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The church has never been friendly to transgender people, but new policies make it even less so.
The Mormon Church, known formally as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is becoming increasingly hostile to transgender members, denying baptism even to those who have only transitioned socially and threatening to categorize them with child abusers.
The new anti-trans policies are in an updated church handbook, issued last Monday.
The church will bar trans people from working with children, becoming clergy members, or teaching. The handbook notes that trans people “often face complex challenges” and “should be treated with sensitivity, kindness, compassion, and Christlike love.” However, that doesn’t mean they’ll be treated equally within the denomination.
“Church leaders counsel against pursuing surgical, medical, or social transition away from one’s biological sex at birth. … Leaders advise that taking these actions will result in some Church membership restrictions. These restrictions include receiving or exercising the priesthood, receiving or using a temple recommend, and serving in some Church callings,” the handbook continues.
The church has never been friendly to trans people, but it first fully spelled out its anti-trans positions in the handbook in 2020. At that time, it said those who have transitioned medically would be denied baptism. Now it has expanded that to include social transition. Only detransitioning will reinstate full membership.
“Trans members will also face possible annotation on their membership records, grouping them with churchgoers who have committed incest, sexual predatory behavior, sexual violence against children and embezzlement of church funds,” NBC News reports.
The policies further mean that trans people “cannot stay at most youth camps overnight” and “are urged to use single-occupancy restrooms at church meetinghouses or station a ‘trusted person’ outside to keep others from entering when they use a restroom that aligns with their personal gender identity,” according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
This makes the church “much more restrictive and much less accommodating than there used to be space for,” Taylor Petrey, chair of the religion department at Kalamazoo College in Michigan, told NBC.
“What you see in this 2024 change is a rolling back of some of those things or some concern that some local church leaders had taken things further than they expected back in 2020 when they put these new policies in,” he added.
Affirmation, an organization for LGBTQ+ Mormons and their allies, denounced the policies. “We mourn with our transgender siblings as we wrestle with the painful impact of recent policy changes and guidelines released by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” said a statement from the group. “With over 45 years of providing support to LGBTQIA+ individuals who are current and former members of the Church, we know first-hand the pain that policies like this cause. We stand with our transgender siblings.”
“We hope that God will yet reveal better for our transgender siblings,” the statement continues. “Until then, Affirmation: LGBTQ Mormons, Families & Friends remains committed to creating worldwide communities of safety, love, and hope, fully inclusive and affirming of all sexual orientations, gender identities, beliefs, and relationships with the Church. We love you. We are here for you.”
