Transgender Seven Year Old

Transgender Seven Year Old by Ryan Denison

A court in Dallas, Texas, ruled earlier this week that the mother of seven-year-old James Younger could have full custody over him and his twin brother. Such an outcome would not normally be worthy of news as, sadly, divorce cases with similar results happen quite frequently.

What makes this case stand out is that James’ father, Jeffrey Younger, brought the lawsuit against his ex-wife, Anne Georgulas, because the latter believes her son is gender dysphoric and is taking steps toward affirming him as a girl named Luna.

The trial featured expert witnesses from both sides that argued for opposite approaches. Jeffrey Younger claims that James only wants to be a girl around his mother and that she has been pushing him toward living as a girl since he showed interest in the movie Frozen as a three-year-old and asked for the girl’s toy at McDonald’s. He says that when James is with him, the child is happy dressing and playing as a boy and shows no signs of wanting to be a girl.

Georgulas and her team argue the opposite. They say that James is happiest as a girl and chooses to go by the identity associated with Luna while with her. They contend that he only pretends to like being a boy while he is with his father in order to make him happy.

Ultimately, the most rational explanation is that James is a confused seven-year-old who, like so many children in a divorce, likely wants to find a way to please both parents. The craziest part of this story is the idea that any child that young can actually have a sufficiently sophisticated understanding of gender and the implications of living a transgender lifestyle in order to make a definitive decision.

News broke early on Thursday that the office of Texas Governor Greg Abbott would look into the case, along with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, to see if the court’s decision will hold up.

Then, late yesterday, the judge ruled that the parents would “remain in joint managing conservatorship and both have a say in [their son’s] medical treatment,” including any aspects of a “medical transition.”

The Cure for Discouragement

This story has been in the news all week and, honestly, I’ve avoided writing on it because I just wasn’t sure what else I could add. Our ministry has written extensively on the biblical and biological factors relevant to this debate, and nothing has changed regarding how the Lord sees it. Scripture is clear: gender is instituted by God and not subject to human change. But we should also have compassion and love for those who are genuinely struggling with this issue.

As I thought and prayed about the topic, though, God laid this fact on my heart: sometimes what we need most is a reminder that, no matter how hopeless the current trajectory of our culture may seem, all is not lost. After all, the best way to combat discouragement over our present circumstances is to remember that we serve a God who transcends them.