'Male and Female He Created Them': Men and Women R.I.P.?

[Shana A]

'Male and Female He Created Them': Men and Women R.I.P.?
By Jennifer Hartline
1/15/2010
Catholic Online

Being male or female does matter.We ignore this difference to our severe detriment and we trample on it to our self destruction.

http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=35195

CHESAPEAKE, VA. (Catholic Online) - I have a nightmare in which I look ahead twenty-five years or so and I see a bland, ambiguous society simmering with an undercurrent of antagonism. I see a culture largely without men and women, made up instead of some strangely amalgamated human creature. This creature is not truly human anymore because it has declared gender and the Natural Law to be irrelevant and oppressive. In that tragic mistake, it lost its freedom and fulfillment.

I think it's more than just a melodramatic bad dream. It's slowly coming true right now, in bits and pieces every day. Amidst all the new sexual classifications – gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender – we're losing the awe-inspiring truth about men and women as we were created to be. Such forgetfulness will be disastrous.

[Julie Marie]

Natural law?  I don't see animals or fish creating dress codes or rules about how one is to present itself regarding gender.  In fact in a lot of animal and fish species it's difficult if not almost impossible to distinguish gender based on appearance or behavior, until it's time to mate.  But they still manage to procreate. 

Maybe looking at nature will help them better understand it rather than buying into human ignorance and propaganda.  "Eyes wide shut" isn't working.

[spacial]

I can see where this is coming from, though, perhaps not entirely agree with where it's going.

As a society we are breaking ourselves up into categories. 

But on the other hand, we are looking more carefully at ourselves and evaluating our own lives, individually.

For centuaries, we've lived under the constant threat of war. War where huge numbers of men would be expected to leave their homes and job to fight. Where families would be expected to cope alone, possibly for good.

Our social structure has revolved around making us ready for war. Men are expected to be bold, detached and quiet, women are expected to be carers, submissive and sacrificing.

Western society has largely eliminated war as a direct threat. The social structure that was built is breaking down. Traditionalists, especially those whose raison d'etre was to maintain this structure, are becoming insecure.

[MaggieB]

This article is a perfect example of how the Church demonizes LBGT people and thereby fosters hate, fear and loathing. If you have been following the Prop 8 trial, the testimony of Dr. Meyer and others clearly show that this rhetoric is toxic to us causing untold suffering by justifying government sanctioned bigotry against us. The saddest thing for me is that the author truly believes she is doing a good thing and that the is a good person serving God. 

Maggie

[Randi]

We all have a mixture of both male & female hormones coursing thru our veins. Although my body presents physically as male , I consider myself to be female.

Randi

[deviousxen]

To disregard the femininity and masculine traits within a single mind and body, is to limit your true potential. And what this idiot doesn't remember is that he once had a pretty pink va-jay jay for a few months. Must mean he's such a bad father than his son will never be a man. Thats right, his testicles will never drop, he'll never know how to either care about people, or hit them to force them to make him a sandwich, or ejaculate into them accidentally and have a kid and get married at 18 and not be able to pay for the kids college tuition. He'll be a bitter little brat, but hey... He'll be a man. With a dick. To create more babies. Cause we need more of those. To create other babies... And run around with the most ancient dungeons and dragons book ever made. Hurrrrr I cast Lightning upon thee! 1000 damage! Oh no, Aeris died! Cast heal IMMEDIATELY.

[tekla]

Western society has largely eliminated war as a direct threat.
Too themselves perhaps, but we still like to carry on in other places with it.

[deviousxen]

Western society has largely eliminated war as a direct threat.
Too themselves perhaps, but we still like to carry on in other places with it.

Near-perfect explanation of wars... Besides including the profit thing.

[Allamakee]

To disregard the femininity and masculine traits within a single mind and body, is to limit your true potential.

I think this comment goes to the heart of the matter.  The Catholic Church is a strong proponent of gender essentialism.  According to this view, men and women have an inherent essence which is different from one another and which impel them them to behave differently.  Moreover, the different essence of being a man or a woman requires all men and all women to behave differently if they are to fulfill their true nature.

Jennifer Hartline's article is standard conservative Catholic teaching.  Of course, gender essentialism is an ideological straitjacket which seeks to crush individuals into conformity.  I think its fine if an individual wants to buy into gender stereotypes.... if that is what makes them happy, good for them!  The problem comes when organizations try to impose such stereotypes on others, and unfortunately, that has been one of the goals of the Catholic Church. 

[Julie Marie]

As far as the RCC goes, and this from someone who was baptized then schooled by them for 18 years:

1. What's between your legs must never be altered.
2. Women are here to make babies and serve men.
3. It's okay to condemn as long as you say it is God's will.
4. The Pope is never wrong.
5. Don't mess with the church
6. You should give them as much money as possible.
7. ...blah, blah, blah... I think you get the point.

I'm a fallen catholic.  I fell for their B.S.  But I am now redeemed.  Ain't life grand?

[tekla]

2. Women are here to make babies and serve men.

Unless they are nuns, in which case a solid 80% of the one I had would have been rejected from being concentration camps guards because they were too cruel.

Really, when I look back I have often thought of suing them for the kind of crap they pulled on me, in wartime its called 'atrocities.'^*

But, it only worked most of the time.  And for the 9 out of 10 they broke on the wheel, there was that 10% who ended up going through that and being afraid of nothing.

But yeah, the RCC is kind of suck, it would be the worse religion in the Western World if it were not for all the others.
 

* - in the interest of fairness, it was just the elementary teachers, when I got to high school I had an entirely different class of teachers and graduated from there with an education that most people would be lucky to have after finishing college.

[deviousxen]

I think this comment goes to the heart of the matter.  The Catholic Church is a strong proponent of gender essentialism.  According to this view, men and women have an inherent essence which is different from one another and which impel them them to behave differently.  Moreover, the different essence of being a man or a woman requires all men and all women to behave differently if they are to fulfill their true nature.

Jennifer Hartline's article is standard conservative Catholic teaching.  Of course, gender essentialism is an ideological straitjacket which seeks to crush individuals into conformity.  I think its fine if an individual wants to buy into gender stereotypes.... if that is what makes them happy, good for them!  The problem comes when organizations try to impose such stereotypes on others, and unfortunately, that has been one of the goals of the Catholic Church.

I got into this conversation earlier about doing whatever gender stereotype that isn't totally bad and makes you happy. Its like a guilty pleasure really. Flawed, but may be fun or right etc.

As long as it isn't you seriously hurting someone else or yourself in the process.

I'm a fallen catholic.  I fell for their B.S.  But I am now redeemed.  Ain't life grand?

Lol. No. Risen. If anything a new set of wings have emerged that are aerodynamically superior to bird wings...

[tekla]

Lol. No. Risen

Hey, new news, Easter is canceled.  They found the body.

[Ryuu]

Natural law?  I don't see animals or fish creating dress codes or rules about how one is to present itself regarding gender.  In fact in a lot of animal and fish species it's difficult if not almost impossible to distinguish gender based on appearance or behavior, until it's time to mate.  But they still manage to procreate. 

Well, several species of fish can switch sex. The stoplight parrotfish for example, which goes from female to male, or the clownfish, which goes from male to female.