What Some Women Know, and Others Need to Know
Every April and October, Mormons all over the world gather in their area meetinghouses in order to participate in “General Conference.” During this two-day event, they will pray, listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and hear sermons from the (mostly male, mostly Caucasian, mostly elderly) leadership of the church. Sermon topics include instruction in doctrines and principles, as well as matters the leaders deem of pressing importance to the church.
In the October 2007 General Conference, Relief Society General President Julie Beck (one of only nine women who act as worldwide leaders in the Mormon Church, but always in an auxiliary capacity) gave a talk entitled “Mothers Who Know,” on the responsibilities and attributes of good mothers. The talk was pretty short, but it has created an enormous dust-up in the Mormon world, especially among women who, for one reason or another, do not fit the squeaky-clean image Ms. Beck glorifies.
It was recently brought to my attention that a number of Mormon women have gotten together and created a rebuttal site, “What Women Know” (WWKN), where they posted a contrasting set of assertions on what it means to be a woman and/or a mother. As I read through the WWKN manifesto, it was brought uncomfortably home to me that there still exist communities in America where such a set of assertions still needs to be made and defended, and where the equality of woman and men is so woefully behind the times. It makes me feel even worse to know that most of my female family and friends live in, and fully support and defend, such a community.
Now go and read Ms. Beck’s talk on the LDS.org website and let me know what you think of the contrast between the two lists. Not everything on Ms. Beck’s list is horrifying, but some of it is, and the rest just makes me shake my head—in embarrassment that I ever thought as she does, in wonder that any church can claim to “honor womanhood” while so baldly confining and suppressing it, and in sadness that this is just one more way in which I’ve left my Mormon family and friends behind, perhaps forever.
If you agree with the WWKN site, by all means, ask to have your name added to the list of supporters. If you don’t agree, let me know why, and in what particulars.
Like
November 25th, 2007 at 10:57 am
“Mothers who know honor sacred ordinances and covenants. I have visited… some of the poorest places on the earth where mothers have dressed with great care in their Sunday best… They bring daughters in clean and ironed dresses… their sons wear white shirts and ties…”
I object to Ms.Beck’s assertion that if you look like you are righteous you are righteous.
I further object to the idea that pretty dresses lead to temple marriage.
“We are filled with unutterable sadness by the Book of Mormon story of more than 2,000 young soldiers whose mothers teach them that faith in God will preserve them in battles in which they kill other mothers’ children… In a world that has grown increasingly violent…”
I disagree that the ‘WWN’ idea that the world is more violent then it used to be and that the parent’s of the 2000 should have lied down and died.
November 25th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
I agree that the writers of the WWKN piece were probably speaking more from their gut than from fact when they state that the “world has grown increasingly violent . . .”
On the other hand, I don’t think they were arguing that the 2,000 stripling warriors (or their parents?) should have just laid down and died, but that the mothers’ teaching (that faith will preserve combatants in battle) is pernicious. This is the kind of teaching that makes it much harder for Mormon families who lose children in combat today—was their son or daughter not faithful enough? Was the family not faithful enough? And what about the people their child was forced to kill? Were those people’s lives not important?
November 26th, 2007 at 11:56 am
I didn’t have a comment yesterday when I read your post, but that’s okay, because there was a lovely little letter to the editor in the Trib this morning:
Blogging and fussing
So, poor Sister (Julie) Beck (president, LDS Relief Society) is still taking flak for her talk several weeks ago.
I guess what I don’t get is how all these women have time to blog and fuss all the time. I sure don’t have time for that. Maybe they all ought to get their behinds out of the computer chair and go clean their houses and take care of their families. The world would be a better place.
Carol Avery
Kaysville
Thank you, Carol Avery, for demonstrating the problem. Because cleaning your house makes the world a better place.
November 26th, 2007 at 7:15 pm
Izzackly so. Brava, Sister Avery.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:01 am
I guess what I don’t get is how people like Sister Avery find the time to write self-righteous letters to the editor about how they never waste time that could be spent raising mighty self-righteous children of God. After all, it takes longer to mail a letter than to post a blog.
December 6th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
The amount of time self-righteous, meddlesome people spend being self-righteous and meddlesome never ceases to amaze me. I’m simply too lazy and self-absorbed to take that much interest in the failings of others.
I wonder if Sister Avery’s kids are helped or harmed by the time they spend away from their mother.