Review: "God and the Transgender Debate" by Andrew T Walker

Andrew T Walker has written a warm and pastoral book on the issue of transgender. He starts by setting out the context of cultural trends, gender language and where we get our authority from.

He then looks at the Bible, both at individual passages and also the broad themes that go through it. He shows how the Bible speaks of a blueprint of men and women as equal but different and how gender is part of the identity that is God-given for each person. Even in a fallen world, this blueprint persists and speaks to us through our chromosomes and our body differences. However, gender can be one area amongst many where we are tempted to reject our God-given identity and try to define ourselves according to our feelings and desires. For every person, including every transgender person, there is hope for transformation in Jesus and for a brand-new unconflicted body in the life to come.

Having set out the biblical position, Walker encourages us to love those struggling with gender confusion. He calls us to listen carefully to the unique story of each person and to put aside our judgements. He recognises that the life for the person with conflicts around gender identity will not be easy and he challenges the church to be a gracious, listening and compassionate community.

In the final chapter, Walker covers some tricky questions, such as intersex and the use of pronouns. Overall, this is a well balanced book with helpful principles for reaching out to those facing conflicts around their sense of gender.

"God and the Transgender Debate" by Andrew T Walker
Good Book Company, 2017
£7.99
176 pages