John Eldredge, author of the bestselling book "Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul," has been criticised for promoting antiquated views of gender, where the man is empowered while the woman is a damsel in distress.

But the book resonated so well with Christians that it sold more than four million copies in the U.S. alone since it was first released in 2001.

Now, Eldredge is saying that his book is still relevant because the men and women of today desperately need "some straight talk about gender." He told Religion News Service that the book discusses the "deep and soulful differences between men and women and what does it look like to honor one another while preserving the dignity of masculinity and femininity."

Eldredge also confronted his detractors, saying it isn't true that he harbours a backward view of gender roles. "We had been so conditioned by political correctness that for someone to step forward and say, 'men are different than women' caused a knee-jerk reaction. Almost as if any attempt to talk about the masculine in particular was going to throw us back to the stone ages," he said.

The author actually finds it funny that some people are dismissive of his views on masculinity, and yet a lot of women still question the existence of "real men," their desire to "commit," and being treated with "dignity."

The point Eldredge wants to make about masculinity is that men bear "a soulful strength" that needs to be honoured and cultivated, and people cannot cultivate this "by telling them all strength is bad."

It doesn't matter what a man's profession is, says Eldredge, whether he be a lumberjack, military man, or musician. "The core issues are always the same – courage, bravery, self-sacrifice," he said. "It takes courage to pursue a woman, to pursue a PhD, to start a record company or a private school."