Lois Simmons: Evangelical Transgender Woman

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Having finished my baseball themed thread, I had planned on continuing my GRS journey in my next post.  But a story caught my eye.  It was a follow up commentary to the recent Pew Research Center study and analysis on U.S. attitudes towards transgender.  It confirmed the basis for my blog and the name I gave it.  By being a transgender Christian, I belong to two groups that are not only nearly mutually exclusive, they are generally mutually uncomfortable with each other.

In connection with this article by Samantha Allen which appeared in the Daily Beast on 11/30/17, someone did a Google search for the following two phrases: “Evangelical transgender man” and “Evangelical transgender woman”.  According to the article, the first phrase turned up one person (who was interviewed for the article).  The second phrase turned up no one.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/will-evangelicals-ever-get-over-their-anti-trans-prejudice

Having defined myself for over 30 years as a born-again Christian and having gone public since 2012 as a transgender woman, I was aware that there weren’t many of us out there.  But I neglected to identify myself as an evangelical anywhere on my blog.  Before I rushed out to correct this defect, I decided I had better make sure the meaning hadn’t changed since I last checked.

I found a few variations on the meaning.  I decided to go with the definitions provided on the website of the National Association of Evangelicals.  (I also checked them out to make sure they were a representative organization.  Since my current denomination and the conference to which my previous church belonged are both members, I am confident in their validity as an organization well-equipped to define the term.)

https://www.nae.net/what-is-an-evangelical/

First what is evangelicalism?  The NAE website lists four primary characteristics:

• Conversionism: the belief that lives need to be transformed through a “born-again” experience and a lifelong process of following Jesus
• Activism: the expression and demonstration of the gospel in missionary and social reform efforts
• Biblicism: a high regard for and obedience to the Bible as the ultimate authority
• Crucicentrism: a stress on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as making possible the redemption of humanity

Noting that evangelical individuals are often researched, and acknowledging that the researchers use a variety of criterion to identify evangelical subjects for their studies, NAE and LifeWay Research developed a method that they urge researchers to use to identify evangelical individuals.  According to this method, an evangelical must strongly agree to the following four statements:

• The Bible is the highest authority for what I believe.
• It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior.
• Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin.
• Only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation.

And my answer to all four is that I strongly agree with each and every one of them.

For a few years now, I have identified myself in the following manner:

• I am a Christian first. That is my eternal spiritual identity.
• I am female second. That is my innate gender identity.
• Somewhere on the list, I am transgender. That is my anatomical reality.

So I hereby step into the void that was claimed to exist by Daily Beast.  I, Lois Simmons, am a born-again Christian Evangelical transgender woman.

Note that I live in New York, the third least evangelical state in the U.S. According to the Association of Religious Data Archives, my county is only 5.5% evangelical, which is nearly half the percentage in the state, So I am well aware of what it is like to be a religious minority and a gender minority.

As if life wasn’t interesting enough already.  While I have received a measure of acceptance and support within both groups and hopefully have also educated those in one of the groups about the other group, I have also detected and experienced measures of prejudice within both groups.  While it doesn’t surprise me, it does sadden me.

There was a time when it might have surprised me.  First of all until recently, transgender was barely a blip on the Christian radar.  Until we started receiving more news exposure, Christians’ lack of familiarity with transgender individuals could be a plus if the issue was addressed in a positive way, with a sound Christian theological foundation.  Furthermore, Christians and transgender individuals are two of the most persecuted groups in the world.  One would think that there would be a natural affinity between groups that share significant persecution experience.

Sadly, over the years I have learned that this is not so.  And it isn’t limited to Christians and transgender individuals.  I have seen or heard of too many members of one persecuted group attack another persecuted group as part of their claim that they have suffered far greater persecution and the other group doesn’t have a valid claim.  A current example is some black leaders who claim that LGBT+ organizations have hijacked the Civil Rights movement.  And I have seen or heard too many members of one marginalized group mock or denigrate members of another marginalized group.  It is not just those with privilege who use slurs and hate speech.

Persecution of Christians

Based on statistics that have been kept on the persecution of Christians for the past 25 years, in 2014-16, this persecution has reached record numbers each year with 2016 being the worst year yet.  Millions of Christians face interrogation, arrest, torture, and/or death because of their religious convictions and cultural/ethnic identification.  While about 30 percent of the world’s population identifies as Christian, 80 percent of all acts of religious discrimination are directed at Christians.  Christians currently face persecution in more than 60 countries.  Between 2007 and 2014, Christians were targeted for harassment in more countries than any other religious group.  Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians are the most likely Christians to be persecuted.  Terrorist attacks against Christians escalated over 300 percent between 2003 and 2010.  It is estimated that 7100 Christians were martyred because of their religion in 2015, an increase of over 300 percent compared to 2123 martyred in 2013.  Christian response to persecution is almost always non-violent, demonstrating faith and forgiveness.  (Sources: International Society for Human Rights, U.S. State Department, Open Doors USA, Pew Research and Under Caesar’s Sword [at the University of Notre Dame in conjunction with the Religious Freedom Institute and Georgetown University])

It is not just adults who face this persecution.  It is children, too: at school, at play, on the street … anywhere.

The extent of persecution of Christians may come as a surprise to some readers of this post.  According to these sources, both the mainstream media and human rights organizations give little attention to Christian persecution.  From 2008 to 2011, according to research done at Georgetown, Human Rights Watch had religious persecution as the focus of only 8 out of 323 published reports (about 2.5%), and less than half of those focused on persecution of Christians.

In the part of the world generally defined as “The West” (North America, South America, and Western and Central Europe), significant religious persecution was found to occur in only three countries: Cuba, Colombia and Mexico.  Even so, Pew Research reports that governmental restrictions on religion increased in 37 out of 43 European countries plus the United States and Canada from 2007 to 2013.  During the same time period, social hostilities towards religion increased in 38 of the 43 European countries.  As someone who just celebrated her 65^th birthday, I can testify that both of these categories have negatively impacted Christians’ religious freedom in the United States during my lifetime.

One of the ways Christians are persecuted in the world is that they are captured and enslaved.  Both men and women are subjected to forced labor.  Young girls and women are often forced into religious conversion and then a marriage to one of their captors.

I have shared Josh Groban’s version before, but it is appropriate for me to do so again.  Not only is it the right time of year, but the words of the second verse cry out to me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zh-yR0pbmU

Persecution of Transgender Persons

While statistics of persecution of Christians can vary because not everyone defines Christian in the same way, international statistics on persecution of transgender persons are even more difficult to come by.  Many countries do not report crimes against transgender people at all, either denying the existence of transgender people in their country, or because it is not a crime to attack someone who is transgender in that country, or both.  Some countries simply don’t consider it important to report on such matters.  Others frequently misgender transgender people, using the gender assigned at birth rather than the personal gender identity of the person.

Even so, in countries where the statistics are more reliable, the trend is that violence against transgender people is increasing.  While some of this may be related to more accurate reporting, greater visibility of and backlash against transgender people also may be playing a role.  In the United States, a record number 23 violent deaths against transgender people occurred in 2016.  With four weeks remaining in 2017, that number was topped as 27 violent transgender deaths have been recorded so far this year.  Because some victims are misgendered in the initial reports, that number may rise even if there are no more murders before the end of the year.  And with violent deaths occurring at a rate of more than one every two weeks, there is no guarantee that there won’t be more murders before the end of the year.  The Christmas season of love and light provides no special protection for transgender people.

The vast preponderance of the 27 who were killed was trans women of color.  And again, while there are differences in deciding which cases are included and which cases are not, the trends and the identity of those who are most vulnerable are both unmistakable.  The annual murder rate for Americans age 15 to 34 is about one in 12,000.  For black trans women in the same age group, it is one in 2,600.

Gwendolyn Ann Smith

Another reason that the statistics may vary from website to website is that there are some cases that are in a gray area as far as whether it is a transgender related murder.  For example, a transgender person may be killed by violent means but it wasn’t because the person was transgender.  Gwendolyn Ann Smith, the founder of Transgender Day of Remembrance, points out that one of the 27 transgender victims of violence was killed as a result of an argument with a trans woman friend.  And there have also been cases where the victim did not identify as transgender, but it is likely that the perpetrator of the murder assumed that they were or might be transgender and that was part of the basis for the violence.

Even so at the root of the matter, the trend is getting worse.  And murder isn’t the only way that transgender people are persecuted.  According to the National Center for Transgender Equality, a 2015 survey of U.S. transgender people revealed that 55% of those who sought coverage for transition-related surgery in the previous year were denied.  77% of those taking the survey also reported that they were mistreated in some way when they were students during grades K-12.

I am one of the fortunate ones who was not negatively impacted in either of those areas.  But I did encounter discrimination from a person who at one time had been employed by my insurance carrier when it came to negotiating a fair market price for pre-GRS hair removal.  And I am about to contact a transgender-supportive state legislator’s office to look into why another reimbursement request related to my surgery has gone into a black hole: no approval, no denial and no explanation has been put forward.

The persecution of transgender people doesn’t just occur in dark alleys and private places.  It also has been occurring in the halls of government.  Although none of these bills have passed, sixteen states considered legislation to curtail the right of transgender people to use the public bathroom that corresponds with their personal gender identity, and six states have considered legislation to invalidate local anti-discrimination protections.  There have also been three actions taken by the Federal Government in 2017 to roll back recent gains in transgender equality: rescinding protection guidelines for transgender students, the effort to bar transgender troops, and the Justice Department decision to stop applying workplace discrimination protections to transgender people.

The language here is very important.  Note that I have deliberately used the phrase “transgender people”.  While we have a transgender identity, first and foremost, we are people.  Some of us have made significant positive contributions to our society, whether before our transition, or after, or both.  Many more hold down steady jobs in a variety of industries and professions, pay our taxes, are good neighbors in our communities and play an important role in our families, worship in accordance with our religious or spiritual beliefs, and help provide the goods and services that meet the needs, wants and desires of our fellow Americans.

Note also that I talk about “transgender equality”, not “transgender rights”.  We do not seek special rights above and beyond what our cisgender neighbors enjoy.  We want the right to apply for and hold a job, to find housing, to receive public accommodations without being discriminated against.  We want the right to feel safe in our homes, on the streets, and yes in bathrooms (where we are vulnerable, not perpetrators).  To summarize, we want our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness the same as any other American covered under the Constitution of the United States.

The trend for murders of transgender people around the world is also increasing compared to the previous year.  Based on statistics gathered by transrespect.org in preparation for TDOR 2017, there was an increase from 295 to 325 in the number of murders compared to the similar time period for the previous year.  Brazil by far continues to produce the most reported murders, with 171 for the 2016-17 time period, followed by Mexico (56) and the United States (25).  Since the statistics were first kept, there were 2,609 reported murders from January 1, 2008 to September 30, 2017.

There are many ways in which transgender victims of murder and other violent crimes are dehumanized as part of the systemic persecution.  One is that the names and/or ages of the victims are not reported.  Often, the victim is identified by birth name and gender in the official reports rather than their chosen name and personal gender identity.  In many countries around the world, including Brazil and Thailand, it is illegal to change your name.

And then there is the situation where many countries do not report these crimes at all, or do not consider them to be crimes.  Here is a salient quote from the transrespect.org website: “Trans and gender-diverse people around the world are victims of horrifying hate violence, including extortion, physical and sexual assaults, and murder, which often go unreported.  In most countries, data on violence against trans and gender-diverse people are not systematically produced and it is impossible to estimate the actual number of cases.”  Furthermore, it is suspected that there is vast underreporting of murders of transgender people from most Muslim countries, Russia and China, to name the largest and most flagrant instances.

On the other side of the reporting coin is Brazil.  The situation in Brazil is similar to that in the United States.  There are areas of the country, such as Rio de Janeiro, where there is a very visible and accepted transgender community.  But there are other areas of the country, such as Sao Paulo (less than 200 air miles away), where much of the murder and other violent crimes against transgender people occur.  Brazil has a little less than 2/3 the population of the United States, but nearly seven times as many murders of transgender people.  For all citizens, Brazil’s murder rate is 4½ times as high as the United States, so that explains some, but not all of the discrepancy.  Differences in the religious makeup of the population may also explain some of the discrepancy.

Comparing the persecution of the two groups, you may have noticed something.  As a member of both groups, I am certainly aware of it.  As much as a significant number of Christians feel antipathy toward transgender people and a significant number of transgender people feel antipathy toward Christians, both face a significant amount of their persecution by the same outside groups.

It is not uncommon for the enemy of my enemy to become my friend as a way for group alliances to be formed.  But the groups have to sense that they have enough in common and have to reduce if not eliminate any sniping they are doing at each other.  And that brings me back to one of the purposes of my blog.  I have found a way to reconcile these two parts of my identity that many would claim to be diametrically opposed.  If I can do it within me and not abandon one part or the other, then theoretically speaking it is doable in society.  But both groups need to reach a place where they would prefer making allies instead of looking for gotchas and ways of putting the other group down.  And that usually starts with one side making the first peace overture and the other side responding in kind.  That might not be easy in view of the past history and lack of a centralized leadership for either group.

But here is where my Christian background comes to the fore.  All things are possible with God.  It doesn’t mean that it will happen, and I confess that at times it feels like I am shoveling sand against the tide.  But it can happen.  So for now, I stay at the task.

When I went to college, I had hopes of being a civil engineer/urban planner/transportation engineer.  Maybe I can still be a bridge.

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. – Philippians 4:6

God bless,

Lois

Letter to my previous church – Part 2

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A continuation of and conclusion to my post of 3/25/2016:

Now this might sound all well and good.  Yet some might ask, “What about theological issues?  What does God have to say about this?  What does the Bible say?”

The detailed answer is another book, not a letter.  But I am not dodging the question.  I deal with these sorts of questions on this blog (started in November 2013).  I would always welcome a discussion on these topics, whether one on one or with a group, Bibles open.  Based on growing evidence that I and many others like me were born this way (this is not a choice), combined with the many verses that show how God identifies people and how we were formed before we were born, I feel more strongly about this now than I did in November 2012.  I still uncover other verses from time to time that support this viewpoint.  Since you found this letter on my blog, you will find other blog posts where I expound on this topic.  Look for the page “Key Bible Verses”, or blog posts under the category “The Bible on Transsexualism”.

I said that I would get back to Pastor, and this is the appropriate point in the letter.  I will not mislead you by letting you think that he endorses my opinion in these matters.  We have not discussed this topic recently, so he should be the one to weigh in on where he stands at this time.  But one of his best qualities (and why you are so blessed to have him as your pastor) is his transparency.  My understanding is that his willingness to continue to fellowship with me is based on the following: that Christians are called to love one another; that he considers the totality of what he knows about me and my Christian walk, not just one item, albeit a significant one; his awareness that just as I am not perfect, he is not perfect; his awareness that while he believes his position to be right, that he is not inerrant.  And if I have misspoken on any of these or omitted anything, I trust that Pastor will make the necessary corrections.

When I met with Pastor and his wife in January 2012 to inform them of this development in my life and to ask for counseling (which eventually was handled solely by Pastor), he admitted that he did not have a theological knowledge of the topic.  He did what he needed to do to get up to speed and I talked to someone he recommended that I talk to.  Most importantly, our prayer of agreement was that God’s will for my life be revealed.

With the guidance of the Holy Spirit and affirmation from many (but not all) people: strangers, family members, friends, clients and best of all, solid, conservative Christians, I believe that His will for my life is being revealed.  And I believe that I am living that will as best I can, especially in this matter.

New people in my life who I have not told accept me as female and most of the people who I have told accept me as female.  Some people who have known me for a long time tell me that “if they didn’t know, they wouldn’t know”.  People who have met me recently tell me that they find it hard to believe that I was ever anything except female.  Even a number of people who met me for the first time during my last year at CBC are now telling me that they have only thought of me as female.  And I was wearing male clothes when I met them.

There are two minor areas of disagreement that I had with Pastor.  I am sharing them with you to show how my understanding continues to progress.

One was when I made a statement that there was no verse or combination of verses in the Bible to back a certain point of view (I am pretty sure it was on whether we are born with gender identity and genitalia that always match).  Pastor’s reply was to the effect that there are some things that are so universally accepted that they do not need to be included.  I let his point stand at the time.  Later on, I realized that such a belief does not agree with the evangelical Christian position that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant and infallible word of God.  If anyone should go to the Bible with any question, and if an answer cannot be found whether by direct statement, induction or deduction from the entire word of God, then the Bible has failed on that point.  But it cannot fail and be infallible at the same time.

The other was when we exchanging positions and points of view based on scripture.  I would say something from the Bible.  Then Pastor would answer it from the Bible.  Then I would answer it with something else from the Bible.  It was a lively, respectful and friendly discussion, sometimes continuing for a couple of counseling sessions.  Finally Pastor threw in the towel (still in good humor) and said that I was smart enough that no matter what he told me, I would always find a way to counter it with something else from the Bible.  I also let that stand.  But later on, in correspondence with another Christian, a similar remark was made.  However, it was not in good humor.  And that got me to thinking about the implication of that statement.  And it wasn’t long before I rejected it.  No matter how smart I am, God is a whole lot smarter than me.  There’s no comparison.  Now if God finds me in error on this topic, wouldn’t He be able to come up with verses and an explanation that I wouldn’t be able to counter?  And wouldn’t a God who has spoken through a donkey and heathen kings be able to speak through a godly Christian pastor or another dedicated servant of the Lord?

More important, Pastor’s continued and steadfast friendship has been highly prized by me.  He has always treated me appropriately, in accord with my presentation.  He is genuine.  He values me as a person and as a Christian.  He takes time for my concerns when he derives no tangible benefit from doing so.  It is hard enough to find those qualities in anyone, let alone someone who disagrees on such a significant issue.

Now that I know that my transition is no longer secret, I would recommend CBC to anyone in the area.  Of course, I would recommend my own church as well!

I will close this by leaving you with two sayings that I have lived by since I started to come out and then a final wrap up.

• If I want to be understood, I need to be understanding.
• If it took me fifty years to deal with this, I can’t expect you to understand this in fifty minutes.

Yes, my presentation (my clothing, voice and mannerisms) has changed somewhat.  I am somewhat freer with my emotions and in worship.  I cherish the more open friendships that I have with some women now that a glass wall has been removed.  I enjoy the private smiles that I receive from other women when we pass by each other with that quiet acknowledgement of our shared sisterhood.  But for the most part, I haven’t changed that much.  I can still do math, I can still parallel park, I still have a great sense of direction, I still have the same crazy sense of humor, I still like sports and I still love the Lord.

If anyone would like to contact me or meet with me, I would be delighted.  If I was ever invited to speak or attend a function at CBC, I would be honored.

Please know that you are prayed for often, loved always and missed very much.

That I may come unto you with joy by the will of God, and may with you be refreshed.  Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen. – Romans 15:32-33

God bless,

Lois Simmons

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Two-faced

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Originally part of the previous post on handedness, I pick up the thread once again with song lyrics from back in the day.  Thank you, Lou Christie!

And I have a confession to make.  No, I’m not living a lie nor do I wear two faces (although until a few years ago, that was true).

My confession has to do with the title for my blog.  It is based on out-of-date science.  It is based on the idea that Mercury was the McDLT of planets: one side faces the sun and is always kept hot; the other side always faces away from the sun and always stays cold.

It is now known that the belief was erroneous.  The errant observation was due to the nature of Earth’s orbit and rotation as it synchronizes with Mercury’s orbit and rotation.  A layman’s explanation is that when Mercury was in its best position to be observed from Earth, the same side was always facing the sun.

I discovered this bit of information when I reconsidered my blog title recently.  At first, I was not upset at the error.  After all, no one corrected me on the inference I had made.  So I assumed that this must be a recent discovery.

Then I dug a little deeper and my heart sank.  This has been known about Mercury for 50 years!  I was in junior high in 1965.  Yes, I did well in math and science and hung out at times with the math/science “geek” crowd.  But my interests extended beyond that one group.  I was a well-rounded student who at one time or another hung out with the athletes (I lettered in four sports at my tiny private high school, Rockland Country Day School), I was one of a group of guys who would play bridge at a drop of a hat, I had one male classmate who got me interested in war gaming for a while (Avalon Hill games, for example) and a female classmate with whom I discussed classical music (she being far more knowledgeable than me).

While astronomy was never my science focus, I was interested in it.  And to top it off, I attended and graduated from Cornell, where I was an engineering student for two years.  By the time I arrived at Cornell in 1970, one of the best known astronomers and popularizers of science, Carl Sagan, was already there as a professor.  Becoming a full professor in 1971, he was already one of the more popular and visible professors on campus.  I even read (and I think I still have) one of his books, The Dragons of Eden.  But somehow, I never received the memo that Mercury was a little more complex than one side always facing the sun and the other always facing away.

But the title of my blog post still fits.  Not only is this still a commonly held view of the planet Mercury, it is a reminder that it can take a while for scientific knowledge to trickle down to the general public.  The average citizen is not going to be aware that the medical community (AMA and American Psychiatric Association) no longer classifies transsexuals as either suffering from mental illness or engaging in a form of homosexuality.  They are not going to be aware of recent studies that show that certain areas of the brains of MTF’s are closer to the normative female brain than male brain.  They are not going to be aware of the recent knowledge that male and female does not always fit into neat little physical boxes (see my links page for various conditions, such as XY people giving birth, Androgen Insensitivity Disorder, other sex chromosome abnormalities and XX people born with MRKH: the lack of or severely underdeveloped vagina, fallopian tubes and uterus).

I happen to meet some of my tax clients at the local public library.  I sometimes browse the used book sale to see if there is something interesting to read while I am waiting for a client.  Now and then, I buy the book I started reading.

Chris Bohjalian. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Usually it will take a while before I find something I like.  But last week, I zoomed in on a book.  It was “Trans-sister Radio” by Chris Bohjalian.  With a title like that, how could I pass it up?  And while Bohjalian is a thoroughly cisgender author with a number of successful novels, I was correct: the book had a thoroughly transgender theme.

Bohjalian researched the topic very well and the writing showed it.  But when I first picked up the book and read the liner notes, I thought he had erred.  A resident of Vermont, he did what good authors often do: he wrote about what he knows best, so he had most of the story take place in a small town in Vermont.  So it surprised me when the blurb on the back of the paperback edition stated that the main characters had to contend with the “outrage” of a “Vermont community”.  I know that Vermont is a very liberal state, having elected a self-described socialist, Bernie Sanders, to the US Congress ten times (eight times to Vermont’s only House seat and twice to the US Senate).  Vermont was also one of the first two states to approve Medicaid funding for surgery to treat gender identity disorder.

Then I saw that the copyright date was 2000.  Bohjalian had been researching this book at the turn of this century.  Now I knew he had not erred.

What is the point I am making?  Simply that transgender rights has not always been a liberal cause.  It has not always been a cause for the L, G and B members of that coalition.  There are still some radicals who have a problem with transgender rights.  And transgender allies who have worked with all four communities will tell you that even those supportive members of the first three do not understand those of us who are T.

My desire is to educate people and add transgender allies.  I don’t care what other labels they give themselves.  Older allies were new allies at one time.  Therefore at one time, they were not allies.  If they can convert, so can others.

When I came out to people, I lived by two slogans: “If I want to be understood, I need to be understanding;” “if it took me fifty years to figure this out, I can’t expect you to figure it out in fifty minutes.”  So my desire is to help people understand.  That requires a process.  And it requires understanding what part of their belief system prevents them from being an ally already.

In my previous blog post about handedness and reviewing the historic treatment of left-handed people, we saw that there are some cases where society is driven by a need for conformity.  In the related and intertwined topics of sexuality and gender, many people feel the need to see things as male or female with no gray areas.  Initially at least, it isn’t a matter of hatred.  It is a matter of wanting to keep life simple and manageable.  Who do I call “sir” and who do I call “ma’am”?  Which pronouns do I use for a person without having to ask everyone I meet?

At the beginning of this post, I discussed the time lag before which knowledge passes down from the expert level to the general population.  If there are people who are not aware of the nature of transgender as a birth condition instead of being a behavioral choice, is that the fault of the student or the educator?  Therefore, we need to continue to patiently educate.  Some people are resistant to change, some people are skeptical of new ideas and some people are slow learners.  These things take time and effort and persistence.

And then there is religious belief.  As a Christian, I respect those who follow deeply held beliefs consistent with their religion.  I also know that in every religion with which I am familiar, there are doctrines that are debated within the body of followers.  So there is room for discussion on a number of points outside of the principal doctrines.

I have witnessed hatred first-hand from people who have turned away from me or who have attacked others in the transgender community.  It could be because of ignorance, fear of a world that is moving beyond their comprehension (loss of conformity), religious fervor or any combination of them.  But I have had people disagree with me without showing hatred or disrespect.  Some remain in my life as good friends.  Therefore, I will not automatically ascribe to hatred those who hold a different opinion on transgender issues.

I endeavor for open, honest, respectful discussion and to build consensus as a result.  I do not want to be marginalized during that discussion.  And I will not marginalize any other parties of the discussion by name calling or making assumptions about them.  I will listen to the other person’s point of view and respond in a way that befits their beliefs.

Last year at the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), we memorialized between 300 and 400 people who we learned were killed because of their transgender identity or their alliance to transgender causes.  Since there are many countries that will not acknowledge the transgender identity of murder victims, it can be reasonably assumed that the number is significantly higher.  For the sake of this post, I will make a guess of 550 victims.

According to reliable statistics, 100,000 Christians are violently killed for their faith every year.  That would be roughly 550 victims every two days.  But it is also true that the Christian population of the world is much larger than the transgender population.  There is not a matter of competition.  I belong to both groups and I grieve those who lose their lives or are otherwise marginalized due to hatred against either group.  And I grieve the existence of any in one of the groups who hates those of the other group, whether or not directed at me.

Last week, my story (400 word limit) was published in the online NY Times editorial series “Transgender Lives: Your Stories” (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/storywall/transgender-today/stories/lois-simmons). With the encouragement of two non-Christian members of the TG community, I focused on the acceptance I have received in my church from church leaders and others.  With the permission of denomination leadership, I included the fact that my church is part of the Salvation Army.

How did I achieve acceptance at such a church?  I did not compromise any of my beliefs regarding either group.  After meeting with three key people who provided reasons to believe that I would be accepted, I simply let people get to know me.  On a need to know basis, I came out to two people here and another person there. Based on people’s responses when  I came out to them, I have ~90% acceptance, one person who asked for time to process the information (granted!) and one person who appears to be negative.  I would have been thrilled with 50% acceptance!

As I put it to the college class to which I spoke last Wednesday evening, instead of coming in like a hammer, I was water.  It is consistent with the feminine strength of yin-yang (gleaned from my days of studying Oriental philosophy).  With nothing more than a desire to educate and bring the Christian and transgender communities together, I flowed where the terrain would allow me to go.  It has brought me to a larger body of water.  We shall see where it will flow next.

All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again. – Ecclesiastes 1:7

God bless,

Lois