Catholic monk comes out as a TRANSGENDER man

A Catholic monk who lives as a hermit in Kentucky has come out as transgender in what is thought to be a first for the church

Brother Christian Matson, 39, who transitioned in college, came out as a transgender man on Sunday, the religious holiday of Pentecost.

The monk, who is based in the Appalachian mountains, made the announcement with the permission of his bishop John Stowe of the Diocese of Lexington, according to National Catholic Reporter.

‘You’ve got to deal with us, because God has called us into this church,’ Matson told the outlet.

‘It’s not your church to kick us out of—this is God’s church, and God has called us and engrafted us into it.’

My willingness to be open to him is because it’s a sincere person seeking a way to serve the church,’ Bishop John Stowe of Lexington said.

‘Hermits are a rarely used form of religious life … but they can be either male or female.

‘Because there’s no pursuit of priesthood or engagement in sacramental ministry, and because the hermit is a relatively quiet and secluded type of vocation, I didn’t see any harm in letting him live this vocation.’

Matson, who also goes by Cole, transitioned from female to male while in college. He became a Catholic in 2010.

His announcement may seem at odds with the Catholic church’s stance on transgender issues, which were outlined in its Infinite Dignity declaration in April.

The document asserts its belief that God made men and women biologically different and no attempts should be made to transgress this.

But Matson has been emboldened to come forward thanks to the support of his bishop.

‘I can’t stand by and let this false and, at times, culpably ignorant understanding of what it means to be transgender continue to hurt people,’ he said.

‘If I don’t say anything and allow the church to continue to make decisions based on incorrect information, then I’m not serving the church.’

Matson took his vows as a diocesan hermit in 2022, overseen by Stowe. The vows include commitments to poverty, chastity and obedience carried out in solitude.

He decided to go public with his experience following some developments within the church that suggested greater tolerance of trans people.

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