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 Is femininity and masculinity culturally determined, or is there an essential difference? If there is an essential difference, then there is an intention behind it; an intention that stemmed from natural selection or the intention a Creator had in mind. Denying essential differences is denying that man was created with a purpose. In both cases—natural selection or what the Creator intended—denial leads to a nihilism in which man can do whatever he deems right.

Those who deny essential differences, as is the case in gender studies, rightly point to culturally created stereotypes passed down during upbringing. This has harmful consequences for women, particularly in Islamic culture, but women were also relegated to a subordinate role in the West for a long time.

We must distinguish between biological, physical identity (according to gender studies, there are also biological, physical differences between men and women) and social, aesthetic, and political identity. Certain behaviors are feminized and others masculinized. These are culturally imposed stereotypes and roles. The biological becomes secondary and can be manipulated (with hormones or surgical interventions). The physical no longer has any connection to the way of being. The individual ego is purely immaterial. Man forms his own identity, separate from his body. We can compare this to the virtual reality in which contemporary man lives; this is a reality where truth and falsehood are barely, if at all, distinguishable. Man creates his own reality, determines for himself what is truth, even when he knows emphatically that he is lying and spreading fake news. Soon, this manipulation will be taken over by AI, and man will be reduced to a slave. We see the signs of this in the addiction to smartphones and social media. Most people are chained up for hours every day in a virtual, manipulated reality. That time is lost for their commitment to their loved ones or, to use grand words, for good works and charity.

Man is not his own origin. Denying that our body partly determines our identity is denying an essential part of man. Genre theory therefore contributes to the destruction of the human. The human element exists precisely in the dialectic between the masculine and the feminine. We do not get to choose our gender, but we must give meaning to what has been given to us.

Gender theory is a symptom of a more general tendency to determine meaning and truth as human beings ourselves, and to reject the idea or belief of a truth that has always existed and, according to religions, is revealed to people by a Higher Being. In light of what people perceive as current truth and as meaningful, the past is rejected, our history and culture are cancelled, and we believe we are allowed to manipulate the world—with its nature, landscapes, fauna, and flora—to conform to the goals we have formulated. The terrible mega-farms, deforestation, and the dramatic extinction of animal and plant species, all for the sake of human greed, are sad proof of the hell to which nihilism can lead. We are smoking ourselves out, and we notice this every time extreme heat and hurricanes overwhelm us.

How can we break this negative spiral? It is about rediscovering the good in the past, in nature, in the biological given, for we must build upon that. Thus, no cancel culture, no destruction of the world with its fauna and flora, and no denial of gender differences. Instead, cherishing our history and the legacy of our ancestors, protecting nature and restoring landscapes, and finding meaning through a harmonious union of the feminine and the masculine, thereby ensuring the survival of humanity.

Gender studies liberates us from stereotypes but descends into a destructive nihilism whereby reproduction and the transmission of values ​​are no longer seen as goals that women and men must realize together, each with their biologically determined role. Ultimately, this denial of the distinct and specific roles of men and women leads to the extinction of humanity.

We can conclude that gender studies is a symptom of a sick civilization that threatens to lose its vocation. This tragedy is a consequence of declaring God dead, and thereby of what He expects of us. Our unsurpassed European civilization has emerged from what is called Revelation; think, for example, of the Ten Commandments. Man is called to be perfect and to continue the work of creation by procreating. I would like to conclude here with a brief and concrete proposal. If we choose a frugal lifestyle in a region that is as self-sufficient as possible, then an 18-hour work week is possible and the parents can raise their children themselves together. That seems to me the best answer to any ideology that, like gender studies, is a threat to humanity.

Reference: Sadin, R. & Mercier, A. (2026). Face au chaos du monde. Paris: Les Éditions du Cerf.

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