Transgendered people?

[Brenlae]

Well, I know some people (online and offline) who are transgendered. I was just wondering - how do I address them? A male-to-female transgendered person likes to be addressed as a girl, and vice-versa for female-to-male.

I also don’t really agree (at all) with them when they say they are really a women or what have you. It’s disturbing.

What do I do? I mean, if they’ve had a sex change, I can’t really convert them back. Do I call them by the gender they are (attempting) to represent?

I know these people are normally emotionally unstable, so I’m very careful around them.

What does the Church say about transgendered people?

 

[GEddie]

The Church considers that to be a disorder.

Your soul is formed within your body (actually the zygote before it becomes a “body”), and therefore there can never be someone having the wrong body, or the wrong gender, since the gender, like the soul, is given at conception. The sense of having the wrong body or gender is therefore a disorder.

However, there is nothing to be gained by sticking this in somebody’s face, If they have already “changed.” (the gender does not really change, it’s in the DNA). IMNAAHO, we should use the name they have chosen and respect them in their new persona; they are going through enough.

ICXC NIKA

 

[odile53]

You call them what they prefer to be called, like any other person. The folks I’ve come into contact with also legally changed their names to harmonize with their new gender characteristics, introduce themselves by that name, and are socially known by it.

Regardless of what they’ve done with their bodies, they are still creatures of the Lord, and retain the same inherent dignity any other human being does.

 

[bmullins]

You do the charitable thing and use the title they have chosen. To do otherwise will just create extra tension, and would prevent a civil conversation. Do everything with love.

 

[drfye]

However, there is nothing to be gained by sticking this in somebody’s face, If they have already “changed.” (the gender does not really change, it’s in the DNA). IMNAAHO, we should use the name they have chosen and respect them in their new persona; they are going through enough.

ICXC NIKA

I think this sums it up pretty good.

 

[Brenlae]

Thanks guys. I really appreciate the responses. I especially liked the bit about how the soul and DNA are always the same.

God bless!

EDIT - And yes, I do treat them well and with compassion (since they are struggling so much).

 

[greylorn]

"

Well, I know some people (online and offline) who are transgendered. I was just wondering - how do I address them? A male-to-female transgendered person likes to be addressed as a girl, and vice-versa for female-to-male.

I also don’t really agree (at all) with them when they say they are really a women or what have you. It’s disturbing.

What do I do? I mean, if they’ve had a sex change, I can’t really convert them back. Do I call them by the gender they are (attempting) to represent?

I know these people are normally emotionally unstable, so I’m very careful around them.

What does the Church say about transgendered people?

“peope?” Learn to spell, please. It is not that difficult.

 

[Dakota_Roberts]

The Church considers that to be a disorder.

Your soul is formed within your body (actually the zygote before it becomes a “body”), and **therefore there can never be someone having the wrong body, or the wrong gender, since the gender, like the soul, is given at conception. ** The sense of having the wrong body or gender is therefore a disorder.

However, there is nothing to be gained by sticking this in somebody’s face, If they have already “changed.” (the gender does not really change, it’s in the DNA). IMNAAHO, we should use the name they have chosen and respect them in their new persona; they are going through enough.

ICXC NIKA

How are we supposed to understand CAIS individuals?

 

[GEddie]

How are we supposed to understand CAIS individuals?

This is clearly a disorder, first of all.

And if in fact it does result in a female phenotype built around male DNA, then that is indeed a case of the body not matching the DNA.

It would still match the soul, however. The gender would be that of the body.

And this condition says nothing about those With normal genes/bodies who for psychosocial reasons think they have the “wrong body”.

ICXC NIKA

 

[summer1052]

The emotionally disturbed aspect to which you refer is perfectly, and charitably understandable.

If you truly believe in your heart of hearts that for some reason you cannot explain, that your external body does NOT match what you are convinced you truly are, it is an unimaginable burden. And many of these people are proving to have dissonance between their genetic makeup and their physiological make up. I suspect as science advances, we will learn of, and be able to quantify, more and more of these dissonances. Some within the homosexual community, as well.

Suicide, drug abuse, promiscuity stemming from self worth issues (like a rape victim) self mutilation, and depression are a plague for these people. And those are often the RESULT of, NOT the CAUSE of, being transgendered. They struggle for YEARS before they reach this conclusion. NO ONE simply wakes up one day and says, “I’ve got it! I’m transgendered!” (Or homosexual, or both.)

Understand that a transgendered person is required to “live” as the sex they will assume for a period of time before they are allowed to begin hormone therapy and plan for surgery. They usually prefer to be called by the gender with which they identify. And unfortunately, doing otherwise, may expose them to great harm. As Christians, we must take responsibility for actions we take that harm others, whatever our intention may have been.

The statistics showing how many of these children of God are cut off from family and friends for acknowledging their identity is heart breaking. They often lose jobs, are forced to relocate and “start over” and change their names. They are at substantially higher risk for physical violence and harrassment than even homosexuals.

If you just don’t “get” transgendered people, that’s okay. Just thank God that you were given other crosses to bear. But love them anyway. Whether self assured, confused, confident, or just plain weird, they all have scars. So do you and I. They just may be internal rather than external.

Caveat: NO, I’m not transgendered. Or homosexual. But I’ve known a good many since childhood – they all say I was the only one “who didn’t judge, and just accepted them.” I don’t fully understand it all. I just know that my job is to love people, as best I can. Some days, through the grace of God, I get it right. Other days, the grace of God lifts me up when I get everything wrong. But I try anyway.

Summer

 

[Eleve]

For what it’s worth, most people prefer the term “transgender” over “transgendered.”

 

[Theresa_Frances]

For what it’s worth, most people prefer the term “transgender” over “transgendered.”

Some prefer just being known as a woman or man, with transgender being something they had dealt with but now in the past.

 

[KerryA02]

And if in fact it does result in a female phenotype built around male DNA, then that is indeed a case of the body not matching the DNA.

It would still match the soul, however. The gender would be that of the body.

Why do you think you get to make that decision for anyone else?

It is unrealistic to try and reduce life to DNA. Sometimes mistakes are made during the development of Human bodies. It seems plausible that a woman could accidentally have been born with a penis and testosterone when she should have been born with a vagina and estrogen. Who are you to say otherwise? Why would you deny that to a woman who sincerely believes it is true?

 

[TheDoors]

Why do you think you get to make that decision for anyone else?

It is unrealistic to try and reduce life to DNA. Sometimes mistakes are made during the development of Human bodies. It seems plausible that a woman could accidentally have been born with a penis and testosterone when she should have been born with a vagina and estrogen. Who are you to say otherwise? Why would you deny that to a woman who sincerely believes it is true?

I know a gentleman who believes himself to be George Washington.

 

[Viviphilia]

I know a gentleman who believes himself to be George Washington.

I doubt that you know any such person. However, if you did, what exactly does a delusion about being an historical figure have to do with the well established medical condition of transsexuality?

 

[TheDoors]

I doubt that you know any such person. However, if you did, what exactly does a delusion about being an historical figure have to do with the well established medical condition of transsexuality?

It’s a bit sad that you’d out-of-hand doubt the statement of someone you don’t know. But that is your choice.

The act of belief does not indicate physical, mental or spiritual truth. Nor is it an indication of Truth. I know people who believe that if they are good people they don’t need Christ’s sacrifice, because “God wouldn’t let nice people go to hell”. I also know some who profess to disbelieve the existance of any kind of hell.

Transgenderism is indeed a condition, though mental rather than physical. Like homosexuality it is a sign of our fallen nature and requires prayer and ministry.

However, if you choose to remain in the school of thought that belief is equal to truth, go volunteer in your local mental hospital. I’m sure you too can meet interesting historic figures.

 

[Viviphilia]

It’s a bit sad that you’d out-of-hand doubt the statement of someone you don’t know. But that is your choice.

Yet here you are doubting out-of-hand the experiences of an entire group of people who you know nothing about.

Transgenderism is indeed a condition, though mental rather than physical.

In the case of individuals with intersex who are also transgender, the cause appears to be physical. Stevie Crecelius is an example of such a person.

Five years ago, a man married for 25 years who had six kids went to the hospital with a kidney stone and left with a piece of life-changing news — he was a woman.

Now, Stevie Crecelius — formerly Steve — is sharing her story. Steve was happily married to his wife and working as a photographer in Denver, Colo., when he learned he was intersex, born with both male and female anatomy.

“I had a kidney stone and we’re in the emergency room,” Stevie told Fox affiliate KDVR. “The nurse is reading the ultrasound and says, ‘Huh, this says you’re a female.’”

Stevie was shocked, but not incredibly surprised.
“It validated everything I had always felt inside,” she said.
In retrospect, the diagnosis makes sense, she explains.

The existence of both male and female anatomy suggests a hormonal imbalance which created the transgender condition.

However, if you choose to remain in the school of thought that belief is equal to truth, go volunteer in your local mental hospital. I’m sure you too can meet interesting historic figures.

I do not agree that belief is equal to truth. My position is that subjective experiences can be valid, despite what your feelings about the experiences of others might be. You appear to be unaware of the facts of transgenderism and you are making uninformed conclusions.

 

[GEddie]

Yet here you are doubting out-of-hand the experiences of an entire group of people who you know nothing about.

In the case of individuals with intersex who are also transgender, the cause appears to be physical. Stevie Crecelius is an example of such a person.

The existence of both male and female anatomy suggests a hormonal imbalance which created the transgender condition.

I do not agree that belief is equal to truth. My position is that subjective experiences can be valid, despite what your feelings about the experiences of others might be. You appear to be unaware of the facts of transgenderism and you are making uninformed conclusions.

Subjective experience may or may not be valid; but nobody has the wrong body. We do not inhabit our bodies, like a four-limbed hermit crab; we are our bodies, and our mind grows up with the inseparable body.

What is it that has “the wrong body?” The mind belongs to the body and vice versa.

ICXC NIKA

 

[Viviphilia]

Subjective experience may or may not be valid; but nobody has the wrong body. We do not inhabit our bodies, like a four-limbed hermit crab; we are our bodies, and our mind grows up with the inseparable body.

What is it that has “the wrong body?” The mind belongs to the body and vice versa.

You’re the only person who said anything on this thread about “the wrong body.”

I like my body, I just have the wrong sex hormones and genitals.

 

[dimentichisimai]

I’m curious, what is the Church’s teaching on how people with a transgender disorder are supposed to carry out their vocations? Can they marry? If a person with a female body that believes she is a man marries a man, is that homosexuality? Can these people enter religious vocations instead? Should they just remain celibate laypersons? And what about someone born with both sets of genitalia?

I know these conditions are disordered, rare, and that the victims deserve our love, but I’m just curious how the Church defines chastity for these people.