Methodist court
to consider case of transgender minister

The highest court for the United Methodist Church is taking up the case of a minister who changed sex from female to male.

The Reverend Ann Gordon had spent five years as minister at St. John's United Methodist Church in Baltimore before undergoing surgery and hormone therapy to become the Reverend Drew Phoenix.

Bishop John Schol of the Methodists' Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference reappointed Phoenix this spring as pastor of the church, noting that the denomination's Book of Discipline said nothing about transgender clergy.

The church's judicial council, scheduled to meet October 24-27 in San Francisco, will look at whether the Board of Ordained Ministry should conduct a review if a pastor changes gender, and whether the denomination allows transgender people to be appointed as Methodist ministers at all. (AP)