Baptizing the Spirit of the Age

The Church of England recently released a document of “pastoral” guidelines for performing an “Affirmation of Baptismal Faith” ceremony for transgender individuals. These guidelines attempt to avoid liturgical innovation by locating special recognition of trans individuals inside of an existing ceremony, a move bishops had signaled in January. Even so, the announcement has set off shockwaves throughout the Anglican world. What does this document require of priests, and what are its implications for the church’s understanding of sex and gender?

Photo by Foreign Office via Creative Commons. Image cropped.