Few people have paid closer attention to the words, claims & actions of trans-activists than Helen Joyce (she’s even written a book1 on it). She’s not alone, of course, in spotting the connection but in this article (which is very good and actually about a good many other things) she makes the observation that in many ways gender ideology and its trans activists are being very religious. So when both Christians and atheists spot secular religions knocking about then that’s worth taking note of.
But gender-identity theory is also, when you listen to what its adherents say and watch what they do, a godless neo-religion. For a given individual it may be more one or the other of these (or many other things, including self-hatred, internalised homophobia, a desire to be interesting and much more). But you only have to listen to the catchphrases like “trans people are sacred”, notice the willingness to sacrifice children’s bodies on the altar of adult identity claims and watch detransitioners being excommunicated to see the religious aspects.
And part of that neo-religion is a desire to be godlike: to make an assertion of sovereignty over your own person, even to the extent of assertions about your sex. It’s a promise that humans can transcend material reality and biological givens – and now the link with transhumanism is clearer. Of course it’s there in the very title of the book “From transgender to transhuman” by trans-identified man Martine Rothblatt – a book that for my sins I’ve read and which Eric hadn’t heard of.
Idolatry never really changes substance, only form and in that sense this falsehood isn’t worse than any of the others that have been knocking around since Eden. They all do damage, but this heresy happens to one for our time and place, so it is our challenge to demolish these arguments2.
* The rest of the piece is also very good on learning to really listen, pay attention to what people are saying and not saying and work out why you think the way that you do and for what reasons.
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