33 For
whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have
spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the
renewing of their bodies.
34 They
become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church
and kingdom, and the elect of God.
35 And
also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;
36 For
he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
37 And
he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
38 And
he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that
my Father hath shall be given unto him.
39 And
this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
(D&C 84:33-39)
When I have read these verses, I have
usually only read it with reference to men. However, recently I saw this block
of verses in a different context that showed me where I and other faithful
women fit in it. (Hint: It's not terribly controversial..)
The context was in a flyer our stake
leaders handed out at ward conference to highlight the stake theme for the year
about ordinances. All the ordinances were listed with a scripture about them.
For the Melchizedek priesthood ordinances, v35-38 were given from the block
above. Read just those verses and
see how it changes your perspective.
I particularly noticed verse 35 &
36. They who receive the priesthood,
receive Jesus. And they that receive
Jesus’s servants, receive Jesus. As a woman, I read that and I thought, I can’t receive the priesthood. Ah! But I
can receive Jesus’s servants who have the priesthood, and that is still
receiving Jesus. I don’t care
if the verse says “he” there; I can apply that to myself.
So, I think faithful women have part in
the oath and covenant of the priesthood by receiving God’s servants, receiving
the ordinances and blessings they can give, and by supporting and sustaining
them in that work. Thereby, women can receive Jesus, receive the Father,
receive the Father’s kingdom, and be given all the Father hath. I also see no reason why women can’t
then also magnify their callings and claim the blessing of being sanctified by
the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
If I were to apply the above verses to women, I would
probably read it this way:
33 For
whoso is faithful unto the receiving of those who
hold these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying
their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.
34 They
become the daughters of Moses and of Aaron
and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.
35 And
also all they who receive these priesthood holders
receive me, saith the Lord;
36 For
she that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
37 And
she that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
38 And
she that receiveth my Father receiveth my
Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto her.
39 And
this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
2 comments:
For what it's worth, I've heard it said from an Apostle that the verse applies to women as well as men. They read "he or she, as this equally applies to women" into the verse.
Substituting "They" is just poor grammar, but I guess that's where the English language is headed because we can't tolerate masculine or feminine words.
That's nice to know. Any idea which apostle?
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