Because I said so… A Reminder about Obedience for Men

There is no phrase more offensive to the modern American male than four simple words every Catholic father understands instinctively:

“Because I said so.”

These words do not merely irritate Americans. They trigger them. They summon every dormant revolutionary impulse inherited from a middle-school civics class, a half-remembered quote from Thomas Paine, and a lifelong belief that authority exists primarily to be audited, cross-examined, and eventually ignored.

And yet, “because I said so” is the most Catholic sentence ever uttered.

It is the sentence of God.
It is the sentence of Christ.
It is the sentence of the Church.
It is the sentence of every father worth respecting.

And it is precisely why modern American Catholicism struggles to form men.

The American Man: Born Free, Allergic to Commands

The American male is trained from birth to believe that authority must always justify itself to him personally.

—Government must explain itself.
—Teachers must negotiate.
—Bosses must persuade.
—Parents must reason.
—God must provide a PowerPoint presentation with citations, footnotes, and a Q&A session.

Nothing may be commanded. Everything must be discussed.

The idea that someone could simply possess authority—and therefore issue commands that require obedience without negotiation—is treated as tyranny, abuse, or at minimum, “toxic.”

The modern American catechism goes like this:

“I’ll obey… once I understand it… once I agree with it… once it aligns with my feelings… once it doesn’t inconvenience me.”

This is not obedience.
This is customer service.

And Catholicism is not a subscription service. Yet, evaluate any Pew Poll for American Catholics and it is clear that American Catholics treat the Church as a convenient buffet where they avoid every vegetable in favor of the chocolate fountain.

God’s Most Offensive Quality: Authority

One of the most scandalous aspects of Christianity is not miracles, not the Incarnation, not even the Eucharist.

It is that God gives orders.

—Not suggestions.
—Not therapeutic guidance.
—Not “best practices.”

Commands.

“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
—John 14:15

Christ does not say:
“If you love Me, you will understand My reasoning.”
“If you love Me, you will feel affirmed.”
“If you love Me, you will vote correctly.”

He says keep My commandments.

That is obedience. Raw. Uncomfortable. Masculine.

And Americans hate it.

The Garden of Eden Wasn’t a Debate Club

Let us revisit the original sin, because it exposes the entire problem.

God gives Adam one rule. One. Not ten. Not 613. One.

Don’t eat from the tree.

—No philosophical symposium.
—No moral justification.
—No explanation of entropy, metaphysics, or nutrition.

Just:

“Don’t.”

And Adam’s response—once Eve hands him the fruit—is not heroic rebellion. It is not brave questioning. It is not enlightened autonomy.

It is pure disobedience. Non serviam.

The first sin is not ignorance.
It is not confusion.
It is not lack of clarity.

It is refusal to obey authority simply because it is authority.

Sound familiar?

Protestantism, But With Bald Eagles

American Christianity took this defect and canonized it.

Once you remove sacramental authority…
Once you remove apostolic succession…
Once you remove binding teaching…

What you are left with is a religion where every man becomes his own pope, his own theologian, and his own final authority.

And Catholics—especially American Catholic men—have absorbed this mentality like secondhand smoke.

They want to obey in theory.
They want to obey once convinced.
They want to obey with reservations.

But the Catholic faith was never built for men who demand explanations before obedience.

It was built for men who obey first, and understand later.

Abraham Didn’t Ask for a White Paper

God tells Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.

It was not a metaphor.
It was not a parable.
It was not a suggestion.

It was a command.

And Abraham did not say:

“I’m going to need clarification.”
“Let’s workshop this.”
“I have concerns.”
“This doesn’t align with my conscience as currently constituted.”

He obeyed.

Not because he understood.
Not because he agreed
But because God is God.

That is biblical masculinity.

And it is utterly foreign to modern American men.

The Church’s Audacity: “Submit”

The Catholic Church has the audacity—the unmitigated gall—to still use words like:

• Obedience

• Submission

• Authority

• Duty

• Obligation

These words feel violent to men raised on slogans like “Question everything” and “No one can tell you what to do.”

And yet Scripture is relentless:

“Obey your leaders and submit to them.” (Hebrews 13:17)
“He who hears you hears Me.” (Luke 10:16)
“Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.” (Matthew 16:19)

This is not democracy.
This is not consensus.
This is hierarchy.

Catholicism does not ask for your vote.

It demand your obedience.

“Because I Said So” Is Not Abuse

Modern men have been catechized to believe that any authority not accompanied by emotional explanation is abusive.

This is nonsense.

A father who says “because I said so” is not a tyrant. He is a father.

A commander who gives orders is not oppressive. He is a commander.

A Church that commands is not authoritarian. It is authoritative.

Authority is not validated by your agreement.

It is validated by its source.

And the source of the Church’s authority is not America, not modern psychology, not personal interpretation.

It is Christ.

The Obedience Americans Refuse to Learn

Here is the uncomfortable truth:

If you cannot obey when you don’t understand…
If you cannot submit when it costs you…
If you cannot accept commands without negotiation…

You are not spiritually mature.

You are spiritually adolescent.

Catholic obedience is not blind. But it is real.

It does not wait for feelings.
It does not require persuasion.
It does not collapse under inconvenience.

It says:

“You are God. I am not. Therefore, I obey.”

And that sentence terrifies modern American men more than any atheist argument ever could.

A Call to Catholic Men

The Church does not need more men who question authority.

It needs men who can receive authority.

Men who obey before they fully grasp.
Men who submit without applause.
Men who kneel without explanation.

Because the Kingdom of God was not built by men who demanded to understand everything first.

It was built by men who heard a voice say:

“Follow Me.”

And followed.

Because He said so.