Talarico Dismisses Past 'Provocative' Comments on God and Gender

Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico addressed past controversial statements, including calling God "nonbinary" and citing the Bible to support abortion rights, during a Wednesday night CNN town hall. Facing a Christian voter who questioned the authenticity of his faith due to these remarks, Talarico described his past comments as "provocative."

Sarah Gardner, a small business owner, directly asked Talarico if he believed the Bible to be the "absolute source of truth and God's final authoritative word, even when our culture says otherwise." Talarico affirmed his belief, stating that "even the early church, the disciples who actually knew Jesus of Nazareth, the early church, we often talk about as a singular body when, in reality, was more like early churches because there was a lot of disagreement, there was a lot of debate."

Talarico sought to clarify his previous statements, acknowledging that they had been used in attack ads across the state. He explained that his comment about God not being defined by gender was intended to be provocative but argued that the theological concept of not defining God by human categories is not controversial. He drew parallels to similar sentiments expressed by Charlie Kirk and the late Pope Benedict.

"I want to admit that and come clean about that," Talarico said, referring to the provocative nature of his remarks. "But I think what I was saying is actually not controversial theologically."

Previously, Talarico had stated, "God is both masculine and feminine, and everything in between. God is nonbinary. In Genesis 1:26, God speaks of God's self in the plural, saying, 'Let us make man in our image.'" He also dismissed the idea that the Bible takes a definitive stance on abortion, stating during a 2025 appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience that "the idea that there is a set Christian orthodoxy on the issue of abortion is just not rooted in Scripture."