http://www.pureintimacy.org/w/what-is-intersexuality-and-how-shouldchristians-respond/ What is 'intersexuality' and how should Christians respond?

Perhaps youve never even heard the terms intersex, intersexual and intersexuality. by Caleb H. Price As homosexual and "transgender" rights activists continue to do everything in their power to radically deconstruct the traditional and biblical understanding of sexuality, gender and marriage across all arenas of culture, they routinely confuse the debate by raising the issue of intersexuality. Perhaps youve never even heard the terms intersex, intersexual and intersexuality. Or maybe you have but think they are just more technical terms for the oldfashioned word "hermaphrodite."* In any case, intersexuality differs from "transgenderism" in significant ways. Specifically, whereas the term "transgender" is an umbrella term used to describe those whose feelings and perceptions of their gender do not align with their biological sex, intersex individuals have a congenital condition in which their sexual anatomy and/or reproductive organs dont appear to correspond to typical definitions of male or female. Often this results in varying degrees of indeterminate or ambiguous genitalia. Sometimes these anomalies are apparent at birth; in other cases, the intersex condition doesnt become apparent until puberty or even later in life, if at all. This condition can be biological and/or chromosomal in origin and can sometimes be surgically corrected. Many cases of intersexuality have their origin in utero and involve varying degrees of what is called Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS). This insensitivity to androgen a male sex hormone can interfere in the normal development of the sex organs and result in ambiguous genitalia as described above. Whatever the cause, the fact is that intersex individuals by virtue of a condition that often impacts the primary human physical characteristics associated with gender and sexuality often walk confusing, challenging and lonely journeys through life. So when we consider a condition like intersexuality, does this mean that "transgender" activists are correct when they argue that the traditional understanding of gender as "binary" or two-fold, male and female is outdated and should be discarded in favor of the "more enlightened" view that gender is "fluid" and virtually unlimited in its possible variance? 1

From a biblical perspective, the answer is "no." Despite the fact that a tiny fraction of the population faces life with an intersex condition, Scripture teaches that humans are made in Gods image as male and female, and that theres a complementarity of the sexes that uniquely brings forth new life and mysteriously reflects who God is (Gen. 1:27). Clearly, gender and sexuality matter to God. Yet, we humans live in a fallen state and in a fallen world which impacts us spiritually, emotionally, mentally and even physically. Indeed, there are a number of genetic, biological and congenital conditions that manifest themselves in ways that preclude certain activities and plague our physical existence. But we know that God is good and He intends to show Himself strong in our weaknesses. Moreover, His mercies are new every morning (Lam. 3:23) and He promises us the ongoing and sufficient grace we need (2 Cor. 12:9) in order to walk in ways that bring Him glory and more fully reveal Himself to a broken and dying world. So how should we, as Christians, minister to those among us who deal with the unique and often traumatic circumstances associated with intersexuality? Perhaps Jesus own words, as recorded in Matthew 19, should serve as our guide. Recall that in this passage Jesus is discussing eunuchs who were "born" that way, "made that way" by men, or have "renounced marriage because of the kingdom of heaven." While the context of this statement by Jesus is clearly centered on the questions of divorce, marriage, and Gods created intent for human sexual expression, its comforting to note that Jesus frames both the beginning and end of his comments here with an acknowledgment that not all can accept this word indicating deep compassion on His part with those who find themselves in circumstances whereby they are unable to enter into the "one-flesh union" of marriage, whether by design, mutilation or personal decision. Moreover, Jesus indicates that this calling is given to only a few implying that abundant grace is afforded to those who, for whatever reason, are to bear what Paul refers to as the gift of singleness (1 Cor. 7). From these passages we see that Christians are called to understand that God readily seeks to strengthen and encourage those who find themselves unable to marry and participate in genderedness and sexual expression as ordained in the created order. Practically speaking, this means that we as the Hands and Feet of Christ are called to help intersexuals carry this "heavy yoke" and steward their assigned gender in a manner that glorifies God and, to the degree possible, reflects His created intent for human sexuality and gender. Beyond this, a biblical ethic toward intersexuals no doubt calls on Christians to reach out in compassion and love to those who experience life with this condition. And we should continually lift them in prayer to the Lord humbly admitting that we dont have all the answers, nor are we able to fully understand this issue through Gods plan and His eyes. However, we can undoubtedly say that God intimately knows and loves every person made in His image with a deep and abiding love reflecting the fact that all are of 2

inestimable value and worth. Regardless of what disorder or ailment any of us might have, we are each "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139) and have unending value in the sight of God (see Zephaniah 3:17; John 3:16). * Technically, the term hermaphrodite, with its origins in Greek mythology, speaks to someone who is half-male and half-female. In this strict sense, a hermaphrodite is not synonymous with someone who is intersexual. Copyright 2008 Focus on the Family. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. About the author Caleb H. Price is a research analyst for Focus on the Family http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4222623/k.8B00/What_is_a_Bibli cal_View_of_Transgendered_People_and_Hermaphrodites.htm "What is a Biblical View of Transgendered People and Hermaphrodites?"

Hello, I would like to know the biblical insight on transgenderism [Definition: appearing as, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member of the opposite sex] and other sexual defects of the human body. There are lots of issues like hermaproditism and intersexualism [a set of medical conditions where the sex chromosomes, external genitalia, or an internal reproductive system are not considered "standard" for either male or female]. Please try to clear these issues up with sound doctrine. There are really two issues here: 1) transgendered people and 2) the intersexed (new term) or hermaphrodites (older term). The first is usually an emotional problem, not really a sexual one. The "transgendered" label reflects a sexual identity confusion and not a true condition. God doesn't create a person with the genitals of a male and the consciousness and heart of a female. In Genesis 1:26, the Bible says, "And God created man in His image, in His likeness; male and female He created them....and it was very good." Maleness and femaleness are God's choice, determined at conception. But growing into one's masculinity or femininity and embracing it can be thwarted by very early events that prevent children from having a clear sense of their gender. Gender identity is a developmental issue, and it starts at birth. All the many, many layers of affirmation and validation of one's personhood that contribute to self-understanding (of which gender is a part) start getting laid down the moment one is born, and they go on hour by hour, day by day, for years in childhood. No wonder so many people think they were born gay, lesbian, or transgendered! They can't remember all the way 3

back to birth when the messages they received about who they were, had yet to be delivered. In addition, some people perceive the messages of parents and family differently than what was intended, and those perceptions ARE their reality. The biblical view is that God's intent for every male is to grow into masculinity, and for every female to grow into femininity. When that doesn't happen, the culture has come up with new labels to describe something new and different: transgendered, transsexual. I believe God isn't affected by these new labels nor does He have to honor them: He sees the people behind the labels as His precious, broken children. It's only recently that the culture has tried to suggest that "a woman in a man's body" and vice versa is a variation of what is normal and right. The biology of sex alone tells us that homosexuality (under which these other categories of emotional/sexual dysfunction should be put) is not normal. The Bible tells us (Gen 1:26) that God's intent is heterosexuality, with definite boundaries between men and women in both appearance and behavior. (I can give you more information on this concept if you want.) I recently attended a national Exodus conference, a gathering of about 900 people who are walking out of homosexuality and those who minister to them. It was interesting to me to see people there who would call themselves transgendered, as well as transsexuals who had had sex-change surgery. They were at the conference because of a growing awareness that they had interfered with God's plan for their lives; God had revealed His intent for their gender at birth. They had been living as the opposite sex in a false self that was tragically far from what God had intended for them, and that explained why the great pains to which they had gone to fix their brokenness didn't bring the peace and relief they thought they would get through assuming a new identity and/or having surgery. Concerning intersexed people (hermaphrodites), allow me to share what Rev. Mark Chalemin (now pastoring at LifePointe Bible Fellowship in Princeton, Texas) and I collaborated on to answer this question for someone else: By definition a hermaphrodite is "a person born with both male and female sex organs." Within this definition there are three labels; true, female pseudo, and male pseudo. The first category is extremely rare with only 350-450 known cases. The second type, and the most common, is female pseudo resulting in 1 of every 14,000 births. The main cause for this is a condition known as Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia. In these cases there is an overproduction of testosterone causing some "masculinized" features in the female. This does not mean that there is any real gender confusion. There is not. As with any female, her chromosome is XX. Any slight mutation, that may accompany is treated early by corrective surgery. The same situation may occur in baby boys with the same treatment. (There is a movement to stop this surgery, which is being called genital mutilation by some of those who have had it, and allow children's bodies to grow and develop naturally, even if they are different.) It seems that even with ambiguous genitalia, these kids "know" if they are intrinsically male or female. In either situation, the sexual identity, given by God, may perhaps 4

reveal traits normally associated with the opposite sex. For example, the baby girl may grow up to be naturally more athletic or aggressive than the average woman, but she is very much a woman. Similarly, the baby boy may have a naturally heightened sensitivity and/or affinity towards the arts. Nevertheless, he is still very much a man. What is God's take in all of this? God views every individual as He made them. While He did not make clones, he did create males and females with certain unique sexual characteristics. He also intended for males to manifest primarily masculine characteristics, and for females to manifest primarily feminine characteristics, although both sexes reflect aspects of both the masculine and the feminine in varying degrees. Along with those traits, He has provided direction on how we are to relate to one another. There is no prohibition regarding a slightly more "masculine" female or a slightly more "feminine" man. God views them as he does anyone else, with love and delight, and He desires that they experience all the freedom all He designed them to have, within the boundaries of the sexual identity God gave to them. The fact that some individuals are born with evidence of mutations in their sex-determining genes doesn't change their value in God's eyes any more than someone born with the mutation that causes cystic fibrosis or sickle-cell anemia. You asked for sound doctrine; I can only respond with the wise and loving boundaries that God has established for sex (which is usually the issue here, right?). All sexual behavior is to be contained within marriage (see the many condemnations of fornication). Men are to act and appear as men, and women are to act and appear as women (Deut. 22:5). Even those born with genital ambiguity are expected to submit to His boundaries. I realize this is a very politically incorrect perspective in a sex-saturated culture that declares sexual expression is a right for everyone. But it isn't. God wants every person, regardless of their genital or chromosomal condition, to submit his or her sexuality to Him and to glorify Him in whatever state we find ourselves. I hope this helps. Sue Bohlin Probe Ministries 2001 Probe Ministries I was moved by this email I received from someone who lives with the challenges of intersex every day, and wanted to share it here: A pastor friend was removed from being a pastor due to the nature of his birth (intersexed) in having both male and female parts, but condition helped with surgery, now married with children. I am at the foundational level of intersexed in being an XXY male, was 53 before learning of my condition, but had gone through the change of life and also excessive breast tissue for a male. I am always offended when we as intersexed people are spoken of in the same 5

breath with homosexuals or added to their agenda when those of us who follow Jesus are as much opposed to the gay lifestyle as any other who will not compromise God's Word to validate sin or lust. I also believe that a true Eunuch is one who is unmarried and celibate which is only for those with the gift to remain that way. To this day I have never heard a sermon or teaching regarding hermaphrodites in the church-- covered by the same grace but forced into the basement due to ignorance and an imposed shame for being "so born from our mother's womb," something we had no choice about, unlike those acting on their homosexual feelings or those with a mental condition rather than a genetic defect which is temporary. Your article about "transgendered" was interesting but I am more concerned about attitudes we encounter for being who we are which to me is just unique. Scars today only say that healing happened and no more open wounds. . . Just as Jesus is proud of His scars that say healing happened. To me there is just the Natural man, Spiritual man and the carnal Christian, only three kinds of people on the planet with a variety of physical and mental differences. But attitudes we encounter as intersexed people would lead folks to think maybe there is an additional "type" who doesn't fit any mold or classification or addressed in scripture. But again the only problem I see is attitudes springing from ignorance; one can not love God without loving all the people of God, yet the subject is rarely if ever addressed completely to make us at least feel as if we fully belong among other people more normal than we are and that we are not freaks. The real us is spirit! Grace http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/tonyjones/2009/08/with-whom-shouldthe-intersexe.html With Whom Should the Intersexed Have Sex? Even More on the Complexity of Gender posted by Tony Jones Seriously, this stuff is a mind-bender for me. It changes everything, really. Why? Because its the exceptions into which the norms need to fit to make them norms. The doctrine of imago dei, the hallmark of which is so often misconstrued as rationality must take into account the human being with Down Syndrome. Is that human being, lacking the reasoning facilities of other human beings, also created in the image of God? Of course. And, so, when dictating with whom a person can and not have sex, we simply must deal with the gender ambiguity that afflicts many of our fellow human beings. 6

Zoe Brain writes, Im Intersexed. Its not particularly rare. 1 in 60 people have minor Intersex conditions, though it would take a laboratory test to determine that. About 1 in 1000 have an Intersex condition thats obvious. I have one of the rarest and most spectacular ones. In the country of my birth, I would only be allowed to marry another woman because homosexual marriage is strongly forbidden, and there Im legally male. Even though my passport says female based on my anatomy and despite my chromosomes, which are usually (though not always) found only in men. In the country where I live, I could only marry a man, because there Im legally female, and homosexual marriage is strongly forbidden. It took many thousands of dollars worth of MRIs, gene tests, Ultrasounds of my pelvis etc to determine that I was more female than male, but that diagnosis is definitive. I REALLY wish Fundamentalist Christians would MAKE UP THEIR MIND as to who it is Im supposed to have sex with. They all say its obvious, but they differ as to what the answer is. Me, I try to follow Isaiah 56:4-5. 1 Corinthians 13 too. It can be difficult maintaining a charitable attitude when no matter what I do, or fail to do, Im supposed to be condemned to perdition for it. And R. Hampton writes, In 1999, the Texas 4th Court of Appeals in San Antonio said chromosomes not sex-change operations or outward gender characteristics determine a persons gender. That ruling allowed Jessica and Robin Wicks to be married the following year because one was born a man (and later had a sex change operation). The rest comes from an article published by the Cox News Service in September 2000: Rep. Arlene Wohlgemuth, R-Burleson, the president of the Texas Conservative Coalition, said We dont object to a marriage license being issued since we do favor a marriage between a man and woman and this fits the legal definition of gender. They are legally a man and a woman. What they do once they are married is up to them. But other issues complicate things, said Jack Sampson, a University of Texas law professor. Not everyone is born with a set of chromosomes, XX or XY, that clearly defines their gender. Hermaphrodites and other cases of confused genetics could pose problems.

Klinefelter syndrome: three sex chromosomes 47(XXY) Turner syndrome: one sex chromsome 45(X) Because we only have two legally recognized sexes, how do we assign gender to those with said afflictions? We know that gays can legally marry someone of the opposite sex, but who is the opposite sex for someone with said afflctions? Who indeed? http://christianchat.com/bible-discussion-forum/55810-so-apparently-i-am-nolonger-christian-because-i-am-intersex.html So apparently I am no longer a Christian, because I am Intersex Strickalator, 41 Hello everyone! I just wanted to let you know that 6 months ago I found out from a doctor I have Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (either mild or partial). It has only confirmed what I knew all my life that I was not a typical male. I have feminine features and gynecomastia and other things (which I wont mention) that did not make sense as to me being a typical male. I then learn that there are women who have complete AIS and even though they have xy chromosomes, there bodies convert all testosterone into estrogen. These women look, act and feel and appear and sound like a woman in every way, they even look more feminine than most women due to the condition. So now some of my family and friends are telling me I am no longer a Christian, because I am intersex and have always felt like a woman inside and that i have never really felt male even though I was raised male. I mean how in 6 months could I go from serving the Lord Jesus Christ and being saved since I was 16, and now I am no longer saved and will go to hell because I learned i am intersex and told them I have always felt different? How could that change my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I have been the same person I have always been. Can anyone explain to me why I am being treated this way? I have dated women always and have been attracted to women always, I don't want to be alone, I need a wife. I am 40 years old and still searching. What If I had Down's syndrome and that is also a condition, am I not allowed to love and be loved in return, just because i have a condition? That makes no sense. No that is not it at all, women who have AIS are women just as much as men who have XX male syndrome (also called de la Chapelle syndrome are men. You don't seem to understand the complexity of intersex conditions, 1 in 2000 births have this. 8

I saw a video on you tube of a woman who has AIS, doctors performed surgery on her to remove internal gonads , other than that she developed breasts, a female voice, a female body and a female mind. Men who have XX Chromosomes male syndrome are not women, they develop as men. Are you going to sit there and tell me that woman is not a woman? Well I am going to just further along my body to how I feel internally, I am going to treat my condition with hormones and hair removal and have other surgeries done. Just like any other condition I am going to do whatever i can to feel better about myself. So yes I am a woman inside and partially outside. But I am not attracted to men, I was not hard wired that way, so i will still be with a woman. I have already come to a happy spiritual place with all of this. I read a book called "Transgender Journeys, that talks about intersex women and transgender woman from 2 Christian Authors" I also read a book called "what the bible really says about homosexuality" written by a priest and a pastor. Judge me if you wish, but I am still a Christian, I would not deny Christ before men, and would gladly give my life to tell others the good news of salvation. I am not oppressed or possessed by demons, I am not seeking to deceive people, I am a child of God. I just want to let you all know that I also now consider myself transgender, because simply I have to make my body line up with the way i feel inside, I spent many months praying to God to take it away, he never did and this is on top of being intersex. I am sure most of you will not accept this, but I also will still be seeking a wife, as a woman in mind body and spirit, does that label me as a lesbian? Yeah I guess it does, but my pastor at a UCC Church is also a Lesbian, she is not filled with demons or preaching a false gospel, she does the same thing any other pastor would do. Let me share with you a vision/dream that I had just a month ago or so: I had a dream that was so amazing and so spiritual and an answer to my deepest subconscious question. OK I started out looking for a girl named Abby, in this area of the world I had never seen before, it was a mix of different types of buildings, with clouds and water rushing by under my feet alongside the buildings, she was there looking for someone or something, and i was trying to find her, but my attention turned to the North and directly in front. I looked up and saw more majestic white houses (sort of like what might be described as new Jerusalem...only thing it looked like) and I saw a huge wall of 9

water rushing towards me. It was almost on me when I became aware of the presence of God. I asked the question I had been wanting to ask him/her all this time. I said out-loud "Is it OK for me to be a woman"? In a female voice (the first time I had ever heard God speak as a woman) She/He said to me in a booming voice that hit me as the water rushed past my body and engulfed me.. "It is not OK for you to be a Man"! I was shocked! I said again "Did you just say its not ok for me to be a man"? Again the voice said "Yes" I asked again because the end of the sentence when God said "man" got cut off by the rushing water sound. Wow what a truly amazing thing to happen to me~ Then after i came back down from the higher area or plains, I was then surrounded by women who were showing me new technologies to transform my body,hair,makeup, and well just about everything! I saw myself as a complete woman with long dark hair and tan skin and very elegant and happy. The thing is I was asking God to tell me and I had just figured he/she would never do that and I gave up sort of in waiting for an answer. Then this happens! I am truly amazed and so at peace right now, you just have no idea how this feels. I had been actually praying for something like this to happen. I had not even considered that God would ever speak in a female voice, I only ever heard God once as a male voice and that was back in 2000 in a dream. What was interesting is how God responded to me. She/he did not answer me with a yes or a no. It was as if God was trying to get the point across in a more vivid and intense way! So you can probably go and tell me it was not God, but I know the difference between God and my own subconcious, once before I had a dream and God spoke to me in a booming male voice and told me "I know who you are, then said my name" see i was about to change my name and God didn't want me to hide and run away from my problems. BishopSEH I guess the relevant question is what are you going to do with this information? Do you intend to undergo gender reassignment (sex change)? Are you persuing relations of the same apparent gender? Do you into to if not already? There is a gift of the Holy Spirit called voluntary celibacy. It is exactly what it sounds like. you would give up any and all sexual relationships for the rest of your life. This would make issue pertaining to AIS and specifically the female characteristics which go along with it moot and allow you to lead a relatively normal life in all regard except sexual relations. 10

That aside, a genetic abnormality does not negate the gift of salvation. As your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit I would caution you to be careful with the feelings that this condition might bring into the foreground of your life. As always pray to the Lord for wisdom concerning His plan for you and follow it. Also pray for those that would condemn you for something which you have no control over and can not fix. Last, practice forgiveness for those that judge in ignorance. They don't know what you have to deal with and quite honestly they are probably more than a little confused and that can cause fear. Be at peace. The Lord will not abandon you, will not forsake you. you simply have a special challenge in your life that others do not. Are you up to this challenge the Lord has gifted you with? In Christ, Bishop SEH http://www.betterthanfaith.com/articles/be-a-good-christian-hermaphrodite Be a Good Christian Hermaphrodite Posted on July 20, 2008 by Kazz What does it mean to "Be a good Christian hermaphrodite"? How can we possibly know without consulting the Bible? Lets do that now. The Bible spends quite a bit of time talking about and legislating sex, and for many millions of people it is the single unquestionable source of perfect moral teachings. What then does the Bible say about the sexual relationships of intersexed people? Little to nothing. This leaves the few Christians who even consider the question with a dilemma. "Do I try to find an answer hidden in other Bible verses, do I make up my own answers, or do I simply dodge the issue in a way that cant be seen as sinful?" While most seem to take the latter approach and ignore the issue or give meaningless answers, some of the more moderate Christians actually understand the issue and take a more reasonable approach, ignoring the "slippery slope" to homosexuality, and accepting gender reassignment surgery and sex with the opposite of the chosen gender. Fundamentalist Christians on the other hand seem to have only one possible answer, as given by the infamous preacher "Brother Jed" to an intersexed friend of mine: Abstinence. He prescribed life long abstinence. The reason that no other answer was viable for him is that he shares the common fundamentalist idea, which appears to be supported by the Bible, that homosexuality is a horrible sin. If a physically intersexed person is allowed to 11

have sex with anyone then they would at least outwardly appear to be having homosexual sex, and there is no way a good queer-hating fundamentalist Christian could support such an "abomination". Sister Pat, one of Brother Jeds sidekicks, said that an intersexed person could get into heaven by "living as a good Christian Hermaphrodite", although what exactly this entails was never made clear. Brother Jed himself also opined that the reason some people are born intersexed is that their parents were bisexual. This shows a gross misunderstanding of genetics and sexuality, and basically punishes babies for their parents "sins" through the miracle of divine intervention. If these scapegoated children live their lives in complete devotion to God and abstain from (potentially homosexual) sex and all other sins to the best of their ability, will God, their omnipotent creator, perform the simple miracle of assigning them a singular, complete gender so they can then produce a family to worship him forever? The answer seems to be no. Like the miraculous healing of amputees, miraculous sexual reassignment does not happen. The reality is, like most people in general, many Christians do not know what actually causes people to be born intersexed, and they have just as little information about how these people should live their lives. Intersexed individuals (formerly described as "hermaphrodites" from the Greek god Hermaphroditus who possessed both male and female physical traits) are those who are neither exclusively male nor exclusively female. They may have biological characteristics that are both male and female, expressing physical traits (phenotype) of one sex but possessing the sex chromosomes (genotype) of the other. Variations in physical expression occur, and it is possible that someone who appears physically "normal" is, in fact, intersexed due to their genetic makeup. The birth rate of all of these "hermaphrodites" is generally 1%, and while this sounds low, remember this is one out of every 100 births[1]. In most societies intersexed people have a hard enough time already without trying to live by the conflicting and often unrealistic expectations of Christians and their outdated and inadequate book. The best an intersexed person can do is find what feels right, with the help of genetic testing and counseling if necessary, and with or without surgery just try to live life the best they can as the gender(s) that they feel they are.
1. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersexuality

http://www.ukapologetics.net/08/intersex.htm A Question I Was Asked: 12

'Where Do You Stand on Intersex Christians?' The full e mail: 'I note that you have made some very interesting comments on homosexuality; my question is: where do you stand on hermaphrodite and intersex Christian believer s?' My Reply: My! I was a little surprised by this question, but, okay, you have asked me, so let me consider it. In the comments which I will now make I will touch on the subject of sexual organs but I will try to be as discrete and tasteful as I can, but I want to give a full answer to this question (however, if any individual reader is easily upset by frank references to the human sexual organs, this might be the place to stop reading). Both intersexism and hermaphroditism are medical conditions; the more extreme condition is human hermaphroditism in which people normally have both male and female sexual organs - I mean, the whole lot! ['Aphrodite' was considered to have both male and female sex organs - source: Scholiast, 'Ilid,' II, 280]. In fact, I am reliably informed that virtually nobody has a set of organs of both sexes since that is physically impossible! What one finds is unusual variations: A young woman suddenly starts to develop a penis where there had (apparently) been a clitoris, or a young man reaches puberty and his penis suddenly diminishes and he develops female-like breats. Again, this is a medical condition, people obviously did not choose to be this way. Every single Christian should exercise compassion towards such people. I suppose the decision is usually made, where they are small children, to take away certain parts of their anatomy and to raise them either as boys or girls (that is, where the genital ambiguity is clear when they are small children, and sometimes that is not so). My understanding is that this is often a huge mistake and some such people (who had such procedures performed when small) later even committed suicide. I am told that it is now recognised that such children should be left as they are until reaching maturity so they can make their own informed choices. That sounds very wise. The big problem here, of course, is social; people always want to say that a particular child is either a boy or a girl - this is why surgery was usually applied to such children in the past. Many years ago I knew a nursing tutor, she told me that thousands of babies of unsure sexuality are born every year but a decision is quickly made to identify them either as 'boys' or 'girls,' often due to pressure from the new parents. Think about it: When somebody has a baby, isn't the first thing we all ask, "Did you have a boy or a girl?" Ever heard a new parent say, "Well, we are not sure yet"? But, in fact, this is what sometimes should be said. We all know, of course, that all men have a more female side to their nature and all women also have a more masculine side, that is long recognised, 13

nothing new about that, but intersexism is different because - in certain people - both male and female dispositions are roughly the same. I am told that many such people could live happily as either a man or a woman. The arrangement of their reproductive organs also varies. Many many years ago I noticed a very pretty young woman but was privately informed that she had no womb but did have a penis. She was not raised as a male because that part of her anatomy had, at first, appeared to be a clitoris. Yet she looked so pretty and feminine that she was surely raised in the correct way, though, of course, she would never bear children. In other cases, a 'boy' is born who has a very inadequate penis and is otherwise strongly feminine but since he has that particular organ he will be raised as a boy; but sometimes mistakes are made and, around puberty, the 'boy' starts developing breasts (this is exactly what happened to a 'lad' who was in my school year). Many people who have these issues later undergo sexual identity crises sometimes leading to them deciding to have genital rearrangement operations and are then, of course, probably going to be considered as 'transexuals' (although surely somewhat unfairly in their case; a true transexual is a person of one specific sex who changes to the other sex). According to a little research which I did, true hermaphrodites amount to far less than 1% of the population, but intersex people are far more numerous, but still less than 2%. I heard about one intersex individual who was raised as a boy, but from the age of about 35 lived the rest of his/her life as a woman. Since this person was truly 'intersex,' who of us can say that he/she did wrong? None of us! So the question I am asked is what happens when such people become Christians. I am not sure that I understand why the question even arises; these people have a medical condition and one they would not have chosen, at that. We don't ask: 'What happens if a cancer sufferer becomes a Christian,' or, 'what happens if a sufferer from chronic diabetes becomes a Christian.' Those matters are physical - not spiritual. The Holy Spirit of God is not hampered by such things. Let us just recall that many eunuchs became Christians in the first era of the Church. These people - whether voluntary or involuntary - had gone under the knife to have their sexuality changed - it did not hinder many of them from coming to Christ! This is one way which we may perceive how the New Covenant is, in some ways, drastically different to the Old Covenant (under which, let us remember, those who were emasculated were barred from the temple precincts). I must say that I would like to see far more compassion coming from my fellow evangelical Christians in this area. These people never chose to be the way they are! Yet we tend to very quickly write them off. I have no doubt that many people who later consider themselves as 'homosexual,' or, 'bisexual' are, in reality, intersexual. Problem is: that first word has become a well-known 'buzz expression' under which 'umbrella,' if you will, people may arrange themselves. 'Intersexism' never became a popular buzz word. I have only answered this question after carefully considering the medical advice of a Christian doctor, apart from recalling the comments of a vastly experienced nursing tutor whom I once knew. I hope that my frank use of 14

terms does not offend anybody. Robin A. Brace, January, 2009. http://www.gotquestions.org/hermaphrodites.html What does the Bible say about hermaphrodites? Question: "What does the Bible say about hermaphrodites?" Answer: Babies that are born with both male and female sexual organs, or characteristics of both organs, are called hermaphrodites or intersex. A child who is in an intersexual state is classified in one of three categories: 1) true hermaphrodite an infant born with both ovaries and testicles and has both male and female sex organs. 2) female pseudohermaphrodite a genetic female with male external sex organs. 3) male pseudohermaphrodite a genetic male with external sex organs that fail to develop properly, resulting in female or male/female physical characteristics. In times past, doctors would perform surgeries without first testing the infant to find out its true sex, and the child would sometimes grow up very obviously a man, with female genitalia. Now, specialists can perform an ultrasound, blood test, chromosome analysis, and even do exploratory surgery to find out the baby's true sex. The treatment is still controversial, however. Some believe that surgery and/or hormonal therapy should begin within the first 15 months of life, and others believe these things should be put off until the child is old enough to make his or her own decision about it. There are pros and cons for each side. Either way, any family with an intersexual infant should begin counseling, as should the child when he or she is old enough. When babies are developing in the womb, they all begin with sex organs that look female. If the baby is male, he begins to produce testosterone, and if the hormone reaches the tissues correctly, the external genitals become a scrotum and penis. Chromosomal or sex hormone abnormalities can produce an infant in an intersexual state. It can also be caused by a condition called congenital adrenal hyperplasia, which is a disease the blocks the baby's metabolism. It is not as uncommon as we might think; about 1 in every 2,000 newborns is born in an intersexual state. Babies are not born with physical disorders to punish their parents in any way. Although God created the earth perfectly, it soon brought destruction upon itself with the onset of human sin (Romans 5:12). Before the Flood in Genesis chapter 7 that wiped out almost all living things on the earth, people had the potential to live for several hundred years. After the Flood, human life spans grew progressively shorter, indicating a change in the environment which resulted in damage to the human genetic structure. This also explains why incest was necessary for the population of the earth in Genesis, but was forbidden later in the laws of Leviticus (18:6-18). 15

Now, thousands of years later as sin continues to permeate the world, the human race has been bombarded with every kind of sickness, disease, disorder and birth defect we can imagine. It is very possible for a child born with both sex organs to grow up to have a healthy view of sexuality and successful relationships. From early on, the child should be taught how valuable, loved and accepted he is by his family and also by God. He or she is not a victim of divine judgment, but God has a plan for each one of us that will bring Him glory, as we can learn from a man who was healed by Jesus Christ: 'Teacher,' his disciples asked him, 'why was this man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents?' 'It was not because of his sins or his parents' sins,' Jesus answered. 'He was born blind so the power of God could be seen in him' (John 9:2-3). Recommended Resources: Coming out of Homosexuality by Bob Davies and 101 Frequently Asked Questions About Homosexuality by Mike Haley and Logos Bible Software.

http://www.evidenceforchristianity.org/what-is-the-christian-way-to-deal-withpeople-who-are-born-intersexual-have-traits-of-both-genders/ What is the Christian way to deal with people who are born intersexual (have traits of both genders)? Question: I have been reading some articles on Wikipedia lately about different categories of sexual preference and gender identities. One interesting category is "intersexual people." These people are ones whose biological sex is ambiguous because they have both male and female anatomies. Many in the past and even today believe that such people cannot be classified as either male or female. But the Bible clearly says there are only males and females and says nothing about intersexual people. If such people wish to live according to the Bible, how should they live? Whom should they marry if they wish to marry? This question is unclear to me because the Bible clearly says marriage is between a man and a woman and says nothing about marriage involving a person whose sex cannot be classified as either. Answer; I am sure you can understand that I am not an expert on the genetics, physiology and psychology of such people. I believe that people who, unfortunately, have been born with such genetic abnormalities ought to be handled with compassion and love. I am afraid that many will blame such people for things they cannot control. It would be tragic of Christians made life even more difficult for "intersexual" people by being judgmental or by forcing legalistic definitions and categorizations on them. Let me be honest. I 16

really do not know how to best help people who are born with gender not well defined. I believe that probably it is best for them to somehow choose one gender or the other and do their best to live life with this identity. Bottom line, the Bible does not give a commandment which we can apply in a black and white way to this issue. I do not believe that people would have even understood the terms we are using and God did not address the question in the Bible. Therefore it is our job as Christians to find a compassionate and biblical way to help such people navigate life. It seems likely that people with no defined gender ought to remain unmarried because of the problem which would be created for their spouse, as you suggest. I think that I would give this advice, but until I am faced with a particular case, I do not want to give a hard and fast "ruling" which I believe I am not in a position to give. To summarize; I suggest compassion. John Oakes

http://harvestdaysblog.wordpress.com/2013/11/26/my-christian-life-with-aisandrogen-insensitivity-syndrome/ My Christian life with AIS An Intersex condition Posted on November 26, 2013 I guess the first thing I have to define is what AIS is. AIS or Androgen insensitivity syndrome is a congenital birth defect (with two distinct variations) which affects a childs development in the womb and again in puberty. People with this condition are genetically male, with one X chromosome and one Y chromosome in each cell but because their bodies are unable to respond to certain male sex hormones in the womb and then later in puberty called androgens the following occurs. Variation #1: Complete androgen insensitivity syndrome (CAIS) Approximately 99% This occurs when the body cannot use androgens at all. People with this form of the condition are born with normal sex characteristics of females, but do not have a uterus and therefore do not menstruate and are unable to conceive a child (infertile). They are raised as females and have a female gender identity. Affected individuals have male internal sex organs (testes) that are undescended, which means they are abnormally located in the pelvis or abdomen. Undescended testes can become cancerous later in life if they are not surgically removed. These individuals otherwise, are normal females despite an XY chromosome. Variation #2: Partial androgen insensitivity syndrome (PAIS) Approximately 1% 17

This occurs when some of the bodys cells are sensitive to the effects of androgens in the womb and again later in puberty. People with partial androgen insensitivity (also called Reifenstein syndrome) can have, at birth, relatively normal female sex characteristics, both male and female sex characteristics, or relatively normal male sex characteristics. They may be raised as males or as females. They have either a male or a female gender identity based on how the brain develops physically (male or female) in the womb. This brains physical development is fully independent from the given genital birth sex if a determination is possible. To summarize, those with partial AIS, by the end of puberty, are a random mix of both male and female primary and secondary gender characteristic and a random gender identity. I have PAIS or the partial version and was born with ambiguous genitalia, but because I didnt have female genitalia, they called me male. Its not that I had male genitalia in any real discerning way either, its just that it wasnt female; so I was brought up male. However, unbeknownst to everyone at my birth my brain/gender identity was female. Part of the reason for sharing my condition with my fellow Christians is to break the cycle of shame Christians and the uninformed place on, those who have this birth defect and their parents. Intersexed conditions, in general, are widely misunderstood as a lifestyle choice, not the birth defect it is. As such, doctors routinely tell the parents to never speak of the condition their child has with anyone for fear of abuse and shame that will ensue by others. Further, parents are coerced and pressured into surgically altering their children at birth to make them appear normal, despite the overwhelming widespread cry from those who had this done to them and who are now having to live with bad medical choices as adults inflicted on them as infants without their consent. 1 in every 400 births require a gender team to determine the sex of the newborn child because the genitalia is so indeterminate and ambiguous. This is a common issue facing this world and it is not new. Its as old as when Jesus walked the earth, its just that with the advent of the internet, those who have lived lives of shame are now sharing their experiences and are banding together and are becoming vocal to the mistreatment by mainstream society and the medical community. I came to understand that I had an intersexed condition based on my ambiguous birth genitalia and my physical female and male traits developed in puberty. In March, of 2013 I was finally formally diagnosed with Partial AIS by my endocrinologist. I must say that having Partial AIS is a vicious variation of AIS! To be born with 18

a birth defect that affect brain development, so that your perceived gender doesnt match what little you are born with made my life a misery. To be declared male and treated as one, and yet, to know early on in your life that you are a girl. To live a life in the shadows, always yearning for a life I would never have, and a happiness and completeness as a girl that was always out of my grasp; leading to one day, as a small child losing all hope and simply walking in sadness and acceptance of the lifelong death sentence thrust on me as a way of life. To express your genuine self and to be told, in essence, by your parents that who you are is wrong, and that your true self is not to be celebrated; but hidden. To be told, This is who we say you are, and unless you conform we will not accept or love you. Being forced to conform ruined me. I dont blame them, they didnt know this was 1970, but I was female and expressing myself as a girl and they, over time, put me down for it, ridiculed me, and in time, ultimately destroyed my spirit and took away all hope as they forced me to conform to a gender I never was. Because I was required to take on a false persona to be accepted by my parents, it got to a point that by seven, they took me to the hospital for what they believed was the beginning of an ulcer. The stress of not being real and authentic in order to be loved was simply too much for my young heart to handle. I yearned for a life I would never have. I was excluded by everyone by the age of 6. Unwanted by the girls and not wanting to be with the boys, I played alone and generally spoke to no one. I was fully isolated and alone, even in a classroom full of students. Add to that, I desperately yearned to be a girl and saw the girls in their clothes and long hair and them going to ballet classes, knowing that I was supposed to be with them but knowing that I was not allowed and that I was bad for expressing my true self. Having in essence, my nose rubbed in it every day by girls being accepted and praised for expressing their true selves as girls, while I was being shamed for it, began a bitterness in me, that I have finally been able to overcome with Gods help. Im not sure when, but before the age of 10 or so, I gave up hope. I pushed it all out of my mind as a way to cope. I took my deepest yearning desire to be myself and gave up hope that it would ever happen. I simply gave up and fell in line with what I was told regarding who I was. Its a sad life for a child to be void of hope. My sister-in-law, who knew me from the age of five, said that, they all saw how sad I was all the time, but they didnt know why. By the age of 13 I turning to food to cope weighing over 200 pounds. Then as puberty began, I was strictly developing as a female. I was take to the hospital at 14 and it was determined that my hormone levels were normal for a 14 year old girl not a boy! Yet, at that point, despite my body only presenting female as I developed in puberty, everyone insisted I was male. I have always had normal estrogen levels for a normal woman, it is a byproduct of androgens that are unabsorbed because of AIS. The body turns 19

them into estrogens. At 31 I came to know Jesus as my Lord and savior praise God! At 38, after a lifetime of forced conformity trying to be something I wasnt, and living such a lonely sad life, I finally set things right and was set free to be myself and be genuine. What others experience at 5 years old, I did not have the opportunity to find until I was 38 to simply be real and authentic and express my true self without ridicule. Yet, I never found that. Every Christian in my life in that time, I told about my past so I could seek love and understanding and healing, turned on me viciously, demanding I go back to a life of misery and conform to what they determined was acceptable just like my parents had. They didnt help me heal but simply added to my pain. They saw me setting my gender correct as a sexually perverted lifestyle choice but what they didnt know was that I had never lusted and have never been at all interested in sex. So for them to pigeon hole me as some sort of sex pervert, in need of deliverance from the deception I was under by the enemy, and to, fully surrender to Jesus was criminal to assert on me, without any understanding of my true condition. Not long after that, I began to lie about my past to gain acceptance by Christians in my life. I kept that going until the late fall of 2012 when God finally and fully convicted me. God gave me two demands. Tell anyone in my life in future who I was to have a close personal relationship with (including my spiritual authority) the truth of my past and secondly, to go back and confess my lying to everyone in my past who I could find who I lied to and to tell them the truth about my past. Like Zacchaeus, to not only stop robbing people but to give back what he took. In essence, I was commanded by the Lord to enter into all new close relationships with full disclosure and to go back and confess to those who I had lied to and come clean and seek their forgiveness for my deception and sin. I obeyed the Lord fully and of the 26 I confessed to who I had contact with from my past, surprisingly, not one turned on me. A few months later I was formally diagnosed with AIS and it all finally made sense. I have to admit a huge jealousy against those who have CAIS- the complete version. I call PAIS a vicious variation, because for me, I was erroneously deemed male at birth. For CAIS women, they are totally normal looking females and called female at birth with absolutely normal female genitalia. They dont experience the brutal ignorance and indifference I have faced. They cant have kids, and yes, they too have their own struggles, but still they dont have anyone attacking them like I have. To all who know them they are female. They can get married and have normal sex lives and are absolutely 20

beautiful. They fully developed in puberty as women and not partially like me. They lead normal lives and have loving husbands and partners. Many adopt and are grandmothers. Yet, I know that I cannot change who God has made me to be. Being intersexed is very common, and so, unfortunately, is the shame, secrecy, and Christian abuse associated with it. What I came to see, is that living a life of lies to find acceptance is a hollow life; like winning a tour de France by cheating. Yeah, I had acceptance, but not for the real me, but for the lie of my past that I told. They believed in my lie; not in me. I was still trapped just like I was in my past, just in a different way so God has commanded me to be genuine, real and transparent and I am so pleased to do just that and be joyful in the process. I actually now want to share my past, before I was petrified if anyone found out, now I have such confidence to share this as he changes my heart. Do peoples opinions of me define me? Does AIS define me? NO! God defines me, not people or a medical condition. I am so thankful to so many in my life who have embraced me, and love me, and if anything, even more now. I have AIS, but it is my cross to bear, and one I have now fully embraced. Im so blessed and thankful for a positive outlook on all this despite the brutality of others and and embittering misery of my past. To be so willing to pick up this cross and carry it for Gods glory! with joy and determination! I now live a shame-free life, praising God for how he made me. I am now genuine and real and I dont care if people have a problem with me they can take it up with God, I am simply being myself, genuine and real, and I refuse to feel shame for being authentic and for something I was born with. As a Christian wrote to me, You are meant to teach us all about love and understanding. Today I choose and accept that this as the way that God is choosing to use me, To teach us all about love and understanding. I am not an intersexed Christian. I am a Christian whom God chose to make in a very unique way for his honor and so the glory of God could be seen in me John 9:3 (Jesus speaking about someone else with a birth defect) I have come to see that Matthew 19:11-12a is about me. Not everyone can accept this statement, Jesus said. Only those whom God helps. Some are born as eunuchs, Thats me and no, not everyone has accepted it, or understands it. I have been given the task of being an instrument for God to use in this verse to help saints see others through our saviors eyes and not their own to gain the deeply loving heart that he has for us. I am honored for this calling, and I know that this includes, one day, going very public about having my 21

condition in a chapter in a non-fiction book. My calling is not about being an advocate for change in how Christians treat Intersexed people, but to be an instrument for God to change how we love and understand all those in our life who do not fit in the norm. Its about changing our hearts to be more like Christ, and to see others as Christ sees them and to stop judging others. My calling has nothing to do with gaining acceptance for Intersexed individuals. He has made me to be a great tester of a persons true heart. The real heart of a person emerges when confronted by my condition, and ultimately, by my setting things correct and proper when I was 38. I find that ridged narrow minded Christians are the ones who cannot accept this about me and ultimate attack me. James MacDonald says that narrow minded Christians cannot see the move of God around them. So, it seems to me, that these folks have much more to be concerned about than me. Its quite the life, to be either greatly loved and celebrated by Christians or to be hated and attacked by those who turn out to be narrow minded Pharisaical Christians. I must admit however, that its not easy for me to love those who actively try to persecute me, even now, for how I was born, and yet, the bible tells me to do just that! Bless those who persecute you. Dont curse them; pray that God will bless them. Romans 12:14 May I truly love these people and I pray that God would truly bless them and may I be an instrument for God however he chooses to use me. http://thirstingfortruth.com/what-about-intersexism/ Question: What does the church say, in your opinion, about relationships like marriage or sex between two individuals when one of them is intersex? I have asked several persons in the Catholic faith about this and have never received a response. To me, sex is biological, however, gender is socially constructed. I guess I cant read your blog with a means for understanding until I acquire some context for how intersexism is viewed. Thanks for the question. Thats a great question and its one that I wasnt really prepared to give a sufficient answer to so if you would have asked me in person I would have probably said I dont know. Let me get back to you on that. Thats just to say that this is probably something many people dont have a good grasp on so I can understand the difficulty of answering this without prior research even if one knows the Churchs teachings. Thats why I am glad that you asked this question because this wasnt even on my radar so you gave me something to research and think about. 22

Of course, I have heard of the term intersex many times before and I know a good amount about Church teaching. However, I didnt respond right away because even though I can somewhat speak confidently on Church teaching I dont really know enough about current scientific intersex research to speak confidently from a biological point of view. Im not a biologist. I am open to learning more about the issue from experts so if you can point me to any studies or reliable sources on the issue I would appreciate that. I do, however, consider myself somewhat of a contender in the field of Philosophy and Theology so what I can do is give you my opinion. From what I have read, so far, this is a very complex issue and it is likely that each case will have to be treated independently rather than as a whole. Ill explain this in a second. The first thing I would say in response to your question/comment concerns your statement that sex is biological, however, gender is socially constructed. If I can respectfully disagree I dont believe that is the case. The Catholic Church teaches that the body and spirit are one. We are not souls trapped in a body. We are body-persons. The soul and body are totally integrated and are what makes up the person. This is why death is so abhorrent. If youve ever seen a dead body than you know that the body without the soul is a horrible sight to bear. We know instinctively that something is wrong with that picture and its because death is an abomination something that we were never intended to experience but do as a result of sin. So to say that sex is simply biological is to reduce the body to something of a shell or a container that keeps our soul from spilling out all over the place. Of course, Im somewhat joking but the point is that it does reduce the part that the body, and sex, play in the life of the human person and the purpose of their existence. Additionally, you say that gender is socially constructed. Why do you think that is the case? By its original definition sex and gender are the same thing. Its like saying fingers are biological but pinkies (or pinkys? I dont know) are socially constructed. Its just another word to describe the same thing. I assume what you are getting at is the boy likes blue and girl likes pink thing and thats a totally different subject. Concerning intersexism/hermaphroditism (I know that intersex is the preferred term but just in case anyone else didnt make the connection), heres what I found out from reading a couple things here and there: First, theres a lot of convoluted information on the matter because so many people seem to be using the terms incorrectly. It might be that they are using the term incorrectly or that they are just loosely using the word intersex or hermaphrodite to encompass all types of situations when really there are very different situations that shouldnt be grouped together. For example, most cases concern a male having some incomplete or undeveloped female parts or vise versa. The gender of the person is usually established by a majority of one sex and some incomplete parts of another sex. The research I found on true, or perfect, hermaphroditism where there is such a mix of gonads and chromosomes that the sex cannot be determined at birth is something that occurs in plants and animals and is extremely rare in humans (I read in various places that it was extremely rare but didnt find any documented cases just 23

people saying I knew this person who had that). If you can find me some that would be helpful. The issue of a person being fully established as a male or female and later getting a sex change because they identified more with the opposite sex is a psychological issue and not a biological one. Thats a totally different issue that I dont believe should be grouped in with the term intersexism. Identity issues, whether they deal with gender or not, are shared by various types of people for a variety of reasons and can usually be linked to mental or social disorders. However, I did also read of some extremely rare cases of hermaphroditism where the sex could not be determined at birth but then around the stage of puberty the person fully established the biological traits of a male (I read that this is more the case that a male develops later on). A female was incorrectly raised as a female. Thats a complex situation that requires individual attention and, again, I didnt find any documented cases of such just hearsay stories. My main sources of information: http://www.who.int/genomics/gender/en/index1.html and http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001669.htm Each person is an individual and should be treated as such. Each person is unique and has a dignity that is not based on who they are and what they do but rather that they are a child of God. I think I need to write another article to make sure people dont read in to what Im saying on the issue of sex and marriage. I believe sex was designed to portray the image of God but a persons dignity is not based on their sex (gender) or whether or not they are even married. Sex isnt the only way we image God. We have celibate priests and religious women who image God in a way that is, in fact, superior to marriage and is considered the closest thing we have to a Heavenly marriage (or the marriage we will experience in Heaven). The reason I wrote the article and made the statement that sex is the best proof for Gods existence is because I believe that since our culture is obsessed with sex and saturated with the wrong image of sex we are somewhat poisoned and unable to see clearly the message that God intended to convey through our sexuality. Therefore, the greatest antidote is to meditate on Gods original plan for our sexuality. I never said that would lead to marriage. It could lead some to a single life or celibate life. Its just a sign that points to something greater than itself. The bottom line is that just because there are people born with defects or because there are anomalys in creation doesnt mean that the teaching needs to change. Let me give an example of a fake Church teaching (just so there is no confusion this is made up by me to make a point). If the Church taught that hands and arms were created by God to give people the ability to build stuff, plant gardens and hold their babies that wouldnt have to change when a person is born without arms. Actually, a better example is that God gave us an intellect to be able to know him through the use of prayer and reason (this is a real teaching). Does this mean that this teaching must be false since persons who are born with mental disabilities may not have the capacity to contemplate the mystery of God on a mature level? Just because there are defects doesnt mean that there isnt a design or that the design is flawed. Why God allows evil, people to be born with mental or physical disabilities, or to be born as intersex persons is a mystery. Mysteries are not 24

something that we cannot know anything about. They are just something that we cannot definitively know. If a person is born with an ambiguous sex makeup I would view that as a birth defect. Each individual case would have to be treated as an individual case. The beauty of Church teaching is that every person has a vocation or a calling. Each person is a product of loving creation and made in the image of God. Sometimes we dont see this right away but the Catholic Church is filled with stories of saints of unfounded courage and unlikely heroic qualities in spite of their weakness. Christianity is based on the story of a King who was prophesied to be a savior but doubted by his own people due to apparent weakness. He gave his self up willingly to be crucified and he did all this to be an example of holiness for us. God uses the weak to do his work. St. Paul says, in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christs power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christs sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. All this is to say that persons born into very difficult situations sometimes have the greatest opportunity to witness to the world what it means to be a true Christian. Just because they cant marry doesnt mean they cannot proclaim the same truth proclaimed through marriage. In fact, much like celibate single persons or celibate religious they have the ability to speak that message even louder then those who are married. Finally, to answer your question directly: what does the Church say in regards to marriage? The Church defines marriage as the union of two persons, male and female, who have the ability to consummate that marriage. Those two persons must 1) come to the altar of their own free will 2) plan to give a total gift of themselves to the other and reserve nothing 3) they must plan to be faithful to the other person until death do them part and 4) they must be open to children from God. Each case should be handled individually but I can try to give some general guidelines based on the above Church teaching. I would say that the biological sex of the person must be established definitively by medical science for them to be able to consider marriage with someone of the opposite sex. If it cannot be determined than that person will likely not be allowed to marry in the Church. Similarly, someone who considers themselves male (or identifies more as male) when they are definitively, and unquestionably, biologically female will not be allowed to marry a male. I hope you read the articles to get a better idea of why that is the Church teaching. Marriage isnt just a lifelong partnership. The Catholic Church views it as something eternally greater than that and proclaims that the design of marriage is one that has a purpose greater than the two people who are marrying. The two persons that are marrying will speak volumes to the world through their marriage and the message that they convey can either testify to Gods existence or proclaim the exact opposite. That should give you a better context in which to read the two articles. 25

See Lust Leads to Atheism and Sex: the best proof for Gods existence http://www.reasonablefaith.org/dating-advice-for-hermaphrodites Dating Advice for Hermaphrodites Dr. Craig, My question concerns those in the intersexed community. I myself am not this way, but I have read about those born with both male and female reproductive organs. To get to the point, what is the moral thing to do for a hermaphrodite? Must they remain single? If they decide to engage in a relationship, how will they determine which sex to date? Would it be wrong to date both? I am well aware of what the bible has to say about engaging in homosexual activity, but would it be considered moral for someone who has both reproductive organs to choose which gender to date? Does a hermaphrodite know their true sexual identity? Can biological science determine it? I hope you can provide a Christian perspective on this matter because this question has troubled me for quite some time. Thank you, Daniel Yours is an intriguing question, Daniel, about which I unfortunately know nothing. So I've asked one of our Reasonable Faith volunteers who has done some thinking in this area to address your question. I think you'll find his response below to be both interesting and illuminating. Wm LC Your questions are good and important ones, Daniel, and unfortunately the Christian community at large tends to avoid questions like these. Let me preface my comments by saying that I'm not an expert in this matter; nonetheless, I'll do my best to think clearly about the issues. I'll take your questions one at a time (I've re-worded some). 1. What is the moral thing to do for a hermaphrodite, remain single, or date; and if to date, whom? It is perhaps best to start by making the distinction between gender and sex. Some think that one's sex determines one's gender, while others think gender is completely "socially constructed," so that differences between the male sex and the female sex are nothing different than one's sexual organs. It is important to realize that no one could ever prove that all gender is socially constructed. (At most what could be established is that some gender characteristics manifest themselves differently or not at all in certain 26

communities or cultures.) I don't think taking a stand either way matters much to answering your question. (My own view is that not all gender is socially constructed, thus at least some gender is determined by sex). Either there is a fact of the matter as to which sex a person is, or there isn't. Fortunately, there is good reason to think that a sex is determined genetically. Hermaphrodites suffer, as you are aware, a birth defect of having at least both sex organs partially developed. For the record: it's an extremely rare medical condition, and it is important to know that they are distinct from transgender folkwho usually suffer from hormonal imbalances or psychological problems (or both) causing gender confusion. I believe the proper treatment for them is psychiatric help (to normalize the hormonal levels) and therapy. Transgender people should also use medical science (DNA testing) to help identify their true gender. So far then: sex is determined genetically. If it is, then a person is either a male or a female, and in either case, a homosexual relationship is morally prohibited. This implies that hermaphrodites cannot choose to date both sexes; they must date the person who has the opposite sex as them. Medical procedures could aid in restoring persons to their appropriate sex. If, indeed, they have a unique sex (i.e., are either male or female and not both), then dating becomes, as for non-hermaphrodite persons, morally permissible. 2. Can they choose which gender to date? No. (See above) 3. Do they know their true sexual identity? I do not know the answer to this question, but my previous answers don't depend upon having an answer. It is important (again) to make the distinction between transgender persons and hermaphrodite persons. Hermaphrodite persons suffer a biological defect, which, strictly speaking, implies nothing about gender confusion (although they might also be gender confused). Transgender persons suffer gender confusion because of psychological and/or hormonal reasons. Some conclude that if someone is born with only a male sex organ but is strongly confused about his gender (or strongly thinks he is female) then he might really be female. The logical form of this reasoning, however, is completely fallacious. How one feels about one's gender doesn't determine gender. To give a crude example: If I wake up feeling like I can fly, am I a bird? No. Someone might object to this example because "being a bird" is determined physically, but on their view gender isn't. We could change the example, then: If I wake up feeling like the President of the U.S., am I he? Of course not; and it's important to this example that the property of being the President of the U.S. is a socially constructed propertye.g., it's not that some but not others are born with the attribute/property of "being a future President of the U.S."that's crazy. So feeling doesn't determine gender. 27

4. Can biological science determine their true sexual identity? In most cases, I think so. Extreme forms of hermaphroditism, where even the chromosomal identity is unclear is either extremely rare or hasn't occurred in humans, since (to my knowledge) there is no known "true hermaphrodite" human. I hope this helps some. Best, S. by William Lane Craig

http://www.equip.org/bible_answers/how-do-biblical-ethics-apply-tohermaphrodites/ How do biblical ethics apply to hermaphrodites? This article is from Hank Hanegraaff, The Complete Bible Answer Book Collectors Edition (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2008) The term hermaphrodite is derived from conjoining the name of the Greek god Hermes with the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Today, hermaphroditism is appropriately referred to as intersex or as a disorder of sex development (DSD). Regardless of the term used, confusion reigns on how to respond to this disorder. First, intersex refers to the rare condition of individuals who are born with both male and female reproductive organs and sex glands, and in even rarer cases both XX and XY chromosomes. The medical treatment for this disorder involves the surgical and hormonal assignment of gender, which ideally should be made on the basis of all the relevant factors (e.g., chromosomal, neural, psychological, behavioral, and the like). If there is reasonable certainty that a medical mistake was made in the assignment of gender, it would not be beyond biblical bounds to prayerfully consider reassignment. As with the treatment of any rare disorder, gender assignment is complex and subject to human error; thus, it is crucial to seek the most competent biblical and medical counsel. Furthermore, being born with genetic, psychological, or hormonal abnormalities is no more license for sexual sin than being born with violent tendencies is license for violence. Thus, if a same-sex attraction develops, celibacy and singleness, as opposed to homosexual licentiousness, is the proper response (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:8). Indeed, anyone suffering from gender confusion should not pursue marriage until the confusion has been biblically resolved. Though this may seem harsh, it is no different than the requirement 28

placed on all believers to die to sin and live for righteousness through the power of Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6). Finally, it is crucial to recognize that all disorders, diseases, deformities, decay, and death ultimately result from the Fall. While sin, suffering, and sickness are present realities, we have the certain promise that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). For further study, see Scott B. Rae, Moral Choices, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000). As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? Neither this man nor his parents sinned, said Jesus, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. John 9:1-3: December 6th, 2011 by Christian Research Institute | Type: Standard http://carm.org/hermaphrodites What about hermaphrodites? by Matt Slick A hermaphrodite is a person who possesses the sexual organs of both male and female. The Bible does not address hermaphroditism. Therefore, it is difficult to ascertain doctrinally the Lord's position about them. Nevertheless, what are we to make of hermaphrodites? God's intention of the genders is that those born males act like males and those born females act like females. But, in rare instances there are babies born with the sexual organs of both sexes. Why is this? First of all, sin is in the world and it sometimes takes its tolls on our bodies resulting in various deformities. Nevertheless, in the case of hermaphroditism, the identity of the individual is still intended by God to be one or the other. After all, God would not make someone in contradiction to His created order and purpose. This means the hermaphrodite, thought physically ambiguous, does possess an identity of one or the other. It would seem best, then, to let the hermaphrodite grow and decide with which gender to side since he/she would know his/her own identity internally. If surgery is elected to make the decision permanent by altering the body to represent one or the other gender, then that seems like a reasonable choice to make. Second, it appears that most, if not all, hermaphrodites have a definite side 29

they take as they develop since there is an internal genetic (XX, XY) dominance even though there is an external ambiguity. It is the internal genetic dominance that determines male and female -- even though sometimes mutations occur that leave both sexual organs. In some cases, there are hermaphrodites who are distinctly male in appearance yet have female sexual organs. There are also those who appear decidedly feminine in physical appearance yet possess male sexual organs. Either way, the genetic dominance is the gender and the person will manifest that dominance as he or she matures.

http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/40318 Why does God allow hermaphrodites to be born? January 9th, 2006 Shabba on January 9th, 2006 I don't think this is very good wording for the question (I notice it has been edited since it was first posted), however I believe that the my original answer is still appropriate. Every person has a character - a basic personality that is given to them/programmed into them during their formative time. You get happy, playful babies, you get whingy babies, you get sleepy babies - different personalities, even at that stage. As children grow, their natural predispositions begin to come out - including gender identity. Even without our intervention, boys and girls learn that they are different, and are affected by different hormones or things. Put simply, they naturally grow up differently. What I say about people being born 'babies', is that there is no sexual preference or any other kind of advanced cognitive preferences (things they choose) in a baby's life. Although they are gender specific, babies are not sexual creatures. How can a baby be homosexual? They aren't sexual in the first place. It's only as they grow and experience life and their own development that they become AWARE of gender differences, and their own predisposition, and combined with their growing up environment and experiences, they make choices. Some choose to become chaste or virtuous (for lack of better words), others choose to become promiscuous. Most choose to be heterosexual, some choose to be homosexual. Original answer. I don't think anybody could speak on God's behalf and give a satisfactory answer. Truth be told, we do not know the mind of God that well. 30

What we do know is that with the fall of Adam and Eve, and Satan taking their authority, that God has stepped back to allow us to run our course. We have our free choice, and Satan (to a degree) has his. We know that God allows suffering and trials - the bible explains these in several ways. For Christians they may be tests of endurance, or lessons to help us grow and build character. Other suffering can be consequences for sin (not god's punishment, but natural consequences). We also need to acknowledge that we bring a lot of our suffering on ourselves. In relation to hermaphrodites, and other issues such as disability, birth defects and such, we need to remember that when Adam and Eve sinned, death and disease were unleashed on the world. These things are a symptom of our own imperfection and decaying nature. Coupled with the fact that we've spent the past thousand years or so poisoning ourselves and poisoning the world around us, it is little wonder that such things happen. God gives us the gift of free choice, but with that comes the blessing/curse of consequences. A lot of the sickness, death and disability we see in the world is simply a natural consequence of the toxic environment and unhealthy lifestyles we live in. God loves all of his creation just the same, but we are all imperfect - some in one way, some in others. However, he does not discriminate against our differences. Membership of his family and entrance into eternal life are based on the same requirements for all people, and their physical attributes have absolutely nothing to do with it. One commenter asked what hermaphrodites were to do. The simple answer is: the same as the rest of us - live life and make choices. I believe the original question may have been questioning the issue of the hermaphrodites' sexual abilities (as in being able to have sex as both 'male' and 'female'), and the issues of homosexuality. Again, this is a choice they have to make. Obviously it will be based on the ingrained character they were born with, along with their own identity that they would have developed from growing up. If the person has been taught by others that they are a sex freak, then they'll probably turn into one, unless they consciously choose otherwise. This may sound irrelevant, but I recomment the Jet Li movie "Unleashed" to show how powerful these influences can be, and an example of making a choice. A hermaphrodite is no different to any other human being on this earth. All it means is that they have a couple of extra choices to make that you or I thankfully haven't been burdened with. by Anonymous on January 13th, 2006 I don't have a good answer, other than to point out that all of us are born with various levels of imperfection; some more so than others. Why does God 31

allow some people to be born with Down's Syndrome or other severe mental defects? Why does God allow some of us to be born with a genetic predisposition to such diseases as diabetes? Why does God allow some people to be born with an excessive tendency toward pedophilia, homosexuality, or other sexual evils? For whatever reason, God does allow us all of us to be born in ways that are imperfect. I don't see that the particular condition about which this question is asked is really any different. by Alatea on January 12th, 2006 Because God loves everyone! We are God s greatest creation and He loves us all. Perhaps this is one of the ways He tests our love for one another. Perhaps we need to learn about acceptance, differences in appearance, skin colour, gender, lifestyle, culture and sexual preference. Most of all we need to learn that "personal judgement" is both wrong an unloving. Hermaphrodites are people first yet the question suggests God made an error in allowing them to be born. The same has been suggested about others too. God doesn't make errors - we do! In His perfection He cannot make errors but humans like to think that He does. The scholars and interpreters can say what they want but if we love God first then what follows is loving all that He created. Remember He created everything with love. Rather than judgements if we could be there for the person who needs love then that would be one way of loving God. If we could all do that then together we could end all wars. Our judgements and ego prevent us from doing God's will. Answers101 on February 19th, 2006 I think the same reason God allows anyone else to be born because medical anomalies happen because sin was introduced into the world and when sin entered into the world, so did germs, bacteria, diseases, famines, and genetic mutations, which can lead to children being born hermaphrodites. I think this is the best answer. God loves each and everyone of us equally because He doesn't choose favorites and just as with anything else sometimes medical anomalies just happen and it's not that God can't prevent it, or change it, I simply think that because we have such a short time on life that God allows things to happen because some day everything will be made right again MisterKami on January 28th, 2012 What's the problem with hermaphrodites anyway? Or are we only talking about the human variation and birth defects? In that case, I don't even think God is creating them or allowing or whatever.. 32

bagicide stayed 10 months too long on December 31st, 2009 Do you think God afflicts people with genetic conditions on purpose? Do you believe God gave my child cancer on purpose? The best explanation I've heard is this: sin broke even the natural world. If you look at Genesis, God says that even the ground is cursed because of Adam and Eve. He says it will take painful toil to bring any food from it. It will produce thorns and thistles because of sin. Sometimes when you break something, it can't be easily fixed anymore. There isn't any easy or clear solution. You've probably experienced breaking a favorite toy as a kid and mourning it because plastic can't be effectively glued. Even the very soil is broken by sin. The natural world no longer works the way it was supposed to work. That being the case, everything has changed. Our DNA doesn't work right anymore than any other part of the natural world. Sometimes that causes children to be born with mistake in their DNA, or in the expression of the DNA in the presence of environmental factors which are themselves the product of that broken world. That means some kids are born with genetic disorders, like my child (if you want to know more, look at my profile). Other kids bodies don't grow right in the presence of their mother's hormones, immune system or environmental chemicals that have found their way into their mothers bodies. Now, God could kill that child and not allow it to be born. God could fix the child's body, or help the child get to doctors and sometimes He does those things. But you have to remember that while we only see the temporary condition of this world and want God to fix things here, God is more interested in getting our hearts and souls fixed and getting us out of this broken world. Sometimes it is easier for a person to get there precisely when they are dealing with terrible things here. We are more open to God when we can't fix things ourselves. It would be a pretty terrible God who wanted to keep us here in this broken place. So most often He will leave us with that suffering, and all of us suffer in some way, so that we will seek Him and be able to get out of here. Its a temporary loss for a longterm gain. God allows that hermaphrodite to be born precisely so that child can seek Him and in seeking Him, be taken out of this broken world and into a fixed one. valerytozer on January 28th, 2010

I was born. I live and breath and bleed like you, "God allow hermaphrodites to be born?" If "GOD" did not want satin to be born, Wouldn't "HE" have not created him? I Live because YOU live, What the * kind of "?" is that??? Because you Humans are rude! because you are not perfect, I am not either but I am a lot closer then you are! I have the best of both worlds i can father children and give birth! YOU CAN NOT! ewwww the never of some HUMANS

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HOW DARE YOU!!!! At that matter, Why did "GOD" Allow Adam and Eve to live after they Disobeyed him! (hermaphrodite or pseudohermaphrodite) I was born with both "Parts" at 5 they somewhat closed my female part and when i was 13 wanted to be a female. At 17 i fathered a son and daughter, at 20 i started to change into a women (WithOut) hormones. At 27 had a miscarriage and. At 29 i started hormones , but i was already fully developed women, anyway since my female parts was closed i have produced a "Fisher" in my rectum and my female stuff cums out my rectum. I AM A HERMAPHRODITE ! / A "pseudohermaphrodite" is a person with an interGendered issue. (she-males, Ladyboys, TranSexuals) are Transgender Male to Female, who have taken hormones and Soully relies on hormones and surgery to become women. anyway i cum, bleed (once a month), give birth out my rectum, and have male sex parts that work. Valerytozer at yhaoooooo Parepidemos on February 25th, 2010 When babies are developing in the womb, they all begin with sex organs that look female. If the baby is male, he begins to produce testosterone, and if the hormone reaches the tissues correctly, the external genitals become a scrotum and penis. Chromosomal or sex hormone abnormalities can produce an infant in an intersex state. It can also be caused by a condition called congenital adrenal hyperplasia, which is a disease the blocks the baby's metabolism. It is not as uncommon as we might think; about 1 in every 2,000 newborns is born in an intersex state. Babies are not born with physical disorders to punish their parents in any way. Although God created the earth perfectly, it soon brought destruction upon itself with the onset of human sin (Romans 5:12). Before the Flood in Genesis chapter 7 that wiped out almost all living things on the earth, people had the potential to live for several hundred years. After the Flood, human life spans grew progressively shorter, indicating a change in the environment which resulted in damage to the human genetic structure. This also explains why incest was necessary for the population of the earth in Genesis, but was forbidden later in the laws of Leviticus (verses 18:618). Now, thousands of years later as sin continues to permeate the world, the human race has been bombarded with every kind of sickness, disease, disorder and birth defect (including hermaphrodite) we can imagine. Could God stop this from happening? Could God stop hermaphrodites from being born? Yes, however He would have to change how we now live our lives. God could change everyones personality so that they cannot sin. This would also mean that we would not have a free will. We would not be able to choose right or wrong because we would be programmed to only do right. Had God 34

chosen to do this, there would be no meaningful relationships between Him and His creation. Instead, God made Adam and Eve innocent but with the ability to choose good or evil. In doing so, they could respond to His love and trust Him or choose to do their own thing. They chose to do their own thing. Because we live in a real world where we can choose our actions but not their consequences, their sin affected those who came after them (us). Similarly, our decisions to sin have an impact on us, and those around us. Another choice would have God compensating for peoples evil actions through supernatural intervention 100% of the time. Another instance might involve a lazy person plumbing a house, and he doesnt bother to check the plumbing for leaks before the house is finished. God would have to make the plumbing not leak because otherwise the home buyers would have to suffer for the lazy persons sin. If a father gets addicted to drugs and spends all of his money on drugs, God would somehow have to miraculously provide both the food and the social needs of the children so that they would not have to be adversely affected by the evil of the parent. In such a world, God would be like a bad parent who enables a wayward childs destructive behavior. There would be no consequences for ones actions, and as a result no one would learn integrity, purity, honor, responsibility, or self-control. There would be no good consequences for right behavior, no bad consequences for wrong behavior. What would people become except more deviant and sinful? God created this universe perfect but the sin of mankind has disrupted and destroyed it's perfection. We are responsible for our own actions and their consequences. With that said, it is very possible for a child born with both sex organs to grow up to have a healthy view of sexuality and successful relationships. From early on, the child should be taught how valuable, loved and accepted they are by their family and also by God. He or she is not a victim of divine judgment, but God has a plan for each one of us that will bring Him glory, as we can learn from a man who was healed by Jesus Christ. Resource......http://www.gotquestions.org tuchesuavae on January 28th, 2012 Why not? They are people like anyone else. And GOD doesn't have a problem with them, do you? interexism is a disformality and like any other disformality it doesn't make you less of a person. But Since you asked what GOD thinks. Exodus 4:11 Then the Lord said to him, Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Luke 14:12-13 He said also to the man who had invited him, When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the 35

blind, to name a couple. I remember reading some where towards the front of the bible where it specificly says that GOD loves the people borns disformed of cripple. I's a short one line statment, I forget where. Also Since Hermaphrodites are born I would say yes, If not GOD who else? You answered your own question there. PhileoTruth on December 16th, 2009 Interesting question. I would say likewise, why does He allow babies to be born with any of a host of birth defects. These are the consequences of sin. He did not form one to have the genitalia of both genders for that would contradict His own inbred distinctives between the genders. But I believe that God values life. And for as imperfect a life as a hermaphrodite would have from birth, He can still be glorified through it. (I don't conjecture how He might.) The bottom line is that the hermaphrodite, with all of his/her special circumstances is given a life and an opportunity to come to know Christ. For that, the hermaphrodite has the best reason of all to be born. http://creation.com/hermaphrodites-and-homosexuality Hermaphrodites and homosexuality Morality cannot be decided by biological abnormalities Published: 1 May 2010(GMT+10) God created sex for the procreation of children and to cement the marriage relationship between a husband and wife. Abnormalities such as hermaphroditism that might thwart these purposes are no reason to depart from the moral standards set by God. Roderick, from Canada, writes: I can understand that hermaphrodites are a result of sin. But if homosexuality is wrong then what moral basis does a hermaphrodite or its parents have for selecting a gender? If the individual disagrees with its parents choice, would it be morally acceptable to switch once they become old enough to choose for themselves? I get challenged with questions like these. Im not trying to be ridiculousI just would like to have a good answer. Dr Don Batten replies: The biological causes and nature of the (rare) human hermaphrodite condition are described in the article Creationism and the problem of homosexual 36

behaviour (search for hermaphrodite). We would not say that hermaphrodites are a result of sin. That implies that the person is personally responsible for their condition, or the persons parents. That would be unbiblical, and also very cruel. Jesus spoke of this when a blind man was brought to him. He was asked whose sin was specifically responsible and he discouraged such a notion (John 9). In the broadest sense, hermaphroditism is due to sin, though not the particular sin of the person or the parents, etc., but the general fallen nature of mankind since the Rebellion Now of course bad things happen in todays world because of sin in general; the rebellion of mankind against the rule of the Creator-God, beginning in Genesis with the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, with whom death and suffering began. So God has withdrawn some of His sustaining power from the creation and things are falling apart. Consequently we see mutations, cancer and developmental abnormalities. So in the broadest sense, hermaphroditism is due to sin, though not the particular sin of the person or the parents, etc., but the general fallen nature of mankind since the Rebellion. Just as Jesus dealt with people born with defects with compassion, so should we. Every case needs careful medical and psychological evaluation to ascertain the best way forward for the person, so attempting a single one size fits all answer would be unwise. We are all fallen creatures in need of help and compassion and people with genetic or developmental defects should not be ostracized or persecuted. A truly Christian society will see those whom the world might see as unlovely as made in the image of God and therefore special and to be valued. This contrasts with atheistic or animistic societies where no one has any special value (except perhaps those in charge!). To the atheist, humans are just intelligent animals, so we are nothing special and so abortion, euthanasia, infanticide, etc., are on the agenda. Hitler, with his evolutionary notions, decided to help natural selection along in eliminating the unfit. That included anyone with a defect such as hermaphroditism. See: Eugenics: death of the defenceless. Just as Jesus dealt with people born with defects with compassion, so should we. If a person is an hermaphrodite, it does not give a licence for sexual experimentation. The same standards of sexual fidelity still apply. A person medically determined to be hormonally male and who underwent operations to clarify the physical features to make the person clearly male would be under the same biblical injunctions as any other male to be sexually pure. If marriage became possible, then the person would be responsible to be faithful to their spouse. If marriage was not possible, then sexual purity outside of marriage would be Gods standard (just as for anyone else). It is likewise with homosexuality. If someone has homosexual desires, this does not mean that it is OK to give in to those desires and be involved in sex 37

outside of marriage (where the Bible defines marriage as a specifically heterosexual union). To suggest that someone cannot help their behaviour is to reduce the person to a mere animal, rather than someone made in the image of God. To suggest that someone cannot help their behaviour is to reduce the person to a mere animal, rather than someone made in the image of God. The article on homosexuality linked above, which was written by a man who worked as a clinical psychologist counselling people, including those with homosexual leanings, is very good on this whole topic. See also the Q&A topic on homosexuality. I hope this helps. Roderick replied: Dear Dr Batten, Now of course bad things happen in todays world because of sin in general this is what I meant by that hermaphrodites are a result of sin of course. I think I have read your articles regarding hermaphrodites but I read them again. The answer you gave is the best one I have seen so far [Roderick said he had tried other ministries but had not even had proper repliesEd.]. I would summarize it like this: The issue is too complicated for a one size fits all solution. An hermaphrodites true sex can sometimes be medically determined to be hormonally male or female in which case that would probably be the route to go. Like I said, this is the best answer I have seen. Thanks for that. When I tell people that homosexuality is wrong they will bring up hermaphrodites as proof that sometimes females are born with male genitalia and vice versa. You dont have to keep answering me if you dont want to, but I would like to know exactly how you would answer them. (One person asked me if I knew that there were people who were both male and female. He then went on to tell me that this blew my beliefs regarding homosexuality right out of the water.) Thank-you for helping me out with these tough questions. Dr Batten responded: Dear Roderick, You wrote: When I tell people that homosexuality is wrong they will bring up hermaphrodites as proof that sometimes females are born with male genitalia 38

and vice versa . He then went on to tell me that this blew my beliefs regarding homosexuality right out of the water. This has nothing to do with the morality of homosexual promiscuity. Morality is not determined by biological abnormalities. You could use the reductio ad absurdum approach: Say a person was born with a gene that made them a kleptomaniac. Would that mean that we should legalize / legitimize stealing? Hardly. Say it is found that there is a genetic predisposition to pedophilia in some people; would that mean that pedophilia should be accepted? There are people who have such a serious personality disorder (sociopath) that they will abuse and even kill other people without remorse. Does that mean that their behaviour should be accepted by society because they naturally want to behave like that? Of course not; the prisons are replete with such individuals to protect society at large from their behaviour. Just because someone has a natural bent to do something does not mean that society should accept their behaviour. This is a ridiculous argument. You could probably think of even better examples to prove the point. I hope this helps. Don Batten Roderick replied: Thanks. Good answers. http://creation.com/are-hermaphrodites-proof-of-evolution Are hermaphrodites proof of evolution? From Shaun Sly of UK. Actually, Mr. Sly himself was positive, but he passed on a question from an evolutionist colleague and asked for our advice on how to handle it. So we have used this as a negative feedback, even though the negativity is by proxy. Also, negatives that pass our criteria (which are standard for many bulletin boards) are hard to come by, while this was a straightforward statement of an alleged difficulty without the accompanying invective common in submitted negatives. Mr. Slys letter is printed first in its entirety, followed by a response by Dr Jonathan Sarfati, Creation Ministries InternationalAustralia.

Could you please explain about Hermaphrodites. A collegue of mine, who is an evolutionist, argued that evolution in man is happening in the case of the hermaphrodite. He believes that this is a transitional stage for man. 39

Please could you give me advice on this matter. Yours Faithfully, Shaun Sly UK

A hermaphrodite is an organism with both male and female sex organs. But what is it allegedly transforming into? For real (particles-to-people) evolution, there must be genetic changes that increase the information content. Its very important to define terms such as evolution consistently this is discussed in this definitions section of an article, as well as in the Q&A pages under information theory, mutations and speciation. Hermaphrodites do not have any new information, but in humans are the result of an abnormality in embryonic development. Human embryos are sexually dimorphic at first (i.e. contain characteristics of both sexes), because they all have basically the same genetic information, and this information is expressed as efficiently as possible as the embryo develops. This is design economy. For example, in all human embryos, at first both the mllerian duct system (female) and the wolffian duct system (male) develop, because both sexes have the genetic information for these structures. Incidentally, this refutes the urban myth that human embryos start off female. The subsequent differences are the result of designed chemical signals that control the expression of the information. For example, a gene set usually found on the Y chromosome controls the levels of testosterone and dihydroxytestosterone (DHT) secretion. Above a certain level, these hormones suppress the development of the mllerian duct system and promote the wolffian duct system, so the embryo takes on masculine characteristics. Below a certain hormone level, the opposite happens, and the embryo takes on female characteristics. But if for some reason the genetic information for one sex or the other is not switched off, then a hermaphrodite results. This hasnt the slightest thing to do with evolution from goo to you via the zoo. In short, the hermaphroditic state arises because of a defect in development. Such defects happen in our fallen world. It does not involve any new genetic information, so it has nothing to do with evolution. A lesson: if readers are faced with a proof of evolution, just ask whether any new genetic information arises, i.e. whether it really has anything to do with real molecules to man evolution, and how this proof refutes the biblical creation framework. I hope the above is helpful. Yours Faithfully (Dr) Jonathan Sarfati Research scientist, author and editorial consultant CMIAustralia 40

http://naminghisgrace.blogspot.ro/2012/09/intersex-new-weapon-againstpurity-of.html Saturday, September 15, 2012 Intersex - a new weapon against the purity of Christ's church Too many times, in the past, the progressive side of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has attempted to tell the orthodox that the conflict going on among us is simply about sexuality and rights, that the Lordship of Christ and the doctrines of the church are not under attack. But antinomianism either grows from false doctrine or is the generator of it. Recently a panel discussion at the Episcopal Divinity School; led by Professor Patrick S. Cheng of EDS and written about by Professor Kwok Pui Lan on her blog although about sexuality took aim at biblical teaching. The subject was intersex and transgender theology. Although, intersex persons have some combination of male and female genitals (And there are many combinations as well as opinions about what constitutes intersex or intersex conditions), the main idea in the discussion was that an intersex person should not be considered unnatural in their sexual makeup. And with this understanding the goal is that both gender and theology has new meaning. So, according to the theories, there are many differing gender types, not just male and female. This is then applied to theological themes. More Light Presbyterians picked up the story and wrote: Our lived experiences help us understand the nature of God and Gods people. Feminist, Black, womanist, liberation, mujerista, and gay theologies have helped to deepen and expand our knowledge of an ever-creating God, the risen Christ, and the holy spirit at work in the world. MLP then goes on to quote a portion of Kwok Pui Lans blog where she writes of Dr Susannah Cornwall author of Sex and Uncertainty in the Body of Christ: Intersex Conditions and Christian Theology, Dr. Megan K. DeFranza of Gordon College and several others professors. The alarming part of the quote is: Cornwall emphasized that intersex persons challenge a binary construction of gender, which has dominated Christian theology for centuries. The acceptance of a non-pathological understanding of the intersexed necessitates the reexamination of some of the Christian images and teachings, such as the church as a feminine bride to a masculine god, the maleness of Christ, body and perfection, and marriage based on complementarities of the male and the female sexes. On the Seminary web site is another description of the Forum, Exploring Intersex and Transgender Theology. In that article the comparison of eunuchs with other types of sexual problems, albeit in the panel they were not seen as problems, are discussed and the author writes, After Dr. Cornwall spoke, Dr. DeFranza examined the biblical discussions of eunuchs in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, and she argued that those passages might help evangelical Christians change their attitudes towards intersex people. 41

I would suppose that, by change their attitude toward intersex people, she must mean accept them as normal sexually.[1] But the real issue here is the attempt to change Christian teaching via sexual experience rather than allow the Scripture text to inform sexuality. And the truly frightening part is the desire to change Christology for the sake of sexuality. The desire is ancient paganism in the guise of academia. The crisis confronting the church today is not about rights or sexuality but has to do with a lack of true faith, a failure to obey and honor the word of God, a refusal to acknowledge with our lives the Lordship of Christ and his saving and transforming work. In that very place where we read that Christ loves and planned for the purity of his churchthe attack is now engaged. As in times past, the days of Old Testament Israel and the raunchy sexuality of late medieval Europe, perverse sexuality is simply the weapon used to thwart the will of God. But Christ will not be frustrated, and in fact his work is done. We wait on and for him, Jesus Christ our Lord. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water and the word, that he might present to himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless. (Eph. 5:25-27) 1[1] In a sense those theologians who are using the physical problems of those they call intersex are doing just that using them. It is as though we looked at a person with serious eye problems and said well that is simply normal which means there are all kinds of ways of seeing-all normal-20-20 is really no different than someone who is blind. It is just a different way of seeing, called, perhaps, un-seeing. The point is a physical condition cannot be used to excuse the sin of same gender sex or any other sin. Posted by Viola Larson http://jimmyakin.com/2005/06/intersexed_marr.html Intersexed Marriages by Jimmy Akin in Moral Theology A reader writes: I have an odd question for you, raised by a friend of mine. Some children ARE born "trans-gendered". She writes: 42

Intersex = overarching term for anyone born with a physical form not clearly "male" or "female" by current definitions of the terms. Can cover everyone from those born with[out the usual parts men and women normally come with], through XY females and XX males (those born appearing female or male but with a chromosomal sex at odds with their physical form). Can they marry? Does this come down to possiblity to bear children, in that if its not possible, a marriage cannot take place? Can an XY female marry an XY male? Or an XX Male and XX female? Im really confused on how to approach this issue. Youre not alone in being unsure how to approch this issue. At present, the Church also seems to be. There are no authoritative statements from the Magisterium on the subject (to my knowledge), which means that the subject is in play for moral theologians to discuss. Eventually a consensus is likely to develop among moral theologians and, after that or in conjunction with that, a magisterial intervention may occur that creates an official position. Till then, we just have to do the best we can figuring these things out. So lets start with what seems certain and work our way out from that. One thing that is certain (since you asked about marriage) is that a man can only marry a woman and visa versa. It is also generally held as a certainty that all individuals are really either male or female. Sex in humans is binary. There are no alternatives or gradations in it. We may, in some cases, have a hard time determining which sex a person is, but ultimately they are one or the other. But suppose, for a moment, that this were not the case. Suppose that, at some point in the distant future, the Church concluded that there are individuals who are not men or women but who have a defective gender. In such an eventuality, it would seem that those individuals simply would not be capable of marriage. Their situation would be analogous to individuals today who are incapable of marriage because they cannot perform the marital act (i.e., they are totally and incurably impotent). The situation of such individuals would be tragicas is the case of individuals today who are incapable of contracting marriagebut that would seem to be the case for such individuals. Now lets suppose that the hypothesis on which that scenario is built is false that all humans really are either male or female, as is generally assumed. In this case the trick would seem to be figuring out which gender a person is in an ambiguous case and then, to the extent medical science would allow, using corrective methods (e.g., surgery) to enable them to live and function as much as possible as what their gender is. In determining what sex a person is, there seem to be two kinds of clues available to examine: anatomy and genetics. Unfortunately, at present neither of these can be turned to as an infallible guide. 43

In the case of anatomy, some individuals are born without sexual anatomy (or without a complete set of sexual anatomy). Others are born with a surplus of it (and a mixed surplus at that). In the case of genetics, some individuals are missing a sex chromosome (e.g., they are born with just a single X chromosome; I dont know if any are born with just a Y chromosome) or they are born with too many sex chromosomes (e.g., they have XXX, XXY, XYY, XXYY, or some other pattern). Sometimes also anatomy fails to match genetics, as in the case of an "XX male" or an "XY female." At this point moral theologians have not yet figured out how to resolve these ambiguous cases. The correct strategy is debatable and may depend on the facts of a specific case. Here are some of the options: 1. If the individual appears to have functional anatomy, go with the anatomy rather than the genetics. In other words, treat XX males as males and XY females as females. 2. If an individual lacks functional anatomy, go with genetics and use reconstructive surgery to help the person out. I.e., if someone is genetically male then help him surgically to have the appropriate anatomy. If someone is genetically female then help her surgically to hav the appropriate anatomy. 3. If an individual has two sets of anatomy (whole or partial) then go with genetics and use surgery to correct the anatomical situation. 4. If someone has a defective chromosome pattern (X, Y, XXX, XXY, XYY, etc.) then treat the person as whatever their anatomy would indicate. 5. Treat genetics as the ultimate determiner of sex. In the case of an XX male, use surgery to supply female anatomy. In the case of an XY female, do the same to supply male anatomy. In the case of a defective chromosome pattern, use the presence of a Y chromosome as a determiner of maleness, so X and XXX and XXXX individuals are female and Y, XXY, and XYY individuals are male. Use surgery to correct any problems that exist. As you can see, these alternatives are not all exclusive of the others, though some are (e.g., 4 and 5 are directly in opposition). I am a bit doubtful that the Magisterium would ever sign off on option #5. One reason is that it is radically different than the ways of handling these situations that Catholic health care providers and moralists have had up to now when helping children with ambiguous sex. Similarly, weve been living since the beginning of the human race (or almost the beginning, anyway) with folks who have one outward sex even though a genetic test would raise questions about it. It seems asking an awful lot to mandate that a XY females or XX males undergo surgery to switch their outward sex. This is a burden that theyve never been asked to undertake before (though, of course, one may point out that weve never had genetic tests before). 44

I suspect that a patchwork of options, like the ones mentioned above, are likely to emerge in practice and in discussions among moral theologians. I suspect that the Magisterium will initially be hesitant to sign off on any of them. Ultimately, it may conclude (I didnt say will conclude) that neither anatomy or genetics (nor hormones, to mention something we havent touched on here but which play an important role in embryonic sex development) are alone fully determinative indicators of sex and that in hard cases whether one is male or female must be determined by looking algorithmically at a combination of these factors, as above. Once the issue of what sex a person is has been sorted outhowever it gets sorted outit is then possible for that person to marry a person of the opposite gender, assuming that he or she is otherwise capable of contracting marriage. The key here (given the concerns you raised above) is not whether the person is capable of fathering or bearing children. Fertility has never been a condition for validly contracting matrimony. What has and is a condition of that is the ability to perform the marital act. As noted, individuals who are perpetually and incurably impotent cannot contract marriage because they cannot truthfully promise to render the marriage debt (i.e.,sex) since they are incapable of rendering it. If, however, through surgery or other medical means, they have been made capable of performing their marital duty (whatever their anatomical configuration was earlier in their life) then they are capable of marrying a person of the opposite gender. http://www.cityofgod.net/essay/ron_onintersex.htm Reply to an Objection: Transsexuals and Intersexed Individuals Some would object to the stress I have placed on male and female not on Scriptural grounds, but on scientific grounds. They would point out that both transsexuality and intersexuality complicate the neat picture I have been trying to paint, and argue that recent scientific discoveries in this area make the binary male/female model of gender I have been arguing untenable. I agree that these are complex subjects, which raise complicated moral questions for Christians. And since I am far from being an expert on either intersexuality or transsexual issues, I will confine myself to a few tentative observations. To deal with transsexuals first: sometimes, as a child grows up, they will discover a profound disconnect between their physical appearance and their psychic sense of self. They see themself as a boy trapped in a girls body, or a girl trapped in a boys body. Often, on the physical side, their bodies develop more or less normally, with primary and secondary sexual characteristics 45

within usual norms for their physical gender. But in their mind, their identity is that of the opposite sex. Some people in this situation will seek gender reassignment surgery to bring their body into line with their psychic sense of self. Others will seek in various ways to bring their sense of self into line with their body. In either case, they seek to overcome the conflict between body and soul, and embrace a single, whole gender identity. While both of these approaches can raise significant ethical issues (issues which Christians have only recently begun to explore), transsexuals generally do not want to subvert the dominant paradigm when it comes to gender. The very language transsexuals use to describe their plighta woman trapped in a mans bodyfemale to maleassumes a binary model of gender identity: male and female, masculine and feminine. In the Biblical framework I have been outlining, gender is far more than just a body partit involves body, soul, and spirit. The transsexual seeks counseling or gender reassignment surgery in order to achieve the unity of mind and body that God intended from the beginning. Because I am not in any way an expert on transsexual issues, I am not even going to try to lay out an ethical framework for evaluating the options transsexuals face. It would be profoundly unfair to those struggling with these issues for me to offer opinions as uninformed as mine would be. But I think it is fair to say that while a few radical transsexuals may adopt the language of radical feminist or queer theorists and attempt to deconstruct the very concept of gender, the average transsexual assumes a binary model of gender, experiences a profound conflict between mind and body, and seeks to heal that conflict by embracing a unified gender identity. There is need for significantly more theological reflection on transsexual issues than has been done so far, and I encourage any Christians with the interest or expertise to contribute in any way they can. However, I believe that the Biblical model of male and female is a very important theoretical principle which will aid, not hinder, such prayerful, compassionate reflection. Indeed, I believe that when we understand how important gender is to Gods creation, we actually will understand more fully the significance of the transsexuals painful conflict. If gender is not particularly important, then gender identity conflicts are not particularly important, either. But if gender is as important as I have argued, then the urgency that many transsexuals feel to resolve their conflicts is fully justified, because the conflict touches such an important part of their identity. Transsexuals usually have more or less normal physiology, but a conflict between their sense of self and their physical gender. Intersexed individuals, on the other hand, have some physical gender ambiguity. Intersexuality is a global term describing a number of conditions. Some intersexed individuals have normal chromosomes (XX or XY), but have ambiguous genitalia. Others have unusual chromosome combinations (e.g. X, XXX, or XXY).

46

Again, I want to emphasize that intersexuality brings up a host of complicated issues, and I dont want to offer overly simplistic soutions. Again, I encourage Christians to reflect more on these issues, trying to understand them within a compassionate, Biblical framework. In some ways, I think intersexed individuals challenge the binary gender paradigm more than transsexuals do. But Genesis 1 describes Gods design; the fall brings with it all sorts of distortions, in spirit, soul, and body. The Bible is not unfamiliar with gender abnormalities. Christs phrase about those who were born eunuchs (Matthew 19:12) can only refer to those born with abnormal genitals. The Prophet Isaiah offers these words of great hope from the mouth of God: To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My covenant, I will give in My house and within my walls a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off (Isaiah 56:4-5). It is true, of course, that intersexed individuals are often unable to have children, and may be tempted to grow frustrated and say, Here I am, a dry tree (Isaiah 55:3). Against this, the Prophet Isaiah reminds us that God is more concerned with our heart, our desire to please Him and obey the precepts of His covenant than He is with the things that pass away as this world passes away. But Christs teaching on eunuchs (Matthew 19:12) comes in the immediate context of reminding His audience that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh (Matthew 19:4-5). It therefore seems to me that while intersexed individuals deserve compassionate, thoughtful treatment from Christians, their experience cannot be seen as something unforseen in Scripture, something that somehow disproves Christs words on the meaning of male and female. It also seems to me not very relevant to my experience as a same-sex attracted man. Like the overwhelming majority of homosexuals, I am a more or less biologically normal male. I am attracted to other men, because I am drawn to their masculinity. While a few radical queer theorists will attempt to deconstruct gender entirely, the vast majority of homosexuals identify as gay or homosexual or same-sex attracted precisely because they accept the traditional view of binary genders, but discover that they are exclusively attracted to their own sex. Most men or women with same-sex attractions will try quite hard at some point in their lives to develop heterosexual attractions, most without success. I think in some ways, this experience makes us more consciously aware of the significance of gender differences than others, because we have put a lot more effort into trying to be attracted to the gender that does not attract us. 47

I realize that this section is rather unsatisfactory, because it raises difficult questions which I lack the expertise to resolve. But I hope that is has helped to explain why, though I fully believe that transsexuals and intersexed individuals deserve more thoughtful guidance than theyre getting from the Church at this time, I dont believe that their experience invalidates the Bibles model of gender complementarity.

http://www.mlp.org/2012/09/13/intersex-and-transgender-theology/ Intersex and Transgender Theology by More Light Presbyterians on September 13, 2012 Our lived experiences help us understand the nature of God and Gods people. Feminist, Black, womanist, liberation, mujerista, and gay theologies have helped to deepen and expand our knowledge of an ever-creating God, the risen Christ, and the holy spirit at work in the world. Last week, the Episcopal Divinity School hosted a panel discussion on the ways in which transgender and intersex theologies can inform believers. Professor and theologian Kwok Pui Lan reflects on the nature of these theologies, and points us toward some resources for more study. From the blog of Dr. Kwok Pui Lan at the Episcopal Divinity School: Professor Patrick S. Cheng of EDS moderated the panel and said in his opening remarks that the Christian community has talked more about lesbian and gay issues than transgender and intersex concerns. He welcomed Dr. Cornwall, an expert on intersex theology and ministry from England, to EDS to have a dialogue with other scholars in Boston. Intersex people are those persons whose biological sex cannot be classified as clearly male or female, because they have combinations of physical features of both. Intersex people have also been called hermaphrodite or people with disorder of sex development (DSD), although these terms are contested. Cornwalls book, Sex and Uncertainty in the Body of Christ: Intersex Conditions and Christian Theology, is the first full-length examination of the theological implications pf intersex conditions and their medical treatment. Currently she is interviewing intersex Christians to deepen her study. She said that the Church of England has begun to discuss ministry to intersex and transgender persons, which is a step forward. Cornwall emphasized that intersex persons challenge a binary construction of gender, which has dominated Christian theology for centuries. The acceptance of a non-pathological understanding of the intersexed necessitates the reexamination of some of the Christian images and teachings, such as the church as a feminine bride to a masculine god, the maleness of Christ, body and 48

perfection, and marriage based on complementarities of the male and the female sexes. In her intriguing remarks, DeFranza pointed out that the Bible offers material to discuss intersex issues. As someone who has grown up in a fundamentalist church in which women were not allowed to even pass the offering plate, she was surprised to find discussion of atypical bodies in the Bible. For example, in his discussion of divorce in Matthew 19:1-12, Jesus refers to different types of eunuchs, including those who have been so from birth (as different from those who have been castrated). DeFranza argues that intersex persons would have been included in this group. In Isaiah 56:3-5, the eunuchs who hold fast to Gods covenant are blessed. DeFranza said that instead of an icon of shame, the eunuch is raised up as a model of discipleship. The Bible also refers numerous times to barren women and some among them might have been intersex. Just as intersex persons disrupt our ways of constructing gender, transgender people challenge us to see gender identity and expression not as fixed, but in a continuum. Partridge and Stanford reminded us that transgender theology concerns the whole church, because it affects how we see theological anthropology, the nature of creation, and the Body of Christ. Partridge said that the feast he liked most is the Feast of Transfiguration. It marks the liminal space that life is not static and Christians are called to grow to be like God, as in the doctrine of theosis in the Eastern Church. He invited us to see creation as variegated and always changing and to have an expansive notion of the collective embodiment of the Body of Christ. With such an inclusive understanding of creation and the church, each person will be free to discern who God has called him or her to be and to embody the vocation that God has given. http://morganguyton.us/2013/10/05/testimony-of-a-happily-married-intersexeunuch-lianne-simons-story/ Testimony of a happily married intersex eunuch (Lianne Simons story) October 5, 2013 [This guest post comes from Lianne Simon, a woman who was born with sexual ambiguity and raised as a boy until she was 18. She has offered to answer any questions you have in a follow-up post. I trust that you will be respectful and appropriate.] Im a Christian, a housewife, and an author. I also have a condition that resulted in sexual ambiguity. Intersex is an umbrella term for a number of different medical conditions that result in some variation of sex development away from typical male or female. Rather than load you down with technical details, I thought Id give you a few 49

examples. Lets say you have a sixteen-year-old daughter. Her sexual developments been normal, except for two minor issuesshe hasnt gotten her period yet and she doesnt have any pubic hair. So you send her to a specialist and he discovers she has Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome. Shes got XY chromosomes, but because of a mutation on her X chromosome, her body doesnt know what to do with male hormones. She has a vagina and a clitoris, but in her abdomen are testes instead of ovaries and uterus. Lets say you have a newborn. At first glance, he looks like a boy, but the doctors say they need to run some tests to be sure. It turns out your child has Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, the most common cause of ambiguous genitals in XX babies. Its a medical emergency and a lifelong issue. Shell need to take steroids to survive. Any injury or medical procedure can turn into a crisis. The doctors pressure you to feminize the childs genitals, but they just got through telling you how dangerous surgery is for these kids. Her genitals are only a cosmetic issue, and surgery can damage sexual function. Now, the same hormones that made her phallus so large affected her brain. She doesnt doubt her gender, but shes a tomboy and has typically masculine interests throughout her life. Including an attraction to other girls. Lets say you have a newborn with ambiguous genitals who has one testis and one streak ovary. The condition is called Mixed Gonadal Dysgenesis. The doctors tell you the best thing to do is feminize the childs genitals and raise her as a girl. Theyre the experts, so you give in. They remove the childs gonads, cut off the oversized clitoris, and use a skin graft to create a vaginal canal. At three or four, your child starts insisting hes a boy. Most kids who are born with at least one good testis and who arent immune to testosterone are boys. And you let the doctors castrate him and cut off his genitals because they were too small or not shaped right. The doctors told you to never let your daughter find out what they did to her. And they said that you must never doubt her gender. All your child knows is that theres something so shameful about his body that you cant even talk to him about it. I have a genetic variation similar to Mixed Gonadal Dysgenesis, but with symmetric development. Both of my gonads contained a mix of testicular tissue and ovarian stroma. The old medical term for that was hermaphrodite, but it doesnt mean that I had both types of genitals. Theres really only one bit of tissue that becomes a penis or a clitoris or something in between. XY/XO also affected my heart, kidneys, adrenal glands, and thyroid. It changed the shape of my face. I have visuo-motor and spatio-temporal deficits that keep me from learning to dance or play most sports. I was cross-eyed, and Im 50

still dyslexic. I was so tiny and frail as a child that my parents thought I might not survive. All I knew was that I was the smallest of my peer group and had a cute pixie face. Like most girls I knew, I liked to dress up and play house. Helping Mom in the kitchen was my favorite thing. At eight I was the same size as my five-year-old sister, so I borrowed her clothes sometimes. We went to church every Sunday, but it was in vacation Bible school that I learned about Jesus. I didnt understand much of the Gospel, but I wanted to love God, be a good girl, and obey my parents. When I was a preteen my health improved. Fifth grade was the first time one of my classmates was smaller than me. I had my first serious crush on a boy that year, and my father decided it was about time I started acting like a boy. My older brother was tall, and strong, and handsome. If I was good and tried really hard then maybe God would make me a real boy. Since I wasnt a boy, I must have some deep-seated moral fault. Perhaps it was my dream of being a wife and a mother. At seventeen, I was withdrawn, seriously depressed, and still not very good at being a boy. I had lost the top of my singing range, but had no other signs of puberty. I was feminine enough that not even my best friend believed me when I told her I wasnt gay. That year, a Christian boy loved me enough to befriend me, share the Gospel, answer my objections, and by his example, lead me to Christ. As a new believer, I assumed I could become the boy that everybody seemed to expect. Instead, the mask that allowed me to function socially crumbled. I had to face the world myself. I thought things would be better if I got away from my parents, so at eighteen, I went from a sheltered home to a boys dorm. The boys made it obvious that I wasnt like them. And one proved he could do whatever he wanted to me. Death stalked me in those days. The Lord showed me that if I didnt cling to Him Id die from my own recklessness. Living meant putting my gender issues to rest before they killed me. Up until then, my mother, a nurse, had handled my medical care, but I went to see a doctor about my condition. He said testosterone and anabolic steroids would give me a male pubertymuscle mass, broad shoulders, facial hair, a deep voice, body hair, and a raging sex drive. By the time he was finished with my body, I would look like a boy. But I liked my body the way it wasat least most of it, and after living with boys in the dorm, I wanted nothing to do with becoming like them. The doctor thought anorexia and depression were my two most pressing issues. Estrogen would help me gain weight and get rid of the hormonal cause 51

of my depression. And he was sure that people would accept me as a girl. Especially with breast development. When I returned home, my mother said it was the first time in my life she knew Id be all right. With my legal status changed to female, my social issues disappeared. No one but my doctors even had to know. So I settled in to a new town and a new job, and told not even my closest friends about my condition or my past. I knew I was a girl, but I sometimes struggled with my right to be one. In 1999, I finally met someone else with an intersex condition. She was just a normal lady. Perhaps I wasnt a freak after all. Unaware of my condition, my church had for years been praying that God would send me someone. When I was urged to contact a Christian matchmaker, I reluctantly agreed. Several months later, he introduced me to the man who would become my husband. Every time I shared something personal, he reacted positively. So I dumped my entire past on him in an email. He cried. Shortly thereafter we got engaged. The week after that we met in person for the first time. Two months later we were married. It was my husband who encouraged me to get involved with intersex support group work, and to write. Hes the one my dear Lord has given me to lead me closer to Christ. Very few Scripture verses deal directly with intersex. Matthew 19:12 suggests that eunuch was an umbrella term that included those of us which were so born from their mothers womb. Acts 8:26-39, the conversion and baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch, indicates that nothing special (beyond faith in Christ) is required of us to be baptized. And Isaiah 56:4-6 promises eunuchs who are faithful to the Covenant a place and a name better than sons and daughters. Look around you. Do you see a place in the church for eunuchs? By Gods grace I live as a woman. Jesus Christ paid for me with his blood. If I asked to join your church, would we debate which sex God intended me to be, or would you give glory to God for the work of Grace Hes accomplished in my life? [If you have any questions for Lianne, please share them in the comments. Thank you so much Lianne for sharing your story!!!]

http://www.healthyplace.com/gender/inside-intersexuality/about-me/ About Me - Being A True Hermaphrodite About Me Written by Berdache Jordan 52

(A Freak Of Nature, Born At A Time Prior To DNA Testing) The only term that was known, as far as I was ever told, was that I was an Open Birth, meaning I had ambiguous genitalia, that I could not be identified by the people who examined me as either a male or a female. These people were a Catholic Sister and a Veterinarian, both in a small western town, dealing with a premature and abandoned miscarriage. This was a condition ascribed to the youth and/or illness of my biological Mother at the time of my birth. In certain conversations discussing me, I had overheard this on various occasions. I recall that I was stripped naked many times and exhibited to other adults. As a small child, from age 2-4, I remember that I enjoyed being the center of attention and awe and speculation by adults. The man I knew as Dad was, I believe, related to me. Whether he was, in fact, my biological parent is unknown. His sibling and a younger sister were suspected to be in an incestuous relationship. My genealogical research indicates that my genetic condition existed in the family. Two of three "brothers" immigrated from Germany and came to America. The youngest was listed as the "wife" of the older sibling on passports and ship manifests. German/Gypsy/Native American lineage, I have reason to believe, carried my rare DNA karyotype. Research is continuing at this time. True Hermaphrodite I am one of several types of true hermaphrodites. The XXXY (mosaic) karyotype is extremely rare. One theory of the cause of my own condition has a lot of support. It maintains that two ovum were produced simultaneously in my mother and the eggs fertilized independently as maternal twins. During gestation the eggs merge into a single fetus, one ova was destined as male the other as female. My understanding is that sometimes both ova might well have been male XY or female XX, in which case the child would have both distinctive DNA chromosome karyotypes, a XY/XY or a XX/XX (mosaic). These people would appear perfectly male or female unless some medical situation required a chromosome karyotyping. That is an unusual procedure. How many are like this is unknown, as few are tested. They, like me, would have two separate chromosome karyotypes, similar to Siamese Twins sharing one body to varying extents. It is also my understanding that present fertility drugs today may make this condition much more common. In my case, my karotype is XX/XY, hence I have characteristics of both male and female. Confusion and Abuse I was given a boy's name and a separate girl's name by my "Father" and his wife, my "Mother," with two birth certificates. Neither was recorded at the time, but awaited a future decision. Eventually, I was "recorded" later as a 53

male, but called by an ambiguous nickname of a comic strip character, a child that no one knew what sex the child was, which was fitting (from Barney Google). I was left "as is" awaiting further physical development. From the age of four to sixteen years old, I was sexually, physically and mentally abused by several members of my own family. Then I was able to stop the most invasive abuse by choosing to be a male, at age fifteen, accomplished by taking massive doses of testosterone to effect secondary male sexual characteristics. ( Deeper voice, body and facial hair, that allowed me to pass as a male.) If you refer to the sexual abuse links, you may get some idea of the traumas caused by this abuse. The intersexual condition caused me to be abused by both "normal" sexes. Something seemed to drive others to experience their sexual fantasies, with me as the unwelcome recipient. Personally, all I derived was pain, frustration, and fear of failing to please those I was dependent on as a child. I suffered extreme feelings of guilt when I learned what these acts were. Not Everything Bad Not all of my life was bad or sad. Many parts were humorous, as I kept my own sense of humor, much of which was due to my masquerade as a macho male, as I perceived and played that role in many all-male environments, ie: military, jails, and prison. I never succumbed to a male/male relationship, due to inhibitions and prior abuse by homophobic males. Actually, the only way I could even have a homosexual relationship would be to have sex with another like myself (not likely), so homophobia is not an issue with me. In public, I have been, in all respects, a male heterosexual. And like many real males, I've felt woefully inadequate for much of that time. I had several advantages as a partner: insight, companionship, and communication, and my own desire for lengthy foreplay. Although inadequate, I was married for eighteen years to two "normal" women. However, when I revealed my condition (to the extent, I was aware of it), they reacted first with disbelief for a few years, then rejection, as they had homophobic reactions, social concerns with "their being bisexual," worries about themselves being gay. Both sought "normal" affairs while married, unable to accept me as is, and mostly unable to deal or cope with their own sexuality . A Good Parent Having raised three children alone through pre-teen and teenage years (11 years), I can appreciate the problems of single parenting. With two girls, I discovered the bias and prejudices of a male dominated school system. With 90% of discretionary funds expended on male sports activities, I resented and fought the system on behalf of my daughters, and my son, feeling he too was being brainwashed into participating in aggressive sports. 54

No one that knows me could fault me on my parenting skills. The idea that a gay, lesbian or gender dysphoric person is unfit as a parent for "normal children" is ludicrous! My own children never knew my intimate identity, until a local laboratory gossip leaked my DNA tests results. The two oldest have not changed and support me, however, my youngest daughter (15) was teased at school and chose to go live in another state with my ex-wife. They are all heterosexual as far as I know, but perhaps they are more tolerant of others, having known, loved and respected me. More Information on Hermaphrodites For those who want to know more about the strange disassociated life I led, and my own traumas, I can recommend a book, Herculine Barbin: Memoirs of a French Hermaphrodite. Herculine was raised as a female in convent surroundings. I felt the trauma and the emotions expressed in this book as my own. It is sad that there has been so little difference in public tolerance. Much has remained unchanged since 1838. My own book "Masquerade," is being edited as I write this. Perhaps it will make a little difference in public attitudes, and assist some lost soul who feels like a lonely outcast, as I did, to perhaps accept themselves better and find out they're not alone. Hopefully, others can find acceptance and be themselves, live a productive life, beyond a sick social preoccupation with pseudo-gender differences, associated sex and hate crimes and stop the reactionary response habits to childhood traumas. As you look through my site, I hope you'll think about these questions: Can we heal the mindless wounds we and others have inflicted on us, for the crime of being different outside than we are inside, by divisive and false social conditioning? Are we not all the same ambi-gendered children of the universe, residing in some arbitrary physical form? Who's agenda is furthered by dividing us? http://www.experienceproject.com/stories/Am-A-True-Hermaphrodite/315087 I Am a True Hermaphrodite Why Did God Make Me Like This? Life has been very hard on me growing up having both sexes.You can't tell any one especially kids they don't understand. I got into a lot of fight at school due to other kids finding out about me having both sexes,the police were called in due to all the fights.So I had to change schools a lot. All this was not fun. I still can't believe that I lived this long, I 35yr's old, I'm married to the most supportive christian woman God could of found for me we dated 2 months and got married.We've been married for almost 4yr's now. My wife goes with me to the doctors,since I hate doctors since over the years having to deal with them 55

treating me like some lab animal.I take 200mg. inj per week to be normal as can be.But about a month a go my body has been fighting me,I started lactating for no reason,so I went to the doctor with my wife in tow.We met with a new doctor and the first thing he said was,I have to ask you is are you pregnant,I said No,the doctor said then I have to ask when was the last time I was intimate with a man,I said never and my wife Charlotte said I can vouch for my husband. The doctor had blood work done,checking my prolactin level and to checking to see if somehow I was pregnant. All was fine so the doctor gave me a prescription for bromocritine a fertility drug to stop my lactation.Life sure can be hard at times but we get through it with the help of friends,family and God. As I've gotton older I've come to respect God for making me this way.It's a learning thing. http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/12/03/feedbackhermaphroditism Feedback: Hermaphroditism by Elizabeth Mitchell December 3, 2009 I can understand that hermaphrodites are a result of sin. But if homosexuality is wrong then what moral basis does a hermaphrodite or "its" parents have for selecting a gender. If the individual disagrees with "its" parents choice would it be morally acceptable to switch once they become old enough to choose for themselves? I get challenged with questions like these. Im not trying to be ridiculousI just would like to have a good answer. R. Dear R., I do not think that your questions are ridiculous. While training as an obstetrician-gynecologist, I also began asking these same questions. Let me start by saying that I hold the Bible as the ultimate authority to test any answers. Your question indicates that you also start with that foundation. You understand that, since sin entered the world, the whole creation groaneth. The curse of mutations and disease processes mars everything, even the original perfect design, for he which made them at the beginning made them male and female. You also understand that homosexuality is wrong. Acts of homosexuality are a willfully rebellious choice according to Romans 1. Despite claims that homosexuality is an inborn characteristic, the Bible labels any lustful acts outside of the sanctity of monogamous heterosexual marriage as sin and abomination. Since hermaphrodites are born with an actual physical defect, the thorny topic of how to deal with hermaphroditism must at the outset be clearly separated from the issue of homosexuality.

56

Medical Aspects of Hermaphroditism: Hermaphroditism includes true hermaphroditism and pseudohermaphroditism. Normal human females are genetically XX and have ovaries. Normal human males are genetically XY and have testes. True hermaphrodites have both ovarian and testicular tissue present in their bodies. As a result of the hormonal effects of these conflicting tissues, a wide variety of external appearances may result. Pseudohermaphrodites have either ovaries or testes, but their external appearance does not match their actual genetic gender. A variety of defects can cause these conditions, but the common denominator of them involves an effect on the developing embryo long before birth. The genetic gender of a baby is determined at the moment of fertilization. The DNA blueprint for sexual organ development is selected in accordance with the XX or XY genotype. As with many other birth defects, hermaphroditism can result from either an abnormality in the DNA itself or a defect in development as the organs take shape. God chose to use the same design for both male and female humans in the earliest stages of embryonic development. Under the influence of the hormones and the DNA blueprint, certain basic tissues are formed into either male or female structures and certain tissues regress. Embryologists call those building blocks destined to develop into female structures the Mullerian duct system, and those building blocks destined for male structures are the Wolffian duct system. While most forms of hermaphroditism are apparent at birth, even that is not always the case. For example, babies with testicular feminization are XY but appear to be normal females from birth. Most types of hermaphroditism appear at birth as ambiguous genitalia. As an obstetrician in the modern world, I knew that genetic questions about the ambiguity of a newborns genitalia could be answered with a look at the childs DNA. Nevertheless, even with such a modern advantage, the sex assignment of a child with hermaphroditism will oftentimes depend upon which gender assignment will make the child most functional. Even with surgery, options are often limited. Some cases of pseudohermaphroditism, such as congenital adrenal hyperplasia, involve a hormonal abnormality that causes exaggerated development of tissue from the wrong gender group (that is, the tissues which do not match the genetic gender) in utero. In fact, CAH is the most frequent cause of ambiguous genitalia in newborns. These XX (genetically female) babies are partially masculinized at birth to varying degrees, although their internal organs are completely female. Medical treatment for this particular form of pseudohermaphroditism can be helpful in achieving normal female function; therefore, after diagnosis, these babies are generally assigned a female gender. Prior to modern genetic testing, an XY person with testicular feminization, another form of pseudohermaphroditism, would be raised as a normal girl and someday discover herself to be infertile. Otherwise, because her body is completely unresponsive to testosterone (the male hormone), she would be a normal female by default. Her identity as a girl would be established at birth, 57

and without modern technology she could marry and live out her life as a normal but infertile woman. True hermaphrodites are often raised as males (about 75%), but 80% of them are XX, genetically female. The causes of true hermaphroditismthe presence of both ovarian and testicular tissue in the same bodyare varied and not always known. The actual genetic makeup is also variable, some being mosaics with both XY and XX cells in their bodies, some being XY, and some being XX. The cause of the development of both ovarian and testicular tissue without the matching genetic component can be a mystery, but under the influence of the hormones produced by these two tissues, ambiguous genitalia typically develop. Again, the assignment of sexual identity is based on external appearance and the reasonable functional expectations of the childs anatomy.

What About Choices? Consider this analogy: When a baby is adopted, his identity with his new parents is assigned. His biological history and the existence of his biological parents is not altered, but his identity is forevermore with his adoptive parents. Even if he gets to know his biological parents, his identity and life are primarily shaped by his adoptive parents. So it is with sex assignment. The childs identity is shaped by the choice. Furthermore, just as there is nothing inherently wrong about a child knowing about his biological parents, so there is no evil inherent in a hermaphrodite considering his or her genetic identity. As to the ultimate question of changing gender identity, to make a blanket statement about all cases would be insensitive and cruel. God knows the heart of every person.1 Regardless of the choice, a Christian with this problem can rejoice in his/her identity in Christ that transcends male-ness and female-ness and that will last for eternity. Elizabeth Mitchell, M.D. Help keep these daily articles coming. Support AiG. Footnotes 1. Authors opinion: Sincere Christians can hold a range of biblically-based opinions about the potentially difficult situation when the assigned gender does not match the genetic gender. In my personal opinion, the genetic aspects of gender identity in personality are often over-rated by people on both sides of various controversial issues. If assigned gender does not match genetic gender, God knows if a person who disagrees with assigned gender is rebellious against the environment God knew he/she would grow up in or sincerely wishing to become what God genetically designed him/her to be. For a person to change his/her assigned gender would, of course, be a decision with momentous repercussions, not to be undertaken lightly or without a great deal of 58

counseling. Confusion with the homosexual issue would likely cloud the picture in the minds of many friends and family. On the other hand, to simply maintain the assigned gender and live life with that identity is analogous to learning to live a normal life with some other sort of birth defect. Living life in the assigned gender would be no more living a lie than identifying yourself by your adopted name. https://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=7&article=1389 Intersexuality Fails to Support Homosexuality by Brad Harrub, Ph.D. Things used to be so simple. Fifty years ago, grandmothers asserted that girls were made of sugar and spice, and everything nice, while little boys were made of snips and snails and puppy dog tails. But what happens when a child is born with a mixture of sugar and spice as well as snails and puppy dogs tails? A recent media explosion (such as a feature on 60 Minutes) has shined the light on what is commonly being referred to as intersexed peoplea term used to describe a set of medical conditions that features congenital anomaly of the reproductive and sexual system. That is, intersexed people are born with sex chromosomes, external genitalia, or internal reproductive system traits that are not considered standard for either a male or female. Sadly, the condition exists in reality, and the victims unfortunately find themselves in both a physiological and political battle. Besides any visible abnormalities, these individuals often are sterile, lacking either a complete female or male reproductive system. Additionally, certain individuals in the homosexual community appeal to intersexed people, saying, We are like them. We were born this way. But scientific evidence shows that intersexed people are vastly different from homosexuals. While the term intersexed is not found in most current medical dictionaries, hermaphroditism is. This wordused prior to the politically correct erais defined as the presence in one individual of both ovarian and testicular tissue. Current estimates indicate that 1 in 2,000-3,000 persons are born with what has been termed non-standard gender. Of these, only small percentages are classified as true hermaphrodites. These children, frequently sterile, are born to unsuspecting parents whose dreams often are demolished as the reality of the situation sets in. Many times in these cases, a gender-identity team from a hospital is employed to further determine the actual sex of the child. Adolescents with abnormal sexual differentiation present a unique challenge to healthcare providers as they are forced to ask: should the child be surgically altered to be a male or a female? In the past, such a decision often was made immediately after birth, and any necessary surgery was performed for cosmetic reasons, the result being that the function of the genitals was compromised. Today, clinicians are rethinking such protocols. Men and women share 22 pairs of chromosomes; only one set is different (there are two X chromosomes in women, and an X and a Y in men). People 59

with true hermaphroditisman extremely rare conditionusually have chromatin-positive nuclei [containing the X chromosome, or Barr bodyBH], and 80% of them have a 46-XX chromosome constitution (Moore and Persuad, 1993, p. 292). As such, they generally are reared as females. In 1999, a team of scientists in Melbourne, Australia, discovered that certain genetically male children are born with female sex organs. The researchers observed that genetically male children who were born without a gene known as DMRT1, failed to form testes (Smith, et al., p. 602). This particular gene is located on chromosome 9, which means that both men and women possess copies of it. But researchers discovered that the gene is regulated differently in men and women. They found that the gene was expressed in high levels in the developing testes, yet in low levels in the ovaries. They believe that females born with testes may have an extra copy of the DMRT1 gene. This information provides compelling evidence that the intersexed condition results from mutated genes. Today, children should not be surgically assigned a sex until clinicians know for sure what their gender is. As we are now learning, early surgical intervention may not always be what is best for the child. Parents (and other adults involved in the counseling process) should encourage intersexed individuals to undergo genetic testing to determine what sexual chromosomes and internal organs are present. In the beginning, God created humans male and female (Genesis 1:27). Today, however, we know that individuals are born who possess both male and female reproductive tissues. As Christians, we must tear down the veil of shame and secrecy, and deal with issues such as these that societal conditions have placed squarely on our doorstep. Intersexed people are people with soulsas well as people who may one day want to marry and rear children. As each day brings new ethical dilemmas, we must strive to look at them within the scope of Gods inspired Word. And that Wordnot human opinionmust remain the criterion against which new developments are measured. We must not forget that scientific evidence documents that these abnormalities are a result of humanitys mutated gene pool. Through the years, sex-determining genes have mutated as the result of peoples exposure to harmful chemicals like DDT, asbestos, thalidomide, etc. Christians must be compassionate toward intersexed people, but at the same time must not fall prey to the false idea that intersexuality proves that homosexuals are simply born that way. REFERENCES Moore, Keith L, and T.V.N. Persaud (1993), The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology (Philadelphia, PA: W.B. Saunders). Smith, Craig , Peter McClive, et al. (1999), Conservation of a Sex-Determining Gene, Nature, 402:601-602, December 9. Copyright 2004 Apologetics Press, Inc. All rights reserved. 60

We are happy to grant permission for items in the "America's Culture War" section to be reproduced in their entirety, as long as the following stipulations are observed: (1) Apologetics Press must be designated as the original publisher; (2) the specific Apologetics Press Web site URL must be noted; (3) the authors name must remain attached to the materials; (4) any references, footnotes, or endnotes that accompany the article must be included with any written reproduction of the article; (5) alterations of any kind are strictly forbidden (e.g., photographs, charts, graphics, quotations, etc. must be reproduced exactly as they appear in the original); (6) serialization of written material (e.g., running an article in several parts) is permitted, as long as the whole of the material is made available, without editing, in a reasonable length of time; (7) articles, in whole or in part, may not be offered for sale or included in items offered for sale; and (8) articles may be reproduced in electronic form for posting on Web sites pending they are not edited or altered from their original content and that credit is given to Apologetics Press, including the web location from which the articles were taken. For catalog, samples, or further information, contact: Apologetics Press 230 Landmark Drive Montgomery, Alabama 36117 U.S.A. Phone (334) 272-8558 http://www.apologeticspress.org http://gendermosaic.blogspot.ro/2012/12/sound-bible-christianteaching_26.html Sound Bible Christian Teaching Pertaining to Intersex and Gender Identity (Hermaphrodite*) By Domingo Mora "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." KJV Gal 3:26-28 The scientific, and to a lesser extent the social, understanding of gender has significantly improved as more study and research into this matter has yielded proof that has served to disprove numerous harmful myths. Nevertheless, those who are intersexed and those who do not fit the conventional expectation for gender identity continue to suffer social stigma and merciless marginalization, even at the hands of those who claim to be Christians. PURPOSE OF STUDY 61

The purpose of this study is to shed some light on the Biblical application, meaning and purpose of gender. Upon close examination of scripture, we will discover that there is nothing hideous or remotely negative about being in a state of gender identity that defies the traditionally rigid definition. The truth of the bible and the assertions thereof, if correctly understood, cannot be contradicted by any findings. It is the duty of the Christian to humbly, prayerfully and diligently search for the truth in the bible. Do remember that one cannot come to a perfect understanding in this realm, but the Lord is faithful and very generous with wisdom to those who are his. We also look forward to perfect knowledge with the next coming of Christ. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. KJV 1Cor 13:9-13 DEFINITIONS Key earthly terms for this study; -Gender, as pertaining to humans, refers to the notion that people can divided into groups known as sexes, i.e. male and female, or neither. -In sociology, gender identity describes the gender with which a person identifies (i.e., whether one perceives oneself to be a man, a woman, or describes oneself to oneself in some less conventional way), but also can be used to refer to the gender that other people attribute to the individual on the basis of what they know from gender role indications (clothing, hair style, etc.). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_identity. -An intersexual or intersex person (or organism of any unisexual species) is one who is born with genitalia and/or secondary sex characteristics determined as neither exclusively male nor female, or which combine features of the male and female sexes. The terms hermaphrodite and pseudohermaphrodite, introduced in the 19th century, are now considered antiquated, misleading and stigmatizing, and patient advocates call for these terms to be abandoned [1]. The phrase "ambiguous genitalia" refers specifically to genital appearance, but not all intersex conditions result in atypical genital appearance [2] . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersex THE GENDER CONCEPT

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While these definitions above may need some improvement they do provide a provide us with a point of reference as we delve into the bible for the spiritual application of gender concept and in so doing, we will hopefully dispel most, if not all, sexist ideas that are erroneously accepted as biblical or for that matter Christian. We begin in familiar territory, the most basic spiritual teaching that embodies gender; Christ and His Bride. The bible insists that Christ is in a marital relationship with those he has saved. This is illustrated in the letter to the Ephesians as the Christian is instructed on his or her walk in Christ: (Suggestion; Please read entire chapters of the bible to better grasp the context) "Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." KJV Eph 5:21-27 THE PURPOSE OF GENDER Next we will attempt to define the concept of gender based on the biblical usage. As we skim though the verses above it looks obvious that God is drawing parallels between the two relationships, one earthly (man and wife) and the other spiritual ( Christ and his spiritual church). This may lead to the notion that the spiritual marriage somehow the copy or shadow of the earthly marriage between a man and a woman. This instinctive deduction is only natural because we exist in the physical realm and we have to really try a little harder to see things spiritually. Upon reading on to the end of the chapter, we find that the focus of this passage is clearly the Lord and his spiritual church as opposed to marriage as we commonly know it. "So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.

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This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband." KJV Eph 5:28-33 What we should understand from the example above is that the perfect marriage is the spiritual one, the heavenly one. The marriage between two physical humans is the shadow of that true and perfect marriage between the Lord and his people, this can be referred to as the Fulfilment. The purpose of gender is to show the relationship between Christ and his Eternal Church. ( Not your physical neighborhood church) SHADOW AND FULFILLMENT This shadow and fulfillment relationship of earthly things and concepts to heavenly ones is seen throughout scripture, and a proper understanding of how God uses it to illustrate spiritual themes is crucial to the bible student. The following are some example of shadow - fulfillment relationships: Sacrificial lamb - Jesus Christ "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." John 1:29 Physical Birth - Spiritual Birth "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again." John 3:6-7 Physical Sword -The Spiritual Word of God Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. The High Priest in Jerusalem (right up to the Crucifixion of Christ)- Christ our Heavenly High Priest 1. Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

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2. A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. 3. For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 4. For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: 5. Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount. Physical Food-Spiritual Food (Christ and His Gospel) John 6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. John 6:48 I am that bread of life. APPLICATION OF THE PHYSICAL TO SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIPS Above are just a few examples of readily discernable verses that illustrate the Shadow-Fulfillment relationship that are taught in the bible. What is harder to perceive is that in these Shadow-Fulfillment relationship the substance is actually in the fulfillment part of the equation. This is to say that the clear intention and purpose of the concept embodied is the Fulfillment part only. To demonstrate this we look at an example that our Lord Jesus Christ uses in the Gospel of John as he teaches us making the comparison between the miraculously provided manna that God via Moses gave to the wandering Israelites, and Jesus Christ who is the source of external life as the manna was the source of physical nutrition to these Israelite; "Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world." John 6:31-33 John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. Here we see that the true bread is the one from heaven, namely Jesus Christ, and that physical bread (food) serves only to point to the Spiritual bread which 65

everyone needs to have eternal life. Eternal life is obviously represented by physical life which is notoriously short. In this same respect gender in humans is just a shadow or a picture of the Perfect and True gender concept that is entirely spiritual. "So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband." KJV Eph 5:28-33 Re 21:9 " And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife." Re 22:17 " And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." THE GENDER OF GOD Concerning this true gender concept the Male is Jesus Christ and all the those who are saved make up the Female counterpart. Yes, all believers are spiritually female, and the only true male is Jesus Christ. It is very important to note that the only reason God provided for gender in the physical realm is only as a witness of heavenly reality. By this I mean, that there is no innate difference whatsoever between men and women, we are simply humans, and if it would have pleased God to create us is such a manner as to reproduce by asexual mechanisms, He would have done so. We do see a great variety of organisms in nature that do so, but the Lord our God in his great wisdom, mercy and providence has used yet another aspect of creation to declare His truth. " For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:" Rom 1:18-20 66

This understanding also answers any question one may have about the gender of God. Since gender represents the relationship between God and his people, God is the only true male. The natural question is " Why then is the Bible full of verses and commands that clearly address matters of gender?" Yes, the Bible is very involved, especially with regard to how the woman should relate to the man. I am NOT at all suggesting that these verses should be disregarded by believers in the physical realm or that these verses do not have a physical application. What I am saying is that as the Christian obeys the gender specific verses of the bible, he or she is maintaining a picture of the true and incorruptible heavenly relationship between Christ and his heavenly church. While the picture or shadow has no substance or value in itself ( the substance is in what it refers to) God does insist that the picture or shadow be kept pure. To show this let us visit a more familiar concept, sin offering or sacrifices. Among the laws that God gave Moses there are numerous concerning the need for believers to offer sacrifices. The purpose of these offerings was clear; to provide a covering for sin. These offerings of sacrifices were required by Mosaic Law (The law of God)and were to be performed in very specific manners. "If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD. And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him." Lev 1:3-4 "And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears. And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering." Lev 2:14-15 The question here is whether these activities provided any spiritual benefit. If a person sinned and followed through with the prescribed sacrifice ( in the physical realm), would this course of action lead to covering of sin? The answer is of course not "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." Heb 10:4 " For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: 67

In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." Heb 10:113 Yes, all these offerings pointed to the true and perfect sacrifice that God provided us; His Son Jesus Christ. This is the only offering that can cover sin, all the sacrifices before Christ went to the cross were simply a shadow of his sacrifice. While these sacrifices in themselves had no substance, they pointed to a very pure and holy Person and event, and thus God laid out very specific rules about how these shadows would be administered. It was quite a grievous offence to perform these rites inappropriately, King Saul comes to mind, (1Sam 13:5-14) and so do the sons of Aaron (Lev 10:1-3) We conclude that God is very adamant that the picture or shadow be kept pure because what the picture points to is indeed pure. IS THE HUSBAND THE BOSS OF THE WIFE? What we learn is, while the focus of all of God's laws spiritual indeed, the preservation of the integrity of the pictures or shadows that point to these spiritual things is of great importance to God and should be observed by his believers. For example, when God in the Bible gives instruction about how husbands and wives are to relate to each other, wives are to revere their own husbands (as Sarah revered Abraham and called him Lord, as the eternal Church reveres Jesus, her husband and calls Him Lord) not because these physical husbands are something special in themselves (they are hopefully simply sinners saved by grace as their wives hopefully are) but because by so doing they keep the portrait intact. The only difference is that God has designated husbands to represent the Lord Jesus and wives to represent his eternal Church that is made up of his elect. So, it is sinful for a wife to revere her husband (or for that matter a husband to expect reverence) for any other reason except that all believers should revere the Lord, as it would be sinful for a believer before the cross to have expected forgiveness to emanate from a physical burnt offering. A wife should always revere her husband because the eternal church always reveres the Lord Jesus Christ. Perfection is only possible in the spiritual realm except for the case of Christ Jesus who took on a physical nature for our redemption. 68

HOW DOES ALL THIS PERTAIN TO THE INTERSEXED OR THOSE WITH OTHER GENDER IDENTITY ISSUES? The very existence of those with ambiguous gender designation is in itself very providential in that it serves as proof that the gender concept is only pure and true in the spiritual realm. This is necessary because human beings are physical (carnal, flesh) and we do not readily, if at all, visualize spiritual concepts, we are rather quick to assume that a lot of heavenly concepts are fully realized in the physical realm. Briefly, if the true and full expression of gender was physical, the sexes would always be clearly divided without exception and we would be able to say that this would provide the basis for male superiority. This is not so, the reality is that the sexes are not ever so clearly defined in the physical realm; we find feminine men, masculine women, those who are intersexed and a variety of other conditions. All these should point us to the spiritual reality where the gender concept is truly manifest and the gender definition crystal clear. All human beings are physically from Adam and stand on the same level, sinners in need of mercy. Domingo Mora - Bible Student domingo@japan.com Web link: http://FairSubject.com

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