Duck Dynasty men encounter the sexual temptations packaged with fame

Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson being interviewed by Greg Laurie at his crusade in Anaheim, California in August 2013. Photo Flickr/Jus10h

The men of Duck Dynasty were recently interviewed in the October issue of Men’s Journal. In the interview, they shared some of the temptations associated with their sudden rise to fame. A&E’s Duck Dynasty is the hottest reality show in the U.S. This past spring, its third season debut show had 8.6 million viewers, the largest in A&E’s history.

Phil Robertson and his wife Kay started Duck Commander — a duck call manufacturer — that is the theme of the show. The business is now run by Phil’s sons. All the Robertsons, save one, sport full blown beards. And all are God-fearing men, born-again and very family oriented.

But the sudden fame associated with the show has brought with it temptation.

Si — a Vietnam vet and 65-year-old brother of Phil — tells of being woken up at 12:03 AM by a loud pounding on his door. Outside were 25 people wanting to meet him.

Then there are the hundreds of women who have sent letters wanting to marry Si — even though he has been married for 40 years. The requests prompted Phil to say, “womanhood has dropped to a new low in America, if all those women want to marry Si.”

But this is relatively tame compared to what happened to Jase. Jase is Phil and Kay’s second son and overees the manufacturing at the plant. He was in the Duck Commander parking lot when some girls from New Jersey slyly approached him and told Jase they had a hotel room and wondered if he wanted to join them for some fun.

Jase declined. Later he said that both he and his wife were virgins when they married.

Phil, 67, has also been hit on numerous times by women. He tells of women bringing their bikini underwear asking him to autograph them. Phil says when he goes on speaking engagements, he takes both his Bible and wife Kay for protection. Phil was 17 and Kay 16 when they married.

“Be alert, because your enemy, the evil one, is prowling around like a lion. With these chicks, Miss Kay is seated right beside me,” Phil said.

I suspect these temptations are common to many who are in thrust into the limelight. Phil believes it was Divine intervention that led them down this path.

This interview had me rethinking a verse out of Hebrews:

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15 NASV)

That verse tells us Jesus was tested (literally tempted) in all the ways men encounter — does this also refer to temptations associated with fame. When we look at Jesus three years of ministry, we instantly see His celebrity status. Thousands of people were flocking to hear Him preach. His fame had caught the attention of the corridors of power in jerusalem and Rome.

When I see how some women are throwing themselves at the men of Duck Dynasty, it makes me wonder if some tried the same with Jesus. It is repugnant to think that, but through it all Jesus was without sin.

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