Understanding Transgenderism & its Possible Causes
Addressing Transgenderism with Truth, Love, & Grace - Part 1
Introduction
You can also listen to this article on the podcast episode here.
America is dealing with a gender identity crisis. Many youths and adults alike are wrestling with gender identity issues in our culture. Those of us who are not dealing with gender identity issues are left to wade through this cultural issue and decide where we stand. Some believe the current gender identity issue is a problem to address, while others see it as a significant advancement in modern society’s understanding of gender. In either case, the debate over gender identity can confuse onlookers.
Christianity is not immune to the gender identity debate. Some adolescents raised in church are wrestling with these issues also. Some young people who profess faith in Christ and were raised in Christian homes and churches later come out as transgender. What are Christians to make of this?
This article will be part one of a series where I explore the gender identity crisis (transgenderism) in America and offer an introductory framework for addressing it as Christians. I focus more on youth than adults, but the principles I share will apply to both groups.
In this article, I explain what transgenderism is, explore data about the current gender identity issue in America, and examine what could be the cause of transgenderism. In the second article, I will critique modern gender theory and expose some significant flaws with transgender claims. In the third and final article, I will share some principles and guidelines to help us reach those we may know who are either struggling with their gender identity or may have come out as transgender. The first two articles are foundational concepts to understand the practical guidelines in the third article.
Christians need to be aware of the key issues with transgenderism so we can respond with the truth, love, and grace of Jesus Christ. Our goal should never be to demean people, but in the interest of helping people caught up in gender confusion, we need a way to speak the truth with a heart of love and a tone of grace.
What is Transgenderism
According to the American Psychological Association, transgenderism (or transgender) is “an umbrella term used to describe the full range of people whose gender identity and/or gender role do not conform to what is typically associated with their sex assigned at birth.”[1] In other words, a transgender person feels different than the gender they were born with. Transgenderism means a person’s self-perceived gender identity does not conform to their birth gender.
The word transgender uses the Latin word trans, which means across. Thus, transgender means someone’s gender identity or expression can go across a gender spectrum between male and female. Often, people believe that to be transgender simply means a person identifies as the opposite gender from the one they were born with. Transgenderism is more than that. Modern gender theory argues that gender is nonbinary (not just male or female). Instead, gender is on a spectrum, as the image below illustrates.
According to the theory, a person can identify with a gender anywhere along this continuum between male and female. Modern gender theory asserts that gender is not male or female. Gender can be male and female. A transgender person could be someone born a male who identifies as a female or vice versa. However, they could also be a mixture of maleand female.
Modern gender theory claims gender is more complex than male or female, and there can be a host of gender expressions that contain mixtures of male and female or even something beyond male and female. Some websites claim as many as 107 different gender identities as of 2024.[2]
If you interact with someone identifying as transgender, do not assume anything about their perceived gender identity. Their identity could be as simple as a boy who wants to be a girl. Their identity could be more complicated, involving male and female mixtures or something beyond male and female.
Gender Dysphoria
Another important term is gender dysphoria. Psychiatrists define gender dysphoria as distress due to “marked incongruence between one’s experienced/expressed gender and assigned gender, of at least six months’ duration. It can vary in degree of intensity.”[3] Gender dysphoria is when a person’s desire to be a gender other than the one they were born with becomes severe to the point it causes mental distress to some degree.
Not every transgender person experiences gender dysphoria. Someone may identify as transgender and never experience distress or discomfort over it. When interacting with someone who identifies as transgender, it is crucial to keep in mind they might be at ease with their transgenderism, or they might be experiencing mental distress because of it. Keeping these ideas in mind can help us have efficient conversations.
Gender Identity Crisis Data
Looking at the data about the gender identity issue helps paint a picture of what we face. The United States does not have a centralized reporting system; thus, the data is often scattered. We rely upon states to voluntarily report data or rely upon independent organizations to conduct their research.
Gallup polling in 2022 estimates that 0.6% of the US adult population identifies as transgender.[4] Data also suggests the 18–29 age group contains the most transgender people. One study also found that 53% of 18–29-year-olds personally know someone who is transgender.
The number of people who know someone who is transgender is also growing. In 2017, a report indicated that only 5% of Americans personally knew someone who identifies as transgender. However, four years later, in 2021, that number grew to 42% of the US population. It is more likely now than ever before that you know someone who is questioning their gender identity or has come out as transgender. Christians cannot avoid this issue, becoming a growing mission field.
Gender identity issues are not unique to youths but are a major growing problem for youth-aged Americans. A report from the Williams Institute at UCLA in 2022 found that nearly one in five people (18%) of youth aged 13-17 identify as transgender.[5] Reuters News and Komodo Health Systems released data in 2022 that shares a depressing picture for adolescents dealing with gender identity issues. Below is a graph showing the diagnoses of youths with gender dysphoria.
When factoring in the rate of increase year over year from 2017, there has been a surge in gender dysphoria cases from 2017 to 2021.
Sometimes, adolescent gender dysphoria is treated with puberty blockers. These medications prevent the child’s body from naturally producing their birth gender’s hormones and cause their body to overcompensate by producing the opposite gender’s hormones. For example, a boy who identifies as a girl can be given medication to slow down his testosterone formation as he approaches puberty. The medication causes the boy to produce and retain more estrogen like a girl’s body.
The graph below shows the number of cases where puberty blockers were used to treat gender dysphoria in 6–17-year-olds.
The numbers might not appear relatively high, but the rate of increase each year in these cases is significant. The trend shows an ever-growing number of 6–17-year-olds are diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and more of them each year are given puberty blockers to treat it. It is not an exaggeration to call the current youth gender identity situation a crisis.
The data shows us that more children and youth are identifying as transgender, gender dysphoria cases are rising, and the use of puberty blockers is on the rise. It is most likely the case in the US that we all know someone identifying as transgender. We must equip ourselves with the necessary resources to think rightly about transgenderism so we can best help people struggling with their gender identity. This is no longer an issue unique to “big cities.” Gender identity issues are everywhere in America.
What Causes Transgenderism
Do we know what causes someone to identify as a different gender from their birth gender? Is it psychological, biological, spiritual, or purposeful? Are transgender people born that way? To date, no scientific or medical expert has a definitive answer as to what causes transgenderism or gender dysphoria.
One theory is that a transgender person’s brain may be orientated towards a gender that is different from their physical reproductive organs. For example, a person born a biological male could have a female brain or vice versa. Another influential theory is that a genetic link causes transgenderism. As of the writing of this article, there have been no conclusive, peer-reviewed, and accepted studies that prove a genetic or brain developmental cause for transgenderism or gender dysphoria. Honest experts must admit they have no idea what causes transgenderism from a biological perspective.
Occasionally researchers have claimed a biological cause for transgenderism through empirical studies, such as brain scans or genetic testing. However, there is no conclusive scientific proof that transgenderism or gender dysphoria have biological causes. Anyone who claims that science has proven transgender people are ‘born that way’ is either ill-informed or dishonest.
There is no scientific proof that transgender people are ‘born that way.’
One study found that 80% of adolescents who claimed they were transgender changed their minds and were no longer transgender in adulthood.[6] A follow-up study conducted years later produced similar findings.
Evidence suggests that most adolescents who claim they are transgender grow out of it as they age.
People are not born with genes that cause them to question their gender identity as they grow. Pop culture and its media would have us believe otherwise. The popular claim is that people cannot help it; they are born that way.
Perhaps the cause of transgenderism is cultural rather than biological. American secular culture may be the actual cause of transgenderism since it pressures, affirms, and encourages adolescents to question their gender identity.
From the Christian perspective, we know that all issues people wrestle with ultimately have a spiritual root cause. Even the fact that our bodies deal with illnesses and death links back to the spiritual problem of sin. Ever since Adam and Eve chose to break God’s law and sin through their act of disobedience, humanity has dealt with the consequences of sin (see Genesis 3). Not only do we deal with the consequences of sin, but we also have sin in our nature. We are sinful beings in need of saving from both sin’s penalty and power.
Since we live in a sinful world and we are sinful people, we are drawn to a variety of sins and temptations that place us at odds with God’s holy standards. Furthermore, one of the consequences of sin is that our minds are slanted and warped towards sinful deviations. Not only do we engage in sinful actions, but we also have a sinful mind that lusts after sinful things.
Paul says in Romans 1:18-32 the cause for homosexual activity is that their minds became so twisted by sin that they perverted the natural sexual functions of their bodies. Rather than men sexually desiring women and vice versa, men began to want men, and women desired women. Their lusts became depraved, and they gave in to their twisted, sinful sexual desires. God gave them over to follow the perverted desires of their hearts. Sin in the mind and heart allowed to run rampant without restraint leads to sexual deviations from God’s holy standards.
Paul’s principles in Romans 1:18-32 also help explain the root cause for gender identity issues. The root cause is spiritual. People’s minds become depraved and bent towards sin to such a degree that they lose rational thinking. Due to the pressures of the sinful world and our sinful nature, it is not hard to see how some people become darkened in their thoughts to the degree they question their gender identity and ignore the natural function of their birth gender as God intended.
James 1:14-15 explains the process for how we sin. We are first tempted and enticed by our lusts (desires). James says it is as if our lusts carry us away. If we do not deal with our lusts, then we will act on those lusts. The resulting action we take is the sin we engage in. James said it is as if lust gives birth to a child, sin. Then, when that sin runs its course, the result is death.
Due to the sinful pressures of the world we live in and the darkening effects of sin on people’s minds, it is not surprising that some people question God’s good gift of their birth gender. Sin can cause detrimental effects on the heart and mind. They become lusts if not dealt with in a God-honoring manner. A person may lust after being a different gender than their birth gender. That lust, if not dealt with, will be acted upon. The resulting actions are sinful and lead the person down a morally dark road.
The gender identity crisis and transgenderism are spiritual and moral issues, not psychological or biological.
Conclusion
I hope this first article has helped give an understanding of the basics of what transgenderism is and that some people undergo severe mental distress when they question their gender identity. The data proves that the gender identity issue is an ever-growing crisis significantly impacting adolescents. The root cause for transgenderism is spiritual and morally based, not biological or psychological. Do not let popular culture trick you into believing people are “born that way.”
People who question their gender identity were nurtured to do so with help from their cultural environment, peers, and sinful inclinations, whether they realize it or not. Our job is to be the voice of truth and reason with a tone of grace. In the next article, we will examine some key fallacies with current modern gender theory that attempts to give validity to transgenderism.
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[1] https://dictionary.apa.org/transgender
[2] https://www.gqindia.com/content/how-many-genders-are-there-gender-identity-list-and-the-terms-you-need-to-know & https://www.disabled-world.com/disability/sexuality/lgbt/genders.php
[3] Gender Dysphoria. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th ed. American Psychiatric Association. 2013, pg. 452.
[4] Jeffrey M. Jones, “LGBT Identification Steady,” Gallup, February 22, 2023, https://news.gallup.com/poll/470708/lgbt-identification-steady.aspx.
[5] https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/press/transgender-estimate-press-release/
[6] https://www.transgendertrend.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Steensma-2013_desistance-rates.x65250.pdf