Last week, an Australian Federal Court delivered a landmark (and disappointing) ruling that should concern anyone who believes objective truth matters in law and society.
The court found that a women-only social media app and its founder, Sall Grover, unlawfully discriminated against Roxanne Tickle after he, a transgender woman, was denied access to the platform. The ruling affirmed that, under Australian law, “sex” is not fixed in biological reality but can be redefined through legal recognition. Ms Grover was not only found guilty of direct discrimination but also had to pay damages totalling AUD $20,000.
This decision is more than a legal technicality—it reflects a deeper cultural shift.
It signals a move away from fundamental, objective truths toward a new sacred cow: a framework in which identity is self-defined and legally enforced. By redefining sex to accommodate gender identity, the court has elevated subjective feelings above objective truth. It places long-standing sex-based rights, especially those designed to protect women, on increasingly uncertain ground.
Spaces created for women, whether in sport, refuges, prisons, or private services, exist for good reason. They are grounded in the recognition that biological differences matter, particularly when it comes to safety, fairness, and dignity.
Yet rulings like this suggest that these foundations are being weakened.
As Genesis 1:27 tells us, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female He created them.” Male and female are not fluid social constructs or personal preferences; they are part of God’s intentional, binary design for human flourishing, marriage, family, and society. When the law begins to separate itself from this reality, confusion ensues, not only in policy but also in culture, identity, and the lives of future generations.
New Zealand is not immune.
We already permit legal sex-at-birth to be changed through self-identification. The Law Commission has also recommended expanding legal protections for gender identity, thereby further embedding this gender identity framework in our legal system.
Without clear boundaries and legal safeguards, it is easy to envisage situations similar to the Giggle vs Tickle case arising here, where individuals or organisations seeking to uphold biological definitions of sex could face legal challenges.
This underscores the significance of the Legislation (Definitions of Woman and Man) Amendment Bill.
Roger Scruton wrote, “The first step towards moral clarity is to see things as they are.” This Bill aims to implement that principle through law by defining “woman” as an adult biological female and “man” as an adult biological male. Although straightforward, such definitions carry substantial legal weight. They provide a firmer foundation for protecting women’s spaces, ensuring fairness in sports, and safeguarding privacy and dignity in contexts where biological sex is pertinent.
Fundamentally, this bill is not about hostility or exclusion but about truth, clarity, and the protection of the vulnerable.
A society that loses its capacity to define reality does not become more compassionate or kinder. It becomes more chaotic, more litigious, and less just. Children are medicalised with hormones and surgeries that are permanent changes to their bodies that they later regret. Women lose privacy and safety. Fathers and mothers lose the ability to protect their sons and daughters from ideological capture in schools. Truth itself is placed on trial.
New Zealand now stands at a crossroads. Will we follow a path of ambiguity, where rights increasingly collide and courts are compelled to redraw boundaries? Or will we establish clear, principled definitions that uphold both truth and fairness?
G.K. Chesterton stated, “Don’t ever take a fence down until you know the reason it was put up.” Today, those protective boundaries are being dismantled. The safeguards long in place to protect women’s spaces, sports, and safety are being compromised, often without the courage or clarity from our politicians and policymakers to defend them.
The Members’ Bill is scheduled for debate in parliament on Wednesday, 20 May—a moment that could determine the future handling of these issues within New Zealand law.
This is a crucial moment.
Silence in the face of evil is complicity. Indecision is a choice with consequences. The future shape of our laws and the safety of women and girls depend on whether we will courageously stand for truth. Will you stand up for your daughters, sisters, mothers, and grandmothers? Will you defend the biblical and biological reality that male and female are fearfully and wonderfully made, not interchangeable? Now is the time to speak and to act.
Here is how you can speak up about the bill:
- Contact your local Member of Parliament—via email or phone. Here’s the list of current members of parliament.
- Express your views regarding the Legislation (Definitions of Woman and Man) Amendment Bill.
- Highlight the importance of safeguarding women’s and girls’ rights, ensuring fairness in sport, protecting privacy, and maintaining legal clarity concerning biological sex.
More importantly, pray for courage among parliamentarians, for truth to prevail over ideology, and for the Holy Spirit to convict our nation of the lies it has embraced.
