Toolkit: Compassion is Justice: Standing in Solidarity with Transgender Nonbinary Youth and Adults
Rev. Dr. Bob Shore-Goss
I want to start with a scriptural verse Mt. 25: 40 “Whatever you do the least of my family, you do it to me.” Here Jesus brings a notion of the least, those marginalized and scapegoated, he is the persons or groups targeted for exclusion and violence. What I love about Jesus is that he consistently teaches us that compassion is justice. When we stand in solidarity with those who are marginalized we stand Jesus the Christ.
I want to call us as a Conference to stand with transgendered folks as they are scapegoated in a phenomenon called by sociologists “panics.” I was introduced to the notion of sex panics in the 20th century by gay historian Allan Berube. Berube describes sex panic as “a moral crusade that leads to crackdown on sexual outsiders.” I experienced the sex panics of the Moral Majority and other Christians who targeted and scapegoated gay and stigmatized them as “diseased,” “degenerate,” and “dangerous” Cardinal Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, labelled us as “intrinsically evil, objectively disordered.” There are so many horror stories of violence and exclusion during that period. Violent rhetoric leads us to increased violence and hated crimes.
There are increased violence and xenophobic targets: Jews, Asians, asylum seekers, people of color, and LGBTQI+ folks. We are in another sex panic that has been widened to include gender variance panic. Such moral panics play upon irrational feelings of fear that some person or group of persons, whose values, skin color, or lifestyles threatens the well-being and safety of society.
The UCC, in various conferences including Florida, have passed resolutions in support of trans and non-binary folks. The General Synod will consider a resolution to affirm the dignity of transgender and non-binary dignity amid legislative attacks. https://www.ucc.org/synod-is-asked-to-affirm-commitment-to-transgender-nonbinary-dignity-amid-legislative-attacks/
I want to propose some resources for congregations and actions in compassion solidarity with trans and non-binary youth and people”
Biblical Support for Preaching:
There are three passages we might want to reflect upon: Isaiah 56: 1-5, Mt. 19:12, and Acts 8:26-40. Take a look at the Queer Bible Commentary for further reference; Justin Sabia Tanis, Trans-Gender: Theology, Ministry, and Communities of Faith, and Sean D. Burke, Queering the Ethiopian Eunuch, and Halvor Moxnes, Putting Jesus in Place: A Radical Vision of Household and Kingdom are good sources for preaching. Justin Sabia-Tanis and Sean Burke are seminary professors and contributors to the Queer Bible Commentary, and Melissa and Melissa-Harl Sellew & Joshua Reno write on Galatians from a transsexual perspective.in the QBC. I would add the work Trans/Formation co-edited by two colleagues and friends that I have worked with Lisa Isherwood and the late Marcella Althaus-Reid. The essay give insight into the deep and profound spiritual lives amidst struggle against religious and cultural prejudices. There are many more books by trans Christian authors.
Eunuchs are gender variant or proto-trans folks in the Bible. I want to address three passages briefly.
Isaiah 56:5 declares, “To the eunuch notes how eunuchs, who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons and daughters, I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.” This Isaian prophecy speaks of inclusion and the diversity of gender variant peoples.
The context for Jesus’ eunuch saying in Matthew 19:11-12 is a slur against Jesus. Jesus identifies with the third category of eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for God’s kin-dom. Jesus stands in solidarity with eunuchs, and I have personally met a number of eunuchs dedicated to Jesus’ kin-dom practice, and they are included in our congregations as lay and ordained members.
Let me now focus on the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8: 26-ff. The Ethiopian eunuch embodies intersectionality as a man, African, non-Jew God fearer, and a eunuch in the court of the Queen of Ethiopia, and he is the first non-Jewish convert to the Jesus movement. Eunuchs have been proto-transgendered individuals in the ancient world and even in the modern world as Hijras, religious eunuchs in Hinduism. The eunuch was not religiously acceptable in the ancient world as transgendered folks are not acceptable to many conservative Christians today. The post Easter Jesus movement reflected Jesus’ radical inclusive practices of inviting outsiders and marginalized into his table fellowship. If God in the Isaiah scripture, Jesus in the eunuch statement in Matthew, and Luke in Acts on the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch is welcome into the body of Christ, then we can stand in solidarity.
UCC Response
I am proud of the UCC response: From the UCC website: The Rev. Paul Eknes-Tucker, pastor of Pilgrim Church UCC in Birmingham, Ala., joined a group of parents and medical providers in the state to file a lawsuit against it, and a judge blocked its enforcement while the case proceeds. In Alabama, Texas, Florida, there are may legislative attacks on trans children and youth and their families.
What can our churches do? Here are some of my suggestions as well UCC churches, Conferences, and eh denomination.
- If you are not ONA, become ONA. Take the time to learn about LGLBTQ+ issues. Not going through says a lot about not caring enough to learn about us. The ONA has a process, and my husband Joe is a UCC clergy and recognized ONA trainer. He had 1600 clinical hours at LA Children’s Hospital, 400 hours as chaplain in the Transgendered Children’s Cinic. For his second MA in Pastoral Chaplaincy, his MA thesis is “Pastoral Care of Transgendered Youth.” I was the first pastoral writing on transgendered youth. An abbreviated version is included in Queering Christianity: Finding a Place at the Table LGBTQI Chrsitians. We were co-pastors of MCC United Church of Christ, North Hollywood, CA and worked with a number of trans women and men. Rev, Megan Moore a transgendered woman UCC clergy wrote a chapter on “The Transgendered Christ.”
- Educate yourself. Read Justin Sabia -Tanis book Trans-Gender: Justin is a trans gay male, a UCC clergy, and seminary professor at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. He has a number of talks and worship service on youtube. One talk. One is “When did we see you Lord,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNrzY5aVCaI&t=106s Justin has spoken to the North Hollywood Church that I and my husband co-pastored. I supervised his D. Ministry thesis that became the book Trans-Gendered: Theology, Ministry, and Communities of Faith, originally published by our own Pilgrim Press.
- In addition, watch Call Me Malcolm. It is on the UCC youtube channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh4Pv10lFyc Malcom is an ordained UCC trans male clergy. I have shown it at churches and in the classroom for university students. It is quite good.
- Network and find a trans local network. Invite a speaker to come share their biographical journey. Each semester, I invited a transgender person into my university class to speak about their journey and answer questions bout their journey. This had impact upon the students. Real people make the issue real for the congregation.
- Include as part of your worship Trans Day of Remembrance, November 20th. The recitation of names of trans folks murdered that year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh4Pv10lFyc
Action Items of UCC ONA on the Day of Trans Remembrance
Further UCC resources
Prayer for Transgender Day of Remembrance
– A Pastoral Letter and Prayer for Transgender Day of Remembrance
If you wish to name in your prayers the transgender victims of murder in the U.S. and worldwide, the current list is in the resources posted at Remembering Our Dead and the Trans Murder Monitoring (TMM) project.
- UCC Resources for Transgender- Non-Binary Resources https://www.ucc.org/what-we-do/justice-local-church-ministries/justice/health-and-wholeness-advocacy-ministries/lgbt/trans/
Transgender Non-Binary Bill of Rights, https://www.ucc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Transgender-Talking-Points-for-Faith-Leaders.pdf
These talking points are for use in general conversation, panel presentations, interviews, church legislative bodies, and other settings of engagement on the issues. Anti-trans political forces are trying to criminalize families and doctors as they work to address the trauma of being assigned a gender at birth that is incongruous with the child’s or adult’s actual gender identity. Children are being targeted by banning them from sports teams that match their gender. These attacks not only impact trans and nonbinary children and youth, but adults and seniors, as well, and are drivers of crimes against trans and nonbinary people that continue to escalate. These actions threaten the safety and well-being of the whole community. Please notice the talking Points are useful conversion and advocacy.
- Join advocacy group or form advocacy group in the Florida Conference, We need to oppose vulnerable trans children/youth. They are being denied medical service, and the suicide rate of trans you four times that of LGB youth. Florida Transgender Resources Check for local resources and networking. These include social and legal resources. https://www.transgendermap.com/resources/usa/florida/
- Be bold. Hang the modern rainbow flag outside on the church that includes trans colors. It makes a statement that you are in solidarity with trans and non-binary persons Your churches need to be places of solidarity and welcoming.
Don’t hesitate to contact me or Joe if you have questions or are in need of further resources
Rev. Dr. Bob Shore-Goss. revdrbobshoregoss@gmail.com
Rev. Dr. Joe Shore-Goss, revjshoregoss@gmail.com
Listen to the stories and start conversations: Let me end with a paraphrase of Gregory of Nyssa by womanist theologian M. Shawn Copeland. .
If my sister or brother is not at the table, we are not the flesh of Christ. If my sister’s mark of sexuality must be obscured, If my brother’s mark of race must be disguised if my sister’s mark of culture must be repressed. Then we are not the flesh of Christ. It is through and in Christ’s own flesh that the “other” is my sister.is my brother, indeed, the other is me… The establishment of the Church is re-creation of the world. But it is only in union of all particular members that the beauty of Christ’s body is complete. M. Copeland, Enfleshing Freedom, 82)
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