The People You Miss in the Bible
I (Bill) grew up never knowing about trans folks. I was a good evangelical Christian and read my bible every day (still do!) but had never known that trans people were real.
In the past ten years, I’ve been reading more from trans Christian authors, and guess what? Trans folks are in the Bible! I was shocked and saddened that I’d never seen this before. I felt lied to by those who taught me to read the Bible.
The Bible term Eunuch covers those who do not fit within the gender binary, which would mean they fit within the modern category of being trans. Jesus clarifies that there are three types of folks in this category, which seem to fit some categories we see today. In Matthew 19:12 he mentions eunuchs who are:
Born this way.
Made this way (usually by castration).
Choose this way.
Jesus doesn’t joke about trans people or in any way disqualify them. In fact, in this verse he’s lifting them up as models of discipleship. Here they are, right there in the Bible.
And if you’d like to read more about trans folks in the Bible, spend some time Isaiah 56 and Acts 8 - both lovely portraits of our trans siblings in scripture.
Perhaps you might pray today for a trans friend or for the trans community in general, especially now that there are so many threats to the well-being of trans folks in our country.