A composer brings music, joy and trans visibility to her church
Written by Kate Sosin, LGBTQ+ Reporter
Originally published on March 27, 2026 for The19thNews.org
Republished on June 17, 2026
While religion has been used for decades to ostracize many transgender people, Rachel Burckardt has found that her faith drives acceptance in her community.
Rachel Burckardt is a 71-year-old transgender civil engineer who composes spiritual music for her Catholic church on nights and weekends. (Emily Scherer for The 19th)
There are congregations that would brand her a sinner. But here at St. Cecilia’s Roman Catholic Church in Boston, Rachel Burckardt gives voice to the angels.
She’s 71, transgender, a civil engineer by day, and a composer of spiritual music by nights and weekends.
While religion has been used for decades to ostracize many transgender people, Burckardt has found that faith drives acceptance in her community. It has been the bedrock on which she has formed her closest friendships, found moral clarity in challenging times and built radically inclusive communities in greater Boston.
Burckardt’s music is not unlike her life. She aims to produce something bright and whole, but what makes it good, she thinks, is an element, maybe a minor chord or note, that hits the ear differently, that gives it depth or sadness.
“It’s kind of like what goes along with some gender ambiguity,” she said. “It starts out off in unison and breaks into these not too difficult, but just unexpected chords.”
A place in the church
Burckardt transitioned in September 2010 at the age of 57 while a member of St. Cecilia’s, a parish she had been attending for five years.
The Catholic Church does not have an official policy on transgender people but has long been regarded as generally anti-trans due to teachings that men and women are created in the image of God and that gender is unchangeable. Pope Leo XIV has signaled that this stance is not likely to change under his tenure but has also expressed a welcoming attitude toward LGBTQ+ Catholics since his selection last year.
When Burckardt told her pastor she was transitioning, he responded that she should just make sure she knew what she was doing. When she told other friends in the church, they affirmed her and encouraged her to listen to God.
Burckardt’s friend of 20 years, Mary Casiello, notes that in the early aughts many Boston parishes closed due to sex abuse scandals. Some of them were absorbed by St. Cecilia’s, where Burckardt attends church. Among them was a Jesuit urban center in the South End neighborhood, a gay enclave in Boston, and many LGBTQ+ people came from the center and joined St. Cecilia’s
Still, Burckardt was hesitant about telling her fellow parishioners she was trans, Casiello said.
“I know Rachel was very scared when she came out about losing her position,” she said. “The whole music ministry program was like, this is who you are, and you’re such a huge part of this community.”
Her church community wanted her to be herself.
To Burckardt, this is how religion should work. God is not about arbitrary rules. Faith is about loving other people as they are…
To read the complete article, go to: https://19thnews.org/2026/03/composer-rachel-burckardt-trans-visibility-music-acceptance-church/
