RS History

There was a major shift in the female leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the 20th century.

I know this because I have investigated it for our Relief Society Birthday deal tonight at Church.

I am not a pioneer person, I have never expressed much interest in the history of any church, and though I was a history major, I have very little interest in the genealogy aspect of the church to which I belong.

Did I mention my husband is getting a Ph.D in Religious Studies?

Anyway so as I read about the history of these women I am amazed at what I am reading. The women who serve as the general presidents of the RS (for those who don't know, it is the women's organization at church, often referred to--by ourselves--as the "largest women's organization in the world.")

Still reading?

So I consider myself a feminist, not in the sense of the "women's rights issues" or anything of that nature, I simply live a feminist life. My husband has been the primary care giver for my children longer than I have, we share household duties to a much higher level than most people, and my career takes precedence over most all other activities (hopefully besides my family).

I am not in favor of "reproductive rights" because I believe that making choices and facing natural consequences is fair and perceive abortion as the ultimate bailout of responsibility (and having four chillin's myself consider it trés sad) I don't really care if the salary of women is consistently lower than men (though if I ever worked for someone who practiced this type of "Gentleman's Club" tactics it I might change my tune). Get what I am saying here?

I consider myself a practicing, not theoretical or political, fem.

Much to my surprise, most of the presidents of RS the early days of my church were powerful women who were on the cutting edge of feminism looong before their time. Examples:

Emma Smith was the first woman to administer to other women in the temple.

Eliza R. Snow started a sericulture (silk) industry for the RS women. She also started the grain saving program in the church.

Zina Young was the VP of the Utah National Council for Women in 1891 and she attended the Women's Conference in Buffalo and National Suffrage Association convention in New York.

Bathsheba Smith was on the Board of Directors for the Deseret Hospital

Emmeline Wells was an early advocate for women's rights and used her publications to support suffrage and educational/economic opportunities for women. She hung tight was Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony and one of her great quotes is "I believe in women, especially thinking women."

Louise Robison was a delegate to the Tenth World Congress of the International Council of Women, held in Paris. She also headed the first effort of the Church to mark historical places in Nauvoo.

Clarissa Smith Williams was one of 9 US delegates to the International Council of Women in Rome. She also was responsible for creating healthy, maternity, and child welfare services with money from the closing of grain storage at the close of WWI (the US gov. forbade any group or individual from storing large quantities of food so the church had to sell grain they had been saving since 1876).

Amy Brown Lyman served in the Utah State Legislature in 1922 and helped push through the federal Sheppard-Towner Bil, which provided infant and maternity care nation-wide. She was also the first director of the welfare program of our church during WWII.

In 1968 Belle Spafford was nominated to be president of the National Council of Women. She said no because of her RS commitments, but the president of the Church (David O McKay) counseled her to accept the position.

Barbara Smith opposed the Equal Rights Amendment. She felt that it would "cause women to lose previously hard-won rights" and "lock us into a system that did not provide for the emotional, physical, or biological difference between the sexes." <<---shift.

I will not get into a discussion about why I think this shift occurred or the "therefore" but let me say that in looking at this pattern, women long before our time were doing so much to expand the rights of women. Did you know the state of Utah was among the first to extend the right to vote to women (along with Wyoming who was really desperate to increase the female population in the state). And then Utah women lost the right to vote for THIRTY years when the state was incorporated into the Union?

Amazing.

So sorry if you were bored but I was fascinated by this information. Does anyone want to come with me to this??

I never thought I would let it come to this, but I am officially hooked on the history of Mormon women. I guess I have no one to blame but myself.