Sally Gross | LGBTQ+ History Month

“As an intersex person of faith myself, I am inspired by Sally’s powerful combination of intersex advocacy and her dedication to her religious faith, even in the face of having her clergy status revoked.”

- Marissa Adams

Sally Gross (1953–2014) was an intersex person and a fierce advocate for intersex rights. She was also notably an intersex person of faith. I first learned of Sally Gross after watching the documentary Intersexion (available on Amazon), which featured many intersex advocates from around the world telling their stories.

When I first watched the documentary in 2015, I was still in the process of accepting myself and was amazed by the relatedness of all the people in the documentary. I was especially intrigued by Sally Gross and her religious experience. In addition to being an intersex advocate, she was an ordained priest of the Dominican Order (part of the Roman Catholic Church). As an intersex advocate, Sally advocated against the practice of “corrective surgery” on intersex children, also called medically unnecessary surgeries or sex-normalizing intersex surgeries. Sally experienced a significant amount of stigma related to being intersex when the Church stripped Sally of her clergy for being intersex.

As someone passionate about her religion, Sally was rightfully hurt by this action; in her own words, reported by Intersex Human Rights Australia, “Rejection by my Order and the Roman Curia still hurts, and I still miss religious life [...] I sent a formal letter to the Roman Curia to protest at the dishonesty with which I was handled. I felt bound to express some outrage while seeking closure. Unsurprisingly, there was no response.”

As an intersex person of faith myself, I am inspired by Sally’s powerful combination of intersex advocacy and her dedication to her religious faith, even in the face of having her clergy status revoked. Although intersex people have a long history of being perceived as intrinsically “disordered” medically, legally, and even religiously, there is also a history of resilience and challenging medicolegal/religious hierarchies. Theologian Stephanie Budwey said in the book Religion and Intersex: Perspectives from Science, Law, Culture, and Theology, “What if intersex individuals could be seen as showing forth God’s divine will in the embracing of the diversity of God’s creation and the multiplicity of human embodiment?”. I could not agree more.

LGBTQ+ History Month: Connected

This month, as our community highlights stories of LGBTQ+ ancestors who inspire us to be more faithful; we’re inviting you to be a part of the next generation of LGBTQ+ history by making a donation to QCF.

Will you be one of 30 new donors this month to offer your first-ever gift, as your means allow? It can be a gift of $1, $5, $10, or $25! Any amount is significant. Each first-time gift of any amount unlocks an extra $100 donation in matching funds, up to $3,000!