint is not weakness; it is will under control.

Christian meekness requires more courage, not less.

To forgive your enemy, to stand firm in persecution, to submit your will to God rather than asserting your ego, these are marks of the spiritually mature, not the weak.

Ironically, those who most loudly champion Nietzsche's "will to power" often exemplify what he himself termed "the weak and the botched." Consider the porn addict: claiming liberation while enslaved to base impulses, celebrating "freedom" while chained to compulsion. Such individuals, mastered by their “Dionysian passions” rather than mastering them, represent true weakness:

The inability to govern oneself.

They often recognize their own corruption yet lack the strength to resist it.

This is not power; it is slavery to one's basest impulses.

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Words of Power: How Critics Misread Sacred Language

Modern critics of Christianity often seize upon the word "meek" with little understanding of its rich historical meaning. Their surface-level reading—usually equating meekness with weakness—reveals more about their own intellectual laziness than any genuine theological insight.

A brief study of the word's etymology demolishes this shallow critique:

• The Hebrew עָנָו (anav) described Moses—a powerful leader and liberator—as "the most meek man on earth" (Numbers 12:3)

• The Greek πραΰς (praus), primarily a military term, which can be used for described disciplined animals or war-horses (which we'll explore in depth)

• Even the Old Norse word mjúkr, from which we get "meek," originally meant "soft" or "gentle," and did not imply weakness.

This linguistic heritage shows that far from being a celebration of passivity, "meekness" has always described power under perfect control. The critics who mock Christian meekness are attacking a straw man of their own making, one that bears no resemblance to the actual theological concept.

But to truly understand Christian meekness, we must turn to its most illuminating metaphor: the war-horse...

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The War-Horse: Ancient Military Wisdom in Christian Virtue?

The most illuminating illustration of Christian meekness we can use as an example can come from ancient military history. When the New Testament writers chose the Greek word πραΰς (praus) to describe the virtue of meekness, they were drawing upon a term familiar in Greek culture for describing both tame animals, such as a horse whose strength had been brought under control, and people who exhibited gentleness and self-mastery, a concept that would have resonated with their Greco-Roman audience.

Xenophon, a Greek cavalry commander and writer on horsemanship, uses praus to describe horses that have been trained to be obedient, responsive, and mild, yet still strong and courageous. These horses were not stripped of their power, but their natural instincts were brought under control, making them useful for their masters.

In ancient warfare, the difference between victory and defeat often rested upon the quality of a kingdom's cavalry. At the heart of this military advantage was the war-horse - not just any horse, but one that had undergone intensive training to transform its raw power into disciplined strength.

The Training Process

The process of training a war-horse was considered one of the highest military arts:

• A wild stallion begins with tremendous natural power but is dangerous and unreliable

• Through years of careful training, the horse learns to channel its strength

• The training does not diminish the horse's power but brings it under perfect control

• The result is a creature that combines maximum strength with complete responsiveness

Characteristics of the Praus War-Horse

A properly trained war-horse (praus) demonstrated several crucial qualities:

1. Controlled Power

   • Could charge fearlessly into battle

   • Would stand perfectly still amid chaos

   • Could carry heavy armour and rider without complaint

2. Perfect Responsiveness

   • Instantly obeyed the slightest command

   • Trusted the rider's guidance implicitly

   • Suppressed natural flight instincts when ordered

3. Situational Adaptability

   • Gentle enough for a child to approach

   • Fierce enough to face enemy lines

   • Useful in both war and peace

The Theological Parallel

This military metaphor perfectly captures the Christian understanding of meekness:

"Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;" - Colossians 3:12

"Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." - Matthew 11:29

Like a trained war-horse, the meek (praus) Christian...

• Retains all natural capabilities and strengths

• Has learned to bring them under God's control

• Responds instantly to divine guidance

• Can be both gentle and forceful as circumstances require

• Becomes maximally useful for God's purposes

While the term πραΰς (praus) in Greek history was not a technical label for a war-horse, its use to describe tame and disciplined strength, whether in animals or people, corrects the modern misconception that meekness equals weakness. In its original context, meekness represents not passivity, but the highest form of strength:

Power brought under control and made ready for the Master’s purpose—in the case of the Christian, God’s purpose.

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The Divine Paradox: Christ's Perfect Power Through Perfect Submission

Christ represents the perfect embodiment of meekness, demonstrating its true nature through:

Incarnational Humility

• The Word became flesh:

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us...” — John 1:14

• Perfect submission to the Father's will:

“The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do...” — John 5:19

• Voluntary self-limitation:

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God... made himself of no reputation... and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” — Philippians 2:5–8

Prophetic Authority

• Confrontation of religious corruption:

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” (seven woes against the Pharisees) — Matthew 23

• Cleansing of the temple:

“And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple...” — John 2:13–17

• Teaching with divine authority:

“For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” — Matthew 7:29

Redemptive Suffering

• Voluntary submission to crucifixion:

“I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself.” — John 10:17–18

• Refusal of worldly power:

“All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus... Get thee hence, Satan...” — Matthew 4:8–10

• Victory through apparent defeat:

“He is not here: for he is risen, as he said.” — Matthew 28:6 (Implied culmination of redemptive suffering in resurrection)

This Christological pattern reveals the paradox that authentic power flows from perfect submission to divine authority.

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Be Part of The Discussion

One of the central aims of these articles is to spark meaningful conversation around the intersections of religion, theology, and philosophy within the framework of Christianity. I warmly invite readers to share their thoughts and engage in respectful discussion in the comments below, helping to cultivate a space where rigorous thought and sincere belief can meet in pursuit of truth.

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