As is usual, the conservatives are pissed off, yet again, about something that is actually a nothing. It just so happens that, due to how the church calendar works, Easter falls on the same date as Transgender Day of Visibility. Put a pin in that because I want to go somewhere else first.
It is fascinating that Conservative Evangelicals embrace the order of events in their churches that align with the ecumenical calendar because that calendar, for starters, was developed by the Catholic church way back in the day in order to mark major events in the life of Jesus throughout the year and maintain uniformity as the church spread around the world. Obviously, it is more nuanced than that, but that is the basic gist of the thing. When Luther and his followers split from the Catholic Church, I would guess they maintained this tradition because, despite Luther’s qualms with the way the Catholic hierarchy was exploiting poor people in order to build a lavish temple, he still saw himself as part of the Christian church.
That was roughly 400 years ago. In that time, there have been myriad splits within Protestant Christianity, which is what Luther’s group that broke away from the Catholic church in protest would come to be called, some of whom have adopted some pretty extreme anti-Catholic sentiment, and, in the process, have lost sight of where some of their very traditions came from.
So they celebrate Easter at the same time as all the other Christians around the world, though it is safe to say that Protestants have adopted some of their own traditions surrounding the holiday, with many Christian groups even embracing the secular traditions that have cropped up over time.
Over time, the anti-Catholic sentiment, especially among Conservative white Evangelicals has somewhat diminished. Though there may be some animosity, the groups have formed something of an alliance, especially when it comes to certain political issues.
Then came along the LGBTQ+ community. These individuals have always existed, as evidenced by even sacred Christian texts expressing certain ideas and feelings about them. The same text that expresses rules governing what foods are acceptable for the God-follower. But early on in the Christian story, there was an understanding that Jesus changed some of those rules. Food should no longer be considered clean or unclean, the same going for people, with Jesus clearly stating,
And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.
But over time, some groups and individuals within the White Evangelical community have reverted to the old gatekeeping ways of the Pharisees, especially those who adhere to a specific brand of Conservative American politics. These are the groups who, when their pastor preaches from The Sermon on the Mount, come up after the service and confront them about the “woke talking points” they just espoused from the pulpit.
Then comes the 2024 convergence of Easter and the Transgender Day of Visibility.
President Biden posted to the White House bulletin board an acknowledgment and declaration as March 31 being the Transgender Day of Visibility and the White Evangelical community completely lost their shit, claiming that Biden was attacking Christianity and removing Easter. Which is simply factually not true. The Transgender Day of Visibility has existed on March 31 since 2009. In 2021, President Biden became the first president to make an official statement of its existence. So his proclamation this year has nothing to do with attacking or erasing Christianity. It is simply an acknowledgment of what March 31 represents for an increasingly marginalized minority group of Americans. And because the specific date of Easter changes every year, this year the two days happen to coincide.
I happen to find it fitting that, of all years, this is the year the day Christians celebrate the resurrection of their savior from the dead and the day we recognize and show support for a marginalized group are on the same day. Just in 2024 alone, more than 300 Anti-trans bills have been introduced. This small segment of the US population is being increasingly marginalized and even downright attacked for who they are and how they express themselves.
Back in Jesus’ day, from what I was taught about the story when I was growing up, women were a particularly marginalized group of people. The society was extremely male-centric. Even the Biblical laws provided ample ways for men to get out of things like adultery, often at the expense of the women involved. And when Jesus rises from the grave, the first people to notice he is gone and who he reveals that he is actually alive is a group of women. And he tells them to go back and tell the men that he was alive. They are skeptical I am sure. After all, women have no authority, how will the disciples believe a word they have to tell them?
In typical male fashion, they do not. They have to see the thing for themselves and Jesus just drops in.
Jesus spent his entire ministry elevating the plight of and accepting the marginalized people of his day. He allowed women into his inner circle and taught them in the same way he taught men. He touched sick people, rendering himself ritually unclean by the Pharisees, or religious gatekeepers, and therefore unable to approach God. But that did not stop him. He continued to heal some of the sick and bring into his group outsiders and outcasts. And what is fascinating about this ever-expanding group is that he rarely asks people to change their lifestyles to follow him. And when he does, it is often because a person’s way of living is exploitative in nature (think the way he speaks to tax collectors and rich people).
So it is only fitting that the religious right, to use an outdated term, is forced to acknowledge the existence of the Trans community despite their best efforts to hold them down. Because they are the very kinds of people Jesus would have charged with going back to declare that he had risen.