Carrying the cross: a profane act or religious act? Recently, in Brazil, a transsexual performed the crucifixion of Jesus. As one would guess, this event had a very strong response from Christians around the country.

I wonder, however, if the feelings of outrage are just feelings, or if the claim of disrespect of the religion(s) is well supported? After all, the controversy seems much more related to the context&mdash; the fact that it was performed during the gay parade by a transsexual&mdash; than to the act itself. It's not clear to me in which sense a performance (religious in intention, rather than mockery) is considered profane according to Christianity.

I understand the attitude towards religious symbols (and specifically of the crucifixion) and performing the passion might differ across many Christian groups. In that case, I'd be more interested in the Catholic view and an overview of the Baptist (and perhaps Presbyterian) positions on this matter.
The procession of the Way of the Cross is an important Catholic tradition, so any criticism of a transgender person taking part in such a procession can only be based on the person's gender identity. However, it is possible for Christians to object to participation in an actual mock crucifixion, and the evidence for this is mixed.

Crucifixion in the Philippines is a devotional practice held every Good Friday, where the custom is said to be strongly discouraged by the Catholic Church in the Philippines. How 'strongly' is unclear, since the Church has not stamped out the practice even in urban centres.

A school in Brazil has had very young children enact crucifixions for Holy Week complete with fake wounds and a crown of thorns. Although the children suffered no physical harm, the practice has been condemned by some as akin to manipulation, but the story has also attracted many Facebook 'likes'. What is interesting here is that this kind of play-acting by children can only encourage adults to act out crucifixion, yet there is no evidence the Church hierarchy has condemned it. 

The bishops of Brazil have, however, condemned a Brazilian sports magazine for printing photo-shopped photos of famous soccer star Neymar, in which he appears to be crucified. Their concern seems to be more with the inappropriate use of religious images than with the inappropriateness of mock crucifixion. 

A symbolic reenactment of the crucifixion of Christ performed in Brazil at World Youth Day, attended by Pope Francis, can only encourage those who believe these reenactments have papal support.

The news item suggests that even the gay parade itself drew condemnation. There is no suggestion that those taking part were not as sincere as other Christians taking part in Way of the Cross parades on Good Friday, so the objection appears to be to gays openly parading their Christian faith, rather than a suggestion they were mocking the faith. The actual reenactment by a transgender person drew a strong response, including a death threat. If there were evidence that others who have taken part in reenactments in Brazil have been denounced in the same way, then we could say the objections were grounded on objections to profane performances, but this is not the case.

The position of the Catholic Church is ambiguous. On the one hand, Filipino bishops frequently object to reenactments in the Philippines, on the other hand, we are told that a crucifixion reeneactment was part of the entertainment at a World Youth Day attended by Pope Francis, in Brazil.

The Baptist and Presbyterian Churches are not so well represented in Brazil, but here we see a fairly casual non-denominational parade that takes place in Australia every year. Churches participating in the Walk for the Cross were St. Giles Presbyterian Church, The Seventh Day Adventist, St. John The Baptist Anglican Church, St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, and St. Matthew Wesley United Church. There is no suggestion that the Walk ends in a mock crucifixion.