I wrote this past Wednesday about the document that was released on Monday by the Vatican condemning Gestational Surrogacy and Gender Change (among other topics). Today I want to consider the second topic. The Pope believes that both of these things are “grave threats” to human dignity. He has urged nations all over the world to end them. The statement, which has been in the works for five years, states that any attempts to obscure “the sexual difference between man and woman” should be rejected. (UPI.com) It seems that while the Pope has sort of said that gay people aren’t so bad, he has decided that people who identify as the T part of the gender world are. And to be clear – there are some people who regret changing their physical gender to match their interior selves. An article from Slate.com this past February considered this question and came up with what the author thought was a reasonable number: A large national study found that 13.1 percent of transgender people participating in the U.S. Transgender Survey reported de-transitioning at some point in their lives. The vast majority of that 13.1 percent, however, still identified as transgender. The truth about gender is that it is fluid and diverse and complicated. The same with sexuality; some people are not very sexual and some people like a variety. Maybe it is what the Apostle Paul pointed out; in Christ, there is no male or female.
The vast majority, however, find new life and purpose and happiness when they are able to match their outside with their inside. A number of friends of mine who have transitioned, or are going through it now, tell me that they aren’t changing – they are becoming their true selves. It is an interesting question – how do we know what our gender is? It is a complicated idea and should not be shrugged off. I know that I am male and heterosexual. How? I just know – but I also don’t know. And while I was enculturated to be straight, so were my friends who are not. I was taught what being male and female – culturally – is (kind of); so were my friends who have transitioned. The idea that we choose our gender or sexual orientation is a flat-out lie. When puberty smacked into me at the age of 12, I didn’t take a moment to try to decide if I liked boys or girls. I just knew. So please – stop using the term “sexual preference”; it isn’t like deciding if you want the chicken or the beef at the wedding reception. We can choose what we do, but not who we are on the inside.
I am sure there are biological reasons for why we are who we are, but that kind of reasoning is above my pay scale. I don’t understand why I am me, and I don’t understand why others are the way they are. To use the pope’s own words, “Who am I to judge?” Nobody knows what is going on inside of others, and nobody has the right to dictate who anyone else should or shouldn’t be. The fact that this document took 5 years to come to fruition seems like a colossal waste of time. Maybe the next 5-year document should focus on keeping children safe – or feeding the hungry – or housing the homeless. Something that would actually change the world for the better. And – maybe – make the church look less foolish.
Prayer – Holy God, thank You for making us who we are, and helping us to become more like You. Amen.
Today’s art “A Dragon Dance” by Brian Melting Melody.