Young Women Classes and Oaks' Paradigm of Priesthood Expansion

 Today, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that once again, the Young Women program of the Church would be organized into Age Groups that are essentially equivalent in organization to the Young Men's Aaronic Priesthood Quorums.

On the surface, this looks like we're just bringing back the Beehives, MIA Maids and Laurels under new, translatable and more doctrinally relevant names ("Builders of Faith", "Messengers of Hope", "Gatherers of Light"). But is there more to it? I think so.

Years ago, when the ward High Priest Groups were disbanded and folded into Elder's Quorum (a move that suddenly put the adult Men on a more comparable budget and degree of Ward Council representation as the Women) I considered that the next move would be to move the Young Women program under the banner of the Relief Society, in order to have a similar vertical line of Sisterhood that is inherent in the single 'Priesthood' Brotherhood banner for the Young Men.

I still thought that that would be the eventual plan - until today.

What is different is that Dallin Oaks is the President of the Church, and the reframing of Priesthood Authority from his 2014 talk "The Keys and Authority of the Priesthood" has gone from a radical reframing to the new status quo.

The main part of the talk that has become part of standard Church culture is summed up in this paragraph:

"We are not accustomed to speaking of women having the authority of the priesthood in their Church callings, but what other authority can it be? When a woman—young or old—is set apart to preach the gospel as a full-time missionary, she is given priesthood authority to perform a priesthood function. The same is true when a woman is set apart to function as an officer or teacher in a Church organization under the direction of one who holds the keys of the priesthood. Whoever functions in an office or calling received from one who holds priesthood keys exercises priesthood authority in performing her or his assigned duties."

What generally passed by as just an acknowledgement of 'how things work' earlier in the talk, however, was a concept that under Oaks' framing has some fascinating implications. It's a discussion of the relationship between Priesthood Keys, and Priesthood Authority:

"In the controlling of the exercise of priesthood authority, the function of priesthood keys both enlarges and limits. It enlarges by making it possible for priesthood authority and blessings to be available for all of God’s children. It limits by directing who will be given the authority of the priesthood, who will hold its offices, and how its rights and powers will be conferred. For example, a person who holds the priesthood is not able to confer his office or authority on another unless authorized by one who holds the keys. Without that authorization, the ordination would be invalid. This explains why a priesthood holder—regardless of office—cannot ordain a member of his family or administer the sacrament in his own home without authorization from the one who holds the appropriate keys.

With the exception of the sacred work that sisters do in the temple under the keys held by the temple president . . . only one who holds a priesthood office can officiate in a priesthood ordinance."

It's that last paragraph that contains the kicker. I'll reverse it so the rule is first, followed by the exception: 

• only one who holds a priesthood office can officiate in a priesthood ordinance
• With the exception of the sacred work that sisters do in the temple under the keys held by the temple president

There is no explanation of why that is an exception, only a statement of the current status quo that it is one.

So let's expand that logic - if the exception allows a non-Priesthood Office-holding woman to perform Priesthood Ordinances in the Temple, because they are authorized by the Temple President (who holds the Priesthood Keys of that work) to do so, let's apply that to some other Priesthood Ordinances/Services that are done under the direction of Priesthood Keys:

• Baptism - Under the direction of the Keys of the Bishop of a Ward (as President of the Aaronic Priesthood in the Ward) for 8 year old children of existing Members, or the Keys of the Mission President for 8+ and Converts.
• Blessing the Sacrament - Under the direction of the Keys of the Bishop of a Ward (as President of the Aaronic Priesthood in the Ward)
• Preparing the Sacrament - Delegated by the Bishop to the Teacher's Quorum President to direct.
• Passing the Sacrament - Delegated by the Bishop to the Deacon's Quorum President to direct.
  

Now, Preparing and Passing the Sacrament are not duties spelled out in Scripture. And unless you take the initial conferral of the Aaronic Priesthood as making ordained Deacons and Teachers technically all "Priests" (an historically valid position, but that's another discussion!), the language about Administering the Sacrament in D&C 28:58 "But neither teachers nor deacons have authority to ... administer the sacrament" is not being seen as applicable to passing or preparing  - Particularly as there's no prohibition of women and girls and other un-ordained boys and men passing the sacrament tray down the row. But it's so ingrained as a 'Priesthood Duty', that the easiest solution ("just change it!") seems less likely to be something that would just be done.

So what if President Oaks, as "the only person authorized to exercise all those priesthood keys", announces he would be delegating to Mission Presidents, Bishops, Teacher's Quorum Presidents, and Deacon's Quorum Presidents the same ability given to Temple Presidents to authorize women and girls to participate in those functions?

One argument that might be brought up against this possibility is that the reason adult women are qualified to be delegated responsibility to officiate in Temple Ordinances in the first place is due to unique authority granted in the Endowment (at the time men and women place the Priesthood Robes on, it is declared to be in preparation to "participate in the ordinances" of the Priesthood. Prior to adjustments in 2019, the language used to read "officiate in the ordinances" of the Aaronic and Melchizedek Priesthood.), but if so, then at the very least, that should not be a reason for keeping Temple Endowed women from being able to "participate in the ordinances" of Baptism, and Blessing the Sacrament if President Oaks simply authorized Bishops and Mission Presidents to do so just as he already does with Temple Presidents.

But particularly since the Preparing and Passing the Sacrament are not inherently scripturally tied to Priesthood Office required roles (members of the Relief Society regularly used to prepare the Bread for the Sacrament), expanding those roles to the age-equivalents of Deacons and Teachers (Builders and Messengers!) seems a simple ask. And, attractive to someone like President Oaks, giving power to the Deacons/Teachers Quorum Presidents would elevate the role of those Keys, and re-enforce the existing doctrinal foundation.

Thus, President Oaks could begin a radical policy change, while acknowledging the Doctrine Is Not Changing, and point back to his 2014 talk to show how he's been saying this is possible for over a decade.

Practically, women and girls in the Church (who have an active Temple recommend) could be permitted to perform the major Priesthood Ordinance functions outside the Temple without the need to Ordain Women under President Oaks' current doctrinal framework.  Sister Missionaries could baptized their own converts without having to hand them over to other Elders. Single Mothers are not left without access to someone to bless the Sacrament at home when Church is cancelled for weather or other emergency circumstances.

Now, this doesn't solve or even try to address the foundations of key inequality inherent in the hierarchy of the Church. This framework allows for the participation in Priesthood Ordinances, but not the Presiding over them. For that, Priesthood Office is still required to be a holder of Priesthood Keys, and thus be an ultimate presiding authority. And the model would create the eye-roll inducing idea of  Aaronic Priesthood President Teenage Boys being in charge of delegating Priesthood Authority to Young Women.

But a Church where women and girls can participate in the ordinances of the Priesthood further collapses the inequality in essential Church participation, and in seeing one's role in the Gospel. And what's radical is that President Oaks has already established the doctrinal foundation for this to be able to happen today, without a radical re-ordering and reconfiguring of the Priesthood as it stands. 

It would be a massive cultural shift. And it would absolutely change how the next generation thinks, and the questions they would ask, and what possibilities would be allowed, and what explanations seem less and less convincing.