We've had an interesting discussion on Transgender people and God in Texas

[w8liftinglady]

Yes, The Ft Worth Star-Telegram has been the center of a significant debate. You really have to see it. There are a lot of transgender women in Tarrant County.

http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/11/25/5369384/bible-and-gender.html

Here is the letter. Go to the link for The Responses.

On Nov. 20, the Transgender Day of Remembrance, Richard Hollerman ended a letter to the editor (“Gender identity”) with this sentence: “Transgenderism offends society, the world and especially God.”

Hollerman has a right to his opinion on transgender people, but he has no right to misrepresent God. The Bible contains three passages that Hollerman should read.

In Isaiah 56, God tells eunuchs: “I will give, in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons and daughters.”

In Matthew 19, Jesus explains transsexualism to his disciples, knowing there would be people like Hollerman: “For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.”

In Acts 8:26-40, Philip and the Ethiopian, God commands a Philip to travel to Gaza where along the way he encounters a eunuch who had been turned away by conservative churches in Jerusalem. Philip learned that this was a worthy man and gladly baptized him, fulfilling God’s commandment.

Mr. Hollerman, misrepresenting the Bible is offensive to society, the world and especially to God.

— Kelli Anne Busey, Arlington

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/11/25/5369384/bible-and-gender.html#storylink=cpy

[MADem]

1. Was he talking about his neighbor, Billy Bob God?

Or did he mean Bubba God who lives across town?

He has a right to his opinion, but IMO he doesn't have a right to foul a public newspaper with unadulterated bigotry. I say fuck him!

Can I get a witness?

[w8liftinglady]

2. LOL. No. You need to read the comments from the local trans women.

He got his ass handed to him

[JaylenJohnson]

3. Fact Check

Let me fact-check your claims.

First Isaiah 56 has nothing to do with transgendered people. It's talking about foreigners (ie, non-Israelites) and Eunuchs (castrated males). He is including foreigners because the Israelites of that time believed the Abrahamic covenant only extended to them, all others were kept out of God's favor. It refers to Eunuchs because since a eunuch is someone who is unable to marry and produce children, most commonly because of castration, he would not be able to perpetuate his family name. This was very important in ancient Israel, to have offspring that will bear your name and carry on your legacy and possess your inheritance. But God promised that to those who cannot reproduce because they're eunuchs, he would give them a better inheritance, even though they don't have sons or daughters. Some transgender people may also be foreigners and they may be Eunochs, but those would be separate situations from their sexual identity. This passage is not at all about sexual or gender identity!

In Matthew 19 Jesus is talking about Eunuchs. This is totally different from transgender people. A Eunuch is an emasculated man. This is not only the historic definition of the original greek word, ?ὐ??ῦ???, but it is also the current definition of the English word.

eunuch
yoo͞?nək
noun
A castrated man, traditionally employed as a harem attendant or as a functionary in certain Asian courts.
A man or boy whose testes are nonfunctioning or have been removed.
An ineffectual or powerless man.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

To assume that transgender people are emasculated or castrated is not only inaccurate, but it's also offensive. Again, the commenter used a bible verse that simply says nothing about transgender people (or any LGBT+ people for that matter).

Finally, the Acts 8 passage fails on the same grounds. There's no reason to believe that the Ethiopian Eunuch was transgender or anywhere on the LGBT+ spectrum. He may have been, just as any historical figure may have been, but there's no indication of this in the story at all. Also, there's no reason to believe this man had been turned away by the "conservative churches in Jerusalem". To the contrary, it appears he came to worship (in the court of the gentiles only, of course) and was now on his way home after having received some degree of a positive welcome; after all, he had a copy of the scroll of Isaiah. This was not an easy get. You couldn't just walk into any random scroll store and buy one. The fact that he had his own copy of this portion of the Jewish sacred scriptures, indicates that they had shown him favor.