THE
P RTAL
October 2017
Transgender
and the CofE
Page 11
Anglican
News
The Revd Paul Benfield reports on a General Synod debate
I f you
read some of the popular press in July you might have been under the impression that the Church
of England was about to start re-baptising transgender people in their new names. As is so often the case
with complex debates at General Synod, most of the journalists were unable or unwilling to report accurately
what Synod decided.
On Sunday 9th July, after attending the Eucharist
at York Minster in the morning, the General Synod
debated a diocesan synod motion from Blackburn
Diocesan Synod. The motion was moved by The Revd
Christopher Newlands, Vicar of Lancaster Priory, who
had moved the original motion at Blackburn. It was
‘That this Synod, recognising the need for transgender
people to be welcomed and affirmed in their parish
church, calls on the House of Bishops to consider
whether some nationally commended liturgical
materials might be prepared to mark a person’s gender
transition.’
Mr Newlands said that in 2010, 97 children had been
referred to gender-identity clinics and the number had
risen to 1400 in 2016. The welcome of the church for
these people must be Christ-like, he said. In the UK,
transphobic hate crimes had risen by 170 per cent in
the past year, and, around the world, 17 people had
been killed, “because they were different”, by relatives
and others. Moreover, the charity Stonewall stated
that 48 per cent of trans people had attempted to take
their own lives, 30 per cent in the past year. There was
rejection, discrimination, physical abuse, stereotyping,
and internalised transphobia.
replaced the motion in its entirety. This invited synod
to “welcome unconditionally in all our churches
people who experience gender dysphoria … [and]
consider that the preparation of liturgies to mark
gender transition raises substantial theological and
pastoral issues that the Church of England has not
yet considered”. It went on to ask for the matter to be
referred to the House of Bishops. Dr Land argued that
the Church of England had not settled on a doctrinal
position on issues around transgender and that serious
theological thinking must be a prelude to any liturgy.
He was also concerned that there was an increasing
trend to see humanity as redefined not in the image of
God but as a self-defined construct, with gender fluid,
non-binary or irrelevant. The amendment was lost
in all three houses: Bishops 11-19, with two recorded
abstentions; Clergy, 64-103; Laity 75-108, with three
recorded abstentions.
The last speaker before the proposer of the motion
replied to the debate was the Archbishop of York. Not
for the first time he told the Synod how to vote. He
asked if there was anyone who was against the first
part of the motion which welcomed and affirmed
transgender people. He pointed out that the motion
only called on the house to ‘consider’ whether liturgy
‘might’ be prepared. The House would conduct a lot of
It was possible to use existing liturgy, but the Church work on the theology before anything was produced,
could do better, he said. “An authorised liturgy of he assured Synod.
welcome and affirmation would stand as a prophetic
At the end of the debate the unamended motion
sign to all people that the Church accepts the reality
of gender dysphoria and the situation of trans people.” was passed in all three houses: Bishops, 30-2 with two
recorded abstentions; Clergy 127-28, with 16 recorded
He also referred to the Gender Recognition Act abstentions; and Laity 127-48 with eight recorded
2004, which had been passed unopposed by the Lords abstentions.
Spiritual, and which confirmed their new gender in
So the position remains as it was before the debate
law, allowing people to marry in their new gender
– services at which clergy of the Church of England unless and until the House of Bishops bring anything
had already officiated. The Church had also ordained to Synod, the Church of England does not re-baptise
transgender people and does not have a special
people who had changed their gender identity.
liturgy for transgender people, but the affirmation of
Dr Nick Land moved an amendment which baptismal vows may be used, if appropriate.