My next Primary lesson is on the restoration of the Priesthood, and I'm unsure on how to approach it. Naturally, the boys need this lesson more than the girls do because they're the ones who will one day have the opportunity to bear the restored Priesthood, so I could gear the lesson toward them, but there are several issues with that. They are usually too energetic to get much out of any given lesson, they aren't going to receive the Priesthood for a few more years anyway, and most importantly, gearing the lesson toward the boys would unfairly neglect the girls in my Primary class.
Unfortunately, teaching the girls about the Priesthood will also be fraught with problems. They won't have much opportunity to apply anything from the lesson, and I don't understand the Priesthood and eternal gender roles well enough to explain why girls and women can't hold the Priesthood.
I could stick mostly to the facts and stories from the lesson manual. That should help keep the tone neutral. But I'll still have the problem of not knowing how to explain to the girls why they can't receive the Priesthood and why they need to learn about it anyway, and I'm pretty sure that one of those questions might come up, as this class is pretty good at asking questions.
I'll have to pray for guidance, study out my anticipated questions, and follow the Spirit in preparing this lesson. More so than the others I've taught, this one is going to be fairly tricky.
1 comment:
The restoration of the priesthood is just as important to girls and women as it is to boys and men. Women don't hold the priesthood, but their lives are directly affected by it.
Knowing the priesthood was restored teaches us that Christ and Heavenly Father continue to communicate with people on earth, and that we can have ordinances and blessings with the proper authority.
How can girls (and boys who won’t receive the priesthood for a long time) apply the lesson? Or Why is it important for them to know that the priesthood has been restored?
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ organized and continue to lead the church through priesthood authority. We are able to be part of Christ’s true church because of the priesthood. We can receive the ordinances we need to return to our Heavenly Father. We can receive priesthood blessings that provide comfort, guidance, and various kinds of healing. When we do our best to do the things we know are right, we are worthy of these blessings.
Why can’t girls and women hold the Priesthood?
I don't think we can definitively say all of the reasons why Heavenly Father does things in a certain way.
We are taught that men and women are different, and have different but equal roles that work together to help each other.
Our most important roles are to be mothers and fathers. In the ideal situation, holding the priesthood is part of fatherhood and presiding over the family.
Eve was called “the mother of all living” before she had any children. The verb “to mother” means to nurture. Even when we don’t have children, we can take part in these roles by caring for other family members and the people around us.
Here’s a talk by Elder Oaks that has some good information about women and priesthood authority:
https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/the-keys-and-authority-of-the-priesthood?lang=eng
“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?” He also mentions that women administer priesthood ordinances in the temple.
Elder Cook also gave a talk about the women of the church:
https://www.lds.org/liahona/2011/05/lds-women-are-incredible?lang=eng
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