Ethics and Ebola; Transgenders and Theology; Food Truck Past

>>> COMING UP -- AS THE U.S.

RAMPS UP ITS EBOLA RESPONSE, WHAT ETHICAL ISSUES SHOULD BE CONFRONTED?

>>> AND JUDY VALENTE ON THE GROWING ATTENTION, INCLUDING IN CHURCHES, TO MEN AND WOMEN WHO ARE TRANSGENDER.

>>> ALSO, FRED DE SAM LAZARO ON A MINISTER WHO TAKES THE CHURCH ODUCTS.

THAT'S WHY WE'RE YOUR RETIREMENT COMPANY.

>> WELCOME.

I'M BOB ABERNETHY.

IT'S GOOD TO HAVE YOU WITH US.

PRESIDENT OBAMA THIS WEEK DIRECTED HIS ADMINISTRATION TO RESPOND TO THE EBOLA CRISIS IN A "MUCH MORE AGGRESSIVE WAY" AND APPOINTED AN EBOLA CZAR.

IN TEXAS, CHURCHES OFFERED SPECIAL PRAYERS FOR THE INFECTED U.S. HEALTH CARE WORKERS.

MEANWHILE, EBOLA CONTINUES ITS ALARMING SPREAD IN WEST AFRICAN COUNTRIES.

THE MEDICAL GROUP DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS IS TRAINING NEW WORKERS, BUT SAYS IT HAS REACHED ITS LIMITS IN DEALING WITH THE DISEASE.

THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION WARNED THERE COULD BE 10,000 CASES PER WEEK BY DECEMBER.

WE'LL HAVE MORE ON SOME OF THE ETHICAL ISSUES RAISED BY THE EBOLA RESPONSE IN A FEW MINUTES.

>>> INFLAMMATORY NEW IMAGES THIS WEEK FROM THE EXTREMIST GROUP ISIS.

THE COVER OF ISIS'S ENGLISH-LANGUAGE MAGAZINE PORTRAYS THE GROUP'S BLACK FLAG FLYING OVER THE VATICAN WITH THE HEADLINE "THE FAILED CRUSADE."

AN ARTICLE INSIDE PRAISED THE REVIVAL OF WHAT IT CALLED AN ANCIENT ISLAMIC CUSTOM OF TAKING WOMEN AND CHILDREN AS THE SPOILS OF WAR.

MEANWHILE, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH RELEASED A NEW REPORT DOCUMENTING ISIS ATROCITIES AGAINST IRAQ'S YAZIDI MINORITY.

THE REPORT QUOTES YAZIDI REFUGEES WHO DESCRIBED HOW ISIS SEPARATES FAMILIES, AND FORCES WOMEN AND EVEN YOUNG GIRLS TO MARRY ITS FIGHTERS.

>>> THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OBSERVED WORLD FOOD DAY WITH APPEALS FOR MORE FOOD AID FOR THE MILLIONS OF REFUGEES DISPLACED BY ISIS AND THE ONGOING SYRIAN CIVIL WAR.

HUMANITARIAN OFFICIALS SAID THOSE CRISES, AND THE SPREAD OF EBOLA, HAVE DIVERTED RESOURCES FROM HUNGRY PEOPLE IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD.

>>> AT THE VATICAN, A TWO-WEEK-LONG MEETING OF BISHOPS CAME TO A CLOSE HIGHLIGHTING BIG DIFFERENCES OVER SEVERAL CONTROVERSIAL FAMILY ISSUES.

MANY INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CHURCH WERE SURPRISED BY AN UNPRECEDENTED NEW TONE IN THE SUMMIT'S MIDTERM REPORT WHICH CALLED FOR MORE WELCOMING OF GAYS, COHABITATING COUPLES, AND DIVORCED AND REMARRIED CATHOLICS.

THE REPORT SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGED THAT GAY PEOPLE HAVE MANY GIFTS TO OFFER.

BUT SOME BISHOPS COMPLAINED THAT SUCH LANGUAGE GAVE THE FALSE IMPRESSION THAT THE CHURCH NOW APPROVES OF SAME-SEX RELATIONSHIPS.

THE SUMMIT DID NOT MAKE ANY CHANGES TO CHURCH TEACHING.

ITS FINAL REPORT WILL BE DEBATED IN ADVANCE OF A FOLLOW-UP MEETING NEXT YEAR.

>>> SEATTLE MEGACHURCH PASTOR MARK DRISCOLL RESIGNED THIS WEEK.

HE WAS THE CONTROVERSIAL LEADER OF MARS HILL CHURCH, WHICH AT ITS PEAK HAD A REPORTED 14,000 MEMBERS IN 15 LOCATIONS.

DRISCOLL HAD BEEN THE SUBJECT OF HEAVY CRITICISM AND A CHURCH INVESTIGATION AMID REPORTS ABOUT HIS ALLEGEDLY DOMINEERING LEADERSHIP STYLE.

BUT THE CHURCH SAID IT DID NOT ASK HIM TO LEAVE.

IN HIS RESIGNATION LETTER, DRISCOLL SAID THE RECENT MONTHS HAD TAKEN A TOLL ON HIS FAMILY AND HE DID NOT WANT TO BE A DISTRACTION FOR THE CHURCH.

>>> IN FERGUSON, MISSOURI, FAITH LEADERS WERE AMONG THE DOZENS ARRESTED WHILE DEMONSTRATING AGAINST LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PRACTICES.

THEY CALLED IT "MORAL MONDAY," AND IT CAPPED FOUR DAYS OF PROTESTS CALLING FOR JUSTICE IN THE CASE OF MICHAEL BROWN, THE UNARMED BLACK TEENAGER WHO WAS SHOT AND KILLED BY A WHITE OFFICER IN AUGUST.

TENSIONS HAVE BEEN RUNNING HIGH BETWEEN FERGUSON POLICE AND THE MOSTLY AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY, WITH PROTESTERS RAISING CONCERNS ABOUT POLICE VIOLENCE.

>>> WE WANT TO LOOK MORE CLOSELY NOW AT SOME OF THE ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS INVOLVED AS THE U.S.

RAMPS UP ITS RESPONSE TO THE EBOLA CRISIS.

WITH ME IS OUR MANAGING EDITOR KIM LAWTON.

AND JOINING US FROM NEWTON, MASSACHUSETTS, IS PROFESSOR GEORGE ANNAS, CHAIR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH LAW, BIOETHICS, AND HUMAN RIGHTS AT THE BOSTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH.

PROFESSOR, WELCOME.

WHAT SHOULD WE BE THINKING ABOUT IN TERMS OF THE ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS AS WE TRY TO DEAL WITH THE EBOLA SITUATION?

>> WELL, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT ETHICAL CONSIDERATION IS WE SHOULD BE THINKING ABOUT HOW WE CAN MORE VIGOROUSLY AND EFFECTIVELY HELP THE PEOPLE IN WEST AFRICA COPE WITH THIS TERRIBLE EPIDEMIC THEY HAVE THERE.

AND SECONDLY, WE SHOULD BE THINKING ABOUT HOW WE CAN PROTECT HEALTHCARE WORKERS HERE IN THE UNITED STATES WHO WILL BE DEALING WITH PATIENTS HERE.

>> HOW DO YOU MAKE THAT BALANCE?

WHAT PRINCIPLES SHOULD WE CONSIDER AS WE DECIDE HOW MANY RESOURCES GET PUT HERE AND HOW MANY GET SENT OVER TO WEST AFRICA?

>> WELL, WE DO HAVE A PRIMARY OBLIGATION TO OUR OWN CITIZENS, BUT NONETHELESS, IT'S TRIVIAL IN THE UNITED STATES COMPARED TO THE EPIDEMIC IN WEST AFRICA, AND WE'RE NOWHERE NEAR ANYWHERE WHERE WE HAVE TO ALLOCATE RESOURCES BETWEEN THE U.S. AND WEST AFRICA.

WE CAN AFFORD TO DO BOTH QUITE WELL.

>> HERE IN THE U.S., ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE HEARING IS THE ANXIETY LEVEL HAS HEIGHTENED THIS WEEK.

PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT MANDATORY QUARANTINES, THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT TRAVEL BANS.

YOU KNOW, IS IT MORALLY OKAY TO RESTRICT OR VIOLATE PEOPLE'S CIVIL RIGHTS IN ORDER TO STOP AN OUTBREAK?

>> IT IS MORALLY OKAY TO ASK PEOPLE, AS WE'RE DOING NOW MOSTLY VOLUNTARILY, TO STAY HOME AND NOT GO IN LARGE CROWDS OR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.

IF THEY HAVE POSSIBLY BEEN EXPOSED TO EBOLA, IF THEY HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN EXPOSED TO EBOLA, LIKE THE NURSES, FOR EXAMPLE, IN DALLAS, THEN IT'S PERFECTLY REASONABLE TO ASK THEM NOT TO TRAVEL AROUND AND NOT TO EXPOSE ANYBODY ELSE.

AND OBVIOUSLY, IF THEY HAVE EBOLA, THEN IT'S PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE TO ISOLATE THEM TO TREAT THEM.

NO ONE THAT I KNOW OF WANTS TO SPREAD EBOLA, NO ONE WHO HAS EBOLA DOESN'T WANT TO BE TREATED.

THESE ARE NOT THINGS YOU HAVE TO FORCE PEOPLE TO DO.

THESE ARE THINGS THEY'D BE HAPPY TO DO, IF THEY HAD THE PROPER, ACCURATE SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO PROTECT THEMSELVES AND OTHERS.

>> ARE YOU CONCERNED, PROFESSOR, THAT PEOPLE ARE GETTING THE INFORMATION THEY NEED, THAT HOSPITALS HAVE THE THINGS THEY NEED?

>> YES, IT'S QUITE CLEAR THAT THEY DON'T, AND ARE PLAYING CATCH UP NOW, BOTH IN TERMS OF THE PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT AND IN TERMS OF THE ACTUAL PROTOCOLS AND TRAINING TO ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO USE THE EQUIPMENT IN A SAFE WAY.

SO, WE'RE LEARNING.

WE'RE ON A FAST LEARNING CURVE.

I THINK THE HOSPITALS ARE LEARNING, BUT THE IDEA THAT EVERYBODY WAS ALL PREPARED FOR THIS IS FANCIFUL.

>> AND AS THE OFFICIALS, PUBLIC HEALTH AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ARE DOING THIS RESPONSE, WHAT ETHICAL ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE THEM?

WHAT ETHICAL ISSUES SHOULD THEY KEEP IN MIND?

>> WELL, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN ANY EPIDEMIC OR ANY THREATENED EPIDEMIC IS TO MAINTAIN THE TRUST OF THE PUBLIC.

AND YOU CAN ONLY DO THAT BY SCRUPULOUSLY TELLING THE TRUTH.

IF YOU KNOW SOMETHING, AND YOU DON'T KNOW SOMETHING, ADMIT THAT YOU DON'T KNOW IT, BUT THAT YOU'RE GOING TO TRY TO LEARN IT.

YOU SHOULD NEVER SAY THAT ALL OUR HOSPITALS ARE PREPARED, AND THEY CAN ALL DEAL WITH EBOLA, WHEN THAT'S NOT TRUE.

>> MANY THANKS, PROFESSOR GEORGE ANNAS OF BOSTON UNIVERSITY, AND KIM LAWTON.

>>> SOME PASTORS IN HOUSTON, TEXAS ARE UP IN ARMS AFTER BEING ORDERED TO TURN OVER THEIR SERMONS TO THE CITY.

THIS WEEK THE CITY'S ATTORNEYS SUBPOENAED SERMONS BY PASTORS WHO HAVE BEEN OPPOSING A NONDISCRIMINATION ORDINANCE THAT AMONG OTHER THINGS WOULD ALLOW TRANSGENDER PEOPLE TO USE THE PUBLIC RESTROOM OF THEIR CHOICE.

CHRISTIAN ACTIVISTS HAVE SUED THE CITY OVER THE ORDINANCE, WHICH HAS NOT YET GONE INTO EFFECT.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ADVOCATES INCLUDING THE INTERFAITH ALLIANCE DENOUNCED THE SUBPOENA AS A VIOLATION OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT, AND SOME PASTORS ARE CALLING FOR CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE.

>>> RECENT NEWS STORIES AND TV SHOWS HAVE BEEN GIVING MORE AND MORE PUBLIC ATTENTION TO PEOPLE WHO ARE TRANSGENDER.

JUDY VALENTE REPORTS TODAY FROM CHICAGO THAT SOME CHURCHES ARE AMONG THOSE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND AND MEET THE NEEDS OF MEN AND WOMEN WHO CHANGE THEIR GENDER.

>> Reporter: EVERY DAY, JORDAN BECKER LIFTS WEIGHTS AT THE GYM, HOPING TO BUILD UP HIS BICEPS AND CHEST MUSCLES.

IT'S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY FROM WHERE BECKER STARTED, PICTURED IN THIS PHOTOGRAPH AT AGE 4.

>> MY SISTERS AND MY MOM ALWAYS TELL ME THAT THEY HAD TO PAY ME TO WEAR DRESSES.

NOW AT THE TIME I DIDN'T KNOW THAT MEANT ANYTHING SIGNIFICANT, YOU KNOW, THAT I WANTED TO BE A MALE, BUT LOOKING BACK IN HINDSIGHT, IT STARTED VERY YOUNG.

>> Reporter: LIKE MANY TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS, BECKER SAYS HE FELT HE WAS BORN TRAPPED INSIDE A BODY THAT WAS, FOR HIM, THE WRONG GENDER.

>> FROM A VERY YOUNG AGE, I ALWAYS KNEW I WAS DIFFERENT.

I CAME OUT AS A LESBIAN, AND IT WAS GOOD FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS, YOU KNOW.

I FELT LIKE I REALLY BELONGED.

BUT THEN AS TIME WENT ON I JUST KIND OF NOTICED THAT SOMETHING STILL FELT -- A PART OF ME WAS MISSING.

>> Reporter: TRANSGENDER ISN'T THE SAME AS BEING HOMOSEXUAL OR MERELY CROSS-DRESSING.

IT'S A FAR MORE COMPLEX PHENOMENON KNOWN CLINICALLY AS "GENDER DYSPHORIA," A SEVERE DISCONTENT WITH ONE'S ASSIGNED SEX.

TRANSGENDER PEOPLE OFTEN TAKE HORMONES AND HAVE SURGERY TO BECOME MORE LIKE THE OPPOSITE SEX.

A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO, BECKER BEGAN INJECTING TESTOSTERONE.

HE HAD HIS BREASTS SURGICALLY REMOVED.

>> MY ONLY REGRET IS THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE PROCESS IS NOT STARTING IT SOONER.

>> Reporter: EMBOLDENED BY THE NEW AMAZON ONLINE SERIES TRANSPARENT AND "ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK" ON NETFLIX, WHICH FEATURES A TRANSGENDER ACTRESS, TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS ARE INCREASINGLY SPEAKING OUT ABOUT THEIR NEEDS AND THEIR LIVES.

AN EPISCOPAL PRIEST RECENTLY CAME OUT AS TRANSGENDER, AND A COMMUNITY OF CARMELITE NUNS IN CANADA JUST ACCEPTED A NOVICE WITH BOTH MALE AND FEMALE PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

THE NOVICE, TIA MICHELLE PESANDO, HAS WRITTEN A BOOK CALLED "WHY GOD DOESN'T HATE YOU."

>> EVEN IN THE PAST 14 YEARS, IT IS AN INCREDIBLE CHANGE IN THE VISIBILITY OF TRANSGENDER PEOPLE IN THE MEDIA, THE NUMBER OF TRANSGENDER ACTIVIST ORGANIZATIONS, PEOPLE WHO ARE TRYING TO CHANGE THE LAW, AND THE MEDICAL SYSTEM FOR TRANS PEOPLE.

IT'S REMARKABLE.

>> Reporter: SOME STUDIES ESTIMATE ABOUT ONE PERCENT OF THE U.S. POPULATION IS TRANSGENDER, BUT THERE ARE NO DEFINITIVE STATISTICS.

>> IT'S SOMETHING THAT OCCURS WITH A MUCH GREATER FREQUENCY THAN MANY OF US THINK IN THIS COUNTRY AND IN THIS WORLD.

I THINK MANY OF THESE CHILDREN AND MANY OF THESE FAMILIES LIVE IN ISOLATION, AND YOU DON'T SEE THEM.

>> Reporter: AND THERE IS LITTLE MEDICAL RESEARCH ABOUT WHAT CAUSES SOME PEOPLE TO WANT TO CHANGE THEIR SEX.

>> THAT'S THE MILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION.

PINNING IT DOWN TO LIKE, YOU KNOW, GENETICS OR HORMONES OR ENVIRONMENT HAS BEEN VERY DIFFICULT, SO THERE'S REALLY NO ANSWER AT THIS POINT.

>> Reporter: AFTER SPENDING THE PAST DECADES STRUGGLING WITH HOW TO MINISTER TO GAYS AND LESBIANS, AND WHETHER TO ORDAIN GAY CLERGY AND ALLOW SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, CHURCHES NOW FACE A NEW MORAL FRONTIER, HOW TO RESPOND TO TRANSGENDER PEOPLE.

>> I THINK THAT IT IS SOMETHING THAT CHURCHES SHOULD LOOK AT IF THEY ARE SEEKING TO BE INTENTIONALLY WELCOMING AND HOSPITABLE PLACES FOR FOLKS WHO STAND ON THE MARGINS OF SOCIETY.

>> Reporter: REVEREND EMILY McGINLEY IS PASTOR OF THE URBAN VILLAGE CHURCH IN THE HYDE PARK SECTION OF CHICAGO, A UNITED METHODIST CHURCH THAT MINISTERS TO A DIVERSE CONGREGATION.

McGINLEY SAYS THAT TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS POSE COMPLEX THEOLOGICAL QUESTIONS.

>> IF THE FIRST IS A GIVEN THAT GOD CREATES ALL, RIGHT, AND THAT GOD DOESN'T MAKE MISTAKES, THEN THE QUESTION SHOULDN'T BE "THEN WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?"

THE QUESTION SHOULD BE WHAT'S WRONG WITH US THAT WE CAN'T, THAT WE DON'T HAVE SPACE FOR FOLKS TO TRANSCEND AND EXPAND OUR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IT CAN BE TO BE FEMALE AND WHAT IT CAN BE TO BE MALE.

>> Reporter: McGINLEY SAYS MANY PASTORS STILL CALL IT A SIN TO TRY TO CHANGE ONE'S SEX.

>> THIS DISCONNECT THAT YOU HAVE WITHIN YOURSELF IS A RESULT OF SOME KIND OF BROKENNESS EITHER THAT YOU HAVE PARTICIPATED IN OR THAT HAS BEEN INFLICTED ON YOU.

>> Reporter: HOW SHOULD CHURCHES BE RESPONDING?

>> THERE'S A LOT WE CAN LEARN FROM OUR TRANSGENDER BROTHERS AND SISTERS.

BUT I ALSO THINK THAT CHURCHES ARE VERY UNLIKELY, EN MASSE ANYWAY, TO EXPLORE THE TOPIC, BECAUSE IT'S MYSTERIOUS, AND IT THREATENS OUR IDEAS OF FIXED BOUNDARIES OF IDENTITY.

>> Reporter: CONSIDER ANDE BIGGS, WHO BEGAN LIFE AS ANDREW, A BOY.

MOST BOYS ARE BORN WITH A SINGLE X AND Y CHROMOSOME.

BIGGS WAS BORN WITH A Y CHROMOSOME AND TWO FEMALE X CHROMOSOMES, A CONDITION KNOWN AS KLINEFELTER'S SYNDROME.

AS A TEEN, BIGGS WAS ATTRACTED TO MALES AND WAS LABELED A HOMOSEXUAL.

>> I'M NOT A GAY MAN, HOWEVER I DO -- I AM INTERESTED IN MEN.

IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT THING TO EXPLAIN TO SOMEONE WHENEVER THEY SEE A BOY AND THAT BOY IS TELLING THEM, "HEY, I LIKE OTHER BOYS, BUT, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT A HOMOSEXUAL."

>> Reporter: THOUGH BIGGS, NOW 19, WAS CERTAIN FROM A YOUNG AGE SHE WAS MEANT TO BE FEMALE, SHE SAYS IT WAS A DIFFICULT DECISION TO ACTUALLY BEGIN INJECTING FEMALE HORMONES.

>> I HAD RECEIVED THE PRESCRIPTION, I HAD THE PAPER, I JUST HAD TO GO TO THE PHARMACY AND GET IT FILLED OUT.

IT TOOK ME FIVE MONTHS TO MENTALLY PREPARE MYSELF, TO KNOW THAT I AM -- I LOVE MYSELF ENOUGH TO DO THIS, LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING I'D BE DOING FOR MYSELF.

>> Reporter: LAURIE MURRAY IS BIGGS'S MOTHER.

>> SEEING HIM GO FROM HATING HIMSELF TO LOVING WHO SHE IS, TO SIT HERE AND HEAR HER SAY SHE LOVES WHAT SHE'S DOING, SHE LOVES HER LIFE, FOR A PARENT THAT'S JUST AWESOME, BECAUSE YEARS AGO HE DIDN'T.

>> Reporter: TRANSGENDER PEOPLE EXPERIENCE HIGH RATES OF HOMELESSNESS, UNEMPLOYMENT, AND DEPRESSION, OFTEN THE RESULT OF DISCRIMINATION.

THEY ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE ARRESTED.

MORE THAN HALF OF ALL TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS REPORT HAVING CONSIDERED SUICIDE.

JORDAN BECKER SAYS HE SOMETIMES LAY IN BED AT NIGHT WONDERING, WHY DOES GOD HATE ME?

HE CONTEMPLATED SUICIDE TWICE BEFORE DECIDING TO BEGIN HIS MALE HORMONAL TREATMENTS.

>> I TRIED DROWNING MYSELF IN A TOILET.

THAT WAS THE LOWEST POINT OF MY LIFE.

>> Reporter: SOCIETY SEEMS TO BE MOVING MUCH FASTER.

THE SCHOOL OF THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO, WHERE A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF THE STUDENTS IDENTIFY AS GAY OR TRANSGENDER, PROVIDES GENDER-NEUTRAL BATHROOMS AND HOUSING.

ADDITIONALLY -- >> WE RECENTLY HAD A CHANGE TO OUR STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE POLICY WHERE WE'RE NOW ABLE TO COVER HORMONE THERAPY AND GENDER REASSIGNMENT SURGERY FOR OUR STUDENTS.

>> Reporter: THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT NOW ALLOWS INDIVIDUALS TO OFFICIALLY CHANGE THEIR SEX ON SOCIAL SECURITY CARDS AND PASSPORTS, AND MANY STATES ALLOW CHANGE TO DRIVER'S LICENSES AND BIRTH CERTIFICATES.

HOWEVER THE MILITARY, WHICH NOW ACCEPTS GAYS, WILL NOT ALLOW OPENLY TRANSGENDER PEOPLE WITHIN ITS RANKS.

JORDAN BECKER SPENT SIX YEARS IN AN ARMY MILITARY POLICE UNIT BUT HAD TO LEAVE THE SERVICE LAST YEAR WHEN HE BEGAN TAKING HORMONES.

>> I CAN STILL SHOOT A WEAPON.

I CAN, YOU KNOW, STILL DRIVE A HUMVEE.

I CAN STILL PROTECT MY FRIENDS, MY SOLDIERS, SO IT'S NOT -- IT'S NOT A GOOD FEELING THAT I WAS WORKING, I WAS PROTECTING MY FREEDOM AND AMERICA'S FREEDOM AND -- BUT IN RETURN, UNDER REGULATIONS, I WAS NOT ACCEPTED.

>> DR. GAROFALO OF LURIE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL SAYS HE'S RECEIVED PROTEST LETTERS FROM RELIGIOUS GROUPS FOR TREATING TRANSGENDER YOUTH.

HE RECALLS ONE OF THE FIRST TEENS HE TREATED.

>> A 15-YEAR-OLD TRANSGENDER GIRL BORN A BOY, AND THEY WANTED ME TO GIVE ESTROGEN TO -- AND I WAS, LIKE, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

LIKE, NO WAY.

IS IT ETHICAL TO DO THAT?

I DIDN'T GET ANY TRAINING IN MEDICAL SCHOOL ABOUT THIS.

I HAD NO IDEA.

THIS WAS TOTALLY NEW.

AND THEN I GOT TO KNOW HER, AND I SPENT TIME WITH HER, AND REALLY OVER THE COURSE OF MONTHS MY ENTIRE MINDSET CHANGED FROM, LIKE, IS IT REALLY ETHICAL TO GIVE THIS GIRL HORMONES TO, LIKE, WOULD IT REALLY BE ETHICAL TO NOT?

>> Reporter: REVEREND McGINLEY SAYS IT'S A TOUGH ISSUE FOR CHURCHES, BECAUSE IT FORCES THEM TO REASSESS WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A PERSON -- SOMETHING TRANSGENDER PEOPLE INSIST GOES BEYOND GENDER AND ANATOMY.

>> GENDER IS A VERY FLUID IDEA.

THERE IS MORE THAN JUST A BINARY MALE-FEMALE.

THERE IS -- IT'S A SPECTRUM.

GENDER IS A SPECTRUM.

>> I FEEL LIKE BEING A TRANSGENDER PERSON IS A GIFT I WAS GIVEN.

IT'S SOMETHING I CONSIDER VERY SACRED.

IT'S ALLOWED ME TO SEE THE WORLD IN VERY DIFFERENT WAYS.

>> WHY WASTE YOUR TIME JUDGING ME?

I'M A NORMAL PERSON.

IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT'S IN MY PANTS OR UNDER MY SHIRT.

>> LIKE JORDAN BECKER, MANY TRANSGENDER PEOPLE LIVE WITH HOPE.

BECKER SAYS AN INSIGHT CAME TO HIM ONE DAY, LIKE A LIGHT BULB TURNING ON, THAT GOD DOESN'T HATE HIM BUT HAS CREATED HIM FOR A SPECIAL PURPOSE.

FOR "RELIGION AND ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY," I'M JUDY VALENTE.

>>> FOR MANY MILLENNIA, IN MANY TRADITIONS, PEOPLE OF FAITH HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED A RESPONSIBILITY TO HELP THE POOR.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO HAS A STORY TODAY ABOUT A LUTHERAN PASTOR IN ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, WHO HAS MADE IT HER MINISTRY TO TAKE THE CHURCH TO THE HUNGRY IN A FOOD TRUCK AND NO SERMON REQUIRED.

>> Reporter: 33 YEAR-OLD MARGARET KELLY CUTS A DISTINCTLY UNORTHODOX PROFILE.

STREET PASTOR IN BLUE JEANS AND COLLAR, LESBIAN AND RECENTLY MARRIED, AND, SHE INSISTS, COMPLETELY ORTHODOX.

>> I AM A COMPANY GIRL.

I LOVE THE LUTHERAN TRADITION, I LOVE THE LUTHERAN THEOLOGY, THE MESSAGE OF GRACE.

BUT THERE'S ALSO A TIME AND A PLACE TO NOT BE HIGH CHURCH.

>> Reporter: HER PLACE IS NOTHING LIKE HIGH CHURCH, THE SIDEWALK IN A STRUGGLING NEIGHBORHOOD IN ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, EVERY THURSDAY AT 11.

>> IF YOU HAVE SOMEONE WITH LIMITED ACCESS TO MONEY, AND NOW THEY HAVE TO GET TO EDUCATION, WORK, THEIR CHILDREN, MAYBE TREATMENT, MAYBE PROBATION, CHURCH IS THE LAST THING THAT YOU CAN EXPECT SOMEONE TO USE THAT MINIMAL RESOURCE ACCESS TO GET TO.

YOU NEED SOMETHING TO EAT?

>> WE ALL NEED SOMETHING TO EAT.

>> OKAY, WE'LL GET YOU SOMETHING TO EAT.

>> Reporter: "SOMETHING TO EAT" IS AT THE HEART OF THIS MINISTRY.

WELL BEFORE THE SERVICE, THE TIME WHEN A PREACHER MIGHT BRUSH UP ON HER SERMON, THIS PREACHER IS IN A KITCHEN WITH A GROUP OF VOLUNTEERS PREPARING FOR, WHAT YOU MIGHT SAY, IS A DIFFERENT KIND OF COMMUNION -- THEY DISTRIBUTE CALZONES.

>> IT'S GROUND BEEF AND MOZZARELLA CHEESE, AND WE FOLD THEM UP AND BAKE THEM ON THE TRUCK ON THE WAY THERE.

>> MY HOPE IS THAT WE CAN DO DIFFERENT FILLINGS THAT REFLECT DIFFERENT CULTURES.

SO MANY CULTURES HAVE A POCKET SANDWICH KIND OF THING, AN EASILY PORTABLE FOOD, AND THIS IS A WAY OF GIVING A NOD TO MANY TRADITIONS.

>> Reporter: THIS CHURCH IS MUCH MORE TAKE-AWAY THAN EAT-IN.

FEW PEOPLE STICK AROUND FOR THE PRAYER SERVICE.

IT DOESN'T BOTHER PASTOR KELLY, EVEN THOUGH THERE'S A PROVEN WAY TO REVERSE THIS.

>> THERE ARE SOME ORGANIZATIONS THAT LIKE TO DO THE PREACHING FIRST BEFORE THEY HAND OUT SOMETHING THAT'S FREE AND, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT SURE THAT'S RESPECTFUL OR DIGNIFIED.

PEOPLE ARE HUNGRY, AND I'M NOT TRYING TO HOLD PEOPLE HOSTAGE WITH THE BIBLE.

THE BIBLE DOESN'T NEED ME TO HOLD PEOPLE HOSTAGE FOR IT.

THE BIBLE SPEAKS FOR ITSELF, GOD SPEAKS FOR GOD'S SELF, AND I AM SIMPLY THE PERSON WHO GETS TO SHARE THAT MESSAGE.

>> Reporter: THE ENTERPRISE RUNS ON A SHOESTRING, WITH DONATIONS FROM THE LOCAL LUTHERAN SYNOD AND CONGREGATIONS, INCLUDING A VERY DIFFERENT ONE LED BY PASTOR RYAN BRODIN, WHO VOLUNTEERS HERE.

>> MY CONGREGATION IS ISOLATED.

IT'S IN A NEIGHBORHOOD IN THE SUBURBS.

FOR THEM AT THIS POINT IN THEIR LIFE, A HOMOSEXUAL PASTOR IN A COMMITTED RELATIONSHIP WOULD HAVE DIFFICULTY BEING THEIR PASTOR.

>> Reporter: HAS PASTOR MARGARET APPEARED BEFORE YOUR CONGREGATION AND HAS SHE PREACHED?

>> SHE CAME, AND SHE SHARED, AND SHE SPOKE OPENLY ABOUT HER RELATIONSHIP -- NOT TO FOCUS ON IT.

SHE CAME TO TALK ABOUT THE MINISTRY BEYOND A CONGREGATION IN THE SUBURBS WRITING A CHECK.

SOME PEOPLE FROM HER CHURCH CAN COME OUT TO MY CHURCH AND VICE VERSA, AND WE CAN HAVE MORE OF A RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE ANOTHER.

>> PEOPLE TALK ABOUT THE CHURCH DYING, I DON'T THINK IT IS, IT'S JUST SHIFTING.

>> Reporter: FOR KELLY, RELATIONSHIPS LIKE THAT WITH THE SUBURBAN CHURCH HELP AFFIRM HER FAITH.

>> LESS THAN TEN YEARS AGO THEY MIGHT NEVER HAVE GIVEN THIS CHURCH MONEY BECAUSE OF WHO I AM.

BECAUSE I MARRIED A WOMAN.

SO I SEE THOSE THINGS AND I THINK GOD'S PRETTY GOOD, BECAUSE THESE ARE RELATIONSHIPS I NEVER WOULD HAVE EXPECTED.

AND I DON'T MEAN THAT TO SOUND TRITE, BECAUSE THOSE ARE JUST SMALL RELATIONSHIPS IN THE WORLD.

BUT IT GIVES ME HOPE THAT WE CAN MOVE TO PLACES WHERE WE ARE NOT BEHEADING JOURNALISTS, WHERE WE ARE NOT SHOOTING YOUNG MEN, WHERE WE ARE NOT DOING THESE THINGS, BECAUSE WE ARE ATTEMPTING TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS ACROSS SOCIO-ECONOMIC DIVIDES.

>> Reporter: THE NEXT DIVIDE SHE MUST CROSS IS FROM INDIAN SUMMER TO MINNESOTA WINTER.

SHE HOPES TO PITCH A HEATED TENT FOR A MINISTRY THAT SHE THINKS WILL GROW STEADILY IN COMING YEARS.

FOR "RELIGION AND ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY," THIS IS FRED DE SAM LAZARO IN ST. PAUL.

>>> FINALLY, ON OUR CALENDAR THIS WEEK, BAHAIS CELEBRATE THE BIRTH OF THE B'AB.

THEY REGARD THE B'AB AS A MESSENGER OF GOD WHO PREPARED THE WAY FOR THE FOUNDER OF THEIR FAITH, BAHA'U'LLAH.

AND, HINDUS, SIKHS AND JAINS BEGIN THE FIVE-DAY CELEBRATION OF DIWALI, THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS.

DIWALI IS PERHAPS THE MOST WELL-KNOWN HINDU FESTIVAL, HONORING LAKSHMI, THE GODDESS OF WEALTH.

THAT'S OUR PROGRAM FOR NOW.

I'M BOB ABERNETHY.

YOU CAN FOLLOW US ON TWITTER AND FACEBOOK AND WATCH US ANYTIME ON THE PBS APP FOR iPHONES AND iPADS.

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AS WE LEAVE YOU, MORE SCENES FROM PAST DIWALI CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE WORLD.

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