The Vatican has said it is permissible, under certain circumstances, for trans people to be baptized as Catholics and serve as godparents.
This statement comes after the national conference of Catholic bishops in the USA rejected the concept of gender transition.
This has left many transgender Catholics feeling excluded and discriminated.
According to AP News, the Vatican's statement was signed Oct. 21 by Pope Francis and Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, who heads the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
It was posted Wednesday on the office’s website.
If it did not cause scandal or “disorientation” among other Catholics, a transgender person “may receive baptism under the same conditions as other faithful,” the document said.
The document also said trans adults — even if they had undergone gender-transition surgery — could serve as godfathers or godmothers under certain conditions.
Pope Francis has frequently expressed an interest in making the Catholic Church more welcoming to LGBTQ people.
Despite the Pope's stance, there are many doctrines within the church rejecting same-sex marriage and sexual activity remain firmly in place.
The statement was a response to a letter submitted in July by a Brazilian bishop asking about LGBTQ people’s possible participation in baptisms and weddings.
The statement still maintains a ban on same-sex couples serving as godparents.
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