First off, l should be clear: I’m not an expert. I’m not a psychologist. I’m not well read in the topic of gender issues.
I have to admit that the whole issue causes me more bewilderment than anything else. Gender confusion confuses me.
Picking my way through the maze of these current issues and avoiding the minefield of politically correct booby traps is a trip I don’t care to make.
In this post if I use the wrong terminology, get confused over trans-woman, trans female, trans male, trans man, cisgender, queer, gay, lesbian, queer acting, transvestitism, etc. Forgive me. I made a mistake. It’s not really my area of expertise.
So cut me a break. I don’t expect you to know the difference between a flagellum and a flabellum or why an Archdeacon is lower than an Archbishop.
Anything I write here is my personal opinion, and as I am not an expert if I say something stupid or wrong I’m willing to be corrected. While I’m open to learn more in my special area of ignorance, I’m don’t have the time for long discussions and I really don’t have the time to argue with anyone.
However, I wrote a post noticing the androgynous characteristics of the Baphomet statue unveiled in Detroit and wondered whether Old Nick was part of the destruction of male and female in our society.
Take a deep breath. No, I was not saying transgender people are demon possessed.
Find where you left your thicker skin. I was not blaming everything on the devil.
I’ll be up front. I’m a Catholic priest. Its my job to welcome everyone and anyone who wants to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. I do so as much as I can without judgement or bias. Everybody is created in God’s image and has huge potential. If a person is transgender they have a story which is probably as complex as anybody else’s. They also have an eternal destiny as great an anyone else’s.
However, everybody is also a sinner like me, and each of us is on an adventure to become all God created us to be.
That being said, I was asked to offer my reflection on the issue of gender identity. These are a few thoughts, and I don’t for a minute suggest that it’s the last word on the matter.
If you disagree with what I say you don’t have to take it personally. I’m not blaming anybody in particular. Most of the comments are about society in general and trends in our way of thinking. These might be some of the causes. There are probably more I haven’t seen.
First of all, I think the present situation with widespread gender confusion is very complex. I don’t think there is any one cause. Instead it seems to me that the condition has many different contributing factors.
First of all, human sexual identity is something which is both biological and cultural. Its a combination of nature and nurture. Therefore, the way a child is brought up, and the culture he or she lives in is as important as the way he or she is born.
Are there a few very rare individuals who are “born in the wrong body”? It would seem so. Sometimes the gestation of the child goes haywire and the biology doesn’t match the psychology. I understand these cases are extremely rare. The present wave of “gender dysphoria” would seem to be caused by something else.
However, the origins of our sexual urges are buried very deeply within our person. They spring from way down deep. They come from areas of our being that most of us do not understand, nor do we have access to that area of our person. Sexuality pushes out from the sub linguistic level of who we are. It is so deep and so mysterious that we feel it is something beyond our choice and deeper than our awareness. It feels like we were “born that way”. Well maybe, or maybe not.
Instead I think, for most people, the urges, the confusion, the obsessions and instincts are formed in a multitudinous and complex way.
What could it be? A variety and combination of factors I expect. Continue Reading
