If you are reading this, you already know something is wrong.
You do not need me to describe it. You have felt it in the way men speak, or don't. In the way fathers are absent or weak or simply confusing. In what passes for courage these days. In what passes for a man.
I wrote Men of the Republic because I couldn't find a short, direct, honest book on what a man is responsible for. Not a long one. Not an academic one. Not one hedged with disclaimers. Sixty-six pages. Ten chapters. One word each: Silence, Submission, Truth, Discipline, Courage, Sacrifice, Household, Citizenship, Decay, Faithfulness. You can read it in an evening. I expect you will carry it longer.
That book is the beginning. It starts with the man himself: what he owes, what he has failed to pay, and what it looks like to begin paying it. Biblical self-governance. Not because it's fashionable but because it is the only kind that holds.
The second book, The First Republic, assumes you have done that work. It does not repeat the foundation. It extends it. Your household is your first republic: the immediate governing structure that a man either leads or abdicates. This book is for the man who has reckoned with himself and is ready to reckon with his house.
Read them in order. The sequence is not arbitrary. A man who has not governed himself is not ready to govern his household. The books hold that truth seriously, and so should you.
Below you will find both books, and where to read and get them. I hope you start tonight.
Start here
First, Govern Yourself
by Carlos Reyes III
This is where it begins. Before a man can lead his household or his sons through any kind of formation, he must face himself first. Men of the Republic is the reckoning before the work.
Sixty-six pages. Ten chapters. Each one a word that does not negotiate. Biblical self-governance: the kind that starts not with ambition, but with silence.
Book I of the Series
Read in sequence. Then continue.
Book II of the Series
Then, Govern Your Home
by Carlos Reyes III
Your household is your first republic. The governed man now turns his discipline outward. Not to the world, but to the home he is responsible for building and keeping.
This book picks up exactly where Men of the Republic leaves off. The principles of self-governance become the principles of household governance. Law. Order. Loyalty. Leadership. These are not abstract. They are domestic.
Read this book second. It requires the first. The sequence is the point.
Common Questions
Men of the Republic is a 66-page book on biblical self-governance for men. Ten chapters, each named with a single word: Silence, Submission, Truth, Discipline, Courage, Sacrifice, Household, Citizenship, Decay, Faithfulness. It addresses what a man is responsible for and what it looks like to begin paying that debt. You can read it in an evening. You will carry it longer.
Yes. Both books are grounded in Scripture. They are not motivational. They describe what God requires of men and what faithful obedience looks like in the household. If you are looking for encouragement without expectation, these are the wrong books. If you are looking for a clear account of your responsibility before God, these are for you.
Read Men of the Republic first. Then The First Republic. The sequence is not arbitrary. A man who has not governed himself is not ready to govern his household. Book I addresses the man. Book II addresses the home. Do not skip ahead.
Biblical self-governance is the discipline a man exercises over his own mind, desires, speech, and conduct in obedience to God, before he attempts to lead anyone else. It is the foundation of Men of the Republic. Silence before speech. Submission before authority. Truth before comfort. It is not a technique. It is a reckoning.
Men. Specifically, men who already sense something is wrong: with how men lead, how fathers raise sons, how husbands govern homes. Men who want a direct, biblical account of what to do about it. These books are short on purpose. They are not academic. They are not hedged. They expect you to act on what you read.
Carlos Reyes III is a Christian father and author based in Florida. He wrote Men of the Republic because he could not find a short, honest book on what a man owes God, his family, and his household. He is building the Republic Series for men who are done with vague encouragement and ready for a clear standard. Read his story.
Both books are available on Amazon. Men of the Republic is available in Kindle ($7.99) and Paperback ($9.99). The First Republic is available in Paperback ($9.99).