Transgendered Priest at National Cathedral

Do you remember when a VERY RARE earthquake struck Washington DC and damaged the Washington Monument and also the National Cathedral?  I think it was in August, 2011.

Do you remember that a huge crane tipped over as it set about to repair the National Cathedral from the same earthquake damage?

Today we find some more interesting news coming in regards to that same National Cathedral.

The most visible Episcopal church in the U.S. is hosting its first openly transgender priest this month.
The Rev. Cameron Partridge is set to give the June 22 sermon at the Washington National Cathedral in Northwest.

Dean of the cathedral, the Rev. Gary Hall, said in a statement that he hopes Mr. Partridge’s presence sends a message of support for the transgender community.

“We at Washington National Cathedral are striving to send a message of love and affirmation, especially to LGBT youth who suffer daily because of their gender identity or sexual orientation,” he said. “We want to proclaim to them as proudly and unequivocally as we can: Your gender identity is good and your sexual orientation is good because that’s the way that God made you.”

The General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2012 approved the ordination of transgender persons. The convention also approved a rite of blessing for same-sex unions, a decision that’s been a major contributor to the fracturing of Episcopal congregations. The cathedral performs same-sex marriages.

Mr. Partridge’s visit should be seen as nothing out of the ordinary, according to Integrity USA, a nonprofit that advocates for full LGBT acceptance within the Episcopal Church.

“This is not any sort of shock. This is just a devout minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ who is being given an opportunity to preach the Gospel,” said Vivian Taylor, Integrity USA’s executive director who knows Mr. Partridge as a mentor. “If anything, this is giving folks the opportunity to see a transgender person of faith, living his faith in an honest and meaningful way that absolutely honors the Episcopal faith.”

Bernard Schlager, executive director at the Pacific School of Religion’s Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry, said the invitation was “an important and historic moment,” as well as “long overdue,” but warned it could also drive further separation within the church.

“As often happens, I think, justice issues such as the full inclusion of LGBT in the full life and ministry of the church are not embraced by everyone at the same time,” he said.

Dawne Moon, an assistant professor of sociology at Marquette University, called the cathedral’s invitation to Mr. Partridge “striking,” given that transgender people are having their voices heard in the national media.

“It seems that the Episcopal Church is working to keep its place at the forefront of the struggle within American denominations to show what some believe to be the all-encompassing nature of God’s love,” Ms. Moon said. “They are also showing themselves to be open to learning about what God and faith look like from many human perspectives, and not just the perspectives of those who conform to a particular social norm.”

Here;  http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jun/9/transgendered-priest-give-sermon-washington-nation/

Sing with me now!...."It's about love, love, love...that's what it's all about...cuz God loves us we love each other...mother, father, sister, transgenders, gays, queers and brother...everybody sing and shout...cuz that's what it's all about...it's about love, love, love...it's about love, love, love!"

Awww...I remember that song from Lutheran Bible camp.  It's so inclusive!!

Wait now...I'm gonna go back through the article and bold out some of the best words of this article.

Inclusion...embraced....historic...acceptance...support...proud...you gotta just love those words!!

Wait a second...he said, "that's the way God made you."....I am so confused...is a transgender person someone who God made as a woman and then he changed to a man?....or is that a trans-sexual?  Is this priest going to be a man dressing as a woman when he gives the sermon...or is he a woman dressing as a man?

His name is Mr. Cameron Partridge.....so maybe it's a woman who was born as a woman...but didn't like the way God made her...so is dressing and acting like a man??...or did she actually have penis made for him....OK, I have no idea...but guessing that he/she is going to be in a big robe...so maybe no one will have any idea....I don't know...but let's sing another verse..."It's about you and me...that's what it's all about...cuz God loves us just as we are...we love each other...mother, transgender, trans-sexual, sister, brother...everybody sing and shout...cuz that's what it's all about...it's about you and me...it's about you and me..."

OK now...everybody give us all a big round of applause!!

I can't wait til the Cathedral let's a Mormon polygamist preach...that would be SOOO inclusive!  God made him just as he is...with all the love he has to give to 5 wives and 20 kids...or how about a Buddhist monk...and a Muslim Imam...and maybe one day a priest of Satan...because you know that Lucifer has been given such a bad reputation!!...he only wants to make the world a better place...and is so left out of main-stream religion.

When that happens we will be so proud of our efforts to include EVERYBODY at our National Cathedral!!!

One final question...if I was a man and married to woman...but then discovered I was really a woman all along...and if I stayed married to that woman...would I then be called a lesbian?  Seriously...this gender stuff is SOOO confusing...I'm glad they are going to teach all these things to our kids...so they won't be as confused as I am!