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The new President’s executive orders recognizing that biological sex is fundamental, immutable, and binary and that people should be hired according to their merit are not just common sense but also reflect biblical values.
Among President Donald Trump’s numerous Day One executive orders were several actions that will go a long way towards dismantling woke policies in the federal government.
The first order, titled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” undoes the prior administration’s embrace of the radical belief that there are multiple genders and that if someone identifies as a different gender, the federal government must affirm and accommodate it.
Instead, the new EO states: “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female. These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
The term “sex” is defined as “an individual’s immutable biological classification as either male or female” and does not include the concept of “gender identity.”
The application of the order will be under the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the current nominee. The policy will include the use of the term “sex” and not “gender” in federal policies and documents in an abrupt turn from the Biden administration’s use of self-identifying pronouns.
Second, the order will be applied to “government-issued identification documents, including passports, visas, and Global Entry cards,” with the document requiring the identity of the holder’s sex as male or female at birth. The policy will end Americans’ ability to change their sex on federal documents in the future.
Third, the Trump-signed executive action mandates that “intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are designated by sex and not identity.” In other words, federal agencies, federally run facilities, and or federally funded schools and universities must bar biological men and boys from women’s and girl’s spaces (and vice versa), including bathrooms, locker rooms, dormitories, and prisons.
Conservatives hailed the move as a common-sense return to normalcy. As Jay Richards, director of Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Life, Religion, and Family at The Heritage Foundation, wrote,
“Given this basic truth, the madness of gender ideology collapses. This executive order seeks to expunge the federal promotion of gender ideology that Biden called for on his first day in office. It protects private spaces, including federal prisons, for women. And it calls for an end to federal funding of gender ‘transition’ procedures for federal prison inmates.”
Two key issues remain unclear or unaddressed in the executive order: whether or not biological boys and men can compete in girls and women’s sports and the legality of so-called “gender-affirming care” for minors, which is currently being addressed at the state level.
A second Trump order signed on Monday eliminates all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs and initiatives from the federal government. It reads:
“Yet today, roughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, critical and influential institutions of American society, including the Federal Government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, large commercial airlines, law enforcement agencies, and institutions of higher education have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation.”
The order also revokes a 1965 executive order put in place by President Lyndon Johnson that mandated affirmative action programs for federal contractors and schools and universities receiving federal funds. A related separate order specifically restores merit-based hiring at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), ending DEI recruiting and hiring practices implemented during the Biden administration.
The reaction within government agencies was swift, with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) notifying agency heads to close all DEI offices within two days and placing workers in the roles on paid leave.
Trump’s elimination of DEI is also likely to impact the nation’s Armed Forces. Under the Biden administration, DEI and other woke policies had been incorporated into not just the Department of Defense (DoD) bureaucracy but also the military services, which, according to conservative critics and military experts, has weakened force readiness and left a significantly negative effect on the morale of servicemembers and recruiting goals.
By the end of the week, newly confirmed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, in a handwritten directive, declared that there would be no more DEI at the DoD, that everyone would comply and there would be “no exceptions.”
Yesterday, President Trump followed up that directive by signing additional orders that specifically address the elimination of DEI and gender ideology in the military.
Trump’s orders are not a panacea for the woke revolution in government. One weakness with both the EO regarding gender and related DEI efforts is that a future president could rescind the orders with his own EOs. To block the possibility of future reversals, the Trump administration and conservatives will need to work with Congress to try to pass legislation that make the new policies permanent.
A second weakness is that Trump’s gender-related order will likely be challenged in the courts (as has already happened with some of his other EOs, most notably one that eliminates birthright citizenship for illegal aliens). Currently, the constitutional questions surrounding transgenderism, notably the use of compelled pronouns and allowing biological men in women’s spaces, are slowly working their way through the court system, the result of which has been a lot of split decisions but no definitive ruling.
The DEI EO, by contrast, is on much more sure judicial footing, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in the case of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard striking down the use of affirmative action in university admissions.
Although the orders eliminating radical woke policies only apply to federal agencies and institutions receiving federal funds, they are already having a tremendous impact on the rest of the culture, including within major corporations and state governments.
To understand how far and wide-ranging an impact a presidential administration’s belief system can have on society, one need only look at how the Biden administration’s encouragement of radical gender ideology, DEI, and abortion spilled out into the rest of the culture.
The Trump orders are righteous actions. For starters, the Judeo-Christian worldview affirms two biological sexes, male and female, based on God’s created order in Genesis: “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27, NIV).
The biblical worldview also affirms God’s creation as “good,” with no need to pursue gender change (Genesis 1:31). A biblical view of gender emphasizes the equal value and dignity of both men and women in God’s eyes, while also acknowledging distinct roles and functions.
Moreover, regarding DEI, throughout Scripture God demonstrates that He does not show favoritism based on sex or race or skin color, but rather calls all people to live in accordance with His will. Galatians 3:28 affirms this truth, stating, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
By emphasizing external differences, DEI programs create division rather than foster true unity, contradicting the biblical model of a diverse yet harmonious body of believers (1 Corinthians 12:12–27). The Bible upholds justice, mercy, and individual dignity, offering a framework for diversity and inclusion that rises above superficial classifications and ideological mandates, centering instead on true unity in Christ.
As Christians, we are to show compassion and mercy to all people, but not at the expense of truth, fairness, or the best interests of the individual and society. Our response to those upset about the new non-woke federal policy is to be loving but to tell the truth about the benefits of embracing God’s created order, while also encouraging them to work hard, exercise their gifts and talents, and develop their character so in whatever way they succeed in life, they can proudly know that they made it on their own merits.
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