Evangelical Lutherans Ditch Bible Teachings, Elect First Transgender Bishop
'It’s an honor to be called to serve the Sierra Pacific Synod'
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One of the biggest Christian denominations in America has elected its first-ever transgender bishop as it abandons the Bible's teachings.
The Rev. Megan Rohrer of Grace Lutheran Church in San Francisco became the first transgender person to be ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America back in 2006.
Later in 2014, Rohrer then became the first trans pastor after being placed at Grace Lutheran.
The ECLA boasts 3.3 million members and 8,900 congregations across the U.S.
Rohrer will now become the first transgender Bishop in any major American Christian denomination.
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“It’s an honor to be called to serve the Sierra Pacific Synod,” Rohrer told RNS in a written statement.
“During this time when some imagine trans people at their worst, Lutherans have once again declared that transgender people are beautiful children of God."
Please join us in welcoming the new Bishop-Elect Rev. Dr. Megan Rohrer!@mmrohrer #sps21 #spsassembly2021 pic.twitter.com/Mxk7jD1zra
— Sierra Pacific Synod (@sps_elca) May 8, 2021
"Thank you to everyone who has been praying for my family and me as I accept this call.”
Rohrer, 41, who does not appear to identify as either male or female, uses the pronoun “they."
The bishop also became the San Francisco Police Department’s first chaplain from the LGBT community in 2017.
Rohrer is also involved in LGBTQ “street activism” and has authored several books.
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Rohrer also appeared in “Queer Eye” and within the pages of Time and Cosmopolitan.
Rohrer is also legally married to a woman.
Rohrer claimed to have been bullied by Christians and kicked out of the youth group after becoming a lesbian.
The bishop also said fellow students at Augustana University would sing hymns “to try to get rid of my gay demons.”
“And I would just sing harmony. I didn’t know what to do,” Rohrer said.
Rohrer then moved to San Francisco and attended Berkeley’s LGBT-friendly Pacific School of Religion in 2002.
On Tuesday, Rohrer tweeted to critics of her ordination:
“If my election confuses you, may that confusion inspire you to notice all the other wonderful things God is up to that you may have missed."
"God's call extends to more people than you’d expect, in more places than you’d expect and more often than you’d expect.”
If my election confuses you, may that confusion inspire you to notice all the other wonderful things God is up to that you may have missed. Gods call extends to more people than you’d expect, in more places than you’d expect and more often than you’d expect. #iamLutheran
— Bishop-elect Megan Rohrer (@mmrohrer) May 11, 2021
In 2019, the Vatican released an official document outlining the Catholic Church's stance that people cannot choose or change their own gender.
The document from the Vatican rules that transgenderism is a bid to "annihilate nature."
The Catholic Church argues that being transgender is not possible as only two genders exist - male and female.
