Spiritual ConNEXTion
October 2008 Theme
The Transgender Journey
"Who Do You Say that I
Am?"
A few months ago I went
for some routine blood work at a lab in Greenwich Village,
New
York City. I signed in and
took a seat in the busy reception area. A short while later, I heard my
name, “Elijah,” called. As I went to the front, the
receptionist began to review my computer file. A puzzled look came over
her face as she said, “But it says “female”
here.” I took a deep breath and began my standard “coming
out” explanation – “I’m a transgender man and
while all my ID is male, my health insurance card stills has an
“F” on it because that’s the only way I can be sure to
have coverage if I need any gyn care.” She stared at me, looking
very uncomfortable, and then said somewhat angrily and loudly enough for
others to hear, “Well, what are you then?”
As I reflected on that
experience and the emotions it stirred up, I was reminded of the story
recorded in each of the synoptic gospels where Jesus asks the disciples,
“Who do the crowds say that I am?” The disciples respond
that some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and some say another one of
the prophets. Then Jesus pointedly asks, “But you, who do you say
that I am”?
Jesus’ life and ministry
challenged those that encountered him. His teachings and actions
didn’t fit easily into their definitions of good Jewish men or
messiahs. Even those closest to him had difficulty understanding his
true identity, often struggling to “make sense” of him. In a
similar manner, all of us have grown up with strong cultural notions
about gender identity and gender expression. These ideas affect how we
see ourselves and those around us. These expectations tell us that there
are only two types of normal (i.e., acceptable) humans: heterosexual
females with typical “feminine” characteristics, and
heterosexual males with typical “masculine” characteristics.
As feminist scholar and theologian Virginia Mollenkott puts it, this
binary gender construct assumes that the two-gendered system is the
biologically and divinely decreed norm – the equivalent of
“God’s Will” for humanity and creation.
In a similar reflection
activist & poet Minnie Bruce Pratt says, “We're trained to see
only male or female and to plot people into those categories when they
actually don't fit neatly at all…But if we pause, watch, and
listen closely, we’ll see the multiplicity of ways in which people
are sexed and gendered. There exists a range of personal identifications
around woman, man, in-between--we don’t even have names or
pronouns that reflect that in-between place, but people certainly live
in it."
Individuals of transgender
experience who live in the “in-between places,” often
challenge our notions of gender normalcy and as a result, people who are
gender different are stigmatized by the dominant culture. The binary
gender assumption renders trans persons as “other” and
“queer,” defining them as gender transgressors and
subjecting them to ostracism, hatred, physical and sexual assaults,
self-hatred, suppression of their true selves, and even
murder.
The weeks between Coming Out
Day (October 11) and Transgender Remembrance Day (November 20) are a
good time to reflect on Jesus’ questions: Who do people say that I
am and who do you say that I am? Our transgender siblings live these
questions every day of their lives. My prayer is that all of us in MCC
will find the courage to watch and listen closely for many varied ways
trans people - and ourselves - express a multiplicity of gender
identities and expression. And I pray that each of us will come to
embrace and live out the reality of Peter’s response to
Jesus’ question, “You are the chosen one, the child of the
living God.”
Rev. Elijah C. Nealy
New York City
nealynyc@verizon.net
Having served as a pastor and a district coordinator, and most
recently as Deputy Director for the LGBT Community Center in NYC, Rev Eli
is available for guest preaching and workshops.
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