Renewing Gender: An Orthodox Perspective

The explosion of transgender ideology in the last decade has left many Christians bewildered and at a loss as to how to respond. As the tenets of this movement become entrenched in Western society, an acute need arises for a pastoral response that is rooted in an Orthodox understanding of the human person to provide priests, parents, and other counselors with tools to address this phenomenon. Orthodox Christian scholar Dr Jean-Claude Larchet seeks to answer the claims of gender theory with a scriptural and patristic vision of man as God created him, for communion with Him. The author shows that Christianity proposes a transfiguration of gender that goes beyond the limits of both fallen human nature and vacillating social norms. Examining the history of gender theory and its mass promotion, Dr Larchet untangles the complex web of this ideology. He shows that Christianity has always upheld the equality of the sexes and promoted their harmonious union. It does so by advocating a mutual struggle against the passions, the true source of all conflicts between men and women, and the practice of virtues common to both. Such a life allows for a spiritual transcendence that nevertheless AUTHOR: Dr Jean-Claude Larchet is one of the most notable living theologians and authors on Orthodox Christian Patristics. He holds a Ph.D in philosophy from the University of Nancy and a Ph.D. in theology from the University of Strasbourg. A teacher of philosophy for nearly thirty-five years, he is an author of over thirty-five books and countless articles whose work has been translated into nineteen languages. His magnum opus, Therapy of Spiritual Illness, and several other works have been translated into English to wide acclaim. Prof. Andrew Torrance graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1968 and obtained a Ph.D. in 1971 from Imperial College, London. After work in France and England he joined the teaching staff at Trinity College, Dublin in 1980, where he became an Associate Professor, Head of Mechanical Engineering and Fellow of the College. In 2002 he was Visiting Professor at INSA de Lyon. Since his retirement in 2008 he has lived in France with his wife Marie-Christiane where he regularly translates from French to English for Orthodox Monasteries and engineering research.