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The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 1:47 pm
by ccgr

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 8:49 pm
by Sstavix
That's an interesting article and brings up some interesting questions. It sounds cliche, but one thing to ponder when and if we're confronted with the situation might be "what would Jesus do?"

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2015 8:58 pm
by ChickenSoup
Without arguing one way or another... Does the Bible actually discuss gender identity or is it just something we tack up to being "something like homosexuality" so we write it off because we feel weirded out by it?

As for what Jesus would do, I'm not really sure. He never really addressed homosexuality, though other parts of the Bible have. *shrug* I love them like I love everyone else.

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2015 1:26 am
by Sstavix
ChickenSoup wrote:Without arguing one way or another... Does the Bible actually discuss gender identity or is it just something we tack up to being "something like homosexuality" so we write it off because we feel weirded out by it?
It probably didn't come up at that time because of the society and technology. It's not like people could undergo gender reassignment in 1500 BC.
ChickenSoup wrote:As for what Jesus would do, I'm not really sure. He never really addressed homosexuality, though other parts of the Bible have. *shrug* I love them like I love everyone else.
There are actually quite a few things that Jesus never mentioned that are the focus of other aspects of the Bible, including the New Testament. Homosexuality is one example, but Jesus never really focuses on marriage too much, either.

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2015 6:17 am
by ChickenSoup
I mean, reassignment surgeries were not possible, but I doubt that feeling like you didn't "fit" didn't start once surgery was possible. Additionally, transvestites were not (IIRC) addressed, which would have been the next closest thing. I seem to remember something about men not growing long hair and not wearing dresses, but I need to go look that up for exact wording and context.

As a side note, I'm not 100% on board with "Well, God made you as (fill in the blank), so you should stay that way." If that were truly the case, I wouldn't have had a large mole removed from my upper lip :P Also, I must say that, given how many physical and psychological defects people are born with, maybe that's not a great base of an argument anyway. And you know what determines what we are? Genetics. Biology. I'm not saying that God never has a hand in who we become, but sometimes things just happen. I don't know of any verses (but please bring any applicable ones to my attention) that mention this stuff or could be applied to it. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems to stem from "Don't change what God gave you, because God."

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2015 11:26 pm
by ArchAngel
Now, anthropologically, there were transsexuals. Kind of. They are referred to as Third Gender, and are, to put it loosely, biological men who do not associate with being a man, but as a woman. For cultures with this concept, they are recognized not as men, but more as women. They do female gender roles and can have sexual relations with a man without the man being still being recognized as straight.

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2015 3:42 am
by ChickenSoup
Prime example: ilhamana of the Zuni Pueblo.

It was part of a class I took about native cultures. It was pretty interesting, but I won't derail the topic too much unless people are curious. Otherwise, Wikipedia is your friend. There's a lot more than just ilhamana, too. Anthropologically speaking, I believe they were known as berdache.

Re: The Transsexual Dilemma

Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2015 5:44 am
by Sstavix
ChickenSoup wrote:... but I won't derail the topic too much unless people are curious.
How often do we stay on topic, anyway? :lol:

I'm wondering, though... of all these cultures that have these "third gender" roles, how many of them lived in the Middle East, where the books of the Bible were written? It's entirely possible that the topic was overlooked simply for the reason it wasn't commonplace in those locations.