Preparing to serve 35 years in military prison for leaking government files to WikiLeaks, Pfc. Bradley Manning is now declaring, “I am a female,” and wants to live out the rest of his life as a woman.
Manning penned a letter to his supporters, posted on the Today show’s website, titled, “The Next Stage of My Life.” In it, he wrote, “As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me. I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female.”
The 25-year-old Manning signed the letter “Chelsea E. Manning” and explained, “Given the way that I feel, and have felt since childhood, I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible. I hope that you will support me in this transition. I also request that, starting today, you refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun (except in official mail to the confinement facility). I look forward to receiving letters from supporters and having the opportunity to write back.”
I am grieved for Manning, who clearly has struggled with gender identity issues most of his life. In the days ahead, we’re likely to hear more confessions of his heartbreaking personal struggle—and the radical lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) activists are certain to exploit his pain for its gender-bending profit.
After all, this is a golden opportunity.
The mass media attention Manning is receiving is far more influential than TV shows like My Transsexual Summer, which parade transgendered characters as courageous protagonists deserving comfort and confirmation as they move to change what God created. Manning may even outdo Jenna Talackova, a transgender beauty queen who battled Donald Trump for the right to vie in the Miss Universe Canada pageant. E! Canada will soon air a reality series about her life called Brave New Girl.
If you haven’t yet noticed that the transgender agenda is rushing into mainstream society, it won’t be long until it hits home for you. California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill earlier this month that allows transgender students to “pick the restrooms they want to use, and the sports teams they want to play on, based on their gender identity.” At the same time, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed an anti-Christian law that bans professional counselors “from attempting to change a minor’s sexual orientation.”
Church, we’re clearly heading in the wrong direction here. Where are the laws that protect kids from gender-bending cartoons like SheZow, featuring a 12-year-old boy named Guy “who uses a magic ring to transform himself into a crime-fighting girl”? What about laws that protect a parent’s right to seek counseling for a kid who is struggling with unwanted same-sex attractions? What about laws to prevent drag queens from coming on campus and reading children’s books to our kids in an effort to give the nod to these sorts of lifestyles?
The church isn’t only asleep; the church is snoring and drooling on its pillow while claiming prophetic dreams of prosperity. Meanwhile, radical LGBT activists have ambassadors forwarding an agenda that’s leading people astray. Church, we are supposed to be ambassadors for Christ (2 Cor. 5:20). We are supposed to be salt and light (Matt. 5:13-16). We are supposed to be a city set upon a hill. The alarm is being sounded, but overly comfortable Christians are hitting the snooze button because they stayed up too late last night watching TV or just don’t see the big picture.
Listen, I’m not trying to insult you—I’m trying to provoke somebody to righteousness! America is becoming more and more like Sodom and Gomorrah every day. That means people are dying in their sin apart from the Lover of their soul who could give them eternal peace.
Ultimately, it’s not about us or what makes us uncomfortable to see on a billboard or in a bathroom. It’s about preaching the gospel whether it carries a popular message or not. The real gospel, not the watered-down, hyped-up, seeker-friendly gospel. If we preached what the apostles preached in the book of Acts, we’d get what the apostles got. We’re witnessing a prophetic turning point in America, and we will be held accountable. Please, church, let’s do what Jesus called us to do.
Jennifer LeClaire is news editor at Charisma. She is also the author of several books, including The Spiritual Warrior’s Guide to Defeating Jezebel. You can email Jennifer at [email protected] or visit her website here. You can also join Jennifer on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.
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