Trans pastor says Bible ‘wasn’t written for 2024’ while creating inclusive church

A transgender Lutheran pastor in southern California said the Bible "wasn't written for 2024" as part of an effort to create a more inclusive version of the church for the LGBT community.

Drew Stever, a biological female who identifies as a transgender man, is an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America who is seeking to evolve a church in Hollywood and make it a safe space for LGBT people, according to a Thursday report.

"It is trying so hard," Stever told CBS Mornings. "It's hard to relate [the Bible] to modern-day times because it wasn't written for 2024. It was written for then. When we read in the Scripture that God created man and woman, yes, and God created everyone else as well."

Stever is not the first transgender person to be in the clergy of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, but for many, the practice remains taboo.

"I grew up female and in the female context, and I just never felt like that worked for me," Stever said about life before the now-pastor was introduced to a "more compassionate" Christian ideology.

Despite coming out as transgender while in seminary, the rhetoric of the 2016 election pushed Stever to follow through and become a pastor.

"My family's safety is probably my top priority," the pastor, who has received online threats, said. "I believe that for those who need to hear will hear."

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Many people have felt burned by religion and deserve an apology, according to Stever.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry the church missed you," the pastor said. "I would say specifically to folks of color, to people living with disabilities, people who are LGBTQ, 'You are good. Nothing is wrong with you. You are so good, and you don't need the church to tell you that.'"