Magis Apologetics II Sample lesson

APOLOGETICS II 

SAMPLE 

Challenges OF THE 

Modern World 

A CATHOLIC 

RESPONSE 

ROBERT SPITZER S.J., PH.D.


THE CATHOLIC RESPONSE TO CHALLENGES 

OF THE MODERN WORLD 

This course gives students the understanding they need to respond to 

the important and difficult moral issues of our time. Students will be 

equipped to defend the Catholic position on today’s toughest topics, 

including abortion, homosexuality, and gender ideology, as well as the 

virtues we must cultivate in our response. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO ORDER, VISIT 

SophiaOnline.org/Magis

Inside this Sample 

Student Textbook Sample 

Pages 4–27 

Teacher’s Guide Sample 

Pages 30–59 

Course Contents 

Unit 1: The Meaning of Our Lives 

1 Who Are God the Father and Jesus Christ? 

2 The Christian View of Love 

3 Reclaiming the Meaning of Friendship 

4 What Is Our Purpose in Life? 

Unit 2: Understanding Catholic Morality 

5 Freedom, Sin, and the Moral Law 

6 Our Spiritual Enemy 

Unit 3: Modern Challenges to Marriage 

7 The Effects of the Sexual Revolution on 

Our Culture 

8 Pre-Marital Sex and Cohabitation 

Unit 4: Modern Challenges 

to the Human Person 

10 Homosexuality 

11 Pornography 

12 Transgender Issues 

Unit 5: Modern Challenges to Life 

13 Abortion 

14 Physician-Assisted Suicide 

Unit 6: Our Response to 

the Modern World 

15 The Life-giving Virtues 

16 Committing to a Moral Life 

9 Contraception 

© Sophia Institute for Teachers 

1

Teacher Notes 

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2 Apologetics II: The Catholic Response to Challenges of the Modern World 

© Magis Institute


The Catholic Response to 

Challenges of the Modern World 

Student 

Textbook Sample 

3

UNIT 5 CHAPTER 12 

Transgender 

Issues 

4

Chapter 12 Overview 

Just like Jesus does, the Catholic Church loves transgender individuals. Like all persons, they are uniquely 

good, loveable, and transcendent human beings. And like all persons, the Church wants for them eternal salvation. 

Our sex and gender are created by God good and have been given to us as gifts. We must respond 

with gratitude and embrace them lovingly and responsibly in service to God and building up His Kingdom 

here on earth. The current cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues is based on false assumptions 

not rooted in fact, revealed not only by our Faith, but by modern medical and psychiatric research. 

In this chapter you will learn that … 

■ The Catholic Church, like Jesus Christ, her founder, loves transgender individuals and holds them in the 

same high regard as every other uniquely good, loveable, and transcendent human being. 

■ God made human beings in His image as a unity of body and soul, as male and female, and inherently 

good. 

■ Gender is inseparable from our biological sex and is, in fact, determined by it. 

■ The current cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues rejects the truths of human nature, sexuality, 

natural law, and God, and is completely contrary the timeless teaching of the Church. 

■ The body of medical and psychiatric research shows the cultural narrative regarding transgender issues to 

be based on false assumptions and is gravely harmful. 

■ Sexual reassignment surgery — particularly for children and adolescents — is destructive, irreversible, and 

prolongs the psychological anxieties frequently underlying gender confusion. 

Bible Basics 

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, 

after our likeness” … So God created man in 

his own image, in the image of God he created 

him; male and female he created them.. 

—Genesis 1:26–27 

Connections to the Catechism 

■ CCC 362 

■ CCC 365 

© Sophia Institute for Teachers 

5

Chapter 12 

Aa 

VOCABULARY 

Soul: That which animates or 

gives life to a body. 

Sex: Being male or female as 

God made us, rooted in both 

the body and the soul. 

Some people believe that the Catholic Church is against those with a 

confused sense of sexual identity. Some even believe that the Catholic 

Church hates these individuals or denies they exist. Nothing could 

be further from the truth. Put plainly, the Catholic Church, like Jesus 

Christ, her founder, loves these individuals and holds them in the same 

high regard as every other uniquely good, loveable, and transcendent 

human being. 

Practically, however, it can be a significant challenge for faithful 

Catholics to navigate the complex and seemingly ever-changing situation 

surrounding transgender issues in our current culture — from properly 

understanding what the Church teaches regarding transgenderism 

to how to compassionately respond to those experiencing feelings of 

being the opposite sex, or who may be undergoing treatments in the 

attempt to change their body to seem more like the sex they feel they 

truly are. It may seem that expressing any other perspective other than 

that which is currently accepted by the culture would label a person as 

insensitive, or worse, a bigot. But, as we will see, the truth of the human 

person as well as the scientific research show that reality is different 

from the current popular narrative. 

Before we take a look at some of this research, it is imperative that 

we have a proper understanding of certain key principles about the nature 

of the human person regarding sex and gender, and, where applicable, 

define our terms. 

The Goodness of Sex and Gender 

God made each of us in His image and likeness as a unity of body and 

soul. Neither our body, nor our soul are more important than the other. 

Their union is essential to us being human. Like everything else that 

God creates, our bodies and souls — and their union — are fundamentally 

good. 

Another essential aspect to being made in God’s image and likeness 

— being human — is that God made each of as either male or female. 

The Book of Genesis tells us: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man 

in our image, after our likeness’ … So God created man in his own 

image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he 

created them (Genesis 1:26–27). Our biological sex matters. It is not 

an accident of nature, or a dispensable part of who we are. We are male 

or female not just in our physical bodies, but deep down in our souls. 

Further, the male body only makes sense in light of the female body, 

6 Apologetics I: The Catholic Faith and Science 

© Magis Center

and vice versa; each complements the other. Our physical bodies as 

male or female reveal both the spiritual unity to which we are called as 

men and women in marriage and the procreative power of sexuality, by 

which we cooperate with God’s creative power and bring new life into 

the world. 

The expression of being male or being female is called gender. 

Though gender is expressed in many different ways across time and 

culture, it is determined by our biological sex. Even the most feminine 

of men is still a man, and the most masculine of women is still a woman, 

and nothing can change that. 

Gender: The expression of 

being male or female. 

God created all things good, 

and His call to holiness 

involves our full human nature, 

body and soul. Your Godgiven 

biological sex is a part of 

His unique plan for you. 

Betrothal of the Virgin by Rosso Fiorentino (1523) 

© Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 5, Chapter 12: Transgender Issues 

7

The current cultural narrative 

surrounding gender rejects 

the objective truths of human 

nature, sexuality, and natural 

law, and instead enshrines 

above all other values 

the subjective, and easily 

confused, will of the individual 

person. 

Narcissuss by Caravaggio (ca. 1600) 

Like the union of our bodies and souls, our sex and gender are inherently 

good because God made them. They are gifts from God. And 

like all gifts from God, we have the responsibility to accept them with 

loving gratitude and use them to help build up the Kingdom of God. 

The Modern Cultural Narrative Surrounding 

Transgender Issues 

The prevailing narrative of today’s culture is that our biological sex is assigned 

to us at birth against our will and that our gender identity emerges 

as we mature (though sometimes as early as toddlerhood). Thus, according 

to this narrative our gender can be fluid, and for some, may not 

match our assigned biological sex, leading to individuals feeling that, for 



example, they identify as male but have a female body (or vice versa). 

Some assert that the proper course of action is to affirm the person’s 

perceived gender identity, even as young as early childhood, by a whole 

host of means from clothing selection to so-called sex reassignment 

surgery to permanently alter their bodies to match their perceived gender 

identity. 

It should be obvious that the current cultural narrative surrounding 

gender rejects the truths of human nature, sexuality, natural law, and 

God, and is completely contrary the timeless teaching of the Church. 

At this point in our consideration of transgender issues, it is fair to ask 

whether the body of medical and psychiatric research supports the cultural 

narrative. Further, given what we have learned about the nature of 

the human person as God made us — as a unity of body and soul, created 

male and female in God’s image and likeness — what is the Church’s 

response to the current transgender ideology? 

What Does the Science Say? 

The Church’s major concern is that children, teens, and parents are being 

misled about the efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery, which is 

having exceedingly harmful effects on the adolescents who go through 

with it. This misinformation and its destructive outcomes are now affecting 

a growing population of gender-confused children and their 

parents. While we must not make a judgment on anyone who is pursuing 

or has pursued sexual reassignment surgery, it is imperative that the 

current state of psychiatric research on the subject be properly understood 

so that parents and their children can be fully informed before 

making irreversible, life-altering decisions. 

To begin, we need to be aware of four fact areas in current psychiatric 

literature: 

1. Those who have sexual reassignment surgery are five times more 

likely to contemplate suicide and 19 times more likely to die from 

it, compared with the general population. 1 

The Church’s 

major concern 

is that children, 

teens, and 

parents are 

being misled 

about the 

efficacy 

of sexual 

reassignment 

surgery. 

2. Sexual reassignment surgery is unnecessary and counterproductive 

as a remedy in gender confusion. In most cases, gender 

confusion will naturally reorient itself toward a person’s biological 

sex, and if it is slow to do so, preadolescent psychological therapy 

is very effective. 2 

3. Sexual reassignment surgery is destructive, irreversible, and 

prolongs the psychological anxieties frequently underlying 

gender confusion. Inasmuch as it is unnecessary to actively 


9

emedy gender confusion in young children, sexual reassignment 

surgery is highly unethical from both a secular and Christian 

perspective. 3 

Sexual 

reassignment 

surgery leads 

patients to 

a supposed 

solution to 

their gender 

confusion that 

will in most cases 

be unsuccessful, 

while leaving 

their real 

psychological 

problems 

untreated. 

4. There is no scientific evidence or basis for cross-gender 

identification (a woman trapped in a man’s body or a man 

trapped in a woman’s body). 4 There are five other contributors 

to cross-gender confusion that are much better treated by 

therapy than surgery: high anxiety levels in the household, 5 

sexual abuse, 6 autism, latent homosexual desires, and/or strong 

suggestions from one or both parents that they would have 

preferred a child with the opposite sexual identity and even 

dressing them (or giving them toys) appropriate for that other 

identity. 

A 2016 study by Lawrence Mayer and Paul McHugh (Johns 

Hopkins University) summarizes the literature on sexual reassignment 

surgery from a psychiatric point of view. 7 They indicate that gender 

identity cannot be disconnected from biological sex. They conclude 

as follows: 

The hypothesis that gender identity is an innate, 

fixed property of human beings that is independent 

of biological sex — that a person might be “a man 

trapped in a woman’s body” or “a woman trapped 

in a man’s body” — is not supported by scientific 

evidence. [Brain studies] do not provide any evidence 

for a neurobiological basis for cross-gender 

identification. 8 

Mayer and McHugh show that, in addition to destroying healthy 

body parts, sexual reassignment surgery also leads patients to a supposed 

solution to their gender confusion that will in most cases be 

unsuccessful, while leaving their real psychological problems untreated. 

9 They further show that only a minority of children who experience 

transgender identification will continue to do so into adolescence or 

adulthood. 10 

Mayer and McHugh have enhanced previous studies showing that 

many children will move away from their transgender identification back 

to their biological sex on their own prior to their adolescence. Some 

children will need assistance in doing this from therapy when there is 

considerable anxiety in the household 11 and/or when children have been 

sexually abused (40%–55% of transgender identified children have 

been sexually abused 12 ). With respect to anxiety in the household, the 

research of Kenneth Zucker and Susan Bradley indicates that sensitive 



oys are particularly vulnerable to the effects of their mothers’ depression 

and anger, which may lead to gender confusion. 13 In their study of 

ten boys with gender confusion, eight of their mothers had at least one 

diagnosed psychological disorder, one had long-term psychotherapy 

for family issues, and one had continued migraines. 14 Ultimately, the 

research of both Zucker and Bradley 15 as well as Mayer and McHugh 16 

show that most childhood gender confusion can be resolved if children 

receive therapeutic counseling before they reach adolescence and 

their parents participate in that therapy (to lower the anxiety level in the 

home). Even more, they show that surgery is ultimately a disproportionate 

and premature response. 17 

While the evidence shows that most children will transition out of 

gender confusion before they reach adolescence, nevertheless, some 

will be told they can have surgery once they reach adulthood. Such 

situations frequently lead to a prolonged period of intense anxiety 

surrounding the adolescent’s gender confusion. Even though scientific 

investigation does not support the independence of gender identity 

from biological sex 18 , most adolescents in such situations become 

The evidence shows that 

most children will naturally 

resolve issues of gender 

confusion before they reach 

adolescence. 


11

convinced of the innateness of their cross-gender identity. They want 

immediate relief from their anxiety without the lengthy efforts of 

therapy, which would be much more helpful to resolving their underlying 

condition. Many are so convinced of the need for immediate and 

complete relief from symptoms that they refuse any option but surgery. 

Zucker and Bradley found that teens with gender identity disorder 

have a hard time dealing with anxiety, especially when it comes to 

the unknown. When surgery is presented as a solution to their problems, 

a concrete step to take helps with their anxiety. Therapy often 

requires them to discuss why they want the surgery, and that discussion 

itself often causes enough anxiety to want them to withdraw 

from therapy. 19 The Return of the Prodigal Son by Pompeo Batoni (1773) 

As our loving Father, God 

always desires our well-being 

and He is always calling us to 

the shelter of His embrace 

amid the pressures and 

confusions of this world. 



Ultimately, sexual reassignment surgery blocks the pathway to 

therapy that could help relieve anxieties, anger, narcissism, and other 

conditions related to gender confusion. Though patients may initially 

be content with the surgery, the anxieties, anger, and narcissism that 

were there before the surgery continue to persist throughout a lifetime. 

Mayer and McHugh concur with this analysis: 

Compared to the general population, adults who underwent 

sex-reassignment surgery continued to have 

a higher risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes, 

including being 19 times more likely to die of 

suicide. 20 (Emphasis added) 

This finding was confirmed by a 2021 analysis by Dr. Martin den 

Heijer of Amsterdam UMC. Heijer noted that the much higher mortality 

rates of transgender individuals has not varied significantly in fifty 

years in the Netherlands despite new kinds of therapies. 21 

An increasing number of people are expressing a desire to detransition 

or retransition from sexual reassignment surgery. Since the surge 

in those seeking so-called gender affirming care is so recent, there has 

not yet been a good longitudinal study of the numbers and reasons for 

this increased interest in detransition. There are many reasons why data 

is lacking in this regard as of yet. First is the recent nature of the phenomenon. 

In 2017, just over 15,000 youths aged 6–17 were diagnosed 

with gender dysphoria (a clinical diagnosis of significantly impaired 

functioning stemming from the desire to be the other gender). By 2021 

(the most recent year data is available), that number had almost tripled 

to just over 42,000. (Reliable data is scarce prior to 2017). 22 Further, the 

number of gender clinics in the US has skyrocketed in the last 15 years, 

from none at all to over 100 today. 23 Because it takes several years 

for people to realize that the anxieties they were hoping to overcome 

through sexual reassignment surgery have not gone away (and are unlikely 

to do so), it will be some time before we truly understand how 

gender transition surgery has affected children and adults. 

Second is pressure to conform to the prevailing narrative. If those 

who transitioned express interest in detransitioning, they often experience 

pressure from transgender friends and the transgender community 

to avoid retransitioning. While some individuals who regret their 

surgery have sought to inform others of their experience, many find 

their reach online is suppressed by search engines and social media 

sites. Outside the US in places like Norway and the UK where protection 

for free speech is lacking, people can even face jail time for expressing 

views that oppose transgender ideology. 


13

What Does it Mean to Be a True Friend? 

Even social 

transitioning 

should not be 

considered 

a ”neutral 

act” but rather 

an extreme 

intervention. 

Before concluding this chapter, we should discuss what this information 

means for us and the people we know and love. What do we do if someone 

we care for is experiencing gender confusion? In that case, we must 

ask: What does it mean to be a true friend? Simply to affirm what they 

want regardless of the consequences — or to affirm only what will be 

good for them physically, emotionally, and spiritually? If the latter, then 

do we have an obligation to help our friends think through the consequences 

of their proposed actions? If so, then it is important to become 

aware of what current research is saying about the consequences of 

gender transition. 

We now have excellent research from the UK, Sweden, and Finland, 

who in the past aggressively promoted gender affirming therapy and 

transition, but now are reversing themselves, becoming much more 

cautious in light of significant negative effects in those who have 

transitioned. 

We have already seen the alarming 19 times increase in the suicide 

rate of those who have undergone sex reassignment surgery compared 

to peers in the best longitudinal study available in Sweden. Furthermore, 

the four best studies of sexual reassignment surgery “did not demonstrate 

clinically significant changes or differences in psychometric test 

results after sexual reassignment surgery.” After ten years, anxieties increase 

along with suicidal ideation and actual suicides. 

In view of these very negative consequences, the National Health 

service of the United Kingdom, in 2022, reversed its previous decision 

on so-called gender affirming therapy, indicating that clinicians should 

take a slow and watchful approach without encouragement or affirmation. 

They went on to stress that “even social transitioning (choosing an 

opposite gender name and pronoun) should not be considered a ‘neutral 

act’ but rather an extreme intervention.” 

What do you think? Should we talk to our friends about these consequences 

for the sake of their emotional and spiritual health? Is it our 

responsibility to share the facts about transgenderism with those we 

care about? Is Christ asking us to be “our brothers’ keeper” or simply to 

affirm them in what they are inclined to do? 

Some of us might be concerned that speaking the truth about the 

negative consequences of transitioning will sound like a negative judgement 

about transgender individuals or a denial of the genuineness of 

someone’s identity. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus did 

not focus on judging people, but He did focus on the negative consequences 

of particular actions. 



Jesus did not focus on judging 

people during His ministry. He 

healed the sick, made broken 

lives whole, forgave sins, and 

called those He encountered 

to follow Him and turn away 

from destructive behavior. 

Christ Healing the Blind Man by Francesco de Mura (between 1716 and 1782) 

We can follow Jesus’ example by refraining from negative judgements 

and being understanding and supportive of the genuine anxieties 

surrounding gender confusion. If, however, we leave the discussion 

there, failing to express our concern that our friends will likely experience 

increased anxieties, suicidal contemplation, and suicides after 

transitioning, we abandon our responsibility to act for their good — to 

be true friends in the image of Jesus. When Jesus encountered those 

who were not living as God wanted them to live, he warned them to 

avoid sin. He did this not to threaten them, but to help them stay away 

from the behavior that threatened their life and spiritual well-being. 

Doing so takes courage and faith, but in the end, we know we will have 

done the right thing by our friends. 


15

Making Sense of Scientific Research 

A final note on the research presented in this chapter. Because the language 

and attitudes surrounding this topic seem to change frequently 

and rapidly in recent years, and because with the increased cultural attention 

given the topic there has been an increase in so-called scientific 

studies about it, there are other and newer studies that can seemingly 

show the opposite result of some of what has been presented here. 

What matters most, however, is the quality of the study far more than 

the current status of the study. It is easy for advocacy groups to hire 

people to make studies that will come out with the conclusion they 

want. So, how do we distinguish between a good study and bad one? 

There are three criteria that are generally taught in every logic class: 

What matters most, 

however is the quality of 

the study far more than the 

current status of the study. 

1 Longitudinal studies are superior to short term studies or opinion 

polls. Longitudinal studies are always preferred because they allow 

for long term follow-up. This fact is crucial for the sex-reassignment 

and transgender treatment studies, because for the first five years, 

patients can experience a high and express happiness after the surgery. 

However, as the Swedish and Dutch studies show, after ten 

years the statistics become very different. Between the 10–15-year 

Taking the Census by Francis Williams Edmonds (1854) 



period after the surgery there is a steady increase in suicides, moving 

to a 31% rate in the sexually reassigned population. This trend 

may not express itself right away. Sometimes only negative feelings 

and anxieties occur after ten years, but after 15 years, this can turn 

suicidal very quickly. Only careful longitudinal studies with continuous 

follow-up can discover this outcome. Shorter studies can give 

the appearance of exactly the opposite viewpoint. The Swedish and 

den Heijer studies cited in this chapter were 30-year and 50-year 

studies, respectively. The latter study shows that increased mortality 

rates (three times in men and two times in women) in those 

receiving gender affirming therapy did not decline even a few percentage 

points over 50 years. 

2 Hard statistic studies are better than opinion poll studies. The 

Swedish and Dutch studies cited in the chapter are hard statistic 

studies because they looked at the number of suicides that actually 

occurred (Swedish study) and the increased mortality rates that actually 

occurred (the den Heijer study). Opinion poll studies (that often 

ask questions such as “Do you feel happy after your surgery?”) 

can be very deceptive for two reasons: 

■ A person’s feelings (represented on a scale from 1–5, for 

example) is very subjective because it depends on how the 

respondent feels on a particular day, how they interpret the 

question on a particular day, and so forth. The occurrences 

of a suicides or deaths in a specific population, however, 

are as objective as one can get. This kind of data leaves no 

room for vast subjective fluctuations depending on mood, 

daily circumstances (stress or unstressed), and subjective 

interpretation. 

■ The way an opinion pollster asks questions can be very 

misleading. Questions can be phrased in a way that manipulates 

a person to give a desired answer. This practice is often found 

in surveys done by advocacy groups or by biased media. Thus, 

better studies do not use subjective, potentially manipulative 

questions, but rather hard statistics. 

3 The best studies are done by professional medical and social-medical 

staff overseeing the study. Such medical staff should have a 

view to obtaining unbiased results according to standard measurable 

procedures. Conversely, a study done by an advocacy group, 

by definition, is biased. A study for which payment was given by 

an advocacy group is biased. Even more, when a study reports 


17

surprising, unexpected, or even unwanted (undesired) outcomes, 

it demonstrates the objectivity of the study. For example, the den 

Heijer study cited in this chapter was done by doctors running clinics 

to provide gender affirming therapy (hormones to block original 

sex and promote opposite sex characteristics). When this group reports 

that “the increased mortality rate of transgenders has not declined 

in 50 years,” we can believe that it is an objective opinion. To 

be sure, these particular researchers are trying to use therapies and 

drugs to turn this increased mortality statistic around, but the reality 

of their findings speak for themselves, despite all the attempts they 

have made to turn the trend around in their clinics. Their findings 

suggest that there are characteristics of gender affirming therapy 

that cause both the body and the mind to undergo significant 

stresses leading to death. This fact generally means that their socalled 

sexual reassignment treatments, for a variety of reasons, 

causes significantly increased mortality rates, triple and double. 

Ultimately, if we dig into the more recent studies deeply enough, 

we may see some initial attitudes that seem to contradict the other 

studies (“I felt much better after the surgery,” or “I am happier after the 

surgery”), but we will not find improvements in the long-term negative 

consequences ten years or more after sexual reassignment surgery. 

Unfortunately, this is one problem with online searches. They can give 

you everything from poor quality to occasional high-quality studies like 

spaghetti thrown against a wall. Other times, the results they return are 

only those the search engine’s programmers want you to see. Some 

search engines have even acknowledged downgrading certain information 

in their rankings, limiting the number of people who will see it. 

When considering the findings of research, what really matters is high 

quality studies that can get us closer to the truth: longitudinal studies, 

measurement of hard facts by professional medical personal that give 

rise to unbiased statistics instead of feelings and opinions. 



Endnotes 

1 

Lawrence Mayer, M.B., M.S, Ph.D. and Paul McHugh, M.D. 

“Sexuality and Gender: Findings from the Biological, Psychological, 

and Social Sciences” The New Atlantis 50 (Fall 2016), 

p.9 https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number- 

50-fall-2016 

2 

Ibid 

3 

Ibid 

4 

Ibid 

5 

See Kenneth J. Zucker and Susan J. Bradley, Gender Identity 

Disorder and Psychosexual Problems in Children and Adolescents 

(New York: Guildford Press, 1995), 262–263. 

See Kenneth J. Zucker, S. Bradley, D. Ben-Dat, C. Ho, Laurel 

Johnson, A. Owen, et al., “Psychopathology in the Parents 

of Boys with Gender Identity Disorder,” Journal of the 

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 42, 

no. 1 (January 2003): 2–4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih. 

gov/12500069/ 

See Richard P. Fitzgibbons, M.D., Philip M. Sutton, and Dale 

O’Leary “The Psychopathology of “Sex Reassignment” 

Surgery Assessing Its Medical, Psychological, and Ethical 

Appropriateness” The National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 

Spring 2009 pp. 97-125. http://lc.org/PDFs/Attachments2PRsLAs/2018/061118SexReasssignmentSurgery.pdf 

6 

See Darlynne Gehring and Gail Knudson, “Prevalence of 

Childhood Trauma in a Clinical Population of Transsexual 

People,” International Journal of Transgenderism 8, no. 

1 (2005): 23–30. See also Holly Devor, “Transsexualism, 

Dissociation, and Child Abuse: An Initial Discussion Based on 

Nonclinical Data,” Journal of Psychology and Human Sexuality 

6, no. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

Holly Devor, “Transsexualism, Dissociation, and Child Abuse: 

An Initial Discussion Based on Nonclinical Data,” Journal of 

Psychology and Human Sexuality 6. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

7 




https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number-50- 

fall-2016 

8 

Ibid. 

9 

Ibid. 

Mayer’s and McHugh’s study confirms a previous study by 

Drs. Fitzgibbons, Sutton, and O’Leary which provides an 

invaluable list of excellent medical and psychiatric studies 

used throughout this chapter. See Richard P. Fitzgibbons, 

M.D., Philip M. Sutton, and Dale O’Leary “The Psychopathology 

of “Sex Reassignment” Surgery Assessing Its Medical, 

Psychological, and Ethical Appropriateness” The National 

Catholic Bioethics Quarterly Spring 2009 pp. 97-125. http:// 

lc.org/PDFs/Attachments2PRsLAs/2018/061118SexReasssignmentSurgery.pdf 

10 

Ibid 

11 




12 







6, no. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

13 




14 






gov/12500069/ 

15 

See Zucker, Gender Identity Disorder, 282. 

16 

Mayer and McHugh 2016 “Sexuality and Gender: Findings 

from the biological, psychological, and Social Sciences” The 

New Atlantis https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/ 

number-50-fall-2016 

17 

See Lawrence Mayer, M.B., M.S, Ph.D. and Paul McHugh, 

M.D. “Sexuality and Gender: Findings from the biological, 

psychological, and Social Sciences” The New Atlantis 50 (Fall 

2016), https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number-50-fall-2016 

18 


from the Biological, Psychological, and Social Sciences.” 

19 

Zucker, Gender Identity Disorder, 315–316. 

20 

Mayer and McHugh 2016, “Sexuality and Gender: Findings 


21 

“Mortality trends over five decades in adult transgender 

people receiving hormone treatment: a report from the 

Amsterdam cohort of gender dysphoria.” Lancet Diabetes 

Endocrinol. 2021 Oct; 9 (10) : 663-670. https://pubmed.ncbi. 

nlm.nih.gov/34481559/ 

22 

Robin Respaut and Chad Terhune. “Putting Numbers on the 

Rise in Children Seeking Gender Care” Reuters.com (Oct. 6, 

2022). https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/ 

usa-transyouth-data/ 

23 

Chad Terhune, Robin Respaut, and Michelle Conlin. “As More 

Transgender Children Seek Medical Care, Families Confront 

Many Unknowns” Reuters.com (Oct. 6, 2022). https://www. 

reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-transyouthcare/ 


19

Focus and Reflection Questions 

1 Put plainly, what is the Catholic Church’s attitudes towards transgender and transexual individuals? 

2 What is the relationship between the human body and soul? 

3 What does the word sex refer to? What does the word gender refer to? 

4 What determines a person’s gender? 

5 What is revealed by our physical bodies as male and female? 

6 Why are our sex and gender inherently good? What is our responsibility towards them? 

7 What does the prevailing cultural narrative suggest is the proper course of action towards those who 

may be experiencing gender confusion? 

8 What does the data regarding suicide contemplation and completion show about those who have 

had sexual reassignment surgery? 

9 What does the research suggest about why sexual reassignment surgery is unnecessary and 

counterproductive as a remedy for gender confusion? 

10 What does the research show regarding the effectiveness of sexual reassignment surgery in 

remedying gender confusion? What other factors, when treated by psychotherapy, have been 

shown to have greater success in alleviating gender confusion? 

11 What did Zucker and Bradley find regarding the relationship between sensitive boys and the mental 

health of their mothers? 

12 Though data is currently lacking in its regard, what have an increasing number of people who have 

undergone sexual reassignment surgery expressed? What might explain this? What significant 

obstacle do these individuals face? 

13 What obligation do we have towards our friends who may experience gender confusion? 



14 Why are longitudinal studies better than short term studies or opinion polls? Why is this important 

for research on sex-reassignment surgeries and transgender treatment studies? 

15 Why are hard statistic studies better than opinion polls? 

16 Why is it important that studies be conducted by professional medical and social-medical staff? 

17 Why is simply using an online search engine not a great way to find quality research on sexreassignment 

and transgender treatments (or anything else, for that matter)? What must we do 

instead? 


21

Straight to the Source 

ADDITIONAL READINGS FROM PRIMARY SOURCES 

Gaudium et Spes 14, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, December 7, 

1965 

Though made of body and soul, man is one. Through his bodily composition he gathers to himself the 

elements of the material world; thus they reach their crown through him, and through him raise their 

voice in free praise of the Creator. For this reason man is not allowed to despise his bodily life, rather he 

is obliged to regard his body as good and honorable since God has created it and will raise it up on the 

last day. Nevertheless, wounded by sin, man experiences rebellious stirrings in his body. But the very 

dignity of man postulates that man glorify God in his body and forbid it to serve the evil inclinations of 

his heart. 

1 In what way does man gather to himself the elements of the material world? How does the fact that 

man does this make him similar to the other creatures on earth? How is man different from the other 

creatures on earth? 

2 Why is man not allowed to despise his bodily life? What is he instead called to do? 

Amoris Laetitia 56, A Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, March 19, 2016 

Yet another challenge is posed by the various forms of an ideology of gender that “denies the difference 

and reciprocity in nature of a man and a woman and envisages a society without sexual differences, 

thereby eliminating the anthropological basis of the family. This ideology leads to educational 

programmes and legislative enactments that promote a personal 

identity and emotional intimacy radically separated from the biological difference between male and 

female. Consequently, human identity becomes the choice of the individual, one which can also change 

over time.” It is a source of concern that some ideologies of this sort, which seek to respond to what 

are at times understandable aspirations, manage to assert themselves as absolute and unquestionable, 

even dictating how children should be raised. It needs to be emphasized that “biological sex and the 

socio-cultural role of sex (gender) can be distinguished but not separated.” On the other hand, “the 

technological revolution in the field of human procreation has introduced the ability to manipulate the 

reproductive act, making it independent of the sexual relationship between a man and a woman. In this 

way, human life and parenthood have become modular and separable realities, subject mainly to the 

wishes of individuals or couples.” It is one thing to be understanding of human weakness and the complexities 

of life, and another to accept ideologies that attempt to sunder what are inseparable aspects 

of reality. Let us not fall into the sin of trying to replace the Creator. We are creatures, and not omnipotent. 

Creation is prior to us and must be received as a gift. At the same time, we are called to protect our 

humanity, and this means, in the first place, accepting it and respecting it as it was created. 



1 If the differences and reciprocity in the nature of man and woman are denied by a society, what 

fundamental relationship suffers? Why? 

2 What does Pope Francis say can be “distinguished but never separated”? Give an example. 

3 Why do you think Pope Francis emphasizes the fact that all creation — and our very nature — is received 

as a gift? What does he say is the first step in protecting our humanity? To that end, what virtue can 

we cultivate to better accept and respect God’s gift of life and unique plan for us? 

Theology of the Body 19:3–5, Pope St. John Paul II, February 25, 1980 

Man appears in the visible world as the highest expression of the divine gift, because he bears within 

him the interior dimension of the gift. With it he brings into the world his particular likeness to God, 

with which he transcends and dominates also his “visibility” in the world, his corporality, his masculinity 

or femininity, his nakedness. A reflection of this likeness is also the primordial awareness of the nuptial 

meaning of the body, pervaded by the mystery of original innocence. 

Thus, in this dimension, a primordial sacrament is constituted, understood as a sign that transmits effectively 

in the visible world the invisible mystery hidden in God from time immemorial. This is the mystery 

of truth and love, the mystery of divine life, in which man really participates. In the history of man, 

original innocence begins this participation and it is also a source of original happiness. The sacrament, 

as a visible sign, is constituted with man, as a body, by means of his visible masculinity and femininity. 

The body, and it alone, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine. It was 

created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden since time immemorial in God, 

and thus be a sign of it. 

So in man created in the image of God there was revealed, in a way, the very sacramentality of creation, 

the sacramentality of the world. Man, in fact, by means of his corporality, his masculinity and femininity, 

becomes a visible sign of the economy of truth and love, which has its source in God himself and which 

was revealed already in the mystery of creation. 

1 How is man the highest expression of the divine gift? Explain. 

2 How do we make visible the spiritual, totally invisible aspects of our nature? Give an example. 

3 Of what does Pope St. John Paul II say our masculinity or femininity is a visible sign? 


23

Unity and Complementarity Song Reflection 

Part 1 

Directions: In the space below, use lines, colors, shapes, and textures to make the invisible song played by 

your teacher appear visible. 



Part 2 

Directions: In your group, discuss the following questions about the song. 

1 How many instruments were playing this piece? What instruments were they? 

2 How are those instruments different? What unique characteristics does each instrument have? How 

are they played in unique ways? How does their sound differ? 

3 How are those instruments similar? 

4 How did the instruments complement each other? (Hint: think of complementary angles.) 

5 How were the instruments united in this piece? What would the music have been like without one or 

the other of the instruments? 

Part 3 

Directions: In your group, read Genesis 2:15–24 aloud. Then, discuss the following questions together as a 

group. Be prepared to share about your discussion with the class. . 

1 What did God identify as being “not good?” 

2 What two words did God use in verse 18 to describe what/who the man needed? 

3 Why were the animals not suitable partners for the man? What were the animals made out of? 

4 When the man sees the woman, he cries out, “bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh!” What is Adam 

recognizing in her that he does not see in the animals? 

5 Based on this passage, what makes woman a suitable partner for man? 

6 In this passage we see that the woman was taken from the man. What does it then mean at the end 

when it says that they become “one flesh”? 

7 What could we learn about the relationship between man and woman from this scene? 


25

The Truth About Sex and Gender 

Part 1: Church Teaching 

Directions: Using the chapter text, complete the graphic organizer by summarizing what it says about each 

key topic about the nature of the human person regarding sex and gender listed in the first 

column, and reflecting on the meaning of each and why the teaching matters. 

Summary 

Why does it matter? 

Body and Soul 

Male and 

Female 

Sex and Gender 



Part 2: Medical Science 

Directions: Using the chapter text, complete the graphic organizer by identifying three facts from medical 

science regarding the effects and efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery and reflecting on the 

meaning of each fact and why it matters. Note that there are potentially more than three facts 

presented in the text. Choose the three most compelling to you for this activity. 


Fact #1: 

Fact #2: 

Fact #3: 


27

A Scriptural Prayer of Your Goodness 

Directions: Prayerfully listen (or follow along) as your teacher reads aloud the following prayer composed 

from Scripture celebrating our goodness as God has made us. Then, respond to the reflection 

questions. 

Lord, “You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. 

I praise you, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your 

works! My very self you know” (Psalm 139: 13–14 [NABRE]). “Are not 

five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten 

before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear 

not; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Luke 12:6–7). 

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever 

believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Do you 

not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which 

you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So 

glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). “For no man ever hates 

his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, as Christ does the church, 

because we are members of his body. (Ephesians 5:29–30)” “[B]y 

grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it 

is the gift of God — not because of works, lest any man should boast. For 

we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God 

prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8–10). 

The Lord knows the plans He has for you, “plans for welfare and not 

for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). Therefore, 

“present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, 

which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be 

transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the 

will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1–2). 



Reflection Questions 

1 Do you know that you are good? Do you know that God loves you unconditionally as He made you? 

How have you responded to God’s love in your life? 

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2 How can you glorify God in your body? How can you be a living sacrifice in worship of Him? 

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3 Have you ever considered God’s plan for your future? What hope can you find in God’s plan? 

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4 Given what you have learned in this chapter, what message would you give to someone struggling 

with gender confusion? 

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30 Apologetics II: The Catholic Response to Challenges of the Modern World 

© Magis Institute


The Catholic Response to 

Challenges of the Modern World 

Teacher’s Guide 

Sample 

31

UNIT 5 CHAPTER 12 


Teacher Introduction 

The Catholic Church, like Jesus, loves transgender 

individuals like every other uniquely good, 

loveable, and transcendent human being. The 

Church wants for them the same thing she wants 

for every person: eternal salvation. Understanding 

the true nature of the human person, sex, and 

gender can be challenging in today’s cultural context, 

but doing so reveals the fundamental truth 

that our sex and gender are created good and 

have been given to us as gifts from God. The only 

true response to these precious gifts is gratitude 

and embracing them lovingly and responsibly in 

service to God and building up His Kingdom here 

on earth. The narrative surrounding transgender 

issues, ultimately, is based on false assumptions 

not rooted in fact. This truth is revealed not only 

by our Faith, but in the body of modern medical 

and psychiatric research. 

The topic of transgenderism is perhaps one 

of the most controversial and hot button topics 

you as a teacher will address with your students. 

Some of your students may know individuals 

dealing with gender confusion or are dealing with 

these issues themselves. The topic is intensely 

personal and intertwined with heightened 

emotions. Therefore, addressing transgenderism 

should always be done with sensitivity and 

compassion, while at the same time seeking to 

uphold the truth. As Jesus told us, it is the truth 

that will set us free. 

32 © Magis Center

Chapter at a Glance 

Enduring Understandings 

In this chapter, students will understand that… 

■ The Catholic Church, like Jesus Christ, her founder, loves transgender individuals and holds them 

in the same high regard as every other uniquely good, loveable, and transcendent human being. 

■ God made human beings in His image as a unity of body and soul, as male and female, and 

inherently good. 

■ Gender is inseparable from our biological sex and is, in fact, determined by it. 

■ The current cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues rejects the truths of human nature, 

sexuality, natural law, and God, and is completely contrary the timeless teaching of the Church. 

■ The body of medical and psychiatric research shows the cultural narrative regarding transgender 

issues to be based on false assumptions and in fact gravely harmful. 

■ Sexual reassignment surgery — particularly for children and adolescents — is destructive, 

irreversible, and prolongs the psychological anxieties frequently underlying gender confusion. 

Essential Questions 

■ How does the Catholic Church view transgender individuals? 

■ What is the teaching of the Catholic Church regarding the nature of the human person, sex, and gender? 

■ What is the current cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues and how does it compare with 

Church teaching? 

■ Does the body of medical and psychiatric research support the cultural narrative surrounding 

transgender issues? 

■ What does the data show are the effects and efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery as a solution to 

gender confusion? 

Lesson Plan Chart 

ACTIVITY 

TEACHER’S 

GUIDE PAGES 

STUDENT 

BOOK PAGES 

Focus and Reflection Questions pg. 50 pg. 20 

Straight to the Source Primary Source Material pg. 53 pg. 22 

Warm-up: Unity and Complementarity Song Reflection pg. 55 pg. 24 

Activity 1: The Truth About Sex and Gender pg. 58 pg. 26 

Activity 2: A Scriptural Prayer of Your Goodness pg. 62 pg. 28 


33

What Your Students Will Learn 

Vocabulary 

■ Soul 

■ Sex 

■ Gender 

Scripture Encounters 

■ Genesis 1:26–27 

Connections to the 

Catechism 

■ CCC 362 

■ CCC 365 


Additional readings from primary 

sources 

■ Gaudium et Spes 14 

■ Amoris Laetitia 56 

■ Theology of the Body 19:3–5 

Materials 

■ Video of the song “Vocalise” 

by Rachmaninov found at 

SophiaOnline.org/Vocalise 

■ Video titled “What Catholics 

Believe: Self Love Is a Duty” 

found at SophiaOnline.org/ 

SelfLove 

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35

Chapter Text 

1 Why do you think the 

prevailing popular opinion 

about what the Church 

teaches differs so vastly 

from the actual teaching of 

the Church regarding the 

dignity of the human person? 

Have you encountered 

this confusion in your life? 

When? Sometimes the 

Church’s teaching is simply not 

communicated in its fullness; 

sometimes it is misinterpreted, 

either willfully or unintentionally; 

sometimes it is distorted as 

propaganda by individuals 

or organizations who wish to 

destroy her authority. Accept 

additional reasoned answers. 

2 Why do you think it is vital to 

remember the union of body 

and soul when discussing the 

subject of biological sex? It is 

important to remember that we 

are more than a mere collection 

of cells that can be manipulated 

and rearranged. Thinking of 

the human person as a merely 

physical organism — pure 

material — can lead us to believe 

we have more control over our 

nature than we do. It is God 

alone who breathes life into us and sustains our existence at every moment. He has made us in His image 

and likeness, and our life, including our biological sex, is a total and purposeful gift from Him. Accept other 

reasoned answers. 

Chapter 12 

Aa 

VOCABULARY 

Soul: That which animates or 

gives life to a body. 

Sex: Being male or female as 

God made us, rooted in both 

the body and the soul. 

Some people believe that the Catholic Church is against those with a 

confused sense of sexual identity. Some even believe that the Catholic 

Church hates these individuals or denies they exist. Nothing could 

be further from the truth. Put plainly, the Catholic Church, like Jesus 

Christ, her founder, loves these individuals and holds them in the same 

high regard as every other uniquely good, loveable, and transcendent 

human being. 

Practically, however, it can be a significant challenge for faithful 

Catholics to navigate the complex and seemingly ever-changing situation 

surrounding transgender issues in our current culture — from properly 

understanding what the Church teaches regarding transgenderism 

to how to compassionately respond to those experiencing feelings of 

being the opposite sex, or who may be undergoing treatments in the 

attempt to change their body to seem more like the sex they feel they 

truly are. It may seem that expressing any other perspective other than 

that which is currently accepted by the culture would label a person as 

insensitive, or worse, a bigot. But, as we will see, the truth of the human 

person as well as the scientific research show that reality is different 

from the current popular narrative. 

Before we take a look at some of this research, it is imperative that 

we have a proper understanding of certain key principles about the nature 

of the human person regarding sex and gender, and, where applicable, 

define our terms. 

The Goodness of Sex and Gender 

God made each of us in His image and likeness as a unity of body and 

soul. Neither our body, nor our soul are more important than the other. 

Their union is essential to us being human. Like everything else that 

God creates, our bodies and souls — and their union — are fundamentally 

good. 

Another essential aspect to being made in God’s image and likeness 

— being human — is that God made each of as either male or female. 

The Book of Genesis tells us: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man 

in our image, after our likeness’ … So God created man in his own 

image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he 

created them (Genesis 1:26–27). Our biological sex matters. It is not 

an accident of nature, or a dispensable part of who we are. We are male 

or female not just in our physical bodies, but deep down in our souls. 

Further, the male body only makes sense in light of the female body, 


© Magis Center 



and vice versa; each complements the other. Our physical bodies as 

male or female reveal both the spiritual unity to which we are called as 

men and women in marriage and the procreative power of sexuality, by 

which we cooperate with God’s creative power and bring new life into 

the world. 

The expression of being male or being female is called gender. 

Though gender is expressed in many different ways across time and 

culture, it is determined by our biological sex. Even the most feminine 

of men is still a man, and the most masculine of women is still a woman, 

and nothing can change that. 

Gender: The expression of 

being male or female. 

3 Based on what you have 

read, how would you 

describe the relationship 

between the terms, “sex” 

and “gender”? As human 

persons, our sex is our “being 

male or female” as God has 

made us. Our biological sex is 

a gift from God, determined 

by Him as part of His unique 

and loving plan for us. Gender 

is the expression of being 

male or being female, which is 

subject to cultural differences 

but is necessarily determined 

by our biological sex. Accept 

additional reasoned answers. 

Betrothal of the Virgin by Rosso Fiorentino (1523) 

God created all things good, 

and His call to holiness 

involves our full human nature, 

body and soul. Your Godgiven 

biological sex is a part of 

His unique plan for you. 


7 


37

4 What are some ways we, as 

human beings created in the 

image and likeness of God, 

show gratitude? How can we 

show gratitude for the gift 

of our sexuality, specifically? 

We show gratitude through our 

words and actions: through 

expressing our thanks vocally, 

through graciously accepting 

what is given to us, through 

remembrance of the occasion, 

and so forth. We can show 

gratitude for the gift of our 

sexuality by accepting that it 

is a unique part of God’s plan 

for us — for God is perfect and 

does not make mistakes — and 

embracing His call to holiness 

in our unique circumstances of 

life. Accept additional reasoned 

answers.. 

The current cultural narrative 

surrounding gender rejects 

the objective truths of human 

nature, sexuality, and natural 

law, and instead enshrines 

above all other values 

the subjective, and easily 

confused, will of the individual 

person. 

Narcissuss by Caravaggio (ca. 1600) 

Like the union of our bodies and souls, our sex and gender are inherently 

good because God made them. They are gifts from God. And 

like all gifts from God, we have the responsibility to accept them with 

loving gratitude and use them to help build up the Kingdom of God. 

The Modern Cultural Narrative Surrounding 


The prevailing narrative of today’s culture is that our biological sex is assigned 

to us at birth against our will and that our gender identity emerges 

as we mature (though sometimes as early as toddlerhood). Thus, according 

to this narrative our gender can be fluid, and for some, may not 

match our assigned biological sex, leading to individuals feeling that, for 





example, they identify as male but have a female body (or vice versa). 

Some assert that the proper course of action is to affirm the person’s 

perceived gender identity, even as young as early childhood, by a whole 

host of means from clothing selection to so-called sex reassignment 

surgery to permanently alter their bodies to match their perceived gender 

identity. 

It should be obvious that the current cultural narrative surrounding 

gender rejects the truths of human nature, sexuality, natural law, and 

God, and is completely contrary the timeless teaching of the Church. 

At this point in our consideration of transgender issues, it is fair to ask 

whether the body of medical and psychiatric research supports the cultural 

narrative. Further, given what we have learned about the nature of 

the human person as God made us — as a unity of body and soul, created 

male and female in God’s image and likeness — what is the Church’s 

response to the current transgender ideology? 

What Does the Science Say? 

The Church’s major concern is that children, teens, and parents are being 

misled about the efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery, which is 

having exceedingly harmful effects on the adolescents who go through 

with it. This misinformation and its destructive outcomes are now affecting 

a growing population of gender-confused children and their 

parents. While we must not make a judgment on anyone who is pursuing 

or has pursued sexual reassignment surgery, it is imperative that the 

current state of psychiatric research on the subject be properly understood 

so that parents and their children can be fully informed before 

making irreversible, life-altering decisions. 

To begin, we need to be aware of four fact areas in current psychiatric 

literature: 

1. Those who have sexual reassignment surgery are five times more 

likely to contemplate suicide and 19 times more likely to die from 

it, compared with the general population. 1 

2. Sexual reassignment surgery is unnecessary and counterproductive 

as a remedy in gender confusion. In most cases, gender 

confusion will naturally reorient itself toward a person’s biological 

sex, and if it is slow to do so, preadolescent psychological therapy 

is very effective. 2 

3. Sexual reassignment surgery is destructive, irreversible, and 

prolongs the psychological anxieties frequently underlying 

gender confusion. Inasmuch as it is unnecessary to actively 

The Church’s 

major concern 

is that children, 

teens, and 

parents are 

being misled 

about the 

efficacy 

of sexual 

reassignment 

surgery. 

5 Does it surprise you to 

learn that current scientific 

literature deems the effects 

of sexual reassignment 

surgery as seriously harmful 

and counterproductive 

as a remedy for gender 

confusion? Why do you 

think the cautionary 

warnings of current 

scientific literature are not 

widely known in our culture? 

As has happened repeatedly 

throughout human history, 

there are those who wish to 

stifle the truth in the interest of 

preserving or obtaining wealth, 

power, or fame, or who wish to 

advance an ideology that the 

truth would otherwise expose 

as false or seriously flawed. 

Accept additional reasoned 

answers. 


9 


39

6 What are some ways 

we can show love and 

compassion for those who 

may be struggling with 

gender confusion in our 

lives, without condoning 

the cultural solutions that 

scientific research and the 

natural law have shown to 

be counterproductive and 

harmful (such as genderreassignment 

surgery or 

hormone treatment)? We 

can keep in contact with those 

who are struggling, offer them 

a listening ear and share with 

them our own struggles and 

hopes, build a relationship of 

trust and vulnerability, share 

the message of God’s love and 

His call to holiness, pray for 

them, seek to pursue holiness 

in our own lives, always extend 

the hand of friendship and 

companionship, and so forth. 

Accept other reasoned answers. 

Sexual 

reassignment 

surgery leads 

patients to 

a supposed 

solution to 

their gender 

confusion that 

will in most cases 

be unsuccessful, 

while leaving 

their real 

psychological 

problems 

untreated. 

remedy gender confusion in young children, sexual reassignment 

surgery is highly unethical from both a secular and Christian 

perspective. 3 

4. There is no scientific evidence or basis for cross-gender 

identification (a woman trapped in a man’s body or a man 

trapped in a woman’s body). 4 There are five other contributors 

to cross-gender confusion that are much better treated by 

therapy than surgery: high anxiety levels in the household, 5 

sexual abuse, 6 autism, latent homosexual desires, and/or strong 

suggestions from one or both parents that they would have 

preferred a child with the opposite sexual identity and even 

dressing them (or giving them toys) appropriate for that other 

identity. 

A 2016 study by Lawrence Mayer and Paul McHugh (Johns 

Hopkins University) summarizes the literature on sexual reassignment 

surgery from a psychiatric point of view. 7 They indicate that gender 

identity cannot be disconnected from biological sex. They conclude 

as follows: 

The hypothesis that gender identity is an innate, 

fixed property of human beings that is independent 

of biological sex — that a person might be “a man 

trapped in a woman’s body” or “a woman trapped 

in a man’s body” — is not supported by scientific 

evidence. [Brain studies] do not provide any evidence 

for a neurobiological basis for cross-gender 

identification. 8 

Mayer and McHugh show that, in addition to destroying healthy 

body parts, sexual reassignment surgery also leads patients to a supposed 

solution to their gender confusion that will in most cases be 

unsuccessful, while leaving their real psychological problems untreated. 

9 They further show that only a minority of children who experience 

transgender identification will continue to do so into adolescence or 

adulthood. 10 

Mayer and McHugh have enhanced previous studies showing that 

many children will move away from their transgender identification back 

to their biological sex on their own prior to their adolescence. Some 

children will need assistance in doing this from therapy when there is 

considerable anxiety in the household 11 and/or when children have been 

sexually abused (40%–55% of transgender identified children have 

been sexually abused 12 ). With respect to anxiety in the household, the 

research of Kenneth Zucker and Susan Bradley indicates that sensitive 





oys are particularly vulnerable to the effects of their mothers’ depression 

and anger, which may lead to gender confusion. 13 In their study of 

ten boys with gender confusion, eight of their mothers had at least one 

diagnosed psychological disorder, one had long-term psychotherapy 

for family issues, and one had continued migraines. 14 Ultimately, the 

research of both Zucker and Bradley 15 as well as Mayer and McHugh 16 

show that most childhood gender confusion can be resolved if children 

receive therapeutic counseling before they reach adolescence and 

their parents participate in that therapy (to lower the anxiety level in the 

home). Even more, they show that surgery is ultimately a disproportionate 

and premature response. 17 

While the evidence shows that most children will transition out of 

gender confusion before they reach adolescence, nevertheless, some 

will be told they can have surgery once they reach adulthood. Such 

situations frequently lead to a prolonged period of intense anxiety 

surrounding the adolescent’s gender confusion. Even though scientific 

investigation does not support the independence of gender identity 

from biological sex 18 , most adolescents in such situations become 

The evidence shows that 

most children will naturally 

resolve issues of gender 

confusion before they reach 

adolescence. 

7 Why might boys in particular 

be especially affected by 

the mental state of their 

mothers? Reasoned answers 

may include because of the 

unique relationship they have 

with their mothers, versus with 

their fathers, or that daughters 

have with mothers; boys 

may be more inclined to feel 

protective of their mothers, 

and thus more in tune with 

their mental state; and so forth. 


11 


41

8 Why do you think immediate 

relief of symptoms is not 

necessarily the best way to 

treat a health issue — both 

physical and mental? 

Symptoms are just that, signs of 

a deeper issue, both physically 

and mentally. If we only treat the 

symptoms, we never actually 

treat the real cause, which in 

turn will cause the symptoms to 

persist. Accept other reasoned 

responses. 

convinced of the innateness of their cross-gender identity. They want 

immediate relief from their anxiety without the lengthy efforts of 

therapy, which would be much more helpful to resolving their underlying 

condition. Many are so convinced of the need for immediate and 

complete relief from symptoms that they refuse any option but surgery. 

Zucker and Bradley found that teens with gender identity disorder 

have a hard time dealing with anxiety, especially when it comes to 

the unknown. When surgery is presented as a solution to their problems, 

a concrete step to take helps with their anxiety. Therapy often 

requires them to discuss why they want the surgery, and that discussion 

itself often causes enough anxiety to want them to withdraw 

from therapy. 19 The Return of the Prodigal Son by Pompeo Batoni (1773) 

As our loving Father, God 

always desires our well-being 

and He is always calling us to 

the shelter of His embrace 

amid the pressures and 

confusions of this world. 





Ultimately, sexual reassignment surgery blocks the pathway to 

therapy that could help relieve anxieties, anger, narcissism, and other 

conditions related to gender confusion. Though patients may initially 

be content with the surgery, the anxieties, anger, and narcissism that 

were there before the surgery continue to persist throughout a lifetime. 

Mayer and McHugh concur with this analysis: 

Compared to the general population, adults who underwent 

sex-reassignment surgery continued to have 

a higher risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes, 

including being 19 times more likely to die of 

suicide. 20 (Emphasis added) 

This finding was confirmed by a 2021 analysis by Dr. Martin den 

Heijer of Amsterdam UMC. Heijer noted that the much higher mortality 

rates of transgender individuals has not varied significantly in fifty 

years in the Netherlands despite new kinds of therapies. 21 

An increasing number of people are expressing a desire to detransition 

or retransition from sexual reassignment surgery. Since the surge 

in those seeking so-called gender affirming care is so recent, there has 

not yet been a good longitudinal study of the numbers and reasons for 

this increased interest in detransition. There are many reasons why data 

is lacking in this regard as of yet. First is the recent nature of the phenomenon. 

In 2017, just over 15,000 youths aged 6–17 were diagnosed 

with gender dysphoria (a clinical diagnosis of significantly impaired 

functioning stemming from the desire to be the other gender). By 2021 

(the most recent year data is available), that number had almost tripled 

to just over 42,000. (Reliable data is scarce prior to 2017). 22 Further, the 

number of gender clinics in the US has skyrocketed in the last 15 years, 

from none at all to over 100 today. 23 Because it takes several years 

for people to realize that the anxieties they were hoping to overcome 

through sexual reassignment surgery have not gone away (and are unlikely 

to do so), it will be some time before we truly understand how 

gender transition surgery has affected children and adults. 

Second is pressure to conform to the prevailing narrative. If those 

who transitioned express interest in detransitioning, they often experience 

pressure from transgender friends and the transgender community 

to avoid retransitioning. While some individuals who regret their 

surgery have sought to inform others of their experience, many find 

their reach online is suppressed by search engines and social media 

sites. Outside the US in places like Norway and the UK where protection 

for free speech is lacking, people can even face jail time for expressing 

views that oppose transgender ideology. 


13 

9 Does it surprise you that 

those who have undergone 

sexual reassignment 

surgery still have much 

higher rates of suicide than 

the general population? 

Why or why not? What 

might this statistic suggest 

about the cultural narrative 

surrounding transgender 

issues? Accept reasoned 

answers. The cultural narrative 

is to affirm the perceived 

gender identity of an individual, 

and advocate for solutions 

up to and including sexual 

reassignment surgery. The 

data, however, simply does 

not support this surgery as a 

solution, and in fact suggests 

that as a solution it only makes 

the matter worse. 

10 What does the increasing 

number of people 

expressing a desire to 

retransition or detransition 

from sexual reassignment 

surgery suggest about the 

surgery as a solution to 

gender confusion? In a similar 

way to what the increased 

suicide rates suggest, the 

growing dissatisfaction post 

sexual reassignment surgery 

suggests that the surgery is in 

fact not a solution at all. 


43

11 Have you ever had to have 

a difficult conversation with 

a friend about the possible 

consequences of something 

they were thinking of doing? 

Was it easy or difficult to do 

so? What was the outcome? 

Accept reasoned answers. 

12 What else might be needed 

beyond data and scientific 

studies to help a friend 

who may be struggling with 

gender confusion? Data and 

scientific studies can only go 

so far. In all situations, we must 

show compassion, and be 

willing to be listen, acknowledge 

the real feelings a person 

is experiencing, while also 

steadfastly being confident 

in the truth. We must also be 

willing to commit to a friend and 

journey with them. Accept other 


Even social 

transitioning 

should not be 

considered 

a ”neutral 

act” but rather 

an extreme 

intervention. 

What Does it Mean to Be a True Friend? 

Before concluding this chapter, we should discuss what this information 

means for us and the people we know and love. What do we do if someone 

we care for is experiencing gender confusion? In that case, we must 

ask: What does it mean to be a true friend? Simply to affirm what they 

want regardless of the consequences — or to affirm only what will be 

good for them physically, emotionally, and spiritually? If the latter, then 

do we have an obligation to help our friends think through the consequences 

of their proposed actions? If so, then it is important to become 

aware of what current research is saying about the consequences of 

gender transition. 

We now have excellent research from the UK, Sweden, and Finland, 

who in the past aggressively promoted gender affirming therapy and 

transition, but now are reversing themselves, becoming much more 

cautious in light of significant negative effects in those who have 

transitioned. 

We have already seen the alarming 19 times increase in the suicide 

rate of those who have undergone sex reassignment surgery compared 

to peers in the best longitudinal study available in Sweden. Furthermore, 

the four best studies of sexual reassignment surgery “did not demonstrate 

clinically significant changes or differences in psychometric test 

results after sexual reassignment surgery.” After ten years, anxieties increase 

along with suicidal ideation and actual suicides. 

In view of these very negative consequences, the National Health 

service of the United Kingdom, in 2022, reversed its previous decision 

on so-called gender affirming therapy, indicating that clinicians should 

take a slow and watchful approach without encouragement or affirmation. 

They went on to stress that “even social transitioning (choosing an 

opposite gender name and pronoun) should not be considered a ‘neutral 

act’ but rather an extreme intervention.” 

What do you think? Should we talk to our friends about these consequences 

for the sake of their emotional and spiritual health? Is it our 

responsibility to share the facts about transgenderism with those we 

care about? Is Christ asking us to be “our brothers’ keeper” or simply to 

affirm them in what they are inclined to do? 

Some of us might be concerned that speaking the truth about the 

negative consequences of transitioning will sound like a negative judgement 

about transgender individuals or a denial of the genuineness of 

someone’s identity. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus did 

not focus on judging people, but He did focus on the negative consequences 

of particular actions. 





Jesus did not focus on judging 

people during His ministry. He 

healed the sick, made broken 

lives whole, forgave sins, and 

called those He encountered 

to follow Him and turn away 

from destructive behavior. 

13 Why is simply not judging 

others not enough? What 

else did Jesus do? Jesus did 

not simply not judge others 

and leave them to suffer. 

Rather, He always called them 

to something greater, to not sin, 

and to choose the good and 

follow Him. It takes more to 

save a soul than just refraining 

from judging. We must call our 

friends to conversion, to the 

joy and love that is possible, 

even amid great suffering, in 

Christ and His Church. 

Christ Healing the Blind Man by Francesco de Mura (between 1716 and 1782) 

We can follow Jesus’ example by refraining from negative judgements 

and being understanding and supportive of the genuine anxieties 

surrounding gender confusion. If, however, we leave the discussion 

there, failing to express our concern that our friends will likely experience 

increased anxieties, suicidal contemplation, and suicides after 

transitioning, we abandon our responsibility to act for their good — to 

be true friends in the image of Jesus. When Jesus encountered those 

who were not living as God wanted them to live, he warned them to 

avoid sin. He did this not to threaten them, but to help them stay away 

from the behavior that threatened their life and spiritual well-being. 

Doing so takes courage and faith, but in the end, we know we will have 

done the right thing by our friends. 


15 


45

14 Why do you think increased 

cultural attention on 

something leads to more 

research on that topic? Does 

the increase in research and 

attention mean that the 

object of study is necessarily 

more prevalent? Why or why 

not? When a cultural spotlight 

is shined on some phenomenon, 

whether it is new or not, the new 

and increased attention often 

leads to more money being 

made available for research 

on the issue. Also, certain 

groups and organizations may 

use the increased attention 

for their own purposes or to 

push an agenda that benefits 

them. Thus, they will also put 

more money towards research 

on the topic in an attempt to 

support their point of view and, 

in turn, continue to draw more 

attention to the topic, creating 

a cycle of growing attention and 

more money made available. 

The increased research and 

attention, however, does not 

necessarily mean that the 

phenomenon is more prevalent. 

The increase in attention 

just makes it seems like it is more 

common, especially in the media 

reporting on it, even though it is not. 

Accept other reasoned answers. 

What matters most, 

however is the quality of 

the study far more than the 

current status of the study. 

Making Sense of Scientific Research 

A final note on the research presented in this chapter. Because the language 

and attitudes surrounding this topic seem to change frequently 

and rapidly in recent years, and because with the increased cultural attention 

given the topic there has been an increase in so-called scientific 

studies about it, there are other and newer studies that can seemingly 

show the opposite result of some of what has been presented here. 

What matters most, however, is the quality of the study far more than 

the current status of the study. It is easy for advocacy groups to hire 

people to make studies that will come out with the conclusion they 

want. So, how do we distinguish between a good study and bad one? 

There are three criteria that are generally taught in every logic class: 

1 Longitudinal studies are superior to short term studies or opinion 

polls. Longitudinal studies are always preferred because they allow 

for long term follow-up. This fact is crucial for the sex-reassignment 

and transgender treatment studies, because for the first five years, 

patients can experience a high and express happiness after the surgery. 

However, as the Swedish and Dutch studies show, after ten 

years the statistics become very different. Between the 10–15-year 

Taking the Census by Francis Williams Edmonds (1854) 





period after the surgery there is a steady increase in suicides, moving 

to a 31% rate in the sexually reassigned population. This trend 

may not express itself right away. Sometimes only negative feelings 

and anxieties occur after ten years, but after 15 years, this can turn 

suicidal very quickly. Only careful longitudinal studies with continuous 

follow-up can discover this outcome. Shorter studies can give 

the appearance of exactly the opposite viewpoint. The Swedish and 

den Heijer studies cited in this chapter were 30-year and 50-year 

studies, respectively. The latter study shows that increased mortality 

rates (three times in men and two times in women) in those 

receiving gender affirming therapy did not decline even a few percentage 

points over 50 years. 

2 Hard statistic studies are better than opinion poll studies. The 

Swedish and Dutch studies cited in the chapter are hard statistic 

studies because they looked at the number of suicides that actually 

occurred (Swedish study) and the increased mortality rates that actually 

occurred (the den Heijer study). Opinion poll studies (that often 

ask questions such as “Do you feel happy after your surgery?”) 

can be very deceptive for two reasons: 

■ A person’s feelings (represented on a scale from 1–5, for 

example) is very subjective because it depends on how the 

respondent feels on a particular day, how they interpret the 

question on a particular day, and so forth. The occurrences 

of a suicides or deaths in a specific population, however, 

are as objective as one can get. This kind of data leaves no 

room for vast subjective fluctuations depending on mood, 

daily circumstances (stress or unstressed), and subjective 

interpretation. 

■ The way an opinion pollster asks questions can be very 

misleading. Questions can be phrased in a way that manipulates 

a person to give a desired answer. This practice is often found 

in surveys done by advocacy groups or by biased media. Thus, 

better studies do not use subjective, potentially manipulative 

questions, but rather hard statistics. 

3 The best studies are done by professional medical and social-medical 

staff overseeing the study. Such medical staff should have a 

view to obtaining unbiased results according to standard measurable 

procedures. Conversely, a study done by an advocacy group, 

by definition, is biased. A study for which payment was given by 

an advocacy group is biased. Even more, when a study reports 


17 

15 When considering 

longitudinal studies and 

hard statistics, why do 

you think we should pay 

the most attention to the 

data itself rather than the 

interpretation of the data? 

The data itself is most valuable 

because, generally speaking, 

the data speaks for itself. The 

interpretation of the data can 

be subjectively manipulated 

one way or the other based on 

who funded the studies or who 

conducted the studies. When 

considering scientific data, we 

should always consider the 

data itself to remain objective 

in our conclusions, rather than 

simply trusting the presented 

interpretation. Accept other 


16 When was a time that you 

did something where the 

outcome of what you were 

doing was different from 

what you expected would 

happen? Accept reasoned 

answers. 


47

17 Why do you think the 

newness of the transgender 

phenomenon and the 

relative lack of longitudinal 

research should give us 

pause about the treatments 

being offered to those 

experiencing gender 

confusion? The newness of 

the phenomenon and the lack 

of longitudinal research mean 

that we simply do not know 

the effects of the treatments 

offered those suffering gender 

confusion, treatments that 

irreversibly damage their 

bodies and mental health. 

Rather, that evidence that does 

exists suggests that these 

interventions are far more 

harmful than if they were not 

offered at all. Accept other 


surprising, unexpected, or even unwanted (undesired) outcomes, 

it demonstrates the objectivity of the study. For example, the den 

Heijer study cited in this chapter was done by doctors running clinics 

to provide gender affirming therapy (hormones to block original 

sex and promote opposite sex characteristics). When this group reports 

that “the increased mortality rate of transgenders has not declined 

in 50 years,” we can believe that it is an objective opinion. To 

be sure, these particular researchers are trying to use therapies and 

drugs to turn this increased mortality statistic around, but the reality 

of their findings speak for themselves, despite all the attempts they 

have made to turn the trend around in their clinics. Their findings 

suggest that there are characteristics of gender affirming therapy 

that cause both the body and the mind to undergo significant 

stresses leading to death. This fact generally means that their socalled 

sexual reassignment treatments, for a variety of reasons, 

causes significantly increased mortality rates, triple and double. 

Ultimately, if we dig into the more recent studies deeply enough, 

we may see some initial attitudes that seem to contradict the other 

studies (“I felt much better after the surgery,” or “I am happier after the 

surgery”), but we will not find improvements in the long-term negative 

consequences ten years or more after sexual reassignment surgery. 

Unfortunately, this is one problem with online searches. They can give 

you everything from poor quality to occasional high-quality studies like 

spaghetti thrown against a wall. Other times, the results they return are 

only those the search engine’s programmers want you to see. Some 

search engines have even acknowledged downgrading certain information 

in their rankings, limiting the number of people who will see it. 

When considering the findings of research, what really matters is high 

quality studies that can get us closer to the truth: longitudinal studies, 

measurement of hard facts by professional medical personal that give 

rise to unbiased statistics instead of feelings and opinions. 





Endnotes 

1 




p.9 https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number- 

50-fall-2016 

2 

Ibid 

3 

Ibid 

4 

Ibid 

5 









gov/12500069/ 

See Richard P. Fitzgibbons, M.D., Philip M. Sutton, and Dale 

O’Leary “The Psychopathology of “Sex Reassignment” 

Surgery Assessing Its Medical, Psychological, and Ethical 

Appropriateness” The National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 

Spring 2009 pp. 97-125. http://lc.org/PDFs/Attachments2PRsLAs/2018/061118SexReasssignmentSurgery.pdf 

6 







6, no. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

Holly Devor, “Transsexualism, Dissociation, and Child Abuse: 

An Initial Discussion Based on Nonclinical Data,” Journal of 

Psychology and Human Sexuality 6. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

7 




https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number-50- 

fall-2016 

8 

Ibid. 

9 

Ibid. 

Mayer’s and McHugh’s study confirms a previous study by 

Drs. Fitzgibbons, Sutton, and O’Leary which provides an 

invaluable list of excellent medical and psychiatric studies 

used throughout this chapter. See Richard P. Fitzgibbons, 

M.D., Philip M. Sutton, and Dale O’Leary “The Psychopathology 

of “Sex Reassignment” Surgery Assessing Its Medical, 

Psychological, and Ethical Appropriateness” The National 

Catholic Bioethics Quarterly Spring 2009 pp. 97-125. http:// 

lc.org/PDFs/Attachments2PRsLAs/2018/061118SexReasssignmentSurgery.pdf 

10 

Ibid 

11 




12 







6, no. 3 (1994): 49–72. 

13 




14 






gov/12500069/ 

15 

See Zucker, Gender Identity Disorder, 282. 

16 


from the biological, psychological, and Social Sciences” The 

New Atlantis https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/ 

number-50-fall-2016 

17 

See Lawrence Mayer, M.B., M.S, Ph.D. and Paul McHugh, 

M.D. “Sexuality and Gender: Findings from the biological, 

psychological, and Social Sciences” The New Atlantis 50 (Fall 

2016), https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/number-50-fall-2016 

18 



19 

Zucker, Gender Identity Disorder, 315–316. 

20 

Mayer and McHugh 2016, “Sexuality and Gender: Findings 


21 

“Mortality trends over five decades in adult transgender 

people receiving hormone treatment: a report from the 

Amsterdam cohort of gender dysphoria.” Lancet Diabetes 

Endocrinol. 2021 Oct; 9 (10) : 663-670. https://pubmed.ncbi. 

nlm.nih.gov/34481559/ 

22 

Robin Respaut and Chad Terhune. “Putting Numbers on the 

Rise in Children Seeking Gender Care” Reuters.com (Oct. 6, 

2022). https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/ 

usa-transyouth-data/ 

23 

Chad Terhune, Robin Respaut, and Michelle Conlin. “As More 

Transgender Children Seek Medical Care, Families Confront 

Many Unknowns” Reuters.com (Oct. 6, 2022). https://www. 

reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-transyouthcare/ 


19 


49


PAGE 20 IN THE STUDENT BOOK 

Answer Key 

1 The Catholic Church loves these individuals and holds them in the same high regard as every other uniquely 

good, loveable, and transcendent human being. 

2 God made each of us in His image and likeness as a unity of body and soul. Neither our body, nor our soul 

are more important than the other. Their union is essential to us being human. Like everything else that 

God creates, our bodies and souls — and their union — are fundamentally good. 

3 Sex refers to our biological makeup as male or female. Gender refers to the expression of being male or 

being female. 

4 A person’s gender is determined by their biological sex. 

5 Our physical bodies as male and female reveal both the spiritual unity to which we are called as men and 

women in marriage and the procreative power of sexuality, by which we cooperate with God’s creative power 

and bring new life into the world. 

6 Our sex and gender are inherently good because God made them. Our responsibility towards our sex and 

gender is to accept them with loving gratitude, like all gifts given to us by God, and use them to help build 

the Kingdom of God. 

7 The prevailing cultural narrative suggests that the proper course of action is to affirm the person’s perceived 

gender identity, even as young as early childhood, by a whole host of means ranging from clothing selection 

to so-called sex-reassignment surgery to permanently alter bodies to match perceived gender identity. 

8 Those who have had sexual reassignment surgery are five times more likely to contemplate suicide and are 

19 times more likely to die from suicide than the general population. 

9 The research shows that sexual reassignment surgery is counterproductive and unnecessary because, in 

most cases, gender confusion will naturally reorient itself toward a person’s biological sex, and if it is slow to 

do so, preadolescent psychotherapy is very effective. 




14 Why are longitudinal studies better than short term studies or opinion polls? Why is this important 

for research on sex-reassignment surgeries and transgender treatment studies? 

1 Put plainly, what is the Catholic Church’s attitudes towards transgender and transexual individuals? 

15 Why are hard statistic studies better than opinion polls? 

2 What is the relationship between the human body and soul? 

16 Why is it important that studies be conducted by professional medical and social-medical staff? 

3 What does the word sex refer to? What does the word gender refer to? 

4 What determines a person’s gender? 

17 Why is simply using an online search engine not a great way to find quality research on sexreassignment 

and transgender treatments (or anything else, for that matter)? What must we do 

instead? 

5 What is revealed by our physical bodies as male and female? 

6 Why are our sex and gender inherently good? What is our responsibility towards them? 

7 What does the prevailing cultural narrative suggest is the proper course of action towards those who 

may be experiencing gender confusion? 

8 What does the data regarding suicide contemplation and completion show about those who have 

had sexual reassignment surgery? 

9 What does the research suggest about why sexual reassignment surgery is unnecessary and 

counterproductive as a remedy for gender confusion? 

10 What does the research show regarding the effectiveness of sexual reassignment surgery in 

remedying gender confusion? What other factors, when treated by psychotherapy, have been 

shown to have greater success in alleviating gender confusion? 

11 What did Zucker and Bradley find regarding the relationship between sensitive boys and the mental 

health of their mothers? 

12 Though data is currently lacking in its regard, what have an increasing number of people who have 

undergone sexual reassignment surgery expressed? What might explain this? What significant 

obstacle do these individuals face? 

13 What obligation do we have towards our friends who may experience gender confusion? 


© Magis Center © Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 5, Chapter 12: Transgender Issues 21 

10 The research shows that sexual reassignment surgery is destructive, irreversible, ineffective, and unethical in 

remedying gender confusion, and in fact prolongs the psychological anxieties underlying it. Other factors, 

such as high anxiety levels in the household, sexual abuse, autism, latent homosexual desires, and/or strong 

suggestions from one or both parents that they would have preferred a child with the opposite sexual identity, 

when properly treated by psychotherapy, are more easily and successfully treated. 

11 They found that sensitive boys are particularly vulnerable to the effects of their mothers’ depression and 

anger, which may lead to gender confusion. Ultimately, they show that most childhood gender confusion 

can be resolved if children receive therapeutic counseling before they reach adolescence, and their parents 

participate in that therapy (to lower the anxiety level in the home). 


51

12 A desire to detransition or retransition. Over time, many realize that the anxieties they were hoping to overcome 

through sexual reassignment surgery have not gone away (and are unlikely to do so). In expressing this 

desire or feelings of regret, they face pressure from transgender friends and the transgender community to 

avoid retransitioning. Outside the US in places like Norway and the UK where protection for free speech is 

lacking, people can even face jail time for expressing views that oppose transgender ideology. 

13 We are obligated to be true friends in the image of Jesus and act for their good, expressing our concerns that 

they will likely experience increased anxieties, suicidal contemplation, and be more likely to successfully complete 

suicide after transitioning. Rather than being judgmental or threatening to them, we will have spoken 

the truth in courage and faith to affirm only what will be good for them physically, emotionally, and spiritually. 

14 Why are longitudinal studies better than short term studies or opinion polls? Why is this important for research 

on sex-reassignment surgeries and transgender treatment studies? Longitudinal studies are better 

because they allow for long-term follow up. This is important for research on sex-reassignment surgeries and 

transgender treatment studies because often, patients experience a high and report satisfaction for the first 

five years after surgery and treatment, but after ten years, there is a steady increase in suicides, negative 

feelings, and anxiety, trends that will not appear in short term studies or opinion polls. 

15 Why are hard statistic studies better than opinion polls? Hard statistics are just that — data/numbers and facts. 

Opinion polls can be manipulated and deceptive because a person’s feelings are very subjective and because 

the way a question is asked by a pollster can be phrased in such a way as to manipulate a person into giving 

a desired answer. 

16 Why is it important that studies be conducted by professional medical and social-medical staff? Such staff 

are more likely to obtain unbiased results according to standard measurable procedures, even if the results 

are contrary to what they thought or hoped they would find. Conversely, a study done by an advocacy group, 

by definition, is biased. 

17 Why is simply using an online search engine not a great way to find quality research on sex-reassignment and 

transgender treatments (or anything else, for that matter)? What must we do instead? They can give you 

everything from poor quality to occasional high-quality studies and everything in between. Other times, the 

results they return are only those the search engine’s programmers want you to see. Some search engines 

have even acknowledged downgrading certain information in their rankings, limiting the number of people 

who will see it. Instead, we must be critical of the studies and information reported in the media and seek out 

longitudinal studies conducted by professional medical staff that report hard statistics. 



PRIMARY SOURCE ACTIVITY 


BEGINS ON PAGE 22 IN THE STUDENT BOOK 

GAUDIUM ET SPES 14 

1 Man is composed of a physical body (his bodily composition) made of the same physical material as all 

other earthly creatures — molecules, atoms, bone, muscle, flesh, and so forth. But man also possesses an 

immortal soul and is a unity of body and soul — he is one. He is at the same time physical and spiritual. 

2 Because the physical world reaches its crown — its highest perfection — through him, and is offered freely 

to God in praise through him. He is instead called to regard his body as good and honorable because God 

created and will raise it on the last day. 

AMORIS LAETITIA 56 

1 The family. Because such an ideology leads to educational programs and legislation that promotes “a 

personal identity and emotional intimacy radically separated from the biological difference between male 

and female.” Such an ideology cuts at the core of family life, which grows from the ordered and intimate 

union of a man and a woman fulfilling their particular sexual nature and personal identity. 

2 Biological sex and the socio-cultural role of sex (gender). Manhood and fatherhood, womanhood and 

motherhood. 

3 To remind us that God is the Creator, not us, and that we cannot create or invent our nature. It is a total 

gift from God. The first step in protecting our humanity is thus to accept and respect it as God created it. 

Accept additional reasoned answers. The virtue of gratitude. 

THEOLOGY OF THE BODY 19:3–5 

1 Man is the highest expression of the divine gift because “he bears within him the interior dimension of the 

gift.” Man “brings into the world” his particular likeness to God, which none of the other physical creatures 

share in, and of which masculinity or femininity are an essential part. 

2 Through our bodies — our corporality. We smile when we are happy, and cry when we are grieving, laugh 

when we are joyful, and so forth. 

3 The economy of truth and love, of which God is the source, and which He has revealed in the mystery of 

His creation. 


53


ADDITIONAL READINGS FROM PRIMARY SOURCES 

Gaudium et Spes 14, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, December 7, 

1965 

Though made of body and soul, man is one. Through his bodily composition he gathers to himself the 

elements of the material world; thus they reach their crown through him, and through him raise their 

voice in free praise of the Creator. For this reason man is not allowed to despise his bodily life, rather he 

is obliged to regard his body as good and honorable since God has created it and will raise it up on the 

last day. Nevertheless, wounded by sin, man experiences rebellious stirrings in his body. But the very 

dignity of man postulates that man glorify God in his body and forbid it to serve the evil inclinations of 

his heart. 

1 In what way does man gather to himself the elements of the material world? How does the fact that 

man does this make him similar to the other creatures on earth? How is man different from the other 

creatures on earth? 

2 Why is man not allowed to despise his bodily life? What is he instead called to do? 

Amoris Laetitia 56, A Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, March 19, 2016 

Yet another challenge is posed by the various forms of an ideology of gender that “denies the difference 

and reciprocity in nature of a man and a woman and envisages a society without sexual differences, 

thereby eliminating the anthropological basis of the family. This ideology leads to educational 

programmes and legislative enactments that promote a personal 

identity and emotional intimacy radically separated from the biological difference between male and 

female. Consequently, human identity becomes the choice of the individual, one which can also change 

over time.” It is a source of concern that some ideologies of this sort, which seek to respond to what 

are at times understandable aspirations, manage to assert themselves as absolute and unquestionable, 

even dictating how children should be raised. It needs to be emphasized that “biological sex and the 

socio-cultural role of sex (gender) can be distinguished but not separated.” On the other hand, “the 

technological revolution in the field of human procreation has introduced the ability to manipulate the 

reproductive act, making it independent of the sexual relationship between a man and a woman. In this 

way, human life and parenthood have become modular and separable realities, subject mainly to the 

wishes of individuals or couples.” It is one thing to be understanding of human weakness and the complexities 

of life, and another to accept ideologies that attempt to sunder what are inseparable aspects 

of reality. Let us not fall into the sin of trying to replace the Creator. We are creatures, and not omnipotent. 

Creation is prior to us and must be received as a gift. At the same time, we are called to protect our 

humanity, and this means, in the first place, accepting it and respecting it as it was created. 

1 If the differences and reciprocity in the nature of man and woman are denied by a society, what 

fundamental relationship suffers? Why? 

2 What does Pope Francis say can be “distinguished but never separated”? Give an example. 

3 Why do you think Pope Francis emphasizes the fact that all creation — and our very nature — is received 

as a gift? What does he say is the first step in protecting our humanity? To that end, what virtue can 

we cultivate to better accept and respect God’s gift of life and unique plan for us? 

Theology of the Body 19:3–5, Pope St. John Paul II, February 25, 1980 

Man appears in the visible world as the highest expression of the divine gift, because he bears within 

him the interior dimension of the gift. With it he brings into the world his particular likeness to God, 

with which he transcends and dominates also his “visibility” in the world, his corporality, his masculinity 

or femininity, his nakedness. A reflection of this likeness is also the primordial awareness of the nuptial 

meaning of the body, pervaded by the mystery of original innocence. 

Thus, in this dimension, a primordial sacrament is constituted, understood as a sign that transmits effectively 

in the visible world the invisible mystery hidden in God from time immemorial. This is the mystery 

of truth and love, the mystery of divine life, in which man really participates. In the history of man, 

original innocence begins this participation and it is also a source of original happiness. The sacrament, 

as a visible sign, is constituted with man, as a body, by means of his visible masculinity and femininity. 

The body, and it alone, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine. It was 

created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden since time immemorial in God, 

and thus be a sign of it. 

So in man created in the image of God there was revealed, in a way, the very sacramentality of creation, 

the sacramentality of the world. Man, in fact, by means of his corporality, his masculinity and femininity, 

becomes a visible sign of the economy of truth and love, which has its source in God himself and which 

was revealed already in the mystery of creation. 

1 How is man the highest expression of the divine gift? Explain. 

2 How do we make visible the spiritual, totally invisible aspects of our nature? Give an example. 

3 Of what does Pope St. John Paul II say our masculinity or femininity is a visible sign? 





Chapter Activities 

WARM-UP 



Activity Instructions 

A 

Begin by asking your students to write down three examples of actions, words, or things that act as symbols 

of something deeper. Make sure they do not offer examples that use words. For example: 

■ A letter on a school jacket is a sign of athletic accomplishment. 

■ Moving a graduation tassel from one side to the other signifies the end of a high school career. 

■ All-black clothing and a black veil signifies that a widow is in mourning. 

■ A diamond ring on a left hand signifies that someone is engaged. 


Part 1 

Directions: In the space below, use lines, colors, shapes, and textures to make the invisible song played by 

your teacher appear visible. 

Part 2 

Directions: In your group, discuss the following questions about the song. 

1 How many instruments were playing this piece? What instruments were they? 

2 How are those instruments different? What unique characteristics does each instrument have? How 

are they played in unique ways? How does their sound differ? 

3 How are those instruments similar? 

4 How did the instruments complement each other? (Hint: think of complementary angles.) 

5 How were the instruments united in this piece? What would the music have been like without one or 

the other of the instruments? 

Part 3 

Directions: In your group, read Genesis 2:15–24 aloud. Then, discuss the following questions together as a 

group. Be prepared to share about your discussion with the class. . 

1 What did God identify as being “not good?” 

2 What two words did God use in verse 18 to describe what/who the man needed? 

3 Why were the animals not suitable partners for the man? What were the animals made out of? 

4 When the man sees the woman, he cries out, “bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh!” What is Adam 

recognizing in her that he does not see in the animals? 

5 Based on this passage, what makes woman a suitable partner for man? 

6 In this passage we see that the woman was taken from the man. What does it then mean at the end 

when it says that they become “one flesh”? 

7 What could we learn about the relationship between man and woman from this scene? 




55

B 

C 

When they have finished, ask for volunteers to share what they wrote. 

Next, ask a student to stand and demonstrate with his or her body what “sad” looks like. Then, ask other 

students to demonstrate “surprised,” “angry,” “jealous,” and “confused” with their bodies. Encourage their 

classmates to guess the emotion being expressed. (You could also project or draw different “emoji” faces 

on the board and have the students explain what emotion is being expressed through the symbol.) 

D Then, use these examples to explain to your students how our bodies are visible signs of our invisible 

souls. Explain that God made us as a unity, or composite, of body and soul. We are embodied souls, 

or ensouled bodies. We are composite beings. Our body is not “more us” than our soul, nor is our soul 

“more us” than our bodies. God intended our bodies and souls to be united together for us to be fully 

human. Reminding the students of their initial examples, explain how we, as composite beings, use 

physical things, including our bodies, to express deeper, invisible, spiritual, realities. 

E 

F 

Next, have your students turn to Unity and Complementarity Song Reflection on pg. 24 of the 

Student Workbook. Make colored pencils available to your students, making sure each has several different 

colors. 

Explain that you are going to play for them a piece of classical music called “Vocalise” by Rachmaninov. 

As they listen, have them make the music, which is invisible, visible on Part 1 of the worksheet using the 

colored pencils they have been given. Challenge them not to use recognizable images in their drawings, 

such as faces or specific objects, and instead use only lines, textures, gestures drawings, and color to 

envision the music and help reveal the mystery of the song. 

G Then, play the video of the song Vocalise by Rachmaninov found at SophiaOnline.org/Vocalise. You 

do not have to play the entire song but play enough of it for students to adequately reflect upon it and 

complete their drawings. 

H 

I 

J 

When finished, call on students to share and explain what they drew. 

Finally, arrange your students into single-sex groups of three or four, and have them work on Parts 2 and 

3 of the worksheet together. 

When they have finished, call on groups to share about their group discussions with the class. 

Answer Key 

Part 1: Accept all appropriate drawing responses. 

Part 2: 

1 Two; cello and piano. 

2 One tends to play lower notes on the register (cello) while one is able to play higher notes on the register 

(piano). Both are stringed instruments but play the strings differently (a bow on the cello and keys causing a 

hammer to strike the strings on a piano). A cello tends to sound more fluid as the strings are played together 

to create one sound, while a piano plays more individual notes or individual notes together as chords. A 

pianist uses his fingers to press individual keys with differing amounts of force, while a cellist draws a bow 

across the strings of the cellos with different amounts of force and speed. Accept other reasoned answers. 



3 Both the piano and cello are stringed instruments. Both tend to be made of wood and require a trained 

musician to play to their fullest. Both are capable of playing a melody and of accompanying other 

instruments or voices. Accept other reasoned answers. 

4 When one went high the other went low; when one played the melody the other played the harmony. 

Accept other reasoned answers. Note: make sure students do not misunderstand “complement each other” 

as “compliment each other.” 

5 Answers may include that together, they create something more beautiful than either of the two of them 

alone. They create new life of a song. The song would be incomplete without one or the other instruments. 

Part 3: 

1 That man is alone. 

2 Helper, partner. 

3 They were made out of the ground. They are not of the same substance as Adam, for they do not share 

his human body and soul. 

4 In her he sees someone like him, one who shares a human body and soul. He sees someone with whom he 

can have a relationship. 

5 She is made from him. She complements him. She can know him and understand him by being like him. 

6 They came from the same flesh. They are made for and from one another. In their bodies and their souls 

they are complementary. 

7 They are made for and from one another. In their bodies and souls they are complementary. No other 

creature can match this. 


57

ACTIVITY 1 




A 

Begin by explaining to your students that the topic of transgenderism is a particularly sensitive one 

because it deals with issues that are so intensely personal to the people who experience gender confusion. 

That fact, combined with the immense societal pressure to conform to the current prevailing 

narrative can make it difficult to speak the truth. It is completely understandable to not want to hurt 

others’ feelings or alienate them. And yet, we also know that basing life altering decisions on feelings 

alone — whether they are momentary or persistent — is dangerous because feelings can and do change. 

Therefore, it is of the utmost importance for us to know the truth about our bodies and souls, our 

sexuality and gender, and the goodness of the way God made us, be able to defend these truths when 

they are challenged, and live our lives according to the truth. 



Directions: Using the chapter text, complete the graphic organizer by summarizing what it says about each 

key topic about the nature of the human person regarding sex and gender listed in the first 

column, and reflecting on the meaning of each and why the teaching matters. 


Directions: Using the chapter text, complete the graphic organizer by identifying three facts from medical 

science regarding the effects and efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery and reflecting on the 

meaning of each fact and why it matters. Note that there are potentially more than three facts 

presented in the text. Choose the three most compelling to you for this activity. 


Summary 


Fact #1: 

Body and Soul 

Male and 

Female 

Fact #2: 

Sex and Gender 

Fact #3: 





B 

C 

D 

Next, arrange your students into groups of three or four and have them turn to The Truth About Sex and 

Gender on pg. 26 of the Student Workbook. Working with their group, have them use the chapter text 

to complete the graphic organizers to compile the presented facts about sex and gender and reflect upon 

their meaning. 

When they have finished, call on groups to share and discuss their answers. 

Conclude by leading a class discussion using the following prompts: 

■ After considering the timeless teaching of the Church regarding the nature of the human person 

as well as evidence from modern medical science, how does the truth about sex and gender differ 

from the current cultural narrative? The current cultural narrative suggests that the way someone 

feels at any given moment is who they are, regardless if feelings can (and do) change. Therefore, if 

someone feels they are a person of the opposite sex, they must be that way and everyone else must 

acknowledge that person’s feelings as truth. The notions of sex and gender have been narrowly 

redefined, drastically differing from the way they have been understood for the vast majority of human 

history, disregarding longstanding socio-cultural norms that have until now been virtually universal to 

the human experience. Science simply does not support this narrative, and neither does the timeless 

teaching of the Church, which has always understood the goodness of the unity of our bodies and 

souls as created by God, as well as our maleness and femaleness as part of being made in the image 

and likeness of God. Accept additional reasoned responses. 

■ Why do you think the current cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues conflicts so 

dramatically with the evidence from medical science and with Church teaching? Accept reasoned 

answers, which may include the over politicization of the issue, certain cultural forces and sources 

providing disinformation, or general unwillingness to accept plain truth that may conflict with the way 

someone feels. 

■ How can we be sympathetic, compassionate, and merciful to a person who may be experiencing 

gender confusion while still upholding the truth about human nature rooted in fact? Accept reasoned 

answers that should include consideration of compassion, humility, listening, and lack of judgment, as 

well as a steadfastness in the truth. Ultimately, loving someone experiencing gender confusion does 

not mean that we must accept the cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues or that sexual 

reassignment surgery and other such treatments are the only solution. 


59

Answer Key 


Body and 

Soul 

Male and 

Female 

Sex and 

Gender 

Summary 

Human beings are made in God’s image 

as a unity of body and soul. Neither the 

body, nor the soul are more important 

than the other. This union is essential to 

who we are and what makes us human. 

Like everything God makes, our bodies 

and souls are fundamentally good. 

An essential aspect of being made in 

God’s image and likeness is that we are 

made male and female. Our biological sex 

is not accidental or dispensable to who we 

are. The male body only makes sense in 

light of the female body, and vice versa; 

each complements the other. Our physical 

bodies as male or female reveal both 

the spiritual unity to which we are called 

as men and women in marriage and the 

procreative power of sexuality, by which 

we cooperate with God’s creative power 

and bring new life into the world. 

Sex is our biological makeup as male 

or female. Gender is the expression of 

being male or female. Gender is determined 

by our biological sex. Gender is 

expressed in different ways across time 

and cultures. The sex and gender given 

to us by God at our creation and evident 

by our bodies are precious gifts that are 

inherently good because God made 

them. Like all gifts given to us by God, 

our responsibility is to accept them with 

loving gratitude and use them to help 

build the Kingdom of God. 


Without a proper understanding of the 

essential unity of our bodies and souls, we 

might come to believe that one or the other 

are dispensable or changeable, or we might 

overemphasize the importance of one over 

the other. This confusion can lead to grave 

consequences regarding how we treat our 

bodies and souls. Accept other reasoned 

answers. 

Stemming from the first principle, if we 

believe that our bodies are dispensable, 

changeable, or more (or less) important than 

our souls, we may also come to redefine the 

meaning of biological sex and gender. This 

further confusion can lead to confused choices 

about our bodies that can cause irreversible 

consequences, and ultimately cause us 

to live in a way that does not correspond with 

reality. Accept other reasoned answers. 

If we understand our bodies, sex, and, gender, 

for what they truly are — gifts from God – 

then we can begin to accept the responsibility 

that comes with that gift and treat our bodies 

the way God intends. We can properly live 

according to the gift of being male or being 

female God has given to each of us. Accept 

other reasoned answers. 




Note: There are at least four main facts presented in the chapter text evidenced from modern medical science 

regarding the effects and efficacy of sexual reassignment surgery. Students are asked to identify three. 


Fact #1: Those who have sexual 

reassignment surgery are five times 

more likely to contemplate suicide 

and 19 times more likely to die from it, 

compared with the general population. 

Fact #2: Sexual reassignment surgery 

is unnecessary and counterproductive 

as a remedy in gender confusion. In 

most cases, gender confusion will 

naturally reorient itself toward a 

person’s biological sex, and if it is slow 

to do so, preadolescent psychological 

therapy is very effective. 

Fact #3: Sexual reassignment surgery 

is destructive, irreversible, and 

prolongs the psychological anxieties 

frequently underlying gender 

confusion. 

Fact #4: There is no scientific 

evidence or basis for cross-gender 

identification. There are five other 

contributors to cross-gender confusion 

that are much better treated 

by therapy than surgery: high anxiety 

levels in the household, sexual abuse, 

autism, latent homosexual desires, 

and/or strong suggestions from one 

or both parents that they would have 

preferred a child with the opposite 

sexual identity and even dressing 

them (or giving them toys) appropriate 

for that other identity. 

While it is popularly assumed that sexual reassignment surgery 

will alleviate anxieties and depression from gender confusion, the 

actual data dramatically shows the opposite. The data does not 

support the assumption. Accept other reasoned answers. 

It is not popular to suggest that gender confusion in children and 

adolescents is typically only temporary and will naturally reorient 

itself towards a person’s biological sex if left alone or with therapy. 

The current cultural narrative suggests the opposite, that we 

should affirm a person’s perceived and confused gender identity, 

up to and including sexual reassignment surgery, even at young 

ages. The data, however, shows this cultural narrative to be false, 

and in fact gravely harmful. Accept other reasoned answers. 

The current cultural narrative tends to hold up sexual reassignment 

surgery as the ultimate solution to remedy psychological 

anxieties that accompany gender confusion. The data shows, 

however, that sexual reassignment surgery in fact prolongs and 

even worsens these anxieties. Ultimately, sexual reassignment 

surgery is presented as a false ambition that will not provide the 

hoped-for solution. Accept other reasoned answers. 

The cultural narrative surrounding transgender issues tends to 

deemphasize other psychological or environmental causes. The 

data, however, shows that when these other causes are treated by 

therapy, gender confusion can be resolved. Ultimately, the data 

shows no actual scientific basis for cross-gender identification, 

showing that the cultural narrative is inherently false and based 

on false assumptions with no foundation in fact. Accept reasoned 

answers. 


61

ACTIVITY 2 




A 

Begin by writing or projecting Jesus’ great commandments on the board, from Matthew 22:37–40, and 

reading them aloud: 

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This 

is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 

On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.” 

B 

C 

D 

Next, explain to your students that, in the Gospels, Jesus gave us the great commandments as a summary 

of the Ten Commandments, reframing them as a law of love. So often, when contemplating these 

simple yet profound commandments, we focus all our attention on our responsibility to love others: 

God first, then our neighbor. But it is easy to overlook the fact that we can only love our neighbor as 

Jesus calls us to do when we have loved ourselves. How can we love our neighbor as ourselves if we do 

not first love who God made us to be? In our fallen world, this commandment to love ourselves may be 

the hardest of them all. Our world tells us that our value is dependent on how we look, what we do and 

have accomplished, our usefulness, how popular we are, or any number of other things that ultimately 

are not about who we are as persons made in God’s image and likeness. The truth is, God calls us to 

love ourselves as He loves us. And it is only from that place of love that we are able to love others as 

He commands: as we love ourselves. God calls us to love ourselves as the wonderful men and women 

He made us to be. 

Then, show your students the video reflection titled “What Catholics Believe: Self Love Is a Duty,” found 

at SophiaOnline.org/SelfLove. 

When finished, lead a brief class discussion using the following prompts: 

■ In what ways do we tend to turn the objects of our love into just that, objects (or things) rather than 

persons? Accept reasoned answers. 

■ How is the current transgender ideology another example of turning the object of our love (in this 

case, oneself) into an object (or thing)? The current transgender ideology suggests that a person can 

only truly love themselves if they look a certain way, in this case, if their body looks like that of person 

of the opposite sex. Self-love becomes another example of “I love you because…” (as the video states). 

E 

F 

Next, have your students turn to A Scriptural Prayer of Your Goodness on pg. 28 of the Student 

Workbook. Invite your students to listen prayerfully as you read aloud the prayer composed of various 

Scripture passages that celebrate and reflect on our goodness as God has made us. You might encourage 

students to follow along as you read the prayer. 

When finished, have your students respond to the reflection questions. Consider calling on students to 

share some of their thoughts and reflections (where appropriate) when they have finished. 




Directions: Prayerfully listen (or follow along) as your teacher reads aloud the following prayer composed 

from Scripture celebrating our goodness as God has made us. Then, respond to the reflection 

questions. 

Reflection Questions 

1 Do you know that you are good? Do you know that God loves you unconditionally as He made you? 

How have you responded to God’s love in your life? 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

2 How can you glorify God in your body? How can you be a living sacrifice in worship of Him? 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Lord, “You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. 

I praise you, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your 

works! My very self you know” (Psalm 139: 13–14 [NABRE]). “Are not 

five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten 

before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear 

not; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Luke 12:6–7). 

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever 

believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Do you 

not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which 

you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So 

glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). “For no man ever hates 

his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, as Christ does the church, 

because we are members of his body. (Ephesians 5:29–30)” “[B]y 

grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it 

is the gift of God — not because of works, lest any man should boast. For 

we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God 

prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8–10). 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

3 Have you ever considered God’s plan for your future? What hope can you find in God’s plan? 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

4 Given what you have learned in this chapter, what message would you give to someone struggling 

with gender confusion? 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

The Lord knows the plans He has for you, “plans for welfare and not 

for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). Therefore, 

“present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, 

which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be 

transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the 

will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1–2). 



Answer Key 

Accept reasoned responses to all reflection questions. 


63

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