Reading the headlines through a Gospel worldview 7-8-2019
Only Ohio and Tennessee continue to uphold biological reality on birth certificates as Kansas becomes the 48th state to allow people to change their birth certificate to match their transgender identity. From the article we read, “It was time for Kansas to move past its outdated and discriminatory anti-transgender policy,” Gov. Laura Kelly said in a statement Monday. “This decision acknowledges that transgender people have the same rights as anyone else, including the right to easily obtain a birth certificate that reflects who they are.” Is that true? Does everyone have the right to easily obtain a birth certificate that reflects who they are?
New York City schools have new transgender policies and new transgender inclusion guidelines. Starting next month with the 2019-2020 school year, students in the NYC public school system can change their name and gender on school records without legal documentation. Families will also be able to self-report their child’s gender upon enrolling even if the information supplied by the family does not match what is stated on supporting enrollment documents. According to the article, the goal is to “ensure that students’ identities are affirmed, respected, and supported in schools.” But what does that mean for other students who will feel unsafe in a restroom with a student of a different biological gender who identifies as non-conforming? The Chancellor said, “Schools are safe havens for students to develop their passions and discover their true identities, and these new guidelines celebrate and affirm all students.” Really? All students?
And while the Church of England has announced it will recognize marriages that include transgender people, Catholics grapple with Transgender Issues (from the WSJ which has a paywall). I’ll discuss both of these matters with Ben Johnson on the show Thursday morning.
Media continues to push the sexual boundaries and blur the gender lines, confusing the questions while sexualizing everything and glamorizing self-harm and suicidal ideation. Yes, all that in HBO’s Euphoria. I’ll talk with Adam Holz from Focus on the Family’s PluggedIn about this on Friday.
Oreos? Yes. They have a SOGI identity now too. I’m talking about this later this week with Dr. Preston Sprinkle from CenterforFaith.com – they are helping to equip the church to have the conversations at the intersection of faith, sexuality and gender today.
Want to learn how to engage in these and other hot cultural topics? Karen Swallow Prior edited a book that releases tomorrow and she’ll join me on air to discuss it! Here’s a preview…
There’s a lot going on internationally as well. Here are my top four concerns:
#PraytheNews