tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post6339009143126287818..comments2023-07-05T08:17:21.505-04:00Comments on Getting to the Point: A Fair And Reasonable QuestionFr. Denis Lemieuxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01049723287624178155noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-12763442052954712722015-09-08T22:56:35.548-04:002015-09-08T22:56:35.548-04:00Well constructed response, Neil. It's a diffic...Well constructed response, Neil. It's a difficult concept to fully comprehend, this gender dysphoria, and your comparison to autism is very apt. There are so many things that we don't know about the human brain, let alone the mind.Susannah Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17614796044821279154noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-37828455131785007162015-09-08T22:55:50.377-04:002015-09-08T22:55:50.377-04:00Well constructed response, Neil. It's a diffic...Well constructed response, Neil. It's a difficult concept to fully comprehend, this gender dysphoria, and your comparison to autism is very apt. There are so many things that we don't know about the human brain, let alone the mind.Susannah Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17614796044821279154noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-50322501204783219402015-09-08T22:38:36.747-04:002015-09-08T22:38:36.747-04:00I should also add that I personally do not believe... I should also add that I personally do not believe that gender is wholly socially constructed. I personally believe that it is god given...and that it does not always match the traditional category of male and female. There is a lot biology we still do not understand...so confusion is expected... <br /> All of this is more complicated by Neil's commented about sexual dysphorias...<br /> So much pain and confusion...how much we need to talk about this and pray for each other.... <br /> Bless youCatherinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-60468925093492411002015-09-08T22:17:45.165-04:002015-09-08T22:17:45.165-04:00 Well, for some it has been helpful to distinguis... Well, for some it has been helpful to distinguish between gender and sex because it allows more conversation about sexual identity. Sex is typically refers to biological makeup and gender usually refers to social expectations associated with masculinitinity and feminity within a culture. <br /> I have heard some people so opposed to radical theorists that they deride the very word gender itself. I do not think that is where you were headed here.<br /> Gender is not a new concept- it is simply a word that people use to talk about aspects of masculinity and feminity that are socially constructed, rather than innate. <br /> Catherinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-62193672981201000932015-09-08T22:05:28.266-04:002015-09-08T22:05:28.266-04:00Sorry for going on and on, but I really thank you ...Sorry for going on and on, but I really thank you for opening up this discussion, and for doing it in a very respectful way. I think the Church really needs to talk about this. For anyone interested in reading more on this, Catholic blogger Melinda Selyms has done a lot of work on this. Here are just two of her posts.<br /><br />www.patheos.com/blogs/catholicauthenticity/2015/07/what-every-christian-should-know-about-trans-people/<br /><br />www.patheos.com/blogs/catholicauthenticity/2015/07/what-is-gender-dysphoria/<br /><br />Neil Pattersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06447274994087291780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6668594987436792920.post-37530789241807879092015-09-08T21:54:49.184-04:002015-09-08T21:54:49.184-04:00A few thoughts on gender and transgender: first of...A few thoughts on gender and transgender: first of all, a lot of people get confused between "gender theory" and "transgender". The former is a movement that believes gender is entirely socially constructed and that we should get rid of the whole idea entirely and let people be whoever they want to be. but for people who are transgendered, gender is very important, but they experience themselves as having the opposite gender to that which is indicated by their bodies.<br /><br />Trans people know what the rest of us know very well: gender is not just a social construction and it is not just biological sex, it is a very deep and fundamental part of who we are psychologically and spiritually.<br /><br />You mention people with intersex conditions, that is, people who are born with ambiguous genitals. It is true that these are very rare cases, and most trans people have perfectly normal sex organs. But we are learning more and more about neurological intersex conditions, and these make the situation more complicated. Briefly put, the male brain and the female brain are structured differently. Although much more work needs to be done on this, it seems that people who experience gender disphoria (i.e. feel they are the "wrong gender") will tend to have neurological characteristics from the opposite sex.<br /><br />Are transgendered people mentally ill? It seems that the problem with calling it a mental illness is that there doesn't seem to be a treatment for it. How could I say to someone, "there's something deeply wrong with you, but no one knows how to fix it"? It is much the same with homosexuality. People who experience same sex attraction do not "get over it" or "get healed", except in very rare cases.<br /><br />Could not trans people be a different kind of person? Does it have to be construed as either a moral fault, or an illness, or both? Is autism a mental illness or is it a different way of being human? What about down's syndrome? We often say in Christian discourse, that all people are created fundamentally either male or female and this corresponds to the sex of their bodies. Why are we so sure of this? <br /><br />One might argue that, for instance, the faculty of reason or the ability to use language is a fundamental part of what it means to be human and yet many human beings do not possess these faculties. Did God make a mistake? Or is humanity more diverse and strange than we thought it was. Neil Pattersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06447274994087291780noreply@blogger.com