I have really enjoyed listening to a recent series of conversations surrounding the Ordain Women movement's recent activities. I do not agree with their objective or strategies, but I do appreciate the conversations it is opening up - especially when men and women thoughtfully take the time to hear many different voices from a place of compassion. This is tricky because it seems that any time this topic has come up for me in the past couple months, I haven't had the time necessary to explore someone's deeper feelings on the topic beyond cursory opinions said in passing. Every single person's experience in the church is different because we are all different, even if we come from the same family.
In the end, I kept asking myself how does the current structure, practices, explanations and instructions at all levels, etc . . . help and/or hinder me and others feeling the love of our Heavenly Father, learning the gospel of Jesus Christ, and understanding our mission in the world to share what we have been given?
I share this here in case anyone wants to hear a collection of articulate women speak respectfully about this topic -- and to each other -- from a range of different viewpoints, all of them active Latter-day Saints. I'd also like to note that I shy away from reading the comment sections because I'm always surprised at how badly people behave online toward one another.
I feel like I walked away from each of these conversations with more empathy, more reverence and thought for my own personal study of the scriptures, and a renewed eagerness to participate more often in the temple. All of which I deem a good test of time well spent.
This is the link to the last of the three group discussions, but it has links to the previous two.
http://mormonstories.org/ordain-women-concluding-dialogue/comment-page-1/#comment-497887
In the end, I kept asking myself how does the current structure, practices, explanations and instructions at all levels, etc . . . help and/or hinder me and others feeling the love of our Heavenly Father, learning the gospel of Jesus Christ, and understanding our mission in the world to share what we have been given?
I share this here in case anyone wants to hear a collection of articulate women speak respectfully about this topic -- and to each other -- from a range of different viewpoints, all of them active Latter-day Saints. I'd also like to note that I shy away from reading the comment sections because I'm always surprised at how badly people behave online toward one another.
I feel like I walked away from each of these conversations with more empathy, more reverence and thought for my own personal study of the scriptures, and a renewed eagerness to participate more often in the temple. All of which I deem a good test of time well spent.
This is the link to the last of the three group discussions, but it has links to the previous two.
http://mormonstories.org/ordain-women-concluding-dialogue/comment-page-1/#comment-497887
