Just the name of it exudes class, Mercedes-Benz. And when you add a lavish-sounding number like 300D to the end of it with the word “Turbo” attached, it is bound to impress. 

The boast of the manufacturer of this 1982 luxury vehicle is that it was “Engineered Like No Other Car in the World.” And indeed it was. Under the hood sat an extremely dependable 3.0 Liter Inline-5 cylinder turbo diesel engine mated to a 4-speed automatic transmission. As one Mercedes-Benz aficionado writes, “This generation of engine was not known for being particularly fast, but comfort, reliability, and good looks helped make them popular and sought after.” But with an original sticker-price of over $30,000, very few people in the 1980’s could afford such opulence.

As for me and my family, purchasing this model of Mercedes was an impossibility, a poor man’s blue-dream, because it was a luxury we could not, nor ever, afford. For the large Weeks clan of eight, our ideal vehicle was a Ford Country Squire Station Wagon, the one with the wood side paneling, that had a loud gas guzzling V-8 engine that got a meager 8 miles to the gallon. A station wagon to a Mercedes is like comparing an old grey mare to a thoroughbred race-horse.

So when I was told I was going to be picked up in a dark blue Mercedes-Benz 300D Turbo Sedan, I couldn’t believe my luck. 

I was waiting by my front door at 6:00 a.m. on a cloudy Saturday morning in November. My good friend Steve invited me to accompany him to the Ohio State football game because he was being recruited to play basketball for the Buckeyes. A wealthy Ohio State alumnus and relative of his was driving him to the game and he brought me and another friend to join him as he visited the campus. The car he picked us up in was of course, a brand new Mercedes-Benz 300D, dripping with affluence.

I will never forget the plushness of the interior, everything was factory fresh. As I sheepishly slid in the backseat, the first thing I noticed was the soft feel of the premium Italian leather – –  it was as smooth as butter. I leaned my nose close to the clean head cushion just to sniff it and I thought to myself, “So this is what prosperity smells like?” The soft purr of the powerful diesel engine was soothing, nothing like the rattle of most of the tinny cars I grew up in. And the smoothness of the ride, it was like I was floating on a cloud.

“Are you comfortable back there boys? I can set the temperature to whatever degree you would like.” 

“Oh, I am fine,” I quickly said to the driver, “I have never been in a nicer ride.” And I didn’t, the smell, the purr, the leather, riding in that amazing car was worth the whole trip. 

Ever since that ride, Mercedes-Benz has captured my fancy. Before that moment I could never understand why someone would spend so much for a car, but now I knew, the 300D Turbo was truly a marvelous machine.

Over the years I have talked to people who have never ridden in a Mercedes, and most of them just don’t get it. Often they only see stuck up snobbery and money down the drain. “Mercedes-Benz drivers are so arrogant and extravagant,” they snidely remark, “I’d rather drive my $700 Toyota Corolla. I’m sure I would get better gas mileage than driving in such ridiculous extravagance, and at least my neighbors won’t think I am a wealthy prick!”

I call this cynical attitude the “Mercedes Jealousy Syndrome.” Human nature bends pernicious, if a person can’t have it, they trash it. People who talk like this really don’t know what they are missing. Ever since riding in the back seat, I thought to myself, “If I could ever afford it, I’d get a Mercedes.” But alas, this poor peasant is stuck driving other’s old-horses that have been put out to pasture. In other words, I have only known old beat-up used cars.

But don’t cry for me, because there is another area of life where I have been given something better than a Mercedes: 40 years of life with a wonderful father. If a man could be considered a luxury class, Don Weeks, my dad, would be it. 

Kind, loving, reliable and consistent. 

I could go on for a very long time talking about the lessons, experiences and tremendous friendship I had with my father. But I want to focus on a world and culture that for so many have never had a good father. And instead of promoting the wonder of fatherhood, they trash it. Remember, human nature bends pernicious. And we are now living in a world where people would rather destroy something – even if it is a wonderful thing – if they can’t have what others have. Now the number one target that is being attacked is the role of dad, I call it the “Fatherhood Jealousy Syndrome.”

How do people destroy? Let me count the ways…I will offer you three:

1. Denying the Wonderful Gift that is Masculinity: In an article written by Greg Johnson, a Professor of Biology at Bethel College, he writes, “From a landmark review of psychological literature on the study of gender differences, researchers consistently found that males scored higher in levels of aggressiveness, dominance, self-confidence and activity level. Females scored higher on verbal ability, compliance, nurturance and empathy scales. Women tend to socialize more intimately with a few friends. Men are more apt to form larger groups.” His conclusion of this? “Differences between men and women are both real and have their roots in our unique biology as males and females. Furthermore, these differences are present at birth (and even before) and are amplified according to individual hormonal and genetic dictates. We are differently gifted as male and female not only in anatomy and physiology but also in behavior. It is a marvelous God-given pattern that enhances pair bonding, dual parenting, and extensive division of labor, characteristic not only of humans but of many of the higher social animals.” Did you catch that? God created differences, real differences, as a gift. And when one of the gifts is missing, everyone is lesser for it.
2. Scolding Men for being Quick to Act, Compete, and Protect: Research says males on average have denser, stronger bones, tendons, and ligaments, which allow for heavier work. And along with this males also are quicker to react and less cautious. These two qualities combined are what make men the risk takers and protectors. But men are now told to tone it down, not compete, and not try to advance. But it is the father and his desire to advance, for the most part, who helps a child move past the pain to accomplish the goal. One wise man said, “When you seek to avoid pain it will always limit the possibilities of achieving happiness. People who avoid criticism and run from difficulty are more prone to depression and hopelessness later on in their life.” Take away a father and his aggressive nature, and you limit the risk taking behavior that brings real joy for the family and children.
3. Saying a Mom is Enough to Raise a Child: Is a single woman enough to raise healthy kids? You tell me after reading some insights on single parenting and it’s effect on a child’s self-understanding by psychologist George Alan Rekers who studies Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Science: (A) “67% of boys with sex-role problems were not living in a home with their biological father.” (B) “Boys with sex-role disturbances did not have, in most cases, a male role model to identify with. In fact, the most severely disturbed boys had no father figure at home.” (C) Young boys whose fathers were absent from the home were more likely to exhibit more feminine ways of thinking, low masculinity, dependence and less aggression.” (D) “Females who had parents that were divorced and saw less of their fathers tended to be overly responsive to males and displayed early and inappropriate sexual behaviors.” (E) “Homes with absent fathers and dominant mothers found that both boys and girls were likely to say they disliked the opposite sex, as well as frequently being disliked by the opposite sex.” (F) “When the mother asserts dominance in the home, studies show that the sex-role orientation of the boys tends to be feminine and that of the girls tends to be masculine.”

I believe those who most dislike the role of a father never really had a good one to begin with. Unnatural hatred of what God designed for blessing is born out of jealousy. If you don’t have something valuable that others have, a dark heart will often want others not to have it either. If you have ever driven in a luxury Mercedes-Benz you would never criticize it. So too when you have had a great father you will never question a dad’s importance.

So beware of the loud-mouthed feminist who hates male authority, or the angry lesbian who sees no need for maleness, or the drag queen who extols the virtues of dressing like a woman. Instead of being swayed by their misdirected passion and giving them a platform to disparage that which God intended for good, stop listening to them altogether. It is more than likely they have no idea what an incredible gift a good father really is in the first place.

I have a theory: If I wanted to destroy a building I would first try to ruin and take out the load bearing beams. If I could damage the main interior supports the rest of the building will come crashing in. I believe the father is designed to be the load bearing role in the human family. If he is taken out everyone else is vulnerable and destruction is inevitable. 

So if that is true, who do you think is really behind “Fatherhood Jealousy Syndrome?” I think I know…he smells like sulfur.