When I heard last year about the changes in the temple ceremony, I was very happy that negative images and language about women had been removed. These changes eliminate the oppressive overlay that has made women feel like eternal second-class citizens. While these changes are mostly positive, they neither alter the underlying power structure of …
Speaker: Margaret Toscano
Men and Priesthood: Mormon Male Identity
How does priesthood connect to personal and group identity for LDS men? How does it factor in their church activity and attendance, or their gender and sexual identity? How crucial is priesthood ordination for Mormon boys as initiation into adulthood? How do men perceive equality and hierarchy in their priesthood experience? How does male priesthood …
275.Looking Back/Looking Forward: The Many Voices of Ordain Women
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the founding of Ordain Women. As the Ordain Women executive board, we are excited about what the future holds as we implement a new organizational structure that emphasizes both individual and collective, local and global activism on women’s ordination and gender equality in Mormonism. This panel will not …
Redeeming the Endowment: The Return of the Queen
In this presentation, I will address two fundamental problems that the endowment creates for women; first, that they are ordained as priestesses to their husbands rather than as priestesses to God and, second, that in the endowment there is missing the presentation of a female divinity. My paper is divided into two sections addressing at …
Extraordinary Ordinary Women
Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s well-known aphorism, “Well-behaved women seldom make history,” was initially meant not to call attention to the importance of unconventional women’s lives, but to the importance of ordinary women’s lives. This panel will explore the lives of women, both ordinary and extraordinary, that help us better understand our past, give us insights into …
A Preview Discussion of a forthcoming volume entitled: The LDS Church’s Gospel Topics Essays: The Scholarly Community Responds
This session is a discussion of the contents of forthcoming volume entitled The LDS Church’s Gospel Topics Essays: The Scholarly Community Responds to be published by the University of Utah Press in 2018. The discussion will feature four contributing scholars. The scholars and their topics are as follows: Newell G. Bringhurst, “A Brief Overview of …
The Mormon Heavenly Mother: Helper of the Oppressed
The Heavenly Mother, though acknowledged as legitimate by LDS leaders, nonetheless has been marginalized in practice, referred to mostly as one of the “heavenly parents.” Recently, she also has been challenged by liberal writers who question her value, seeing her as a representative of heteronormative marriage. This paper will contest both views, arguing that the …
Claiming Our Gifts And Knowing The Roots Of Our Mormon Identities Sponsored By The Mormon Women S Forum
This panel will explore why Mormon women of many different varieties and persuasions value spiritual gifts, whether they are still believers or not, and whether they are still in the LDS Church or not. And we will examine the roots and fruits of these beliefs and practices. Margaret Toscano, Linda King Newell, Janice Allred
Mormon Women S Forum Women And The Church Addressing Lds Feminist Concerns
Neylan McBaine’s recent book, Women At Church: Magnifying LDS Women’s Local Impact, explores ways in which the Church can better use the talents of women and include them more fully in local congregations without ordaining them to priesthood offices or changing anything in the structure of Church governance. This panel will discuss the ideas in …
PANEL: Catholic-Mormon Dialogue on Ordination: Does God Call Women in Patriarchal Religions to Ministry?
Catholic and Mormon feminists share a deep love and respect for our religious communities; pursue a common mission to advocate for practical, equitable, and inclusive changes; and many feel a call to ministry as a way for women’s spiritual gifts and power to enrich the larger community. Today, we bring together four women from patriarchal …