Sex reassignment technology: the dilemma of transsexuals in Islam and Christianity
The birth of people with confused or ambiguous sex makeup as a biological fact since the annals of history has posed the challenge of accommodating them within the binary gender of sociocultural systems. In this process, the role of religion as a defining factor in social engineering has been par...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer
2014
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/37536/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/37536/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/37536/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/37536/1/Sex_Reassignment_Technology.pdf |
| Summary: | The birth of people with confused or ambiguous sex makeup as a biological
fact since the annals of history has posed the challenge of accommodating them within the
binary gender of sociocultural systems. In this process, the role of religion as a defining
factor in social engineering has been paramount. Major religions, such as Islam and
Christianity, have addressed this issue within the frame of their God-ordained laws by
devising a set of moral and legal imperatives specific to the ‘‘third gender.’’ Modern
developments in medicine and biology, however, have made sex reassignment possible for
this category of people, today called transsexuals. The question is: How do Islam and
Christianity respond to it. After presenting an analytical view of both Muslim scholars and
Christian religious authorities on the legitimacy of sex reassignment for transsexuals, this
paper attempts to explore if such a dilemma can be resolved. |
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