A RELIGIOUS UNDERSTANDING

So God created humanity in God's own image, in the image of God, God created humanity; male and female God created them. -- Genesis 1:27

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus. -- Galatians 3:28

 In the following there is words and advice to those who are eunuch’s and to those who have dealings with eunuch’s. Let us remember that at the time of these writings the terms as they apply today did not exist then. So, we propose to suggest that in many of the matters included to be directed at the eunuch’s might just have well meant those who were born with a brain gender opposite from their physical body. That would be a separation of the brain from the sex much as was the attitude toward the eunuch.

We mention this only to make aware that eunuch might  just as easily have been applied to those born intersex as those with Harry Benjamin Syndrome. We have highlighted areas that might well apply to those today who have done what was unable to be done in that time, correct the physical to meld with the God given mental brain.

He whose testicles are crushed or whose male members is cut off shall not enter the assembly of the LORD. -- Deuteronomy 23:1

This is ambiguous for it presents a contradiction in regard to the following and we mention it because it shows that in some sections of the bible there are such contradictions that might well be the error of man and not the actual intent of God.

Let not the eunuch say, 'Behold, I am a dry tree.' For thus says YAHWEH: 'To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which shall not be cut off.' -- Isaiah 56:3-5

It is important for all who might in God’s name condemn the person who was born with Harry Benjamin Syndrome to read the following two chapters and verses and then say to all of those that have done all to correct their body to meld with their brain they have sinned or are sinners.

For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to receive this, let him receive it. -- Matthew 19:21

 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. --Mathew 5-10,

Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this scripture he told him the good news of Jesus. And as they went along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, 'See, here is water! What is to prevent my being baptized?' And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. -- Acts 8:35-38

The subject of Harry Benjamin Syndrome or any other Intersex condition nor Transsexuality is directly addressed in Scripture. The six passages about homosexuality and the one passage about cross-dressing are irrelevant since Harry Benjamin Syndrome, (HBS), is a different condition than either of these.

One might come to this issue with the perspective that where the Scriptures are silent we are to make our decisions based on empirical evidence and reason. Therefore, we would turn to medical research and findings that indicate that the intersex condition of HBS is an actual inherent birth anomaly and that the best treatment is hormonal preparation for the ultimate resolution of correcting the body to affirm to the brain gender.

However, there are a few concepts in Scripture that deals indirectly with the intersex and how we might relate to them in the churches. What we have here are people who are not transitioning from one sex to the other, but people who in affirming their mental sex wish to have their physical sex to be in harmony. So it is not a far stretch to see continuity between eunuchs and the Intersex.

Israel was surrounded by cultures that utilized eunuchs, especially as slaves and for pagan religious purposes. One of the boundaries, placed on Israel to shape its self-definition as a separate people, was an exclusion of eunuchs from the covenant worship. This was probably connected to the importance of both maleness in ancient Israel, and to the importance of family and procreation. But this exclusion is envisioned by the prophet in Isaiah 56 as something that will pass away when the new reign of YAHWEH arrives. In the new realm the covenant people will not be limited to just those who are clearly male or female, but will also include those who fall in between. The issue for these people of unusually mental/physical condition is not what their sex is, but whether they keep YAHWEH's Sabbath, choose the things that please YAHWEH, and abide by the covenant. In other words the same thing that applies to persons male or female.

Jesus takes this concept one step further. He not only teaches that eunuchs are included in the Kingdom of God, but asserts that eunuchs fulfill a special role that others cannot. Jesus also expands the concept of eunuch beyond just those made by men to those who are born intersex and to those who choose it for themselves.

The first group of eunuchs Jesus speaks about expands the idea of Genesis that God created Human Beings as male or female. Here we have Jesus saying that God also created individuals who are born as intersex and do not fit into the two categories of male or female as clearly defined. This is confirmed by modern science, which tells us that not everyone is born absolutely male or female. Indeterminate or mixed genital sex is much more common than most people are aware, probably nearer 1% of all births. These are not cross- dressers or homosexuals as the bible does address but these are those no different than those born with Harry Benjamin Syndrome, an intersex condition.

Whatever Jesus meant by his third category of eunuch, his teaching should cause us to have an open mind toward people with a different brain gender than what is reflected in their physical sex. Jesus' teaching here about eunuchs should move us from simple inclusion of those with unusual intersex conditions to the celebration of these special people for their courage in the face of painful turmoil.

We see this new inclusion and celebration in the unfolding of Salvation History in Acts. Before the marvelous stories of the enfolding of the Samaritans and of the Gentiles into the Church we have the wonderful little story of the Ethiopian Eunuch. It is interesting that when he meets Philip, the Eunuch, most likely a Jew who probably knew that Deuteronomy excluded him from the covenant, was reading the prophet Isaiah, which envisions the inclusion of eunuchs. Unlike Peter, who needed a vision from heaven to cross the boundary of including Gentiles, Philip needed no prodding to know that the Spirit was calling him to include eunuchs in the Kingdom of God. Philip proclaims the Good News, the eunuch believes and is received into the family of faith immediately by Baptism. Thus the first boundary that was broken down in our Baptism in Christ was not one of religious differences or race, but one of unusual intersex conditions.

When the Apostle Paul describes how our being one in Christ through our Baptism breaks down the normal human boundaries that we see as barriers, he is very explicit in including intersex as one of these now irrelevant conditions. Of course Paul is not saying we as individuals are no longer male or female, just as he is not saying we as individuals are no longer Jew or Greek. However, Paul clearly felt that this new freedom in Christ meant that a Jew could now live as a Greek, abandoning the dietary and calendric restrictions that separated them. It is consistent with the rest of Paul's ministry to see this passage as teaching that men and women need not be limited by the physical sexual roles assigned to them. So Paul includes women in leadership and conceivably would extend nurturing roles to men. It is not a far stretch from this concept to see that in Christ those who are of unusual intersex condition have the freedom to live in the physical sex opposite from the one assigned to them at birth if they find it necessary for the development of their true selves. It can not be denied that as surely as there were those who were chosen to be eunuchs by man there were those chosen to be intersex by God as He does so today as well.

Developing True Self

But this leaves us with a much more profound and deeper question. Is it even appropriate for those who are in Christ to seek the development of their true selves? Is the concept of self-actualization consistent with the Gospel? Didn't Jesus say, "He who seeks to save his life will lose it and he who loses his life for my sake will find it"? Doesn't that mean that our goal should not be finding a life of happiness, fulfillment and self-realization but having a life of service, sacrifice and self-denial?

This is the paradigm offered up to those born with HBS so often by the Church when they reveal whom they really are. They are told that they are being selfish, that they are focusing an immense amount of energy on their own needs without a Christ like concern for those in their lives who have depended on them being the sex they thought they were. Rather than changing their sex so they can be right with themselves, they should accept the burden of being uncomfortable in their sex so they can fulfill the roles that have been placed upon them. They have a duty.

Of course this kind of Theology has been used as a weapon not just with Intersex including Harry Benjamin Syndrome intersex, (formally transsexual). It has been wielded against art, drama, music, literature, sports, parlor games, and any other form of recreation. This Theological paradigm would in the end remove all variety and richness from the human existence. Everything that makes our lives enjoyable would be stripped away in the name of duty. Simply because something is pleasurable or fulfilling it becomes suspect. In the end the only legitimate way to live would be the most austere form of monasticism. God has gifted man with an intellect that God not only expects him to use but to use for the betterment and even the happiness and pleasure of man.

A practical response to this objection would be to say, "I will accept it is wrong to seek the development of my true self and a life of fulfillment and happiness when you accept that the things you do for pleasure and recreation are also wrong and you give them up. But as long as you watch Monday Night Football; as long as you play golf on Saturdays; as long as you eat more than the simplest diet; as long as you listen to music or have art in your home or read fiction for pleasure; as long as you seek to fill your own life with joy and satisfaction; then I will ignore you when you tell me that it is wrong for me to have a goal to have a happy, fulfilling life."

Restored to Rightness

Suffering may be an important part of living out our life, but it is not the beginning of our faith nor is it the end. Our faith begins with the affirmation that God created us good. Before any concern with the problems of sin and the problems of needing to be redeemed from sin, there is the reality that God created us as creatures that God desired to bless. In the Genesis story, God tells the Human Creatures to be fruitful and to multiply. God give them stewardship of the earth that is a connection with all creation and a role in the ongoing creation of the creation. Thus before sin enters the story we have a picture of men and women enjoying who they are, enjoying one another, enjoying their connection to creation, and enjoying their spiritual connection to God.

Sin, of course, does enter the story and it wrecks havoc with this mutual enjoyment. But the story of our redemption is a story of returning us to our original blessings. The goal of life is not for us to feel alienated from our True Selves, from one another, from all creation, and from God, but instead to be restored to a state of connection and the original sense of "rightness". Those born with HBS, in seeing that the relationship between their persons and their bodies is incongruent and in seeking to create a congruency where one didn't exist before, are in a real sense fulfilling the mandate of Genesis is a way that people without Intersex Issues are not capable of doing. Those who are born HBS and have elected to become affirmed physically with their brain are people who are able to continue the task of creation and to take up the task of subduing the earth to make it fruitful within their own bodies. In a real sense, then, HBS born have a direct and powerful connection to the creation as creatures made in the image of God, for this connection is within their own beings!

The Calling of God

Many of those who hold a religious view, someone engaging in an "secular" occupation of a doctor, or a farmer, or craftsman is serving God and God's world as much as someone who is engaged in the teaching of Gods word.

Furthermore, this doctrine teaches that God calls us by gifting us in a certain area. Thus God doesn't call someone to be an artist without gifting that person with artistic talent. There are two very valuable ways to tell where someone is gifted; one is that when they exercise their ability others will recognize they have the ability. The other is that when the person engages in the activity they are gifted in, they will experience joy, satisfaction and an ongoing desire to continue to engage in that activity.

We are taught that in our life calling we will not primarily find sacrifice but fulfillment. Of course there might be sacrifice in order to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. But the fundamental idea of life is that when God calls us to a goal He also places within us the desire to be able to attain that goal. When the goal  is not met, we will experience extreme distress, as when Paul said that he would die if he could not preach. When the desire is met, we will experience a deep sense of satisfaction and we must assume God to be pleased.

If God calls us to be farmers, shopkeepers, housewives, lawyers, craftsmen, doctors, laborers, or whatever, He expects us to find fulfillment in that calling. If something stands in the way of that inner fulfillment and satisfaction, it stands in the way of our ability to serve God and His calling. An inner sense would drive us to remove whatever barriers make it difficult for us to fulfill our calling. If being born with a contradiction between brain and body keeps one from being who they truly are and fitting into the reality around them, then it keeps us from serving God to the best of our ability. It then demands that the individual do whatever they can to change this confusion. We now know that the body's sex can be changed to fit the mind's gender, but the opposite cannot be done.

Difficult Passage

So these two doctrines, Creation and Goal, not only support people with unusual intersex conditions having a freedom within Gods Church to change their physical sex, but in a sense they teach us that such persons are actually engaged in a sacred and holy task when they undertake such a difficult passage. Rather than attempt to see this passage as something shameful and guilty, we must see it as children of God taking seriously God's creation of them as creatures who are made in the image of God being therefore created with the guidance of God and see us as children of God taking seriously God's calling of them to ruthlessly remove any hindrances to their being whom God desires them to be so they may serve God to their fullest.

We who have undertaken a sometimes long and dangerous journey at great sacrifice do not believe we are in contradiction of Gods mandate. We feel we are fulfilling his goal for us and have accepted that which can be done to help us heal. Evil does not heal, only good heals. God gave man the ability to heal and to lesson the suffering of others with His gift of imparting knowledge and skills, only imagined by those who dreamed of such wonders, is now available to many who now, not in violation of Gods law, but in keeping with them a fulfillment of a duty to bring healing to the body and to the mind of man wherever possible. In this way God is pleased for He sees a lessoning of suffering in His name by all who feel that in His eyes they did right and not a wrong.

Isn’t that exactly what God has always asked of us?