A young man who had entered a monastery wrote to his father and told him how wonderful it was to be there. Every morning at 3 o'clock the monks rise to chant ancient hymns. His father, a wise and thoughtful man, wrote back, "Dear Son: Your mother and I are so happy to know that you have found your vocation. But always remember one thing: We, too, and many parents like us living in the world, have arisen on numerous occasions at 3 o'clock in the morning to feed our babies or change diapers, and in the process have found our own vocation equally sacred." Indeed, most sacred! (1)
I was floored. I have rarely heard anyone outside of my own faith express that attitude about parenthood. I thought to myself, "This is a book I need to read, even if I don't get all the assigned readings done on
time. This is exactly why I am a Family Life major!" I was also immediately reminded of "The Family: A Proclamation to the World," particularly the sentence, "Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live." And the similarities certainly didn't stop there. No, nearly every single one of the 15 pages I have read so far contain some idea or another that brings to mind very clearly one of the teachings in the Proclamation. Here are a couple more, both in the same paragraph.We hear much today about the subject of women priests. Why don't we ordain women as priests? Why should we? God has already ordained them into the sacred priesthood of motherhood. Who can ever be a more effective priest to her children than a dedicated Christian mother? We talk about the inequality of the sexes. It is not a matter of difference in equality of nature. It is a matter of difference in function. [Remind you of "By divine design, fathers are to.... Mothers are primarily responsible for...."?] No one can ever take a mother's place in the home. No one is endowed by God as she is for the raising of children. We need to emphasize this point. For, we are trying to do everything we can today to take mothers out of homes, to destroy the sacred priesthood of motherhood, and leave the home front unatteded. This, in itself, is producing so many problems that it could very well lead to the downfall of our nation. [Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.] (5-6)
Harmon Killebrew, a famous Twins baseball player, belonged to a religious group which believes in attacking delinquency and declining morality by strengthening the family through a Monday night get-together in the home called the "family home evening."... Every Orthodox Christian family should have a weekly family home evening. It is an excellent way to create a unified, Christ-centered family. (10)So while those 15 pages and what little my teacher has taught so far are all I know about Orthodox Christianity, I am already convinced that, should I for some theoretical reason have to choose a religion other than the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I would also choose the Orthodox Christian Church--or, as a member of said church once told my teacher it could be called, the Church of Jesus Christ of Early-day Saints.
At the risk of being shunned/excommunicated/etc.... I'd like to contend against what I see as a simplistic view of the priesthood. Mothers need the priesthood. In our church, they get it from the father/husband by sealing; the endowment makes it clear the women are "priestesses unto their husbands," and they share the priesthood authority. In a different way, granted, but with the calling of motherhood comes the need for God's power. Which is why I go along with the early LDS Church in the practice of giving mother's blessings if there is no priesthood holder present in an emergency. It seems as though the Church has designated a heirarchy of priesthood authority and/or practice. Which is not a blatantly good or bad thing; it's just a way to order the Church. But wives hold the priesthood jointly with their husbands, and definitely need it.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I will remind that the phrase "priesthood of motherhood" came from the Orthodox Christian author, not me. Yes, I agree that mothers need husbands who hold the priesthood, they just don't need to hold it themselves. It is not discrimination to not give it to them, for they have a different function in God's plan. That was the point that spoke to me from that quote. Also, I'm not sure I agree that the Church has "designated a hierarchy." There is nothing "better" or "higher" about men who hold the priesthood over women who do not. My view (I realize this may not be doctrine, so please don't excommunicate me either) is that the priesthood is simply a tool to help men perform their duties, and women have duties that do not require the direct possession of that tool. Granted, I have not been endowed or sealed, so there are almost certainly some things I don't understand fully or correctly, but those are my thoughts.
ReplyDelete