Women and the Priesthood

As I believe most of my audience already knows, there is a movement within the Church that is petitioning for women to receive the priesthood.  I was completely unaware of this until last October's General Conference.  I didn't share my thoughts then, but I've been thinking more about the matter lately, so I decided to share my feelings on the matter.

First and foremost, this appears to be another example of people refusing to recognize that men and women are different.  Shocking though it may be, I don't have a uterus, which means that I will never be able to give birth.  Also, as a man, thanks to having much a higher volume of testosterone in my body when compared to women, I have an easier time gaining muscle-mass, especially in my upper-body.  This is not "unfair" of my creator to have separated these traits by certain genders, just part of his plan.

Speaking of that plan, when I was teaching Sunday School this last week, I realized that women are more likely to have a natural tendency to want to, fulfill our Heavenly Father's plan.  In Moses 1:39, the Lord states his purpose: us, his children.  Why would women have an easier time with this?  Because of how men and women differ in how they define themselves.

I've mentioned on here before that I often define myself by what I do, what I know, and even what I own.  And while that may not be true for every man, it's generally the norm.  Women tend to define themselves by relationships to others, whether it be as daughter, mother, aunt, co-worker, friend, acquaintance, or even enemy, what tends to define each individual woman is the other people in her life.  Another, extremely nerdy way to look at it is that men are all about verbs and nouns while women are all about pronouns and prepositions.  Men may have trouble seeing the worth in others while women define their very own personal identities based on other people.

All of that is a long way of saying that men need a lot more help than women do when it comes to caring for others.  The priesthood is a great way to urge men to help his fellowman because the priesthood is entirely service-based: I cannot give myself a blessing; I can only give one to someone else.  By giving men the opportunity to hold the priesthood, our Father has pushed us to be aware of others and how to serve them.  This is something, as already established, that women are much better at naturally.

Finally, women already hold the priesthood when they marry a priesthood holder.  Just like the scriptures mention time and time again that the Father and Son are one, so are husbands and wives.  If they are considered one flesh, that means that women, through their husbands, hold the priesthood.  I realize that this is not what the Ordain Women protesters want, but it's what the Lord has made clear is part of his plan.