Why should the Church be concerned about transgendered persons? On the one hand, the Church should be concerned about this because there are numerous transgendered people both inside and outside of the membership of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Some estimates suggest that there may be as many as 2,000 transgendered Presbyterians. These individuals are found in every aspect of Presbyterian life, including leadership. In fact, there are currently at least two transgendered ministers who have made their transgendered identities known to the church.
On the other hand, concern about transgendered persons need be no greater or less than for any other child of God. Transgendered Presbyterians have the same need to serve and be served as any other member of the PCUSA. Transgendered persons in the general population are no less worthy of the loving outreach of this portion of Christ's church than anyone else in society. The moral and ethical issue here is how the church ministers to its own and to others, not whether being transgendered is "right" or "wrong."
Who are transgendered people?
Time Out! What is gender identity, anyway? According to Gender Dysphoria, a Guide to Research (Denny, 1994), "Gender identity is the sense of knowing to which sex one belongs; that is, the awareness that 'I am male,' or 'I am female.' Gender identity is the private experience of gender role, and gender role is the public expression of gender identity. Gender role can be defined as everything that one says and does to indicate to others or to oneself the degree to which one is male or female."
On the one hand, transgendered people are a particular group of individuals who experience extraordinary feelings of inappropriateness about the sex assigned at birth, and the gender identity and role that accompanies that assignment. This is sometimes referred to as gender dysphoria, a condition of profound dissatisfaction about one's gender identity and role. On the other hand, being transgendered is a common experience among men and women in that all of us, from time to time, experience gender discomfort. A young woman who feels uncomfortable about the shape of her body is experiencing this kind of discomfort. A middle aged man who is sensitive about the size of his penis feels similar discomfort. So, what is the difference between these two views? It is that those who are labeled transgendered experience these otherwise common feelings more intensely, whether this occurs on a daily basis or only occasionally.
What is "transgender?" On the one hand transgender is an inclusive term that encompasses a variety of alternate gender expressions and lifestyles. This can include an individual who simply feels uncomfortable about her gender. It can also include a man who finds a real sense of well being by occasionally dressing and behaving as a woman. It also includes some who feel a profound inappropriateness about their anatomical sex and its related gender role. These individuals desire to seek medical treatment to effect permanent bodily changes (transsexuals). There are even those who desire the consistent appearance and role of one gender while wanting the genital anatomy of the other gender. These people are often called transgenderists. This term should not to be confused with the more general term, transgender, which includes all of the above and more. On the other hand transgender is a meaningless term, only given meaning by the rigid bipolar ways in which our culture defines sex and gender roles. Again, we are all transgendered because we all cross these rigidly defined boundaries (e.g., womanless weddings, wives wearing their husband's shirts, men assuming the role of homemaker or nurse, etc.). Hopefully, one day we will not need such a term as transgender because we will all be able to express our identities freely.
What do the Bible and church tradition say about transgender? On the one hand, these sources of authority say absolutely nothing about transgender. Like many other issues born of the technological advances of our time (e.g., organ transplants, nuclear technology, and genetic engineering) it is a phenomenon unknown to Biblical times and most of church history. Some biblical passages that may seem appropriate are, in fact, irrelevant when studied carefully relative to contemporary understandings of gender and human sexuality. On the other hand, most of Biblical theology is directed to the relationships between people and their Creator, people and other people, and between a person and her/his own self. This begs inquiries into the nature and destiny of humankind in the grace of God as we journey into the future, e.g., "In Jesus Christ you are all children of God through faith ... there is no longer male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:26f). The Constitution of our own denomination also states unambiguously, "The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) shall give full expression to the rich diversity within its membership and shall provide means which will assure a greater inclusiveness leading to wholeness in its emerging life" (G-4.0403). "Each member must seek the grace of openness in extending the fellowship of Christ to all persons. Failure to do so constitutes a rejection of Christ himself and causes a scandal to the gospel" (G-5.0103).
Aren't the transgendered simply homosexual? On the one hand this is a complex question because transgendered people can, like anyone else, experience their sexual orientation in any direction. Gender identity is distinct from and more basic than sexual orientation. One's sense of being male or female necessarily precedes one's affectional attractions. Moreover, as it concerns all humankind, there is absolutely nothing simple about being sexual. There are, indeed, some transgendered people who are homosexual. There are also many who are heterosexual, bisexual, and asexual (some might say celibate). Some transgendered people are even attracted to other transgendered people, and that classification hasn't even been named. On the other hand, the transgender phenomenon renders these categories moot. If I am a male-to-female transsexual (post operative, legally "female"), does my attraction to women mean that I am heterosexual or homosexual? Or, if I fall in love with a male person and marry him legally, am I homosexual or heterosexual? The simplistic distinctions we make between male and female sexual expression begin to crumble within the transgender phenomenon.
Transgender, therefore, raises an inescapable question, "What does it mean, in our time, both within the church and the world, to be a man and a woman?"
The Reverend Erin Swenson, M.Div., Th.M., Ph.D., is a marriage and family therapist and a member of The Presbytery of Greater Atlanta.
Both are post operative transsexuals and active within the transgender community.