Religion and transsexuality

[maggiegee]

Here are some articles that discuss transsexualism and Christianity:

Religion, spirituality, and transsexuality
http://www.tsroadmap.com/mental/spirit.html

God Don't Make No Junk
http://www.drbecky.com/junk.html

TRANSGENDERED CHRISTIANS, GAYS AND OUR COMMON BOND
by Robyn M.E. Shanor, PhD MDiv
http://www.whosoever.org/v2Issue2/shanor.html

Here are articles discussing Islam and transsexualism:

A fatwa for transsexuals
http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2005/07/28/iran_transsexuals/index.html

Sexuality, gender & Islam
http://www.safraproject.org/sgi-genderidentity.htm

Transsexuality In Iran
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transsexuality_in_Iran

A Muslim TS Group
http://groups.msn.com/TheSisterhood/transgenderinislam.msnw

[WillowQueen]

I'm a wiccan. It's pretty accepting, I've known quite a few TS's who were. But I'm sure that's coincidence...?

[maggiegee]

I'm a wiccan. It's pretty accepting, I've known quite a few TS's who were. But I'm sure that's coincidence...?

I have known a few Wiccan transwomen as well, they were cool
people.

[maggiegee]

A fatwa is a legal opinion or ruling issued by an Islamic scholar, judge
or mufti. It will be based upon the Qur'an, Sunnah and Islamic
Shari'ah. The Shari'ah is the revealed and the canonical laws
of the religion of Islam.

Fatwas allowing SRS have been issued in a number of Isamic countries,
including Iran, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, etc.

[kiwi.jayne]

Atheist myself.
That eliminates one worry!

[Ecstatic]

In this regard, Islam seems to be more progressive in some ways than most branches of Christianity, at least once a woman has SRS. The most progressive and accepting of all formal religious organizations regarding transgenders (and all GLBT's) is Unitarian-Universalist:

The living tradition of Universalism extends love and acceptance to all people, and Unitarianism recognizes the inherent good of all persons. At a time when some faith traditions are expressing deep ambivalence about whether to truly welcome bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons and others continue to express open hostility toward anyone who is of a minority in sexual orientation or gender identity, Unitarian Universalism is deepening its long-standing commitment to the full inclusion and affirmation of all persons-without regard to sexual orientation or gender identity.

In June of 1970, the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association passed its first General Resolution supporting the bisexual, gay, and lesbian communities in their struggle for equal rights and acceptance.

Since then, in the face of the widespread homophobia embedded in North American culture, the denomination has repeatedly advocated for persons of a minority in sexual orientation or gender identification-supporting human rights and legal equality for all; creating and funding the http://www.uua.org/obgltc/ Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns (OBGLTC); encouraging ministers and congregations to conduct services of union for same-gender couples; supporting Interweave (Unitarian Universalists for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns)-a membership organization of caring religious liberals; and advocating that openly bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender ministers not face employment discrimination.

The more than one thousand member congregations in the Unitarian Universalist Association have been encouraged to include and affirm bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons in every aspect of their community life-and an ever-growing number have actively and intentionally done so.

The Unitarian Universalist commitment to become a safe and affirming place for all persons regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity took on new meaning and intensity with the passage of a resolution at the 1989 General Assembly, instituting the Welcoming Congregation program.

Acknowledging that every UU congregation reflects our society's homophobia to a degree, the delegates voted to initiate a sustained and systematic program designed to help congregations create a truly welcoming environment for all persons. In 1996, in order to be fully inclusive, the UUA recognized the need to revise the Welcoming Congregation program to address the concerns of transgender people. These "welcoming congregations" would:

* Be inclusive and expressive of the concerns of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons at every level of congregational life.

* Celebrate the lives of all people and welcome same-gender couples, recognizing their committed relationships and equally affirming displays of caring and affection with regard to sexual orientation.

* Seek to nurture ongoing dialogue between bisexual, gay, heterosexual, lesbian, and transgender persons, and create deeper trust and sharing.

* Advocate for bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people, attending to legislative developments and working to promote justice, freedom, and equality in the larger society.

* Speak out when the rights of bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender people are at stake.

The UUA Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns has created a wide variety of educational and programmatic materials to help Unitarian Universalists address these complex issues-and hundreds of congregations have received and used these resources. Unitarian Universalism, which has long had as its first guiding Principle the commitment to "affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person," has come further than any other North American faith tradition in welcoming and affirming bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender persons.

And yet the struggle against heterosexism and gender dualism in both the denomination and society at large continues. Unitarian Universalism is working hard to realize the dream of religious communities where everyone is welcomed and cherished, just for who they are.

[Dabaldone]

Maggiegee, I love your posts! They are always full of info or inspiring. Keep up the good work! Now let the congregation say, Amen!

Another note to all who are religious. Every text, the Bible, the Koran and the Torah have been tainted by the touch of man. I am a very spirtual person. My connection to Him is not through religion but through His spirit that flows through me.

[maggiegee]

Maggiegee, I love your posts! They are always full of info or inspiring. Keep up the good work! Now let the congregation say, Amen!

Another note to all who are religious. Every text, the Bible, the Koran and the Torah have been tainted by the touch of man. I am a very spirtual person. My connection to Him is not through religion but through His spirit that flows through me.

Thank you so much dabaldone.

I truly hope that we am not just 'preaching
to the choir', but that we are helping
people with this information.

http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2/magi43/blackchoir.jpg


Ignorance May Be Bliss,

But Knowledge Is Power !!

[marissaaz]

Atheist i accept myself

[Ecstatic]

Metheist - I believe in me.

j/k

[2Real4U]

Interesting topic. Lots of fun stuff to debate. Pertaining to Christianity... what is "eternal life"? Would that mean that the physical body dies and yet the soul lives on? Is that not what G_D stated in the Old Testament and Jesus preached in the New Testament? How close does this fit into re-incarnation. Modern Christianity apparently finds that term abhorrent. Yet if one is to read up on the "first" Christian texts....they are surprisingly similar to many tenants of Buddhism. Could a M to F TG in this lifeline be a re-incarnated soul in "the wrong" body? Could this soul have retained a glimmer of a past life of another gender? How many here on this BB believe that they in fact have been born with all the software needed to learn life's lessons in such a short span of time to enable them to move on to the next game level? What is "wisdom" and why is it that even the most downtrodden amongst us, laying in the streets seem to have so much of it....yet the youngest and brightest amongst us apparently are devoid of it?

/rant over.