I was born into the Mormon church and was the first of my family to serve a two year mission. After completing my mission in Puerto Rico, I went to BYU for both my undergraduate and graduate education. After completing my PhD in Counseling Psychology, I went back to Puerto Rico to work for a year in the VA hospital. Then I did a fellowship at Stanford University and currently I run a private practice in Los Angeles.
I believe that women should be ordained because I feel it would give them equal rights within the church. I know that some people may be reading this and thinking, “It doesn’t matter that men receive all of the revelations because they are just a mouthpiece for the Lord.” But when Gordon B. Hinckley was asked if he receives modern day revelation, he explained how this process works by sharing the following scripture: “And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it.” It is not a booming, crystal clear voice. It is a still small voice that is received by imperfect humans that are influenced by their own personal circumstances. Up to this point it has only been men who have been in a position to receive and filter these church-wide revelations, including those that directly affect women’s lives.
I’ve heard, “But that’s how Jesus wants it so that’s how it has to be.” Not necessarily. There is historical data that suggests that women held the priesthood in the days of Jesus. In a church that believes that Heavenly Father is not a God without being married to a Heavenly Mother, the idea that women cannot hold the priesthood or the highest positions of leadership in the church feels like a total contradiction. Therefore, I believe that women must be ordained!