A friend shook his head in disbelief, "I'd never thought it could happen in Malaysia"
He's referring to the million-dollar 'wedding' between Jeffrey/Jessie Chung and Joshua Beh in Kuching earlier this week.
What is more tragic is that this symbolic issue of 'homosexual' or 'transsexual' marriage has been 'glorified' by certain Christian individuals/churches. A news article even made the blunder of linking it to 'charismatic ideology'?!
Honestly I find it easy to like the talented and philantrophic Jeffrey/Jessie.
During earlier interviews on national TV, 'she' came across as a warm and intelligent person. If my reading of the situation was correct, most people were sympathetic that this is her private decision.
A bit odd, but it's her life.
Suddenly she became the 'poster girl' for health products and water beds with 7-day trials.
The build-up was fantastic...
We were told that the boyfriend proposed in public many times but she rejected him. If the Malaysian public can't accept them, they'd migrate to australia. 'She' mused over the dream of having children.
It's hard not to like Jessie.
But with the (intentional) media publicity of the wedding, something changed. If the radio call-ins were anything to go by, the majority of Malaysians suddenly find themselves unfavorable to the idea.
Reasons given were:
"What kind of example is that to children?"
"Would that encourage confused people to go for sex change also?"
"Why do they glamorise the wedding and use it as publicity stunt for their agenda?"
The Government and NECF has responded here.
If the marriage certificate is not even signed, it probably means that they are not seeking any legal recognition for their marriage status.
Then why splash a million dollars on a wedding with journalists in tow?
Public acceptance.
It seems more like a concerted effort to win respect from the community that even a legal certificate cannot confer.
But if her private decision was morally OK, why worry about its influence on children?
If its public influence is morally bad, how come we treated her private decision with such 'loving acceptance'?
Does a moral good turns bad once it comes out of the closet?
Ultimately, it boils down to this question: ‘Where does gender come from?’
Al Mohler wrote:
"The secular world thinks it is some kind of evolutionary, physiological, anatomical kind of accident that happened. It is not just an anatomical matter. It is God’s design. In other words, it is not some kind of accident happening, going with one plumbing or another, [but it is] God in His glory, in His sovereignty, makes us male and female.
"In this postmodern age of confusion, a lot of people are going to think that the message of this (transgender) therapist is the message of compassion. But you need to understand as intelligent, believing, faithful Christians... this is God’s decision, not ours. We are not given the gift of autonomy to decide whether we want to be a man or a woman."
Don't miss the next Agora workshop on Sense & Sensuality
Description: - An overview of homosexuality (Is it inborn? Unchangeable? Harmless?) and a Christian response.
Presenter: John Chung
Date: 20 Nov 2005 (Sun)
Time: 1.45 pm
Location :CDPC
He's referring to the million-dollar 'wedding' between Jeffrey/Jessie Chung and Joshua Beh in Kuching earlier this week.
What is more tragic is that this symbolic issue of 'homosexual' or 'transsexual' marriage has been 'glorified' by certain Christian individuals/churches. A news article even made the blunder of linking it to 'charismatic ideology'?!
Honestly I find it easy to like the talented and philantrophic Jeffrey/Jessie.
During earlier interviews on national TV, 'she' came across as a warm and intelligent person. If my reading of the situation was correct, most people were sympathetic that this is her private decision.
A bit odd, but it's her life.
Suddenly she became the 'poster girl' for health products and water beds with 7-day trials.
The build-up was fantastic...
We were told that the boyfriend proposed in public many times but she rejected him. If the Malaysian public can't accept them, they'd migrate to australia. 'She' mused over the dream of having children.
It's hard not to like Jessie.
But with the (intentional) media publicity of the wedding, something changed. If the radio call-ins were anything to go by, the majority of Malaysians suddenly find themselves unfavorable to the idea.
Reasons given were:
"What kind of example is that to children?"
"Would that encourage confused people to go for sex change also?"
"Why do they glamorise the wedding and use it as publicity stunt for their agenda?"
The Government and NECF has responded here.
If the marriage certificate is not even signed, it probably means that they are not seeking any legal recognition for their marriage status.
Then why splash a million dollars on a wedding with journalists in tow?
Public acceptance.
It seems more like a concerted effort to win respect from the community that even a legal certificate cannot confer.
But if her private decision was morally OK, why worry about its influence on children?
If its public influence is morally bad, how come we treated her private decision with such 'loving acceptance'?
Does a moral good turns bad once it comes out of the closet?
Ultimately, it boils down to this question: ‘Where does gender come from?’
Al Mohler wrote:
"The secular world thinks it is some kind of evolutionary, physiological, anatomical kind of accident that happened. It is not just an anatomical matter. It is God’s design. In other words, it is not some kind of accident happening, going with one plumbing or another, [but it is] God in His glory, in His sovereignty, makes us male and female.
"In this postmodern age of confusion, a lot of people are going to think that the message of this (transgender) therapist is the message of compassion. But you need to understand as intelligent, believing, faithful Christians... this is God’s decision, not ours. We are not given the gift of autonomy to decide whether we want to be a man or a woman."
Don't miss the next Agora workshop on Sense & Sensuality
Description: - An overview of homosexuality (Is it inborn? Unchangeable? Harmless?) and a Christian response.
Presenter: John Chung
Date: 20 Nov 2005 (Sun)
Time: 1.45 pm
Location :CDPC
Comments
There is nothing in the Bible about sex reassignment surgery, but everything the Bible says about male and female pertains to those who are confused about their gender. The most important principle is that God chooses whether a child is boy or girl, and our bodies tell us what gender God intends for us. If someone feels that their gender is mismatched to their genitals, then the solution is not to mutilate one's body, but to cooperate with God to change one's confused thinking.
"I am a woman trapped in a man's body" is a familiar statement made by a gender-confused person, but it's not accurate. The feelings are real, but the interpretation of the feelings are faulty. Several years ago, here in the U.S., Johns Hopkins University stopped doing sex-change surgeries because they learned that several years after the surgery, people weren't happy. That's because having a doctor change the outside, did nothing to change the heart, and the wrong thinking continued. Here is a link to a powerful essay written by the doctor who made the decision to shut down the program:
http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft0411/articles/mchugh.htm
Also, here are a couple of web pages that I think you will find helpful in understanding the regret many people experience post-surgery:
http://www.transgenderzone.com/features/sex_change_soldier.htm
http://www.realityresources.com/identity.htm
How do you counsel someone? Well, it depends on what they think. A person who is happy with their sex-change probably isn't going to be interested in talking to someone who thinks differently about it. If they're not happy, and suspect they made a colossal mistake, then pointing them to the grace and mercy of God is the best course. Sometimes we make decisions we can't fix, and the only solution for a regret-filled person is to invite God into the mess they've made and ask Him to bring glory to Himself through it. God can make all things work together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). He honors our choices, though, and a person who has chosen to mutilate their body will have to live with a mutilated body. But one can do it to the glory of God.
I hope this helps.
Sue