Chapter 28: The Priesthood Controversy--Another Look
Many voices have weighed in on why women in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should or should not receive the priesthood. Give me a little space to explore the idea that perhaps that may not be the issue. On April 6, 1830, the Church was organized. To be officially recognized, according to the laws of the state of New York, a religion had to have at least six members, and there were six. As the converts started coming by ones, then by tens, then by hundreds and thousands, most devoted their lives to the Church and endured to the end. Some fell away for various reasons. A few became apostates and enemies of the Church. These few were excommunicated. Had Joseph Smith organized the Church to aggrandize himself, he likely would have clung to every member by adapting doctrines, principles, and practices to be all-inclusive. It would have been a numbers ...