Teachers’ union promotes ‘Transsexual Jesus’ play

A teachers’ union has promoted a controversial play that portrays Jesus as a transsexual.

‘The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven’ is written by Jo Clifford, a man who identifies as a woman, and is set to have excerpts performed as part of an LGBT event by the Education Institute of Scotland (EIS).

The EIS, who claim on their website that they represent around 80 per cent of lecturers and teachers in Scotland, said the play “invites us to imagine Jesus coming back to earth in the present day as a trans woman”.

‘Distressing’

The event page for ‘School’s Almost Out! Celebrate Pride’ describes it as “an evening of brilliant LGBT performances to celebrate Pride and the end of the school year”.

But The Christian Institute’s Education Officer John Denning said the play is deeply inconsiderate of Christians in the EIS.

He said: “This play deliberately re-imagines Jesus as a trans woman and puts words into his mouth that he never said, misrepresenting him. That’s deeply distressing and offensive for many Christians who value him and his teaching above all.

“It is hard to see how a teaching union justifies using the subscriptions paid by its members, many of whom are themselves Christians, to promote this play.”

CofE church performance

In 2016, the play was performed in a CofE church, a move opposed by several bishops.

Former Church of England Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, said: “It is quite clear from the Gospels that the identity of Jesus is male, his ‘mum’ is Mary and he always refers to God as ‘Father’, so to suggest otherwise is contrary to Christian teaching.”