religion

Hi @Georgiegirl462

I just wanted to send you a quick welcome message. Thank you for sharing, and I'm sure one of our friendly community members will be along shortly, to offer you some support 🙂

@Georgiegirl462 I’m so sorry that your beautiful daughter’s boss is a butthead.

Hi @Georgiegirl462, not sure where in the country you are, but in Victoria this kind of behaviour in the workplace is actually illegal: https://www.humanrights.vic.gov.au/for-individuals/gender-identity/

Hello and welcome @Georgiegirl462

On a human level it is so disappointing to hear that they were so resistant to what is really such a small change on their part, particularly if they were using Christianity to justify this - as far as I understand acceptance and love is meant to underpin lots of the messages in this religion, though of course people apply and teach this selectively sometimes...

On a professional level that behaviour is absolutely not on. This sounds like discrimination based on your daughter's gender identity, here's an interesting article regarding gender identity discrimination and fair work. On top of that imposing one's religion and telling an employee to pray is so inappropriate in the workplace.

Has your daughter felt able to discuss this behaviour with anyone else at work, perhaps HR?

Hi @Georgiegirl462, welcome to the group.

I'm not a religious person at all so maybe i'm a bit biased. But I see it all to often with people who use their religion to hide behind while being completely intolerant. I thought it was supposed to be about loving and accepting everyone, but often, with some people, it just seems to be the opposite.

And others have pointed out, I am quite sure that behaviour is illegal in the workplace. I remember when they brought in those anti-discrimination laws there was push back from some religious people to be exempted "on religious beliefs", but I thought that was rejected. Either way, such terrible behaviour from your daughter's boss... and your cousin. In my experience, neither would be the type of people I would want anything to do with.

Hi @Georgiegirl462

Let me first say that I'm a Christian who is considered to be more conservative than charismatic/Pentecostal.

A lot of Christians struggle with this and it's not surprising that the immediate supervisor finds this difficult, because most of us do.

As far as gender goes, we do believe there are male and female, and that there's no in-between.

In terms of how a person is treated, that is not ok.

I'm not saying I agree with the transition, but I am saying that I accept it.

Myself as a Christian, having experienced so much abuse at the hands of the Christian church, I see a greater extent of damage or sin in this world.

How I accept people who may not identify with their gender of birth is that yes we may initially be born a particular gender, but sin has tainted that, like it has everything else, including the church.

Some Christians are incredibly literal, wear the head covering, don't go to shops on a Sunday, don't encourage anything considered work on a Sunday, don't encourage anything sinful.

They believe that by calling your daughter by her pronouns is encouraging sin.

Let me throw in an example. I'm called to honour my father and mother, yet I have nothing to do with them because I don't want to get trapped in abuse again, that I honour them by not condoning their abuse towards me.

I think what your daughter is experiencing is similar, that the immediate supervisor doesn't want to encourage what she believes to be sin.

One of my favourite passages talks of a woman caught in the sin of adultery, he asks the people ready to stone her "he who is without sin cast the first stone", eventually they all leave without a single stone thrown and Jesus turns to her and says "I don't condemn you either".

Jesus did everything the religious people of his day said not to, associating with prostitutes, tax collectors and sinners.

I think in this age Jesus would be associating with the LGBTQ+, the homeless and the politicians, so why don't we?

Paul even writes that he became all things to all people so that by any means we might save some. How are we to evangelize unless we accept them, associate with them, befriend them.

Because we all are tainted, some are just braver to show it than others.

That I may not agree with different decisions, neither did Jesus, but I accept them, because they too were made in God's image, however they portray it.

AG

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and the struggle that can sometimes be felt juggling religious teaching and personal ethics.

the stories passed on to me about Jesus was that he preached love - like your first stone story.

Im curious if anywhere in the New Testament Jesus says one’s gender must match their biological sex? Or is this teachings from the Old Testament?

@Al1ce

Sorry, I wasn't tagged so I didn't see this right away...

I'm not a full bottle on the Bible but from what I do know, I don't think he'd be that explicit in it.

Jesus writes that the 10 commandments can be summed up in 2, love the Lord your God with all heart and to love your neighbour as yourself.

Even in the 10 commandments it doesn't explicitly say it.

The closest thing it says in regards to gender is in regards to sons, l daughters, father's and mother's, but it doesn't say which we should identify with.

One thing that does come to mind though is back in Genesis, they a son will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and the two shall become one flesh. This does imply heterosexual. Also the concept of going forth and multiplying and how multiplying typically happens...

Does that make sense?