ClobberBlog | Mormonism, Evangelical Christianity

It happens often enough on LDS-themed blogs and discussion forums that I find myself having to explain why I, as a non-member, take an interest in Mormon studies at all and feminist issues in particular. I’m not exactly fond of the paranoia that occasionally greets me for having the audacity to be a “Gentile” who comments on Mormonism, and I view such challenges to my very participation in this topic as a not-so-subtle form of ad hominem. It seems to me that either my critiques of Mormon issues have merit or they don’t; the God I pray to when I log off my computer and retire for the night hardly has any bearing on that.

Taking an interest in what the Church is saying to its women is something I continue to do, and so it was that I found myself on Sunday morning catching up on the 2010 General Relief Society Meeting that had aired on Saturday, September 25. I’ve made no secret of my cynicism when it comes to the Church’s teachings about women: the regular exhortations to prioritize childbearing and homemaking, the pairing of motherhood with Priesthood, the call for wives to hearken to their husbands who preside, etc. Whenever I realize that an LDS leader is about to address women specifically, I usually brace myself for at least a few cringe-inducing remarks, and the annual Relief Society meeting is usually no exception. With that background in mind, I’m happy to report that I saw a number of good things happening at this latest Relief Society meeting, things which I found pleasantly surprising. None of these positive things were dramatic changes from Relief Society conferences of the past, and certainly a number of my old complaints persisted. However, I’m hopeful that the small things I saw are baby steps in the right direction.

I’ll start by discussing the talk I liked best, which was “And of Some Have Compassion, Making a Difference” by Barbara Thompson. Thompson’s talk focused on the spiritual imperative that LDS women have to pursue visiting teaching and the importance of the work that visiting teachers do. I’m generally a fan of the visiting teaching and home teaching programs. As an evangelical Christian, I believe very strongly that it’s important to meet with other believers in Christ so that we can lift one another up in prayer and study the Bible and theology in community, and that this kind of activity is essential to Christian discipleship. Evangelicals usually cover this through “small groups.” As a TEDS student, I meet once a week with a group consisting of two men, two women and my advisor to study different topics and pray for one another’s needs. It seems to me that visiting teaching and home teaching are the closest programs that Mormons have to this, and Thompson’s talk, delivered with warmth and passion, brought out the simple beauty of what visiting teaching accomplishes. She was also one of two speakers to use the words of a female religious leader, citing an article by President Julie B. Beck.

My only real gripe about the VT program is that I have never understood why women are charged with visiting and teaching only other women while male home teachers are charged with visiting and teaching members of both sexes. It all seems part of the Church’s general pattern of gratuitously barring women from having spiritual stewardship over adult men.

The next best talk was “Charity Never Faileth” by President Thomas S. Monson, which was about the charity of not judging others. President Monson acknowledged that some women in the church are married without children, divorced or women who work outside the home, a remark that truly surprised me. I’m not sure I’ve ever before heard these categories spoken of in a neutral or positive light at General Conference. Usually it’s a patronizing or negative one, calling attention to these family conditions as less than ideal. President Monson also quoted a female religious leader, Mother Teresa.

President Julie B. Beck spoke on “‘Daughters in My Kingdom’: The History and Work of Relief Society.” President Beck’s exciting announcement was that the Church is completing a history of the Relief Society that will become available next year. The extent to which that history will be used in Church curricula is not entirely clear, although President Beck did mention that it would be used for visiting teaching lessons. I’d be ecstatic to see it a manual for Relief Society or Sunday School. I don’t imagine that this will be the sort of “warts-and-all” history that I prefer, but if this gives women in the Church more voice and brings a greater amount of attention to the lives of past Mormon women, I’m all for it. While Beck did not cite any female leaders herself, she did call Emma Smith “the first female leader of this dispensation” and did cite the revelation to Emma from D&C 25.

Not everything about President Beck’s talk was great. I was disappointed to hear her call it a “myth” that Latter-day Saint women are less important than men. It’s not a myth; they are less important, and the first step to any recovery is admitting that you have a problem.

Silvia H. Allred‘s talk was the lowlight of the event. Her sermon was titled “Steadfast and Immovable,” but her topic was anything but. She seemed to wander aimlessly between gender roles, baptism, prayer, Scripture study, discussion of who Jesus is, and an anecdote about two babies that died. Most of those topics could have been the centerpiece of an in-depth sermon of their own, but Allred refused to stick with any of them long enough to say something substantive. At one point she re-hashed the usual tripe about how the “vital and essential role” of women in Mormonism is to have babies—and if you can’t do that in this life, don’t worry, God will sort it out later. This is harsh, but I’m going to say it: I am never more certain that women in Mormonism have no “vital and essential role” than when an LDS leader tries to say otherwise.

Conclusion: While I was watching this conference, my 4 year-old daughter came over and began playing on my lap. I spent the morning tickling her and tossing her on the sofa while I listened to it, and when the choir sang their hymns, I even got her to sing along. It reminded me of the fact that, as of right now, my daughter is a child of both the LDS and the Evangelical traditions, and it’s important to me to monitor what each church is teaching her. She’s the reason that I do this.

I enjoyed this conference more than I have in years past and I’m sincerely hopeful that the good things I noted will continue to grow in the years to come.