Trans woman integrates religious faith with transition

July 31, 7:17 AMTransgender & Transsexual Issues ExaminerMatt Kailey

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          Eva-Genevieve Scarborough
      (photo courtesy of Eva-Genevieve
                       Scarborough)

Eva-Genevieve Scarborough did not have to give up her Christian faith when she transitioned from male to female. Nor did she have to give up attending church, although she was afraid that she might.

Scarborough, of West Covina, Calif., was approached by a local evangelical church in 1980, many years prior to her transition, and she soon became a devout Christian. As a male, she married, had two children, and made a point to preach the gospel door-to-door, on the street, and particularly at sex shops and gay clubs.

“But I would feel in my heart: ‘You're hurting people,’” she told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

Another thing she felt was that she was "not a man" and that she was “living a lie.” She had tried to pray away the feeling that she was really female, something she had lived with for 35 years, but she was not successful. Then she finally decided that God “had made me the way I’m supposed to be.”

Scarborough began her transition after her marriage fell apart and she was excommunicated from her church. It is unclear whether or not these things were a result of her gender identity struggles. But when she transitioned, she was concerned that she would be unable to find a church that would accept her.

She did — the Safe Haven Community Christian Church in Riverside, Calif., whose pastor is also a male-to-female transsexual. Scarborough also attends United Church of Christ services in the same building, and has found a welcoming congregation there as well. She now feels that she is living God’s plan for her.

Faith can be a very difficult thing for many devoutly religious trans people, who have discovered that gender identity issues cannot be “prayed away.” While some trans people are rejected by their place of worship when they transition or come out as trans, others are accepted and supported by their congregation.

And for those who are not, there are many churches available that welcome trans people. In addition, there are several transsexual pastors and rabbis leading both large and small churches and synagogues in the United States.

Trans people who are searching for a place of worship can look for one that stresses a “welcoming” congregation or that promotes itself as “open and affirming.”

Scarborough’s experience demonstrates that trans people of faith can find welcoming places to practice that faith. While rejection by one’s church can be painful, there are others waiting to embrace trans people and welcome them into the fold.