Methodists Vote:
Transgender Pastor Can Stay

According to a report on National Public Radio, the United Methodist Church has ruled that a transgender pastor who applied for a name change can keep his position. The decision was released Tuesday by the church's judicial council concerning the case of the Reverend Drew Phoenix.

The UMC bars gays and lesbians from serving as clergy, but its rule book, called the Book of Discipline, does not include discussion of transsexual people. The church's judicial council did not address the specific question of whether transgender people can serve but instead focused on the name change.

"Essentially they said that I'm a pastor in good standing and therefore I'm appointable," says Phoenix, who leads St. John's in Baltimore.

Phoenix was preaching as Ann Gordon, but after a lifetime of feeling male, made the transition to become male at the age of 47. After being reappointed as Drew Phoenix by the Baltimore-Washington Methodist Conference in May, members of the church petitioned to bar transsexuals from serving.

Phoenix says he knows he's something of a test case but calls his transition a gift to the church. The ruling "is outstanding," he says. "It's historic."

The church could take up the larger question of transgender clergy at its general council in April. As with many other Protestant churches, questions of the church's stance on LGBT issues and inclusion are becoming common at such UMC gatherings. (The Advocate)