Posted: Thu May 17, 2007 12:58 pm Post subject: Why women don't hold the priesthood
Is there a solid doctrinal reason why women do not hold the priesthood?
I don't want this to sound so harsh, but please do not reply with well-intentioned faith-inspired speculation.
I need articles or scriptural references to back-up what you say.
You are welcome to private message me about this. Perhaps the answer is not for the general public. But I feel if I can ask the question I **might** be ready for the answer. _________________
"Priesthood
The priesthood is the eternal power and authority of God. Through the priesthood God created and governs the heavens and the earth. Through this power He redeems and exalts His children, bringing to pass "the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39). God gives priesthood authority to worthy male members of the Church so they can act in His name for the salvation of His children. Priesthood holders can be authorized to preach the gospel, administer the ordinances of salvation, and govern the kingdom of God on the earth.
John 15:16; Acts 8:14–20; James 5:14–15; D&C 13; 20; 84; 107; Joseph Smith–History 1:68–73"
Joined: 31 Dec 2005 Posts: 2151
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Posted: Thu May 17, 2007 3:50 pm Post subject:
Quote:
LDS.org/Gospel Library/Gospel Topics
Women in the Church
In weekly worship services and classes, women preach sermons, offer prayers in behalf of the congregation, and teach adults and children. They may also serve as missionaries and as presidents of the Relief Society, Young Women, and Primary organizations. Women participate in councils that oversee congregational activities throughout the world. They also perform a vital work in nurturing and teaching in the home.
Additional Information
Every willing member of the Church has many opportunities to render service, share talents, and gain new skills. Every week, women preach, teach, and lead in the Church on local and worldwide levels.
In addition, women in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints belong to and lead the Relief Society, an organization of several million women worldwide. Women also lead the Church’s Young Women organization and the Primary, an organization for teaching children. The leaders of these organizations meet regularly in executive councils to help make decisions that affect the worldwide Church. These organizations also exist on the local level, with women participating in council meetings to discuss and direct the work of the Church in local units.
A woman—the president of the Relief Society in each congregation—has a special role in working with the congregational leader, or bishop, to meet the needs of members who may struggle financially or who may face other special challenges in their lives.
The priesthood—the authority of God to perform ordinances and act in His name—is conferred only on worthy male members of the Church. Men who hold the priesthood have no advantage over women in qualifying for salvation or eternal life through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
Quote:
LDS.org/Gospel Library/Gospel Topics
Foreordination
Before the creation of the earth, faithful women were given certain responsibilities and faithful men were foreordained to certain priesthood duties.
Gospel Library > Gospel Topics
Quote:
“Lesson 13: Women and the Priesthood,” The Latter-day Saint Woman: Basic Manual for Women, Part A, 91
The purpose of this lesson is to help us understand how the priesthood can bless us as women.
The Priesthood Benefits All Church Members
“[The priesthood] is … the power of God delegated to man by which man can act in the earth for the salvation of the human family” (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 5th ed. [1939], 139). The Lord has assigned to men the chief responsibility for the governing and presiding over the affairs of the Church and the family. They in turn are to use this sacred power to bless and benefit all members of the Church—men, women, and children. President Brigham Young said:
“Priesthood is to be used for the benefit of the entire human family, for the upbuilding of men, women, and children alike. There is indeed no privileged class or sex within the true Church of Christ. … Men have their work to do and their powers to exercise for the benefit of all the members of the Church. …
“So with woman: Her special gifts are to be exercised for the benefit and uplift of the race” (quoted by John A. Widtsoe, comp., in Priesthood and Church Government, rev. ed. [1954], 92–93).
Men and women have different but equally important responsibilities in the home and the Church. Priesthood power can help each person perform those responsibilities for the benefit of all.
Because priesthood power is on the earth today, great blessings are available to all worthy Church members, whether they are old or young, male or female, single or married.
• What can women do to honor the priesthood?
Many privileges and blessings of the priesthood are discussed in lesson 12, “Priesthood Ordinances.”
Elder John A. Widtsoe explained other benefits of the priesthood:
“Men have no greater claim than women upon the blessings that issue from the Priesthood and accompany its possession. …
“The man holds the Priesthood, performs the priestly duties of the Church, but his wife enjoys with him every other privilege derived from the possession of the Priesthood. This is made clear, as an example, in the Temple service of the Church. The ordinances of the Temple are distinctly of Priesthood character, yet women have access to all of them, and the highest blessings of the Temple are conferred only upon a man and his wife jointly” (Priesthood and Church Government [1965], 83).
Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained the companionship role of the priesthood and women: “In the true Patriarchal Order man holds the priesthood and is the head of the household, … but he cannot attain a fulness of joy here or of eternal reward hereafter alone. Woman stands at his side a joint-inheritor with him in the fulness of all things. Exaltation and eternal increase is her lot as well as his. (D. & C. 131:1–4.) Godhood is not for men only; it is for men and women together. (D. & C. 132:19–20)” (Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed. [1966], 844).
• What blessings have come to you because of the priesthood?
Every Member Should Honor and Support the Priesthood
Just as everyone in the Church benefits from the priesthood, so everyone is responsible for honoring and sustaining the priesthood. Priesthood bearers are continually reminded “that the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness” (D&C 121:36). Women are likewise counseled to honor the priesthood, to be grateful for its power, and to show respect to those who hold it. We are also responsible to support the priesthood. To support means “to promote the interests or cause of; … to uphold or defend as valid or right” (Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed. [1993], “Support,” 1184).
Some ways we can honor and support the priesthood are suggested in the following scriptures:
• Display a poster of the following list or refer to the information on the chalkboard. As each scripture is read, ask the sisters to listen for suggestions to help them honor the priesthood. Beside each reference write the suggestion given.
Doctrine and Covenants
D&C 19:23: learn of Jesus Christ, listen to His word, be teachable
D&C 20:33: take heed, pray always
D&C 58:26–27: be anxiously engaged in a good cause
D&C 64:33–34: be not weary in well-doing
A Woman’s Relationship to Priesthood Leadership in the Home
It is the husband’s responsibility to preside and provide leadership in the home. A Melchizedek Priesthood quorum manual explained:
“In the perspective of the gospel, ‘leadership’ does not mean the right to dictate, command, and order. On the contrary, it means to guide, protect, point the way, set the example, make secure, inspire, and create a desire to sustain and follow. Literally, the husband is to lead the way” (The Savior, the Priesthood and You [Melchizedek Priesthood course of study, 1973–74], 172).
While the father is the leader in the home, “his wife is his most important companion, partner, and counselor” (Family Guidebook [1999], 2). A husband and wife must work together to strengthen their family and teach their children the principles of the gospel. By fulfilling her role as counselor to her husband, a woman can reinforce her husband’s position as head of the home and encourage greater family unity.
We also honor the priesthood when we treat our husbands with the same gentleness, kindness, and love they should maintain as bearers of the priesthood. The Prophet Joseph Smith counseled the Relief Society to “teach women how to behave towards their husbands, to treat them with mildness and affection. When a man is borne down with trouble, when he is perplexed with care and difficulty, if he can meet a smile instead of an argument or a murmur—if he can meet with mildness, it will calm down his soul and soothe his feelings; when the mind is going to despair, it needs a solace of affection and kindness” (History of the Church, 4:606–7).
Trust and unity can be found in a home where both husband and wife earnestly seek the best interests and happiness of the other. In such a setting, both will have joy in their association, and each will have opportunities to attain fulfillment.
In a revelation given to Emma Smith, wife of the Prophet Joseph, the role of a wife and her relationship to the priesthood is set forth. The Lord told her:
“Thou art an elect lady, whom I have called. …
“And the office of thy calling shall be for a comfort unto my servant, Joseph Smith, Jun., thy husband, in his afflictions, with consoling words. …
“Continue in the spirit of meekness, and beware of pride. Let thy soul delight in thy husband, and the glory which shall come upon him.
“Keep my commandments continually, and a crown of righteousness thou shalt receive” (D&C 25:3, 5, D&C 25:14–15).
• What was Emma instructed to do for her husband? What are the blessings that come from following this same counsel today?
Support to Priesthood Bearers in the Home
As women in the Church, we can have great influence on the priesthood holders in our home. We can support and encourage our husbands, fathers, brothers, and sons in fulfilling their priesthood responsibilities. If we request a blessing and then honor that blessing, we communicate our support of the priesthood. We can also strengthen the priesthood bearers in our home by including them in our prayers. The Prophet Joseph Smith counseled women of the Church to “concentrate their faith and prayers for, and place confidence in their husbands; … that we should arm and sustain them with our prayers” (History of the Church, 4:604–5).
We must work continually to perfect our own characters and fulfill our responsibilities. We may also need to encourage and gently remind priesthood holders in our home to honor and magnify their priesthood callings. Young women as well as mothers can do much to encourage young men to attend their meetings and prepare to serve missions. Elder David B. Haight said: “You young ladies have a profound influence on young, masculine behavior. … Your influence with young men is important. You encourage Church standards and dress and conduct” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1977, 85; or Ensign, Nov. 1977, 56–57).
When a wife has a positive attitude about her husband’s duties in the Church, it makes it easier for him to carry out those duties. Her attitude also communicates to their children that having the priesthood in the home is a great blessing.
• How can a woman organize her daily activities so that she can better support her husband in his priesthood callings?
A Woman’s Relationship to Priesthood Bearers in the Church
Just as a righteous woman can exert much influence for good by sustaining the priesthood bearers in her own home, she can also strengthen the Church when she supports the leaders in her branch or ward and district or stake. We support our leaders when we accept Church callings willingly and fulfill them faithfully, realizing that a call from the priesthood is a call from the Lord. We can honor the counsel of priesthood leaders—our husbands, home teachers, bishops or branch presidents, stake or district leaders, and General Authorities. We should refrain from criticizing priesthood leaders and teach our children to do the same. Sustaining and supporting the priesthood is more than just raising our hands or saying that we support the priesthood. It is learning, praying, obeying, and serving in a good cause.
The Lord has provided priesthood leaders to set the course to follow, under the Lord’s direction. Our responsibility, then, is to listen and heed righteous counsel as though it were from the Lord. “And whatsoever they [priesthood leaders] shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be … the will of the Lord, … the mind of the Lord, … the word of the Lord, … and the power of God unto salvation” (D&C 68:4).
When Harold B. Lee was President of the Quorum of the Twelve, he gave the following advice to all Church members about supporting priesthood leaders and particularly the prophet: “We must learn to give heed to the words and commandments that the Lord shall give through his prophet, ‘as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me; … as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.’ (D&C 21:4–5.) There will be some things that take patience and faith. You may not like what comes from the authority of the Church. It may contradict your political views. It may contradict your social views. It may interfere with some of your social life. But if you listen to these things, as if from the mouth of the Lord himself, with patience and faith, the promise is that ‘the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name’s glory.’ (D&C 21:6)” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1970, 152; or Improvement Era, Dec. 1970, 126).
Conclusion
The priesthood is a great blessing from God to all of His children. All members of the Church should honor the priesthood and develop Christlike attributes in their relationships with each other in the home and the Church. Women who are trying to develop these qualities can strengthen priesthood bearers and bless their families and the Church. The happiness and influence of women will increase as they honor and follow their priesthood leaders.
Challenge
Use this lesson to increase your understanding of the priesthood role in your family.
Additional Scriptures
• 1 Corinthians 11:3, 8–12 (relationship of man and woman)
• Colossians 3:18–24 (love one another)
• 1 Peter 3:5–7 (honor one another)
Quote:
Priesthood authority functions in both the family and the Church. The priesthood is the power of God used to bless all of His children, male and female. Some of our abbreviated expressions, like “the women and the priesthood,” convey an erroneous idea. Men are not “the priesthood.” Priesthood meeting is a meeting of those who hold and exercise the priesthood. The blessings of the priesthood, such as baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, the temple endowment, and eternal marriage, are available to men and women alike. The authority of the priesthood functions in the family and in the Church, according to the principles the Lord has established.
Quote:
Dallin H. Oaks, “Priesthood Authority in the Family and the Church,” Liahona, Nov 2005, 24–27
When my father died, my mother presided over our family. She had no priesthood office, but as the surviving parent in her marriage she had become the governing officer in her family. At the same time, she was always totally respectful of the priesthood authority of our bishop and other Church leaders. She presided over her family, but they presided over the Church.
Quote:
Patricia T. Holland, “A Woman’s Perspective on the Priesthood,” Ensign, Jul 1980, 24
From an address delivered at the Brigham Young University Women’s Conference, 1 February 1980. Used with permission of Brigham Young University Press.
President Spencer W. Kimball stated in a fireside address to the women of the Church, “We had full equality as his spirit children.” He then went on to say that “within those great assurances, however, our roles and assignments differ” (Ensign, Nov. 1979, p. 102).
I believe that every one of us has a specific mission to fulfill on this earth and with some literary license I quote from Doctrine and Covenants 121:25: “For there is a time appointed for every man [and woman], according as [their] works shall be.” [D&C 121:25]
And Doctrine and Covenants 46:11–12: “For all have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts, and to every man [and woman] is given a gift by the Spirit of God.
“To some is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby.” [D&C 46:11–12]
I believe that we made sacred promises in premortal councils regarding our role in building the kingdom of God on earth. In turn we were promised the gifts and powers necessary to fulfill those very special tasks. I would like to quote from President Kimball again: “Remember, in the world before we came here, faithful women were given certain assignments while faithful men were foreordained to certain priesthood tasks. … You are accountable for those things which long ago were expected of you just as are those we sustain as prophets and apostles!” (Ensign, Nov. 1979, p. 102). I also believe that those assignments and roles differ as much from woman to woman as they do from man to woman.
We’ve all been taught to have role models. It is good to have someone to look up to. However, there is great danger in wanting to be too much like someone else. We will feel competitive jealousy and self-defeat. No two people are the same. Some women have been given large families, some small, and some none at all. Many wives are exercising their gifts and talents in sustaining husbands in their work as community leaders, business leaders, stake presidents, bishops, or General Authorities, and encouraging their children’s development. Other women apply their gifts and talents directly as leaders in their own right. Still other women combine both the supportive and the direct roles in exercising their gifts and thus serve in dual capacities. We all know there was a great difference between the assignments of, say, Mary Fielding Smith and Eliza R. Snow. Yet both eagerly sought the will of the Lord. Both sought marriage and family. Both gave everything they had to the kingdom.
It seems clear, then, that our greatest task is to live worthily enough to know step by step what the Lord’s will is regarding us, remembering that occasionally what we may want to do today because of the trends and vanities of the world may not be what we covenanted to do long ago. We should be willing to live and pray like Mary, the mother of Jesus, when she said to the angel who had just given her her assignment, “Be it unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:3.
Let me use a personal example for a moment. Three of us participating in this conference are neighbors Sister Ardeth Kapp lives a couple of homes to the west of me and you know the truly unique contribution she has made to the kingdom of God. Ardeth is one of the purest, sweetest, strongest women I know. Her husband Heber is a great strength as our stake president. The Kapps have not yet been blessed with any children. A couple of homes to the east of me lives Joan Quinn. Joan is also one of the purest, sweetest, strongest women I know. She is having a great influence with all who know her. Her husband Ed is a brilliant and able man—another stable and inspiring influence in our lives. The Quinns have been blessed with twelve children. My husband and I are doing what we can in the kingdom. We have been blessed with three children.
Some women I know have not yet been blessed with a mate or a marriage. Yet they too are building the kingdom every day and blessing me personally through our association. Four very different examples are Carolyn Rasmus and Marilyn Arnold, whom I treasure as dear friends here at BYU; Randi Greene, my husband’s gifted secretary whose contribution to our lives is personal as well as professional; and the nurse I recently had who nurtured me through serious surgery and near-fatal complications attending it. Obviously the list of women who bless me and bless the Church could go on and on. My point with all of this is that Ardeth and Joan and Carolyn and Marilyn and Randi and Pat are all very different. Presently, we all have different roles in life. Perhaps these roles will change for each of us in the years ahead. Yet we love each other very much and we have always loved the men in our lives—fathers, brothers, friends, husbands, sons. And we love the priesthood. Each of us—each of you—must want the right things, must pursue the right things, and must give all that we have to the kingdom with an eye single to God and the covenants we’ve made. In President David O. McKay’s oft-repeated admonition, “Whate’er Thou Art, Act Well Thy Part” (Cherished Experiences from the Writings of President David O. McKay, comp. Clare Middlemiss, Salt Lake. City: Deseret Book, 1976, p. 160).
Of course, to do this we must live close to the Spirit through prayer, study, and righteous living in order to avoid the distractions and more selfish goals which might frustrate the Lord’s design for us and cause us to forsake it. For when that occurs I believe we will feel frustrated and forsaken and not feel the peace and security that can only come from fulfilling the mission that is ours. To paraphrase John F. Kennedy, ask not what the kingdom can do for you, but what you can do for the kingdom. Whatever our role is, we must seek it through righteous living and personal revelation. We must not lean on the arm of flesh nor the philosophies of men—or women. We must have our own personal liahona. That is exactly what the Lord expects of priesthood bearers also.
In fact, all of this is to stress that we cherish differences—not only from man to woman but from woman to woman. In discussing the relationship of women with their special assignments and men with their priesthood tasks, I find it much more useful to speak in the language of obligations and responsibilities, rather than in the language of “rights.” Frankly, I’m weary of rights fights, rights movements, and rights marches—male, female, or any other kind. So I want today to speak of obligations and I cite as a source these impressive lines of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn:
“It is time, in the West, to defend not so much human rights as human obligations. Destructive and irresponsible freedom has been granted boundless space [in the free world]. [Western] Society appears to have little defense against … human decadence, … [and] the misuse of liberty for moral violence. … This is considered to be part of freedom, … [but] life organized [so] legalistically has thus shown its inability to defend itself against the corrosion of evil” (“A World Split Apart,” National Review, 7 July 1978, p. 838; italics added).
I believe if we respond to our responsibilities, our rights will take care of themselves—for male or female. As I was supporting my husband through his Ph.D. at Yale University, our neighbor who was doing his residency in psychiatry commented one day that I was showing overt signs of weariness. Jeff was then not only a busy student trying to complete a four-year degree in three years but was in a stake presidency and, to help ends meet, taught two Institute classes at Yale and one at Amherst College, necessitating a ninety-mile drive each way once a week. I was at home with two small babies trying to stretch the meager budget of young married students. I was also serving eagerly in the Church as a young Relief Society president. This particular neighbor, out of concern and intended helpfulness, said, “Pat, why don’t you stand up for your rights and say to heck with all of this?” At that time I knew through prayer that my rights, whatever they were, had to be put in the perspective of my obligation to pursue long-range goals. I certainly never thought Jeff’s degree was only for his future. And he never thought the children belonged only to me. We were in all of this together, and we didn’t waste any energy shouting about rights. That time was intense and difficult, but it lasted only three years. As a direct consequence of my supportive role then, I now have time, means, and wonderful opportunities to pursue many of my interests and talents in addition to being very much a wife and mother. Furthermore, I know—and love knowing—that my ultimate role and mission will always include the particular joys of providing loving and wise support to others as they fulfill their own assignments.
If your role or assignment is a supportive one—and many of us will often have that role—we must study and prepare ourselves enough to articulate to the world that we are not apologizing for strengthening the home, but are rather pursuing our highest priorities, personally, socially, and theologically.
Several months ago I attended with my husband a two-week seminar in Israel for Moslems, Christians, and Jews. The participants were editors of newspapers, former ambassadors, priests, rabbis, university presidents, and professors. During that two-week period nearly every participant made it a point to ask me about Mormon women. Though many of the other wives attending were living as I do—staying at home, raising children—I was the one singled out.
We will stand out. We should be a light on a hill. It is our responsibility to study, prepare, and work at being articulate enough to teach the truth about our priorities and privileges as women in the Church.
In light of such obligations (as opposed to rights) consider the revelation we have all come to love so much from Joseph Smith’s experience in Liberty Jail. Isn’t it ironic that the scene of so few rights, of so little freedom, and of so much abusive authority should be the setting for such profound revelation on rights and freedom and the use of authority? I suppose in just such settings the Lord really has our full attention and uses our pain (in this case, Joseph Smith’s pain) as a megaphone for very significant instructions. These familiar passages are lengthy but beautiful, and for my small part on this program, very important:
“Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
“Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men, that they do not learn this one lesson—
“That the rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.
“That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.
“We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
“No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;
“By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile.
“Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven.
“The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever”? (D&C 121:34–37, 39, 41–42, 45–46).
It seems very important to note that as the Lord speaks to the Prophet Joseph of rights—and he does speak of rights—they are conveyed by and supported by and surrounded with all kinds of instructions about obligations and responsibilities. The privileges of the priesthood are not isolated from duties and neither are the privileges of women. Note the opening lines—Why are so few chosen after so many have been called? “Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world, and aspire to the honors of men” (D&C 121:35).
This world is not our ultimate home; and while we do have to live here and live here constructively, we are not ever, as Christians, really of this world. And we do not seek its praise. I quote again from President Kimball:
“Among the real heroines in the world who will come into the Church are women who are more concerned with being righteous than with being selfish. These real heroines have true humility, which places a higher value on integrity than on visibility. Remember, it is as wrong to do things just to be seen of women as it is to do things to be seen of men” (Ensign, Nov. 1979, p. 104).
I cannot speak for anyone but myself; I suppose you already know that. But for me there is not now nor will there ever be a political issue of this world more important to me than my eternal life in the next. It isn’t that I believe earthly political issues are not important. They are. It is just that the eternal kingdom of God is all important. If I want to be chosen as well as called (incidentally, a privilege, not a right, which I desire very much), then my devotion must be to a ruler who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who knows me and knows my needs and to whom I must be loyal.
I take this digression simply to make the point again that this world, work in it as we must, is not our home. Our hearts must not be set upon things here too much. We must not seek the praise of men more than the praise of God. That is, we must not if we believe the kingdom of God, as we now know it in the institutional Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is rolling forward under God’s hand so that the kingdom of heaven may come. Nothing must divert us from that belief and that mission, to fully realize the triumphant return of the Prince of Peace. I promise you that that return will be orchestrated through the Church with its eternal mission and not through politics with its temporal demise. In that sense, members of the Church are all foot soldiers in the same army, a battalion led by Christ and drilled by the prophets. (That is a righteous infantry, for which women will volunteer and won’t have to be drafted.)
After that aside, I go on with section 121. Why have people trapped in this worldly concern not remembered just this one lesson: “that the rights of the priesthood [and womanhood] are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only [or except] upon the principles of righteousness” (D&C 121:36)?
Isn’t it interesting that rights, as approached in this language from the Lord, seem to say nothing male or female. Though the verse speaks of priesthood, surely every woman’s rights and powers are conditional on exactly the same premise. Those are the rules of the game for everyone—male, female, black, white, bond, or free (see 2 Ne. 26:33). I’m belaboring the point a bit only because it is the one point I bring to you today. Can it be that if we keep the commandments—commandments that are common to us all—then the day will come that in eternal recompense, God will say to everyone, male and female, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things” (Matt. 25:21).
The rest of section 121 you know, so we needn’t follow it in detail, but note the resolution of so many potential problems: Verse 37 says we are not “to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, [or] our vain ambition.” [D&C 121:37] Are those commandments only to males? Only to females? Or to both? We are told not “to exercise control or dominion or compulsion” on others in unrighteousness. Is that counsel only for men? Only for women? Or for both? How should men exercise influence in the kingdom of God? How should women? Words like persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, love unfeigned—are those male qualities? Or female qualities? Or are they finally just some non-negotiable qualities of a Christlike life, male and female? I think the latter.
And those last two verses—45 and 46. Are women the only ones who should have their bowels “full of charity”? Are men the only ones who should “garnish” their thoughts with virtue? Is the Holy Ghost a “constant companion” only for priesthood bearers? [D&C 121:45–46] Are women the only ones who might hold “an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth”? Will either a man or a woman have “an everlasting dominion” without the other? The questions give their own answers in the asking. When the Lord speaks of righteousness, there isn’t any conflict over gender—all of which leads me to ask, why is there such incredible energy expended by Latter-day Saint men and/or women over issues like women and the priesthood?
I offer this one answer to my own question. It seems to me that if there is a conflict, it is because someone, male or female, isn’t living the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, I did not say that the person who has the concern isn’t living the gospel. That may or may not be true. What I said is that someone isn’t living the gospel. A woman in pain may be living the gospel the very best she knows how and yet still find herself hurting. But if that’s the case, I still believe that someone in her life isn’t living—or hasn’t lived—the gospel: some man she knows, some men she has known, some woman, some group of women she knows. Somewhere, somehow, promises have not been kept or obligations have not been honored, and thus the hurt. But that is not a priesthood problem. The most we can say is that it’s a man or woman problem. Thus, the responsibility is on us all, male and female, to live as section 121 prescribes and as every other Christlike example requires. With that kind of loving male and female relationship and with those kinds of promises, the pain and despair and frustrations of this world disappear. I believe that with all my heart. The answers to our challenges are gospel answers (priesthood answers if you will), not male or female answers. They are promises to the faithful. Note again the beautiful gifts of verse 45 and verse 46. [D&C 121:45–46]
Let me close with a final concrete example from one not of our faith. President Oaks told me of this inspiring application of the very point I am trying to make about choices and obligations. As you know, President Oaks as a young law professor was closely associated with Justice Lewis M. Powell, now of the Supreme Court. Justice Powell’s daughter was herself a recent graduate of a fine law school, following which she began a very successful law practice and a marriage almost simultaneously. Some time thereafter she had her first child. In paying a courtesy call as a family friend, President Oaks was pleasantly surprised to find this young mother at home with her child full time. When asked of this decision the young woman replied, “Oh, I may go back to the law sometime but not now. For me the issue was simple. Anyone could take care of my clients, but only I can be the mother of this child.” What an incisive answer to an issue she says was simple! And it does seem to have been simple because she approached it, not in terms of rights, but first and foremost in terms of responsibilities. I think the issue would not have been so simple if her attitude had been, “It’s my body,” or “It’s my career,” or. “It’s my life.” But her concern was for her obligations. When framed that way, the issue and the answer were simple.
We all have rights and the freedom to pursue them. That much the Lord has promised us. I believe, then, that the crucial point we need to come to as Latter-day Saint women is not to allow ourselves to feel forced into righteous choices, but to come to them of our own free and anxious will. In feeling compelled or forced lies some of the pain and frustration and depression we hear about. We should seek diligently and prayerfully the light that would quicken our hearts and minds to truly desire the outcomes we make in righteous decisions. Our prayers ought to be to see as God sees, to flip the switch in our minds so we may see things eternally. If we listen too often to the voices of the world, we will become confused and tainted. We must anchor ourselves in the spirit and that requires daily vigilance.
I should like to close my remarks by quoting from Galatians 5, the New English translation: [Gal. 5]
“You, my friends, were called to be free men [or in other words, you have your rights]; only do not turn your freedom [or your rights] into license for your lower nature. … If you go on fighting one another, tooth and nail, all you can expect is mutual destruction.
“The harvest of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fidelity, gentleness, and self-control.
“We must not be conceited, challenging one another to rivalry, [or] jealous of one another.
“If the Spirit is the source of our life, let the Spirit also direct our course” (Gal. 5:13, 22, 25, 26).
I hope that helps.
~TG _________________ Love, ~Tough Grits
I live in my own little world, but it''s okay...they know me here.
Tom, you know how bad I am with remembering where I hear things. I read this from a prphet one time, but I don't remember who, when or where.
Things on earth are in similitude of things in heaven. Simply put, the father works outside the home and the mother works inside the home. We can add the disclaimer about extenuating circumstances here, but I think this is enough to make my point. In heaven there are no extenuating circumstances. The Father works outside our heavenly home to provide for His family, and Heavenly Mother works inside our heavenly home. For many reasons, Father in Heaven has others do work for Him. If He is to honor this work done outside the home by others, they must have been given authority and instruction to do it right. This is the Priesthood given to man.
Since man on earth is to work outside the home, they are the ones who have this authority. You and I have discussed more in-depth reasons as to why it was man who had to work outside the home and not women. If you have forgotten, send me a PM and I'll remind you what we discussed. In any case, it was essential that Heavenly Father be the one who works outside heavely home. It's not because He is more wise or better than Heavenly Mother in any way. It has to do with the fall of man and His Only Begotten Son.
To me, women have the greater work of teaching our children in the home. Working outside the home to bring about Father's purpose would be pointless if our children were not taught in the home.
I believe both share in these responsibilities equally. However, mothers and fathers each have a different point of focus. _________________ Just as a seed grows, we are sanctified by the word of God; it is planted in a broken heart, rooted by a contrite spirit, then nourished by willingness and watered by doing.
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