Psalm 139:14 says "I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." The Psalmist was expressing his awe at the wonder of creation. You know, speaking of creation, the environment is a hot topic these days, especially after the Holy Father's latest encyclical was released. I do not feel right commenting on that document, because I have not read it in its entirety. That may be a post for another day. I am digressing again.
My point that I was going to make is that we often speak of marveling at the beauty of what is traditionally referred to as creation; the sun, the moon, the stars, the land, the ocean, the mountains, etc. However, we do not talk enough, I think, about the beauty that is our own creation. Can we, from the bottom of the heart, say what the Psalmist said about our own bodies and souls? Some of us cannot because we are so down on ourselves. Some of us cannot because we are too proud and mighty to acknowledge God who created us.
The recent situation of the former Olympic athlete who underwent a "sex change" (yes, there are those quotes again, meaning I do not think there can be such a thing, but am using it due to its popular use only) caused me to think of this passage. I do not think, unfortunately, that "she" would be in a position to say what the Psalmist said from the heart. He (at that time) would have said "I detest you because I am not wonderfully made, and now I am going to do something about it." Now, "she" probably says "I am wonderfully made because I made myself."
I cannot help but think if society had a greater reverence for the human person because we know we are created in the image and likeness of God, then more people would be at peace with who they are as male and female, and there would be less cases of people wanting a "sex change", or, (and I know this will be controversial, but I will say it anyway), there would be less cases of people wanting to act out unnatural inclinations, such as same-sex attraction.
Quite simply, we are not at peace with who we are. We are not comfortable in our own skin, so to speak. It is because we have forgotten (or sometimes, outright dismissed) our Creator, our Heavenly Father.
We can undergo operations all we want, but we cannot change what God has created us to be. If we are born a man, we cannot become a woman, no matter how much money we spend on an operation. (I think the more accurate term here is "mutilation" because, to me, an operation is something we have done to fix something. There is nothing to be fixed here.) Similarly, if we are born a woman, we cannot become a man. When we appear before the judgment seat, we will come before Him as we are created, not as we "changed" ourselves. God will ask us what we did with the gifts He gave us, and this includes our gender. Did we live out our full masculinity? Did we live out our full femininity? I pray for the soul of this former athlete and anyone who has undergone an "operation" to change their God-given bodies into something they were not created to be.
Saint Joseph faced some difficult situations in his life. There is a prayer to him that I think would apply well to those who are tempted to think their God-given genders are not part of their identity, as it does to all people who are tempted, which is all of us. I only wish this famous person would have said this prayer prior to doing what he did, and hopefully, "she" says it often before "her" death, before "she" faces the judgment seat of God.
O Glorious St. Joseph, you who have power to render possible even things that are considered impossible, come to our aid in our present trouble and distress. Take this important and difficult affair (my confusion over my gender) under your particular protection that it may end happily.
O dear St. Joseph, all our confidence is in you. Let it not be said that we would invoke you in vain; and since you are so powerful with Jesus and Mary, show that your goodness equals your power. Amen.
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