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Guidelines Developed for Amending Church Records for Identity Changes

February 8, 2021
Office of Public Affairs

At the request of General Convention (2018-A088), The Archives of The Episcopal Church has prepared a set of recommendations for developing local policy on name and gender changes to Episcopal Church records.  The Guidelines for Policy on Amending Church Records for Name and Gender Changes are available on the Archives Website with Spanish translation and supporting resources and links.

The guidelines may be used by parishes and dioceses to address individuals’ requests to align name and gender entries with usage they have legally adopted in civil jurisdictions.  Name and gender identity in records is particularly sensitive to instances where individuals seek to safeguard their privacy, protect themselves from harm, or simply to revise records that do not accurately represent their identity. 

The guidelines were approved for distribution by Executive Council resolution at its October 9–11, 2020 meeting.