The Catholic Church is often labeled by society as being bigoted and transphobic. Some people think that the Church hates them for things they believe are out of their control, or they have been hurt by people within the Church for the same reasons. However, despite the actions of some individuals within the Church, official Church teaching calls Christians to respond to those in the LGBTQ+ community with love. The Catechism tells us that “They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God’s will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord’s Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.” (CCC 2358).

Now, this love that we must respond with is not what society calls love. Love does not condone sin. It accepts people as they are, but it forbids them to stay that way. This is true not just for one group of people, but for all of us. A loving husband would never say to his wife, “I know you struggle with these temptations, but that’s ok. The sins you commit aren’t really that bad”. This is madness. Instead, true love means willing the good of the other and helping them to achieve it, even if the process of achieving isn’t always pleasurable. The highest good that we can will for others is Heaven, so the Church condemns sin, which separates us from God. However, she does not condemn people. That is God’s right, as the Creator of humanity and our final Judge. The Church calls us to pursue good by following Christ, which entails accepting the truth of God and of His created order.

God created human beings to be both a body and a soul. We are not “ghosts in a machine”, because our body is truly part of us, not just something that belongs to us. If someone hurts my body, then not only will I be angry, I will also be in pain. One would not say that just their body was hurt while they were unharmed. In addition, we are also not purely material creatures. We have the capacity to understand realities that we are unable to sense, such as truth and goodness, which results from our soul.

There are different kinds of souls, which each confer different powers. Plants have vegetative souls, with the power to grow and reproduce; animals have sensitive souls, so they can grow, reproduce, and freely move. Humans have rational souls; we have the ability to reason and to make informed choices. Every human has the same type of soul; there is no such thing as a male soul or a female soul, because then men and women would be completely different creatures, not human at all. Thus, the differences between genders must reside in the body–not just reproductive organs, but in our DNA as well. Doctors do not assign gender at birth by drawing slips of paper out of a hat; people are, objectively, born either male or female, and this cannot be changed, even through surgery. 

It is true that some people suffer because of their gender. People have valid reasons for wishing they were born a different way, but when they identify as another gender, it is typically an emotional response. They may have trauma associated with their gender, or they “feel” more like another gender, so they try to switch. However, despite what people may hope, emotions do not dictate reality. We would not validate someone with anorexia who feels that they are much fatter than they are and believes delusionally that they should engage in self-destructive behavior in order to align their feelings with reality. We should not validate transgender people for the same reasons. Instead, our response should be to help them accept the body that is part of their God-given nature.

Ultimately, our gender is a gift from God, who does not make mistakes. St Paul writes, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 RSV). Our bodies do not belong to us, to do with as we please. Because we are body-soul composite beings, we love, serve, and glorify God through both our souls and our bodies. While it is harder for some people to accept their bodies than others, this can be an opportunity to grow in trust and love, for if they embrace the nature God has given them, He will slowly reveal the goodness behind His design. The Church does not hate people who struggle to accept their nature. Instead, she lovingly calls them to accept objective reality, to find ways of healing past trauma that do not include physical harm, and to embrace their true identity as a son or daughter of Christ.

I know that this is a controversial topic for many people and that one blog post is not enough to cover all areas of this topic. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please reach out! If you would like to read more about this topic, CCC 355-384 is a good place to start. Know that I am praying for you, and I hope you have a blessed week!