Faith and Feminism

I'm a Mormon.

There, upfront and honest about it.

Mormon and feminist? Yup! And darn proud of it. Because my feminism stems from my membership of THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS (heretofore referred to as "the Church'"). They go hand-in-hand. Time and time again, Church leaders have taught women of the church that-
1) they are precious daughters of a loving Heavenly Father who wants the best for them, just as He does for His sons;
2) women should gain the best education possible;
3) they are equal partners with the men in a marriage, meaning that it requires complete mental, emotional and physical fidelity from both spouses and sharing of child-rearing responsibilities;
4) every ordinance/ ritual necessary for salvation is equally available to them as they are to men;
5) women have a divine purpose on earth and responsibility to nurture those around them;
6) they will make mistakes, but that's why the atonement and grace of Jesus Christ is vital for salvation;
7) once again, God loves His daughters.

The Church also teaches members that Mother Eve, the first female creation of God on this earth, did not bring about the curse of mortality due to her partaking of the Forbidden Fruit. Rather, Eve took a courageous step in leaving the Garden of Eden, which paved the way for Mankind to be born, gain a mortal body and experience mortal life, i.e. if Adam and Eve continued to live in the Garden of Eden, we wouldn't be here on this earth.

Examining the above list, I dare say that Church theology and teachings are rather *gasp* feminist. Yes it is. Which is precisely why I'm a Mormon and feminists.

Now, the Church is a patriarchal church. It's theology is not, but the church structure and leadership hierarchy is patriarchal in nature. Let's just admit that. It's something feminists who are members of the Church have to grapple with- are they content to accept it and move on from there? Or are they going to agitate for change?

More liberal feminists will vote for the latter. Me, I'm okay with it, more a "neutral." There are many reasons why, but I'm not going into them for this post. All I'm going to say for now is that I have found value and benefits from voluntarily "submitting" to the patriarchal structure of the church. A paradox but it's my reality.

Which is why I do not follow the Feminist Mormon Housewives or the Young Mormon Feminists blogs, and I do not support the Ordain Woman Movement. Let's get that out of the way as well. I have a friend (an active member) who has contributed a few posts to the Young Mormon Feminists blog, and I have enjoyed reading some of her postings. But there are also other postings on that blog that I disagree and feel uncomfortable with.

Therefore, here are some things to note about my blog:

a) This is not a feminist blog that will advocate for change to the patriarchal structure of the Church.

b) This blog might comment on the cultural aspects of being a Mormon that consciously/ unconsciously promotes gender inequality, depending on my mood and how passionate I feel about the issue. E.g. I would have posted something about lowering the age at which sister missionaries can serve from 21 to 19 = eradicating the cultural stigma that sisters serve missions because they can't get married => a positive change. However, this change took place before this blog was created, but you get my meaning. 

c) This blog is focused mainly on non-Mormon issues pertaining to womanhood, sisterhood and feminism. That's right, non-Mormon issues. Feminism is so much more than just talking about gender inequality within the Church, although there is a place and time for that. I'm more interested in talking about gender inequality outside of it. You may not agree with the direction my blog is going in, but this is me and this is who I am.  

I am a Mormon and a feminist. 

Let the postings begin!