Joe Rogan, Kid Rock and Bill Maher can't lead the moral and cultural revolution

By Michael Brown, Op-ed Contributor Saturday, September 07, 2024

I appreciate the many secular, even atheistic and non-Christian voices that have pushed back against radical trans-activism. They spoke loudly and clearly and boldly and fearlessly. Good for them! But if America is to be changed in a lasting, positive way, we cannot only push back against what is wrong. We must also present what is right, namely, that human beings are created in the image of God, thereby endowed with morality and purpose and significance, and that He created us male and female. That’s why those of us with a biblically based faith must lead the way.

To be sure, we will not fight this battle alone, and that’s why I’m appreciative of all those who have taken a stand against radical transgender activism, in some cases, at real personal cost. At the same time, we cannot fully align ourselves with trans-opposing atheists who mock the Bible or gay and lesbian activists who embrace same-sex “marriage” while rejecting the transgender grooming of children.

So, I do appreciate Prof. Richard Dawkins for signing a “declaration opposing gender reassignment surgeries and puberty blockers for children” and affirming that biological sex is binary. For these acts, he was stripped of his Humanist of the Year award and was subjected to headlines like this: “Richard Dawkins has abandoned science to justify his transphobia.” But in no way can I imagine forming a society-impacting coalition with one of the most aggressive and influential religion-bashing atheists of all time.

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Similarly, Bill Maher, another influential, religion-bashing atheist, has come under attack for his common-sense, anti-trans activism remarks, with the Queer Majority website noting that he is “part of a growing trend — a no longer exclusively right-wing backlash against the excesses of trans activism.” Here, too, I’m glad to have him calling out the emperor’s lack of clothes. But can we join in spirit with Maher’s totally non-spiritual approach?

I could list other voices here, including Kid Rock, who famously shot up cans of Bud Light in response to the ill-fated, ill-advised Dylan Mulvaney ad campaign. That helped launch a boycott that cost Anheuser Busch billions of dollars. But are we to embrace Kid Rock as an icon of morality and a partner in the Gospel?

Or how about the influential social media group Gays Against Groomers? I have often reposted their very forceful memes and comments exposing the dangers to children of radical trans-activism. At the same time, I do not believe we would be where we are as a society today if it were not for gay and lesbian activism in the past. As I wrote on May 23, 2023, you cannot separate the LGB from the T and the Q. (See also here.)

As for having limited solidarity with a group like Gays Against Groomers (despite my real appreciation for much of their work), I could hardly celebrate the news that one of the group’s founders, a lesbian, was going to “marry” her female partner.

The same can be said for my appreciation for the clear-headed, anti-trans-activist comments of people like Piers Morgan, J. K. Rowling, Martina Navratilova, and Joe Rogan.

I’m glad for their comments and stands, but I recognize that Morgan, for his part, has been well-known for challenging Christian conservatives on his programs (here’s where he challenged me); Rowling, herself straight, has been a longtime LGB ally; Navratilova, is an out and proud lesbian; and Rogan — well, suffice is to say that when you think of Joe Rogan, the first word that comes to your mind is not “Bible.”

Again, I appreciate their level-headedness on many trans-related issues and their voices are certainly influential and helpful. Some of them have also been quite courageous, like Rowling, who virtually took on the nation of Scotland and won.

But none of these people are starting with a biblical worldview, which is the only worldview that can sustain human thriving in the long run.

It is a worldview that recognizes that we are, by nature and design, different than the animal kingdom and uniquely capable of being image bearers of God. And it this is concept that underlies our Declaration of Independence, which memorably states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Denying God as our Creator and Designer ultimately makes us nothing more than the random products of an unguided, purposeless, evolutionary process. Some would even argue that, based on naturalistic evolutionary assumptions, free will itself is an illusion, as we are simply doing what is inevitable for us based on biological determinism. This is a counsel of despair.

Denying that He created us male and female, with men designed for women and women designed for men, opens the door to an endless alphabet of relational and gender variants (think LGBTQIP+++).

That’s why those of us who honor God and respect His Word must help lead the way in today’s cultural revolution, not by taking over and imposing our will but by living out our faith and demonstrating that God’s ways are best.

Surely, many in this hurting and confused generation will welcome this good news, especially when it comes with a note of mercy, redemption, and transforming love of the cross. This is something that others who are outside of Jesus cannot possibly offer.

Let us then, in His name, help lead the way.