When you think of people I agree with, famed atheist and evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins is probably not the first person who comes to mind! And yet, I do agree with statements Dawkins made in a recent interview. But is it really so amazing that Ken Ham and Richard Dawkins agree on something? It’s not. But, first, what do we agree on?

“There Are Only Two Sexes”

A recent news headline stated, “Richard Dawkins declares there are only two sexes as matter of science: ‘That’s all there is to it.’” Well, I do agree with Richard Dawkins (although I would add that there aren’t two sexes, ultimately, “as a matter of science,” but rather, there are two sexes, ultimately, as a matter of the Word of our Creator, beginning in Genesis!).

Dawkins is right, there are only two human sexes—male and female. The article reports,

During a recent interview with British journalist Piers Morgan, famed atheist and biologist Richard Dawkins declared that “there are two sexes, and that’s all there is to it.”

He added that LGBTQ activists looking to discredit the reality of two biological sexes are pushing “utter nonsense.”

The article reported on Piers Morgan’s interview with Dawkins by stating,

Morgan was referring to a recent list of problematic words put out by the “EBB Language Project,” a collection of academics looking to police words that could potentially be found to be politically incorrect. The proposed list contains gendered words such as “male, female, man, woman, mother, father,” U.K. outlet The Telegraph reported.

Dawkins had commented on the project last month, telling the paper, “The only possible response is contemptuous ridicule. I shall continue to use every one of the prohibited words. I am a professional user of the English language. It is my native language.”

I actually admire Richard Dawkins’ courage in responding this way!

How Can an Atheist and a Christian Have Common Ground?

How could it be that Christian and biblical creationist like me could have any common ground with atheist evolutionist Richard Dawkins? Well, I actually have no doubt that Richard Dawkins and I also agree on a lot of other things too. And that shouldn’t be surprising if one has a correct understanding of science.

You see, just because someone is an atheist and evolutionist doesn’t mean they can’t do some good science when it comes to observational science. When I debated Bill Nye “The Science Guy” on February 4, 2014, the first thing I did at the beginning of the debate was define terms. I explained that the word “science” means knowledge. I helped people understand there’s a big difference between observational science—where we use our five senses in the present to do repeatable experiments and develop technology—and historical science—which concerns knowledge/beliefs about the past (origins, for instance). Such beliefs can’t be investigated directly using our five senses, and, of course, we can’t repeat the past. So, while observational science (technology, medicine, etc.) is directly testable, observable, and repeatable, historical science is not directly testable, observable, or repeatable.

Richard Dawkins and I will actually agree on a lot of things involving observational science. That shouldn’t be a shock to anyone. But when we discuss historical science, that’s where we can vehemently disagree.

So What’s the Science of Male and Female?

Now, concerning the sexes (or genders—sex and gender are the same thing!), observational science shows that the information to build a human being is contained in 23 pairs of chromosomes made from that molecule of hereditary DNA. One of these pairs of chromosomes are called sex chromosomes, and each human has a pair. Males have an XY pair, and females have an XX pair.

Now, in our fallen world, there can be some so-called “exceptions” (such as XXX or XXY), but they’re a fraction of a percent. And people with these genetic abnormalities have various problems because the created order is XX and XY. Christians understand such “exceptions” are because we live in a fallen world, and so there can be mutations, copying mistakes, etc.

As I mentioned at the beginning, Christians not only believe in observational science, but we know God’s Word in Genesis is true. Genesis 1:27 states God created humans “male and female.” Taking God at his Word, we declare there are only two genders of humans: male and female. The observational science Richard Dawkins and I agree on confirms this fact—there are only two genders of humans: males with a pair of XY chromosomes and females with a pair of XX chromosomes.

The Bible and observational science agree. That’s why Richard Dawkins and I can agree. However, we can vehemently disagree on historical science—the origins issue—because we have very different starting points for viewing the past: man’s word (Dawkins’ starting point) vs. God’s Word (my starting point).

Genesis 1:27 KJV – “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”

HD Editor’s Note:

Franklin Graham similarly commended the comments of Dawkins’ and encouraged Christians to Pray that his “eyes will be opened to the truth of the Gospel“:

I usually don’t take sides with an atheist—but on this issue, I agree 100%. Richard Dawkins said the push by LGBTQ activists to discredit the reality of two biological sexes is “utter nonsense.” They’re even trying to “de-gender” our language. Richard told Piers Morgan Uncensored, “there are two sexes, and that’s all there is to it.” They also talked about how our woke culture is bullying people who are bold enough to stand with the scientific fact of two sexes. Of course, science reflects what the Bible clearly says, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:27). Period. That’s it. I appreciate him taking a stand for this truth, and I hope you will join me in praying that like the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus, Richard Dawkins’ eyes will be opened to the truth of the Gospel and God’s love for him.