I was talking to a mother of a 9-year-old child. Flustered, she vented the following:
“My son attends a liberal private school. One day, he came home and asked, “Mom, am I a boy or a girl?” I was shocked that he asked the question. I asked, “Honey, why are you asking that?” He replied, “Well, that’s what we discussed in class today, and I was confused.”" The Mom lovingly but firmly replied to him that he was born as a boy and that he’ll be a boy for the rest of his life. Her son was “relieved” to hear that, and then he went about doing his homework.
This “experience” left her frustrated and angry. She said, “Why was I not informed by the school–a private school where I pay almost $40K a year in tuition–was addressing the controversial topic of gender identity or dysphoria with my 9-year-old!?” (A 9-year-old is typically in 3rd grade.) I hope that that school is prepared to give her a satisfying answer for she is a prominent attorney. She also asked me, “Principal Song, I must confess, I wasn’t prepared to answer my son’s question other than what I said. Do you have any brilliant ideas or responses?” I thought for a moment because she was not a person of Christian faith. Sure, if I were speaking with a fellow believer, there are lots of scriptural or biblical references on top of my head. But, given that she was not a believer, I paused and thought for a moment. And, then I shared the most logical and scientific answer with her. The short answer: one’s sex or gender is determined by “chromosomes.” Here is the summary of what I shared with that mom. But, don't take it just from me--the following comes from the National Human Genome Research Institute:
Chromosomes are thread-like structures located inside the nucleus of animal and plant cells. Each chromosome is made of protein and a single molecule of DNA. Passed from parents to offspring(s), DNA contains the specific instructions that make each type of living creature unique. Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, for a total of 46 chromosomes. Other species of plants and animals have a unique set number of chromosomes. In humans and most other complex organisms, one copy of each chromosome is inherited from the female parent and the other from the male parent. This explains why children inherit some of their traits from their mother and others from their father.
The fact is that males and females have different chromosomes. Females have two X chromosomes in their cells, while males have one X and one Y chromosome. So, in addition to visually distinguishable characteristics (such as genitalia), the X’s and Y’s in the chromosome determine one’s sex or gender."
The mom exclaimed, “That’s right! I learned in my middle school science class that guys and girls have different chromosomes! Wow. I can use this fact to go right to the point.” Our conversation ended on a positive note, and I was glad that I could help her. It’s sad that we have to go to such extents to detail the differences between male and female. But, we’re living in strange times. We have a new SCOTUS justice who won't define what a woman is. We have people calling moms “birthing persons.” We see photoshopped images and memes showing pregnant men. A great number of people believe that a fetus is just a clump of cells. Some adults force their children to watch LGBTQ+ parades. We have schools that host LGBTQ+ assemblies and ignore parental objections to using curricula or material that are (to put mildly) inappropriate. Yet, the fact remains that a boy is born a boy and a girl is born a girl. That’s biology, and we can’t alter that. (While I am aware that an extremely tiny percentage of people who are hermaphrodites, that is not the norm.) You can attempt to redefine words a la Orwell’s 1984, but facts are facts. And, interestingly, those facts line up with what we have always known--that God created male and female, Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. Folks, seek the truth and speak the truth in love. Equip yourself first, and then pass on the insights to your children and loved ones. Do not fear those who scream, threaten, and intimidate others to accept their versions of truth. We simply need to be rooted in truth and stand firmly on it.