I did not learn about Ordain Women until a few weeks before the second action. I was excited to learn that there were other members who were questioning the notion of a gendered priesthood in the LDS Church. As excited as I was, neither my finances nor my life circumstances allowed me to participate in that action in person. However, I proudly participated by proxy as my name was carried by my dear friend, Joanna J. Smith.
Since April 2014, my support for and participation in Ordain Women has grown steadily. I have moved from questioning the notion of a gendered priesthood in the LDS Church to rejecting that notion. My convictions lead me to submitted a profile in September 2014 and to participate (in person) in the local priesthood action in October 2014. Being turned away at the door of the Roswell Stake Center did not dampen my conviction or my resolve; instead, I drew strength from the searing pain of being turned away at the door of my chosen house of worship.
I have participated in and supported every Ordain Women action since April 2014. With each action, I have been awed and humbled by the hard work, devotion, and sacrifice of my siblings as we work together to achieve equality in faith in the LDS Church. With each action, I have become more and more convinced that those of us who have joined together in this struggle have been led to do so and that we will not waver in our conviction and our resolve.
Although Church leaders have ignored us and failed to respond to us, I remain convinced that our cause is just and that we will prevail. I am also convinced that, despite the discomfort and even dislike that many of our LDS siblings have for public action and agitation, we have reached the point where faithful, public agitation is the only option available to us. As we learned at the “Ready to Witness” action in April, faithful, public agitation during General Conference affords us an opportunity to take our case not only to our leaders but to other LDS members who are attending General Conference.
So on October 1st, in the same faithful spirit that we, as a group, attempted to deliver cards and letters to our leaders in April, we will, individually, climb the steps to the Church Administration Building at 47 East South Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah 84150. Each one of us will request a meeting with a general authority or general officer of the Church to raise the question of women’s ordination to the priesthood in the LDS Church.
We will be spiritually prepared: We will begin our action with a devotional in which we will invoke the presence of the spirit.
We will be physically prepared: We will have plans and supplies to attend to the physical needs of all the participants in the action.
We will be respectful: We will approach the building politely and in a very orderly fashion. We will not obstruct traffic on the sidewalk. We will not create a disturbance.
BUT
We will not yield. We will not stop. We will continue to seek equality in faith. We will continue to ask our leaders to hear us, to see us, and to take our concerns to our Heavenly Parents. We will do so because we believe that denying priesthood power and authority to us simply because we are not men is not in keeping with divine will and because we believe that the answer to the poignant question posed by Blaire Ostler in her powerful piece, “Priesthood Power” as to whether we, too, are “heir[s] of God” is a resounding: Yes!
Come. Join Us. “Let [Your] Voice Be Heard.”
