http://www.news4jax.com/news/28031678/detail.html
Many of you may have seen the above article, of the family in Canada that refuses to reveal the sex of their 4-month old, as they think the sex os a child is just a few body parts (similar example in Sweden 2 months ago). I think this is very symbolic of the state of secular society, to obliterate distinctions and make everything the same (not just equal).
I see this all as part of the battle between the Judeo-Christian value system that is steeped in creating distinctions, vs modern man’s desire to obliterate distinctions. The Bible was (in my mind at least) very clear in its desire to differentiate Good and Evil, Holy and Unholy, Men and Women (the same value, but different) etc.. It was a Biblical law that men could not where dresses for example. But today good and evil are subjective and most modern people don't even know what holy means.
Specific to gender however, that is a clear area of battle. In NYC they recently voted (although it was turned down) to allow men and women to go into the bathroom of their choice, based on what sex they thought they were. The point was that gender is all subjective anyway. I think this is what the whole same-sex marriage debate is ultimately about, that gender doesn’t matter – only marriage matters. Whether a child has two mothers, two fathers, or one of each, that is not what matters as the sexes are the same, and hence society should not set an ideal.
I think the Old Testament World makes much of distinctions but Jesus seems to reject much of that. I feel the New Testament world is trying to lessen the distinctions. There is no longer jew nor gentile, slave or free man, man or woman, etc. I am paraphrasing but the feeling is very much of less distinction.
ReplyDeleteI know that you agree that this may speak more to equality than differences. I most certainly agree that while genders are equal in worth there are many differences between them and I am very happy about that.
As to the gender of a child,I never knew the sex of my babies prior to birth and in the time right after birth the this fact was still unimportant to me. I was not eager to ask, "What is it?" Of course, in a few short minutes this question was so obviously answered for me and began to be part of who this being was. By age 4months there were many "male" traits that my son exhibited that my previous two girls had never done. My son's first attempt at a word at this age was "bus" and the sight of one was very exciting to him. (We live near a bus loop) I had raised two girls who never once noticed or mentioned a vehicle of any kind. by age 1 he was getting frustrated by my answering his every "What that?" when pointing to a vehicle by saying "truck" because he could clearly see the backhoe was not a bulldozer so how could they both be truck. I had to bone up on my vehicles so I could more accurately answer his questions.
In my years at working at a nursery school I can report it is a rare girl who plays in the car area that is packed with boys. Every year.
so, to sum up my thought and expereince; obviously not all boys like cars and not all girls hate cars but there is a trend this way and it exhibits as early as 4 months old.
-Lori
Secular society is going nowhere with this. In my view the examples you give will always attract attention only because they are a curiosity. They will never become main stream, or even popular.
ReplyDeleteSecularists believe in evolution, at least I think so. In pre-modern society, men and women, had different roles, and evolution would dictate that men and women have different characteristics and abilities. So boys, in order to become "real" men engaged in play that would lead towards that - tussling, building, etc. Similarly girls, in order to become "real" women engaged in "constructive" play - baby doll, play house etc.
If what you fear, Karl, ever gains any real traction, some secular Darwinian will come along and say, by expecting boys and girls to play the same way, you are fighting nature. That could become an interesting discussion.
I agree with Lori about Jesus. Jesus was inclusive, his disciples were not always, but as Lori's quote from Paul illustrates, the disciples learned. On a number of occasions the disciples want to exclude people - unclean, non-followers, children, and Jesus says "let them come". "He who is not against us is for us."
My point is secular society is going a long way in changing perception around defining genders, and they are winning. The example of not defining a child, is just the latest extreme, but secularism is clearly winning the battle towards sameness. Same-sex marriage is all about suggesting men and women are identical (other than a few differences in body parts). If you disagree, please review court documents legalizing same-sex marriage that suggest it makes no difference to a child if they have two mothers, two fathers, or one of each. But there are many examples, of how secular society is pushing the view that the difference between men and women is merely feelings. As mentioned, if you feel you are a woman (even if you are a man) you should go to women's bathrooms (as suggested in NYC). In California, if a man decides he feels like a woman, and wears a dress to work (which i would argue in certain settings would be unprofessional), he is protected and firing him would be illegal.
ReplyDeleteThere is a clear battle against Judeo-Christian values (notably since the 1960s feelings-based vs Biblically-based values). It saddens me, that so many Christians don't see it as a battle, and hence that is why the secular are winning. As far as the issue above goes, creating sameness in the sexes is not something secularism will fully accomplish in our lifetime. But as noted many times, history shows sexuality and gender identity is not fixed (think of all the transexuals in Thailand) and society influences it greatly over long periods of time. They are also winning in blurring many other distinctions (good and evil, holy and unholy, man and God, etc.). As also discussed on this blog, half of the university educated people i interview, respond that they would save their own dog over a stranger. The point is man and animal are the same in their view, they should not be seen as distinct.
It would be a fascinating topic, but I believe my views are more so that the Old Testament and New Testament are very similar. Sure there are differences, but almost no differences in values in my view. I believe many Christians believe the Old Testament is primitive, and I can understand how a certain reading would take it that way (particularly the book of Leviticus) but i don't share that interpretation in general. So yes, i believe Jesus stressed the equality of humanity (whether man or woman, jew or gentile, slave or free man). The Old Testament also pushed the equality of all those groups, there is nothing in the Old Testament suggesting any of those pairs are unequal.
A question from left field - think back to living in Texas would you get the same feeling? (That was Texas not Testament, though some say the eye for an eye rule still exists in west Texas) Be careful in identifying OT values with what you may glean from scripture. The paradym shift that Christ brought was huge in some ways and just a manifestation of God's real intentions from the beginnning in others. I am told that it was not uncommon for a jewish man to begin each day with a prayer of thankfness that he was not a woman. For the Greek at the time I am told that sex with a woman was just for procreation and was something to be endured. The moral decay of Rome and the leval of human depravity atthe time and the result is likely a good indication to us as to where this all may be headed.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important to be aware of the difference in what Christ calls us to and what we see portrayed in society at the time.
Thank goodness the rapture is coming soon(October now I hear).
On a slightly disjointed note. Did those same people have the same emotional attachment to their cat of budgie? What does that say about a dog?
KK
I did have similar feelings in Texas, but as pronounced, so good question. I live in what is known as the least religious county in the country (Marin County, California) and I am surrounded by secularly educated people at work. I am a bit of a contrarian, as i enjoy disagreement so perhaps I am somewhat the product of my environment in that sense (as U. Eric and Caroline in particular are as well, reacting largely contrary to their peers in key issues). I am certainly aware of that, but I worry that with California so often leading the way on key issues to shape the culture, and my high exposure to recent Ivy League graduates (which disproportionately move into positions of influence) I see a clear trend against Biblical values and against distinctions.
ReplyDeleteTo your other question, I often ask people that quickly say they would save their dog first, where they would draw the line. Given their decision is emotional and "feelings-based" to begin with (one of the many fruits of the 1960s generation), there is little logic to their decision. One person in an interview, admitted that if he had a pet cockroach that he loved, he would save that over a human being. In a secular society (or Hindu for that matter) whose to say he is wrong? Values are entirely man-made and subjective in that case, and if people decide animal life is worth that same as human life, there is nothing to say they are wrong if we eliminate the Bible and the notion of distinctions.
That's what that was about? I saw the headline on my National Post and never read the article. Silly!
ReplyDeleteDoing away with gender differences is exactly the agenda of secular left wing groups.
My fav German Spiegel journalist Jan Fleischauer author of my fav understanding Germans book "Unter Linken" recently interviewed die Jugend Grüne and it is one of their main agendas to introduce gender neutrality in schools, you can check out their website in german. They also want just one public bathroom for everyone but especially to accomodate bi and transexuals. Does that make sense? They also want to change the gender language so that everything would have an "innen", for example a Bäckermeister"Innen".
Ok I am for removing the gender in language it would be so much easier but this "innen" stuff is Quatsch!
Well the examples of the move to eliminate the distinctions between men and women continue. The media celebrated the vote to allow same-sex marriage in New York, ensuring that adoption agencies now give equal preference to a gay-couple to a heterosexual couple (hence Catholic adoption agencies are leaving the state). Separately, here is an article of how in sweden, there is a popular school that refuses to recognize the children by sex. The Biblical view that God created differences is being destroyed, and the church sits largely silent in fear of being demonized.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dailyindia.com/show/447667.php