“My child was miserable, especially at school. No confidence, no friends, no laughter.”
This is how Brendon Boulware described his trans daughter before she transitioned. Not only is he the proud father of a transgender child, he is also a Christian, the son of a Methodist minister, and a lawyer. Brendon Boulware was speaking before the Missouri legislature in opposition to the transgender sports ban. Currently, there is pending legislation in a multitude of states excluding trans youth from participating on sports teams and/or prohibiting certain kinds of health care for transgender youth. Much of the lobbying on behalf of these initiatives has come from some evangelical Christian groups and individuals.
It needs no further elaboration to acknowledge that views on gender identity and gender transitioning (especially with respect to young people) vary widely in Christian communities of faith. However, given the current political climate, the issues of health care and participation in sports merit special consideration. In both cases, we need to look — first of all — at how science, along with Christian and social work values, might inform our opinion. In terms of the science, it has been clearly shown that youth who are resolute about identifying as the opposite gender will continue to do so during later development. These are the pre-adolescents and teens who, after careful and thorough assessment, qualify for treatment with puberty blockers and hormones. These are also the young people who, left untreated, are at a significantly higher risk of self-harm.
In addition, scientific studies have demonstrated the impact of non-medical gender-affirming approaches to combat gender dysphoria in this population. Allowing youth to participate on the same team as their peers of the gender they identify with is one such affirming strategy. By contrast, not allowing such participation signals non-acceptance, with all the negative repercussions of lowered self-esteem and an increased risk of mental distress and self-harm.
So what about values, religious and professional? There can be little debate as to where the NASW Code of Ethics comes down with respect to these issues. Social workers are supposed to actively defend the rights of marginalized communities and to support everyone’s right to self-determination. Finally then, how might Christians respond to the needs of trans youth? A couple of years ago, a senior BSW student, Anna Hagen, wrote on this blog what it means for her to be a Christian social worker: “As a Christian Social Worker, I will view each client as a unique child of God with gifts and strengths, worthy of dignity and respect.” And as the Christian and transgender activist Austen Hartke has noted in addressing the parents of transgender kids, children need to perceive our love for them to be “something that they can hear and feel and see” (Hartke, 2019). From a religious perspective, these two statements alone provide enough reason to back trans youth in the pursuit of their legitimate rights with regard to health care and athletic participation. If you are still in doubt, listen to the words of Brendon Boulware. He admits to “not getting it” initially, that he was teaching his daughter “to deny who she is.” But then he listened to her, enabling him to give the heart-felt testimony against the sports ban that went viral on the internet (see YouTube link below).
My own teenage daughter asked me the other day: “How can Christians not accept transgender kids? Isn’t that against their core beliefs?” When I tried to talk with her about how we need to dialogue with people who have beliefs that are different from our own, she replied, “You can’t dialogue about human rights. There are no alternatives to that.” I could not argue with her. Human rights, social justice — these are concepts that are inalienable. They have to do with respect and safety. They should apply to how we think about gender identity and how we treat trans youth. There is no alternative to full acceptance and unconditional love.
I encourage the reader to get to know some of the young people in the transgender community, to peruse the resources listed below, and to stand up in support of our trans youth. They need our help in their fight for mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing!
Dirk de Jong, PhD, LMSW, is a former school social worker. He now teaches in the social work program of Siena College in Loudonville, NY. Dirk has been a member of NACSW for 5 years
RESOURCES
Brendon Boulware’s testimony (5 min. video):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h60YLGDJ6n0
About participation of trans youth in sports:
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbtq-rights/reports/2021/02/08/495502/fair- play/
Rebekah’s Story (3 min. video):
Austin Hartke on parenting a trans child:
https://www.mykidisgay.com/blog/2019/8/23/christianity-amp-parenting-trans-kids
Health care for transgender youth
Johanna Olson, MD (adolescent medicine specialist at the Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, CA) talks about research on transgender youth (2:30 min. video):
https://www.chla.org/profile/johanna-olson-kennedy-md
Two pediatric endocrinologists at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, CA, report on trans youth health care (4:00 min video):
https://www.hcplive.com/view/working-to-improve-care-for-transgender-youth
I am only leaving this post for others who may read this and need to know it is ok to still call sin a sin and yes you can still fight for love and social justice at the same time. You can still believe that God sees marriage as the scripture tells us and be a competent social worker. I have no desire to be rude or confrontational on this post I just want to make sure people who read this know that. Grace and Peace to those who love His appearing
Thank you for your post and for not being confrontational. I really appreciate that. I guess it’s difficult to debate differing interpretations of scripture. My only suggestion (or request) would be to listen to those in the trans community — they have too often not been listened to and they have much to tell us.
Dirk
“Christians in social work ought to examine and evaluate all human ideologies and social work theories and methods as to their consistency with the Bible, their consciences, social laws, and professional codes of ethics.”
This is a tenet in NACSW mission statement. In the spirit of evaluation. The Bible is clear about God being the creator and his creation of male and female. When a person’s gender and biological sex are incongruent, how does supporting the mutilation of healthy body parts and severe hormone therapies in teens equate to Christian love? Why is the focus of change on the body, when Christian social workers understand how much our environments and social constructs influence our sense of internal identity? Why are Christian social workers not asking the questions and doing the studies that would approach this issue as a psychological issue…Targeting the discovery of live coarse patterns that lead one to divorce one’s gender from their biological sex? As Christians, we believe God is a loving Sovereign Creator. Is he now so cruel to create a person with incongruent parts? As Christians we embrace the idea of a sin-sick world, and that the nature of sin breaks apart the good creation God intended. Why aren’t Christian social workers coming at this issue aiming to provide therapies that help an individual make peace with and accept their God given biological sex? Are not all humans fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm139)?
I am curious what you think about people who are born with “incorrect body parts” in other areas. Should we not fix defective hearts of children? Or separate conjoined twins? I have never understood this logic. This is a cruel and sinful world and people are not born perfectly. Is it wrong to treat a baby born with cancer? After all, it is the way God made them?
I am not saying this to be argumentative but it’s something I have wondered for quite awhile. Yes, I agree we are absolutely fearfully and wonderfully made. But absolutely not perfectly (just thinking of the multitude of birth defects people are born with. Why is it impossible to believe my son was born in a female body? Or my eldest was born with neither male nor female. The Bible also says that in Jesus we are NEITHER male nor female. If you really dig into the understanding of scripture, there feels like a lot of cherry picking a specific verse when condemning trans people and people who are LGBTQ.
I have spent the last 8 years studying scripture to figure out what I believe. I am a fully affirming Christian. If you are truly asking this, there are many resources I could point you to. Being affirming of LGBTQ is not incongruent with our Christian beliefs.
Jodi (Christian Social work student and mama to two trans children – one FTM, one non binary)
Responding to one of the top comments up there: I have to say, in God’s defense because I know God loves LGBTQ+ and supports gender-affirming care for them, it’s most uncompassionate of you to try to justify ignoring the voices of trans peoples, people who are made in god’s image too – I’ll remind you, by weaponising God into this spiritual dictator who views humans as mere playthings, (we have free will, for crying out loud) — all of this because you refuse to acknowledge that trans folks of ALL ages deserve to be understood and encouraged to be who they are/who they must be.
This isn’t argumentative, but the ice-cold stubbornness of the small christian nationalist community to keep debating over another human being’s right to self-govern, is incredibly and inherently hostile – they “disagree” with the LGBTQ+ community’s right to exist and their freedoms, their disagreement with the LGBTQ+ community is purely reactionary and selfish, not from being informed of the identities – I mean scientists, doctors and all sorts of educated professionals support the LGBTQ+ community, but you christian nationalists have no real concern for the well being of this community – you think religion gives you an absolute authority to violate the basic human rights of everyone, as if abusing your religion will reward you with eternal life in heaven.
Wake up call, God doesn’t support your misguided and uninformed discrimination against LGBTQ+, women, etc., God doesn’t like to be used for your dictatorship. God doesn’t like to be weaponised against people that YOU willfully don’t understand.
Next time you want to violate someone’s rights to gender-affirming care, picture yourself as someone whose body just barely produces enough estrogen/testosterone/whatever dominant sex hormone yours produces.
Now picture yourself in a situation where you’re begging on your knees for your doctor to prescribe hormone-replacement therapy. But the doctor WILL NOT budge, for moral reasons.
You feel that loss of power? You feel that lack of hope? The suffering? That’s what YOU’re trying to force onto trans people.
Back off. The only person who EVER has the final word in what treatment they need, hormone-replacement therapy and/or the works, is the patient feeling uncomfortable in their own body : the Trans Person. It isn’t your business.
Stop meddling into other people’s lives. Stop trying to force religion down the unwilling throats of others.
PEOPLE HAVE THE RIGHTS TO DO WITH THEIR BODIES WHAT THEY WISH. IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW “HEALTHY” THEIR BODIES ARE AS IS. BODY AUTONOMY IS A HUMAN RIGHT, YOU DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT TO VIOLATE OTHERS’ RIGHTS.
YOUR RELIGION CANNOT VIOLATE THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF OTHERS. END OF STORY.
Hi Adrian,
Your passion surrounding this issue is clearly expressed as well as the efforts to move the Christian community to a place of common acceptance of a perspective regarding trans youth. What strikes me is what appears to be a perception that all Christian social workers, including a smaller segment that identify as “Christian Nationalists” are monolithic in their thinking regarding trans youth and their conceptualization and operationalization of “support”. I wish to provide a few alternatives to this dichotomous paradigm.
First is my recognition that there is a continuum of thinking in our global society regarding trans identities. Despite one’s knowledge and interpretation of research, there remains a plethora of perspectives in our global community regarding the LGBTQ+ community. While many members of our global society are definitely far right or left, I would suspect that there may be many more who are somewhere between the extremes.
I would also suspect that the continuum of perspectives of those who identify as Christians (one segment of the larger society), is probably very similar to those in the larger society versus homogenous in their perspectives. My guess is that a large number of Christians (and members of the global community) are not at the extremes of the continuum, as described by the author as “incredibly and inherently hostile” , “‘disagree’ with the LGBTQ+ community’s right to exist and their freedoms”, or “have no real concern for the well-being of this community”. Rather, they (we) wrestle with issues alongside other members of the global community who wrestle with these issues based on their socialization, biology, knowledge, exposure, experience, faith, theology and a number of other factors. To make one large monolithic stroke that paints all members of a group (regardless of how they identify) could be as challenging for any group including those who identify as Christian and/or LGBTQ+.
Second is the challenge related to the definition of “support”. Based on Cognitive Behavioral Theory, there seems to be no doubt that one’s thoughts about issues impact one’s behaviors. If there is a continuum of thought regarding LGBTQ+ issues, even among Christians, then it would seem that there is a broad conceptualization of what “support” for this community could be defined and implemented. While some areas of “support” may be left- or right-leaning, others may be more centrist. The method and application of “support” may differ; but to suggest that Christian social workers don’t support LGBTQ+ seems to negate the continuum. Perhaps a different approach would be to provide additional ways in which Christians along the continuum could choose to support trans youth in a manner that aligns with their positioning. This could provide additional supportive options” for more Christian social workers as well as those who identify as being in a rich and diverse group that is categorized as “LGBTQ+”.
Recognizing the sensitivity and passion about this and other issues as well as the breadth of thought and practice related to them, our role as an organization is to encourage dialogue and provide a safe space for a variety of perspectives to be discussed in a respectful manner that recognizes and embraces diversity.
I am a Christian. I am a grad student working towards my MSW. I am also gay.
I find it disheartening to listen to people condemn members of the LGBTQ+ community solely on the basis of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. I find it especially disturbing when so many seem to single out being LGBTQ+ as their “sin of the day,” but have no problems with people who get divorced, eat shrimp, or wear mixed fabrics. It is even more problematic when they justify these specific examples as being under a new law because of Jesus, but exclude LGBTQ+ people from that same compassionate understanding of the New Covenant.
Jesus was not about hate or “hate the sin, but love the sinner.” The Bible was not meant to be used to beat somebody with (“Boy Erased” not withstanding). John 3:16 is not a policy statement to exclude anybody.
Science is showing us some new understandings as to what being LGBTQ+ is. Our understanding has changed over the past 50 years, 100 years, 2000 years. The Bible is not anti-science, but seems to feel that science must be forced to conform with their individual understanding of the Scriptures.
I am in my 60s. I remember, just a few years after I got saved, a minister stating “God hates homosexuals more than He hates child molesters.” That statement has stuck with me for about 40 years now. It helped to drive me away from Christianity and from Jesus.
Hello William,
I am so sorry about the experience in the church that you describe in your post. I agree with your belief that Christianity is about inclusion and I am glad you made your voice heard via this blog.
Dirk
Thank you, Dirk. I prefer a God of Love and Inclusion as opposed to a God Who is scared of some aspect of humanity and must act out and lash out against a segment of humankind.
As a Christian of 32 years, I believe that being gay, queer or whatever name you want to call it is a sin, that God made 2 sexes/gender only, male and female, and that gender always lines up with sexual organs. I also would never deny service to someone who identified as a member of the queer community. However, as a new medical social worker, I am struggling with the idea of serving clients in such way as to (not sure what word to use here) enable? sin of any kind. For example, finding a speech and language pathologist for a transitioning youth so that they can lower their voice, arranging a medical trip for a client to have an abortion, etc. versus helping a gay client get on disability assistance or find a homeless shelter (those I have no problem with). I am looking for article suggestions, comments, advice…
Galatians 5:19-21
Colossians 3:5-6
1 John 3:4-6
.Mark 7 21-23
Romans 2:11 For God shows no partiality
2 Peter 2 1:3
2 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Sola Scriptura
Hello Everyone!! I am currently doing my undergrad in social work and I have felt called to do this line of work. I have been questioned by 2 professors so far about social work being the right path for me because I am a Christian, prolife, and don’t agree with the LGBTQ+ society. I know that I can be objective to a point but the Trans issue I just don’t get. I know that we are to love one another but we are also suppose to be disciples of Christ and go into the world and preach the gospel. So if we are to do that then how can we as Christians help someone get access to an abortion clinic or helping them transition? One day we will have to answer for the things that we did and didn’t do. So if God was standing in front of you in the flesh and asks you why did you help empower someone to accept their identity as LGBTQ+ when his word says “do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable” (LEV 18:22 NIV) and then further down it talks about how the land was defiled so he punished it for its sin (LEV 18: 24-29 NIV). How can we then state that we are Christians when we are going against God’s word? If someone could further explain this for me that would be great.
Amanda,
I had to switch universities from a public university to a private Christian university. Three (3) or more social work professors told me that I should not be a social worker; because I am a disciple of Jesus Christ and will not support the LGBT community. I had an instructor who failed me in one (1) class because I would not agree LGBT community members could be homosexual and Christian. To be blunt, believing one can be a homosexual and Christian is a deception. I have heard too many individuals who were at one time part of the LGBT community being set free from sin; one (1) individual spoke about how a paster at a local church cast out multiple demons when she was born again. Yes, I believe the Holy Bible tells me that LGBT is demonic and is a sin. Yes, as the Word of God tells us to be disciples to spread the Gospel, which is the good news, telling someone how Jesus saves and delivers people from sin. Therefore, a true born-again Christian cannot agree with having their natural child being transgendered or a part of the LGBT community. “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3 in the King James Version provides evidence who are blood bough (only by Jesus’ blood) and born again will enter Heaven. The Book of Leviticus provides the example of Sodom and Gomorrah and how GOD destroyed the two (2) cities because of their sin. The Holy Bible spoke about how individuals proceeded with homosexuality. God created Adam and Eve it is God’s plan for a man and woman to marry. Sin was the creator of homosexuality as in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah.
While I do not agree with your views, I will respect your right to hold fast to them. That is a part of diversity and dignity.
I do, however, have to wonder certain things in light of your implied belief that being LGBTQIAA+ is somehow possibly symptomatic of demon possession. As such, do you tell an LGBTQIAA+ person who asks for services that they are either possessed or need to get “right” or need to get saved or delivered from possession? For that matter, where do your beliefs intersect with your ability or willingness to provide services? Are there conditions to services?
I have known many LGBTQIAA+ Christians who display many of the gifts found throughout the New Testament. I have also seen much harm done to LGBTQIAA+ people who wanted to be good Christians caused by other good Christians who asserted that their sexual orientation or gender identity was evidence that they weren’t really saved. I wonder how it was that they were never so harsh in their judgments about people who committed adultery, failed to help the poor, or ate either pork or shell fish. I wonder if they ever realized that their applause at the thought of a God who can hate His own creation implied a rather Pharisee-like attitude.
As social workers, I wonder if religious belief triumphs the need to do good, to respect dignity and relationships, to empower those who may seem different.
Shocking! 🙂 But, then again, Good News often is shocking.
Trans youth are … youth. That should come before any label. It is too easy to forget that and then slap a label on someone and then feel they somehow deserve less.
Thank you for sharing. I agree with you.
Maria, where is a thumbs up button when i need one?
Amanda, I am an LCSW with a Master’s of Divinity and I teach and research on the intersection of trans and religious identity. If you would like resource or to talk through some of your thoughts I would love to meet or offer a space to process some of your questions.
This post definitely had me wanting an open mind to this issue. I am a Christian and I am 22 and married. I consider often, what if having a child who dealt with this struggle with identity or sexual orientation is a reality for me in the future. Or maybe it would be a niece or a nephew, etc. I cannot assume I will be exempt from witnessing a youth close to me struggling with this issue at some point in my life. With this in mind, where is the line for supporting, aiding, and helping to improve their physical, emotional, and overall well-being, and enabling (as someone else pointed out) something I also feel to be a sin if not handled in a biblical manner. I totally believe that showing an unconditional love and acceptance is necessary. Otherwise how would we be a light to this community and successful demonstrate to them that God loves them so much! I am not sure that directly supporting medical efforts to change a youth’s anatomy is something I can do. However, having youth play on a team opposite their gender in order for them to feel more comfortable and happy I could definitely advocate for! I think that much can be done to help them feel more accepted and loved that does not involve medical intervention, and I would love to be a part of that.
As a social work student and Christian what should be made clear is that trans youth are children of God. Therefore, their emotional and mental health should be the priority. In the world, we share we all have different beliefs, values, and faith perspectives. Our core beliefs may need to be dismantled, reevaluated, and self-corrected. When it violates the rights of others. The purpose of social work is to provide services to individuals with unique needs without judgment. Some service provisions may conflict with our core beliefs. Which can hinder the helping process for those who need love and hope. Do I believe trans youth deserve medical services to help improve their mental health? Yes. I come to this conclusion because of the risk factors that cause transgender youth to become isolated, have higher suicide rates, and suffer from depression. My hope is for transgender youth to have equality and a voice.
It saddens me to know that individuals from the LGBTQ community feel that Christians do no accept them. Although there are some individuals that feel that maybe so, its sad to know that they are being judged solely on that. We preach about inclusion and love yet alienate a very specific group of individuals and even avoid helping them when it is much needed. Nonetheless, I hope this improves and one day the church opens their doors and the members of the LGBTQ community actually feel welcomed.
This blog was extremely insightful. As a BSW and close to obtaining an MSW, as a Christian (who practices daily) and as a sister-in-law to a transgender male, I am seeing many conflicting areas within society today. My true belief, though it may be frowned upon by many Christians is that some things we learn are contradictory to what Jesus stood for and spoke on in His time here on earth. Was it not said to love God above all and then love one another as Jesus loves us? This would include those who are different from us, whether it be through race, gender, sexual preference, religion, political views, etc., am I wrong? I feel strongly about this as I truly believe God’s purpose for us is so simple yet we all make it so difficult. Isn’t it also said in the bible that God knew every hair on our head prior to us even being conceived? Therefore, my belief, is He would know the journey that some of His children are to take, meaning transgender. I truly believe that if we love one another and accept one another in the way that God intended initially, then we would have unity and acceptance and there would be much less judgement. As a social worker it is vital for us to support all walks of life, just as Jesus did and still does to this day. Thank you so much for this blog post!
Thank You for this blog. I actually had a conversation with a sibling about this topic the other day. We were in high debate about what a Christian’s stance should be in regards to embracing the LGBTQ community. We discussed how transyouth need laws in places to protect them from potential discrimination economically, socially, and in various other ways. I think the concern for many Christians and Professionals is around the fear that laws will change too drastically since the idea is not to judge any sexual orientations I think a lot of political professionals are afraid that policies can change so drastically, that other agendas will be passed.
As a Christian, I am still researching what my stance should be. As a Social Worker, I know that I have a legal obligation to embrace diversity and that’s what I intend to do. As a Christian and overall nice person, I will always respect anyone in the LGBTQ. Theologically we may not agree, but I do believe socially we can co-exist.
Hi, Jennifer! I understand exactly where you are coming from. It is frustrating when incorrect values are assigned to Scripture on all sides of issues addressed. I believe we must treat the client how they would want to be treated, offering the client a range of options in order to “do no harm”. We are not responsible for one’s eternal salvation. God reaches out and many will choose not to respond. For those that do, God tells us we will harvest in a field we did not work in. Thus, I suggest Christian’s live by example; however, I do not believe in anyway people should attempt to make Christian’s say it is okay to go against God’s original design for man and woman and family. However, once again, we can view that internally and externally, we have to leave our subjectivity at the door and use objectivity and evidence-based practices at work in order to adhere with the Code of Ethics. For every person who we cannot help as we would wish, there are so many more we can. God bless you for your courageous response and honest reflection of your thoughts. I will pray for you, your clients, and my future clients. Blessings to all. Hang in there!
“LivingforHim” Thank you for sharing. As our Code of Ethics states, “Reasonable differences of opinion can and do exist among social workers…” (Preamble, NASW Code of Ethics).
Amanda,
I had to switch universities from a public university to a private Christian university. Three (3) or more social work professors told me that I should not be a social worker; because I am a disciple of Jesus Christ and will not support the LGBT community.
I had an instructor who failed me in one (1) class because I would not agree LGBT community members could be homosexual and Christian. To be blunt, believing one can be a homosexual and Christian is a deception. I have heard too many individuals who were at one time part of the LGBT community being set free from sin; one (1) individual spoke about how a paster at a local church cast out multiple demons when she was born again. Yes, I believe the Holy Bible tells me that LGBT is demonic and is a sin. Yes, as the Word of God tells us to be disciples to spread the Gospel, which is the good news, telling someone how Jesus saves and delivers people from sin. Therefore, a true born-again Christian cannot agree with having their natural child being transgendered or a part of the LGBT community. “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3 in the King James Version provides evidence who are blood bough (only by Jesus’ blood) and born again will enter Heaven. The Book of Leviticus provides the example of Sodom and Gomorrah and how GOD destroyed the two (2) cities because of their sin. The Holy Bible spoke about how individuals proceeded with homosexuality. God created Adam and Eve it is God’s plan for a man and woman to marry. Sin was the creator of homosexuality as in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Thank you for this blog post. It certainly gives one a lot to think about. While my personal beliefs are that transitioning genders is contrary to God’s design, I can respect others who have come to different conclusions than mine. I also believe that we are called to love others and acknowledge their worth and children of God, not judge them. As a society and a Church, we have decided that sexual sins are the gravest sins and get so bent out of shape over them while ignoring other sins such as pride, greed, and dishonesty. We must remember that we all fall short, and none of us have everything figured out. While personally, I would not feel comfortable assisting someone’s transition, I can absolutely love and support that person. I also hope to be able to learn more by having conversations with trans individuals, as you suggest being that I have not had that opportunity yet.
Thank you for this blog post. It certainly gives one a lot to think about. While my personal beliefs are that transitioning genders is contrary to God’s design, I can respect others who have come to different conclusions than mine. I also believe that we are called to love others and acknowledge their worth and children of God, not judge them. As a society and a Church, we have decided that sexual sins are the gravest sin and get so bent out of shape over them while ignoring other sins such as pride, greed, and dishonesty. We must remember that we all fall short, and none of us have everything figured out. While personally, I would not feel comfortable assisting someone’s transition, I can absolutely love and support that person. I also hope to be able to learn more by having conversations with trans individuals, as you suggest being that I have not had that opportunity yet.
Thank you for this blog post. It certainly gives one a lot to think about. While my personal beliefs are that transitioning genders is contrary to God’s design, I can respect others who have come to different conclusions than mine. I also believe that we are called to love others and acknowledge their worth and children of God, not judge them. As a society and a Church, we have decided that sexual sins are the gravest sin and get so bent out of shape over them while ignoring other sins such as pride, greed, and dishonesty. We must remember that we all fall short, and none of us have everything figured out. While personally, I would not feel comfortable assisting someone’s transition, I can absolutely love and support that person. I also hope to be able to learn more by having conversations with trans individuals, as you suggest being that I have not had that opportunity yet. Thank you for this blog post. It certainly gives one a lot to think about. While my personal beliefs are that transitioning genders is contrary to God’s design, I can respect others who have come to different conclusions than mine. I also believe that we are called to love others and acknowledge their worth and children of God, not judge them. As a society and a Church, we have decided that sexual sins are the gravest sin and get so bent out of shape over them while ignoring other sins such as pride, greed, and dishonesty. We must remember that we all fall short, and none of us have everything figured out. While personally, I would not feel comfortable assisting someone’s transition, I can absolutely love and support that person. I also hope to be able to learn more by having conversations with trans individuals, as you suggest being that I have not had that opportunity yet.
It is interesting to note that Jesus only gave ONE commandment in the New Testament.
Your job is to LOVE!
That’s it. There is no commandment to judge others. There is no commandment to point accusing fingers at anyone else.
There is no commandment to condemn others to hell.
LOVE God. LOVE each other.
Carry on.
Thanks for your insights here Dirk.
Thank you for uplifting this important topic that we are facing in this day and age. In Kentucky we have had several bills written over the past few years that intend to ban transgender youth from participating in sports in elementary and middle school. This act is much more harmful to our youth than what many claim is unfair to the other children playing the sport. As social workers it is our duty to protect human rights and as Christians it is our duty to display love, grace, and mercy, as we are given those things by a loving God. I appreciate the conversation with your daughter because it is very difficult to argue human rights. It is not up to us to decide who is worthy.
Interesting article and an interesting discussion. I am a Christian. By definition, that means I am commanded to love all people. I watched a documentary called “For They Know Not What They Do,” about this very topic. It is excellent, gives audience to people on all sides of this divisive issue, and I learned a lot. I highly recommend it as an informative and compassionate analysis of the subject of LGBTQ+ and Christian teachings. Here is the website about the movie (trailer is free, but movie has to be rented for streaming on Amazon or iTunes – definitely worth the $4 or whatever): https://www.fortheyknow.org/
As social workers we are taught to self-aware, know our own biases, and to ensure that we do not harm our clientele. As I have read some of these posts that have had discussions about how the Chrisitan social work community are not “reforming” those of transgender, I urge you to all review the National Association Code of Ethics. I will also state that the Bible is left open to certain interpretations, as the Bible was interpreted. Being of Christian faith myself, a social worker, and bi-sexual I have to say that I struggled with these biases for the last 20 years. The most freeing thing I have done was coming out to others last year. As social workers we are taught to embrace diversity, cultural differences, and to keep a very open mind. To those that are social workers and take a stance that the LGBTQ community has no place in society, refuse to work with those that are LGBTQ, and feel that it is morally wrong and a sin, I can appreciate that you are aware of your biases and limitations in the field of social work but is this really your correct calling?
We are taught as social workers to know our own biases, to be self-aware, and to do no harm to the clientele that we work with as social workers. To those individuals that have questioned the Christian social work profession on, “Why we do not try to change the viewpoints of the LGBTQ community”? I urge you to please review the National Association of Social Work code of ethics. It is unethical for us as social workers to do so. The Holy Bible was interpreted, I believe it is left open to interpretation. I can appreciate those in the Christian social work profession that are self-aware, but I also question if this is the right profession for you? As a social worker you are to embrace diversity, cultural differences, and to ensure that you complete your research with working with clientele that are of different faiths, hold different values, and have different beliefs.
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Thank you for uplifting this important topic that we are facing in this day and age. In Kentucky we have had several bills written over the past few years that intend to ban transgender youth from participating in sports in elementary and middle school. This act is much more harmful to our youth than what many claim is unfair to the other children playing the sport. As social workers it is our duty to protect human rights and as Christians it is our duty to display love, grace, and mercy, as we are given those things by a loving God. I appreciate the conversation with your daughter because it is very difficult to argue human rights. It is not up to us to decide who is worthy.
Thank you for your post. It is imperative to realize that humans are humans, and all of them deserve human decency and justice regardless of their faith. Sports, like other areas of life, have been segregated, dividing us against them. Integration and inclusion are just as important in sports as in other areas of life, especially for those in the trans community. Christians need to provide care and support for all, not just those who meet the requirements of their faith. God shall be the only one to judge no one else.
Thank you for your post. I think that it is incredibly important to realize that humans are humans and all of them regardless of their faith deserve human decency and justice. Sports much like other areas of life have been segregated, divided us against them. Integration and inclusion is just as important in sports as other areas of life especially for those in the trans community. Christians needs to provide care and support for all not just those who meet the requirements of their faith. God shall be the only one to judge no one else.
Hello,
I appreciate your post that brings light to the discrimination trans youth deal with each day. Voicing our concerns and advocating for this population is a step in the right direction. As social workers, we must continue to advocate and enlighten others about the issues the trans population faces in order to see change. Thank you!
Thank you for your insight into this topic. I know that transgender is a confusing and difficult concept for many people to understand. And anything that is new and confusing can be very scary. But I wish this was being talked about more among Christians, social workers and otherwise. At the end of the day, the only one that can judge anyone is God. It is not my job to decide if what someone is doing is sin. It is my job to love everyone the way Jesus did. That is my job as a Christian and that is my job as a social worker. I know that transgender issues bring about a lot of anxiety and often people have more questions than answers. What is the best way to handle bathrooms and sports? What is the appropriate age to let someone make these decisions? These are complicated issues that take a lot of thought and discussion. but what will not help any of it is judgement or hat or condemnation. That doesn’t make it all go away. It just hurts a lot of people.
This is an excellent blog post! This is an important topic not only because of it’s relevance, but because of what it reveals about individuals beliefs of christian doctrine and faith. Topics like this shows how far we’ve come in living out what Jesus commanded us to do and how far we still have to go. Jesus was always compassionate and kind to those on the margins of the society He was living in. It seems to me that if you claim Jesus as your Lord and savior you would want to emulate Him and obey what He has commanded us to do. Ostracizing individuals who are searching, lost, or pleading for help was not the way of Jesus. Furthermore, as social workers we are called to help and defend the marginalized. This is why being christian and a social worker go hand in hand in my opinion. Thank you for being vulnerable and strong enough to share this story with us.
Thank you for this post! It is important to see how being Christian can and does line up with the ethics and principles of the Social Work discipline. I think as social workers and as Christians we should remember that we need to meet people where they are. If we can do that without judgement then we can begin to understand and assist our clients in the most impactful ways.
When reading this article and then through some of these comments, I can see the sides of everyone on this topic, but I think we forget that the Bible was interpreted hundreds of years ago. It reminds me of when we were kids and played the game telephone where we whispered in each other’s ears and by the end of the line the statement is skewed and unrecognizable. I think to some extent people’s interpretations of the Bible are this way in regard to specific sins and legalistic actions. There are so many things that can be twisted and turned and that, when left up to interpretation, can end up being wrong. As social workers, we are ethically bound to treat all populations with respect, dignity, and equality. Whether we choose to or not, we are also ethically bound to help all populations regardless of if we see their issues as a sin or not. Just some food for the thought.
I live in a very conservative area of the nation. There are many people that are willingly to speak out publicly opposing trans gender youth but very few that will speak out in support of them. As a social worker I must work to help the marginalized members of the community. As a Christian, if I want to live like Jesus, I will show every person the love of Christ through my actions. The choice is simple for me as a social worker and as a Christian.
Related to this discussion, I wanted to let everyone know about a website I developed called the “Regeneration Resource Center.” The Center is an information clearinghouse for mental health clinicians who work with Christian families with a transgender member, as well as for families, clergy and churches. The website is listed on NACSW’s website under Resources/Weblinks/Programs-Organizations Modeling the Integration of Faith and Practice or see https://slynch89.wixsite.com/regeneration. The resources on the Center’s website include both conservative and liberal Christian views. I hope you find them to be useful.
I responded specifically to one person as having studied this issue for 8 years now, I truly don’t understand the idea that trans is sin. As a LGBT affirming Christian and social work student looking for Christian social work resources, I am extremely sad and disheartened by this discussion. I am wondering if this is a Christian group or an evangelical Christian group. In my experience with many Christian faiths, the primary rejector of LGBTQ people are evangelical and this day and age even many evangelicals are becoming affirming as they learn more.
Jodi
I happened upon this website and this blog article as I was researching MSW programs and considering whether this career is something I could do. Dr. Timbers, I am very interested in any articles or further information you have that would help me understand this issue of how my faith fits into practical career ethics.