I Believe in Being Courageous: Women and Ordination

Bitter attacks happen all the time when it is presented on social media. It's like we all of a sudden became politicians on Capitol Hill. I hope this isn't one of those and that it may lead to a civil discussion and thoughts. I share my feelings as a weak and imperfect man. I have my faults and I am striving to be better.

I've posted about LDS women and some of them wanting ordination to the priesthood in the past. I received a lot of discouragement and rude comments. They tend to argue how they are being persecuted but I feel I have seen just as much judgment and rude comments come from them as towards them.

I also received comments from individuals who have thanked me for trying to be calm and supportive of church doctrine. And that's the thing here, this is doctrine, not a church policy.

I've seen two forms of supporters for women getting the priesthood thus far:
1) Women and men who actually want women to hold the priesthood and
2) women and men who support asking questions in the church.

I highly support asking questions. It's a historical fact that that's what has changed and developed so many things for the Restoration. I am grateful for those questions and decisions made by many people. I am too (to contrary belief) grateful for the sisters of Ordain Women to ask the question of women receiving the priesthood and for greater equality in the church. That is something I am impressed with! I love it. I've asked many questions myself and I feel that there have been answers and there haven't been answers. So here's my beef, I believe the Brethren have listened to these loving sisters' questions and an answer has been given. Several times.

Elder Oaks gave an incredible message last night at Priesthood Session about priesthood authority. It was straight forward, clear, and powerful. He began stating what priesthood is, that men are not the priesthood. He talked about the power of keys and the administration thereof. That there are several appendages to the priesthood power and keys. One of which was a calling in the priesthood offices. He also then stated that Relief Society was an appendage of the priesthood by it being called and under the priesthood authority of keys by the bishop. The same with female temple workers and sister missionaries. What an incredible explanation!

He stated that only men hold the priesthood and that "in the eyes of God, women and men are equal with different responsibilities." I believe that to be true. I believe that roles of men and women are like a choir. There are a handful of parts in a song sung by different groups. Each group a part. Each part together, in harmony, makes it sound like what the composer meant it to be.

But many will be offended by this notion. I believe these individuals have been deceived to think this is what God must do. I have a good handful of friends that are part of such desires. I love them and believe their intentions are well-intended. So how can I not support them for this motion? The same way I love my great aunt who chose to live an alternative life style and encourage her, with love, to come back to church. I love my great aunt and I know she loves me. When we talk after a little while, it's like we have been together our whole lives and never separated. I love her laugh and big hugs. And through all this love, it doesn't mean that  I have to support her in her decision that is against church doctrine. The same with these sisters; nothing stops me from loving them (in fact, there may be a bit more love for them than usual) but I don't support their actions and desires (except for the asking questions part, I do like that).

If you are one of them that support the ordination of women and you've made it this far in my post, I might have offended some of you. I've probably made you want to "unfriend" me and give me dirty looks on BYU campus like a few do. I apologize if I hurt your feelings but I don't apologize for believing and sharing what God has sustained for His plan. I encourage you, like my great aunt, to move forward and come in line with God's will. We love you and God loves you.

Also,  this happened last night:

The Mormon Church and Turkey - How You Can Be Part Of It

Hello, my name is Scott. I am a founder of viktyo.com, a company dedicated to helping people find connections and opportunities to have sustainable travel around the world. This includes jobs, internships, volunteer work, and academic pursuits. Lately, we've been building connections specifically for Turkey. Why Turkey? Because it is a growing economy, it is rich with culture and has proven to be a great destination for many Expats.

The church's history in Turkey actually goes back to the late 1800s and a missionary president operated a mission there until the early to mid-nineteenth century. Missionaries returned to Istanbul after a hiatus of many decades in February 2012 when a group of four Elders was sent to Istanbul. Unfortunately, they had to leave several months later due to visa problems. Those visa problems have now been resolved and the second group of Elders was sent in October 2012. The number of missionaries in Turkey has gradually risen to 12 by October 2013. Six in Istanbul and Six in Ankara. Most recently the local leadership requested that the mission send sister missionaries to Turkey, and perhaps sometime this year something may come of that. Last year there were six convert baptisms in the Istanbul branch. In January of this year, there have been 2 baptisms. They have a goal of 20 for the year and have full faith that they will achieve that goal.


 I've been told that he made his own site to help the church www.mormonum.org/ and even volunteers to translate General Conference every six months while paying his own airfare. What an incredible man of faith and diligence to move the work forward.

So why am I writing this? If you are LDS and looking to go abroad by yourself or with a family, I highly encourage you to do so in Turkey.

If you are even slightly curious about this opportunity to go, I'd encourage you to email me at scottgemmell@viktyo.com and visit www.viktyo.com for listings that you can see for Turkey. Many of these positions are self sustaining, family friendly, and great steps to a future career position.

Ten reasons why I respect Mormon Feminists

Some of you may not believe that I have love or respect for the Mormon Feminists and their various viewpoints, but I actually do. Even though I don't agree with each specific view point (they vary within themselves), nor their practice, I want to see the good in their motives and feelings. These are ten reasons why I DO respect them and appreciate them being our sisters in the gospel.

1. They are daughters of our Heavenly Father.
2. We are all members of the same church that claims modern day revelation.
3. Many of these sisters are close friends, and if not mine, someone else's that are loved.
4. They bring things to light that are not normally brought up.
5. They are typically wicked smart (they could be me out anytime on Jeopardy, surely).
6. They are ambitious.
7. They generally are very respectful.
8. They take a lot of slack and still tread onward.
9. Ordain Women handled the rejection of admittance to the General Priesthood meeting with class.
10. They speak from the heart.

It's such a conflicted issue for many people, including myself. But this doesn't mean everyone can't have a sense of respect for each other. The Lord knows what He is doing and that's what we can have faith on.

Arabic and Mormons: Why the Arabic Language is Amazing

Want to know something cool about Arabic? Arabic is a language where words are based off of roots, typically with just three letters. These three letters are then the base for what it is used for. For example كتب

(those are three letters( ك - ت - ب ), pronounced katiba) means books. But if you add one letter before it مكتب (maktab) it means "office." Or if you change it even a little bit more (keeping the root) مكتبة (maktaba)  it means "library." You can do this for several other words. Did you notice a pattern? They all are related to each other: books, office, library. This pattern is all over the Arabic language.

The Arabic word قلب (kalb) means "heart." The root letters are ق - ل - ب . Or in English sounds, k - l -b. The other day I was noticing a similarity between قلب (kalb) to a pretty well known LDS word, Kolob. Did you already notice the connection? K-l-b is the Arabic root of heart and the "roots" of Kolob are k-l-b, signifying that Kolob is related to the heart or center of something important, fantastic, and beautiful. For LDS members, this should be very significant.

There is your little Arabic lesson of the day :) 

9/11, Me, and the Book of Mormon

Now don’t interpret this as being what you may think I’m trying to say. The Book of Mormon did not predict the actual event of September 11, 2001, nor are the Muslims somehow connected to the people of that book but rather what it has to say to about the patterns and principles.

Where were you on that dreadful morning?

Well for me, it started early in the morning in my early morning seminary class in Vista, California. My friend David showed up late and said that he and his dad had just heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. Being a sophomore in high school, age 14, I had no idea what the World Trade Center was. I assumed it was a smaller building and done by accident. We carried on with our lesson in seminary, we were just beginning to learn about the Book of Mormon for the school year. The Book of Mormon is a companion volume to the Bible for the Latter-day Saints. A book full of prophets, just like the Bible, but in America. It tells of the ups and downs of people following God.

At the end of seminary, I walked down to my high school just a quarter mile away. It didn't faze me about the plane crash again until I got in front of the band room door. All of us who normally hung out inside the band room before school were stuck outside because the person with the band room door key had not unlocked it yet. Everyone was chatty, even more than usual. They were all talking about this plane and then a second plane. If it were today, all those kids would have been crying in tears because of our smart phones, giving us instant access. I went to my first class, Chemistry.

I never was good in Chemistry, I got a D+ in it that semester. I was grateful to have been in it that morning because that wing of classrooms at the high school had cable and I got to watch the news. When it was turned on there was nothing but what appeared to be smoke only later to realize it was a combination of dust, smoke, and the remains of the two Twin Towers that have already fallen. They replayed the fall of each over and over again.

That whole week following seemed to last forever. 9/11 was what we talked about. I cried on my own for all those lives that were lost as hope to find them faded day by day. That following Sunday at church was open for anyone to speak, much like a normal Fast Sunday in the LDS church. I recall many were sad and scared. One brother was so angry he was shaking his fists and pounded the pulpit. But I do remember at the end of the meeting feeling better about the situation, uplifted and able to move on with great faith.

All of us can remember the unity that we showed as a nation! It was glorious. With a few exceptions like people judging any Muslim, hate crimes, and false allegation, the United States of America was unified as I have ever seen to this point. Politicians seemed to have got along, people supported others in their communities, and we were united in a purpose. At this time I helped out at a family friend’s print shop. An older colleague of mine, an older gentleman and Vietnam veteran, and I were sitting next to each other. I told him how amazing it was to see all of the American flags waving and the pride we had as Americans. I didn’t want it to end and felt strongly that this could be a way to help our country in the long run. Turning his head towards me, his head down, looking atop of his classes he said, “It won’t last long. It sad how quickly it will dissolve and we won’t remember.” I knew the moment he said that that he was right.

So here’s where the Book of Mormon comes in. The average Latter-day Saint (Mormon) knows about the “pride cycle” in the Book of Mormon. People in the Book of Mormon will be following God’s commandments, prospering and living in a happy way of life. Then they will become wicked, prideful with their riches and lifestyles. They then are humbled in several different ways, one way being war or some form of deathly devastation. After solving the issues of this devastation, like a war, the people are God-fearing again and prospering. But not too long after this cycle do they forget and fall into wicked ways all over again with the cycle to repeat itself. I’m not saying we are just like the Book of Mormon in every way but rather the principle is the same. One great example are Nephites during the great war in the book of Alma! Wicked, humbled, led by righteous men such as Captain Moroni, and shortly after the war, they fall into pride because of their prosperity. Look at WWI and WWII. Before both wars there was a lot of humbling inside and outside of the battle and for a while afterwards, there was great prosperity. The cycle continues to this day.

It wasn’t too long that we began to bicker with each other again. Fellowship, support, and trust were again lost. Even to this day have we come farther and farther away from the unity we had as a country. I am still fairly young, so I don’t know what it has been once before but I fear that the few months after 9/11 is one of the best examples of a unified and helpful nation I will see. But I won’t be the cause of the further downfall. When the next great humbling experience comes, I won’t be the reason for it. I will be the one to help others whenever I can. I will be the believers that sustain the prophet and ready to act when called upon. We are battling Satan each and every day, a personal pride cycle, we each battle. Let us not fail to remember what lessons we can learn from times of old and our time at hand.