REWRITING GENDER?
You, Your Family, Transgenderism and the Gospel
By David Martin
Christian Focus. 79 pages. £6.99
ISBN 978 1 527 101 609
Don’t underestimate the power of this little book. Admittedly, after initial misgivings, I quickly realised its potential to help explain these difficult topics to children (and adults, for that matter).
The book packages the controversial area of gender identity, and how it relates to the gospel, in accessible language for little children. No mean feat.
Grounded in the gospel
The 11 chapters follow a clear, repeated format. Each begins as a letter written by the author to one of his four young children addressing topics such as gender dysphoria, cross-dressing, transgenderism, grounding it in the context of the gospel story. Helpful Bible verses are suggested to look up for further reading, followed by a short explanation of the topic to adult carers. The next section titled ‘How to begin a conversation’ with children, is a useful section on how to build a positive world-view of God’s good design for his creation. Each section concludes with a suggested prayer to pray with children.
The letters are written in an endearing and humorous style, celebrating the dependence of children on their parents and a reflection of our dependence on God. There is the sense of childlike wonder at God’s amazing and beautiful design of his world and us as his people. The simplicity of this book cuts across the defensive tone that Christians are often forced to take against hostility to biblical truths. Martin summarises the key to finding your identity: ‘You will never truly understand who you are until you are clear on who Jesus really is’ (p.48).
Christians can feel overwhelmed at the challenges and dilemmas of this topic to the point of distraction. However, Martin points us to Christ. Perhaps transgenderism will provide more opportunities to share the message of hope – our better story.
