Do Mormons believe the feminist movement is a threat to the spiritual health of the church?

Question

Elder Boyd K Packer said that he felt the feminist movement, the gay/lesbian movement, and the intellectual movement were a threat to the church. Do you agree with him? Why or why not.

http://www.ldsmag.com/churchupdate/070725packerprint.html
(see dissent in the church)

I'm looking for real answers, if you're just going to say "mormonism is a cult and they're all going to hell" don't bother answering

Answer 1

I, as a woman (and I believe I am a TRUE femenist) am only going to comment on the femenist movement. The intelllectual movement...I know nothing about. And the gay/lesbian movement...welll, we believe that homosexuality is a sin and an abomination.

N.O.W. and the femenist movement in general have done nothing whatsoever to further anything positive in our society. The statistics that they cite (ie. women only get paid a fraction of what men earn) are convoluted and twisted to serve their own purposes (women in general make less because they work less--read: stay-at-home-moms and part-time workers as opposed to their full-time-working male counterparts).

The feminists have lied to young women and told them that they don't need men, or that men are only a casual necesity in the home. Totally untrue! Fathers are an intregal part of family life. Children reared in single-mother homes with little or no access to their fathers have a myriad of problems, which do not present nearly as often in a loving, two-parent home, including, but not limited to:
-early puberty in girls (as young as EIGHT!)
-increased promiscuity
-depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses
-increased drug and substance abuse
-problems in school, including behavioural and educational

Feminists lie to young women and tell them "you CAN have it all...family, career, home, everything". This isn't true. You cannot raise children if you are off working.

Feminists lie and say that abortion is okay. It is not. It is murder. Sucking an innocent but unwanted child into a sink is selfish and evil and immoral.

Feminists lie and say that men and women are THE SAME. We are not the same. We are equal, we are partners, but...well, men stand up to pee. We have different roles and that's OKAY!!! It's GOOD! It makes us complimentary, not competitive. Feminists forget that a very important part of being a female is being feminine. Most of these "ball-busting" women are not interested in being lovely and feminine and sweet and calling upon that beautiful quality which women were divinely granted by God.

Feminists lie and say that there is no black and white...only grey. There is no right and wrong...it's all subjective. That which is right is right. That which is wrong is wrong. And no amount of conjecture and rationalization is going to change that.

The result is that the family is deteriorating and being treated like an unnecessary entity or worse, like a big joke. What have these feministas done for good? Ultimately, nothing!

Answer 2

I agree. All of these 'movements' have a lot of power and political influence behind them. The real target are our children and I can tell you from experience that the hardest part about being a parent was trying to shield my children from outside influences. Hollywood is the worst as far as beautiful people behaving badly while mainstream America watches, or the pseudo-intellectual side of Hollywood trying to tell us who to vote for and what to think. Example: Now that Madonna is a mommy, she says she would not want her daughter to see her book called "SEX". It was alright for her to do whatever it took to corrupt other people's children, though. And now that she speaks with a British accent, she's suddenly a brilliant expert on just about every subject.

The intellectual movement has always been around but could indeed, end up being an eventual threat to the church. Since joining Yahoo! Answers, it has opened by eyes up to learn just how many atheists there are out there. There's a reason for that, but one can only speculate why.

Answer 3

1)Feminism: First of all, let me say that the Church is all for feminine rights, in most senses. The doctrines that differ from the feminine rights movement are as follows. In the Church, we believe that both men and women should not delay marriage or childbearing for financial reasons. In other words, no one should pursue the materialism of single life over marriage. The second doctrine which differs is that we believe that someone should stay at home in order to nurture and to provide for the immediate needs of children while in the home. Notice I said nurture, that basically leaves men out; and a mother (whether biological or adopted) is the best person to nurture and care for children, I don't care who you are.

2) Homoseuality: Yes. The Church is outright against the homosexual movement. We believe that people can be born with homosexual attributes, and that is perfectly acceptable. The problem is when people try to act out these desires. The Church believes that sexuality should only be shared between a husband and wife who are lawfully married. We also believe that sexuality has been given to mankind in order to procreate, and that homosexuality is an abuse of that power.

3)Intellectualism: The Church has no problem with intellecuality in and of itself. We believe that all of the members should learn about essentially everything, both secular and spiritual. The problem arises when people try to explain the mysteries of our existence themselves, without any solid backing. The way I see it, those mysteries have very little REAL proof. You basically have to have faith in what you are learning, whether it is in scientists, or in Deity. I don't think that there's anything wrong with believing in science as the total and unerring truth. But in that case you'd either be a Christian Scientist, or atheist/agnostic.

Answer 4

YES I AGREE

Not just a threat within the Church but especially the Community at Large.

30 Years ago two lesbians or two gay men wouldnt ever be considered as adoptive parents.

Women would rather have a crap career than raise a healthy family.

Families rarely sit around the table anymore for dinner cause Mom is working too.

It goes on and on... what has been gained?

Higher Crime
Higher Global Divorce Rate
Higher Suicide Rate
Higher Unwed Pregnancy
Higher Rate of Single Parents

Are any of these good things?

Answer 5

I think it is because the LDS church believes in the family unit- A man and a Woman who are married, love each other and love their children. The gay/lesbian movement completely undermines the natural family structure. While most leaders of the church are not opposed to women having equal rights, I think most are opposed to the Feminist movement. The feminist movement, is a very selfish movement in my book. It is all about women. The movement does not account for what is right for children, or our husbands or society as a whole. It is all about women. We believe that Men and Women are equal, but were created different, we have different roles, this is addressed a bit in our document, The Family: A Proclamation to the World (I have provided a link.) I would really read this document. Go to www.LDS.org. Type "Abuse" or "Women's Roles" or "Family" in the search box and read the articles that come up. I think you will be amazed at the fact that we are well respected in our church. We may have different roles than men, but we are different than men. Anyone who denies that men and women are different is just lying to themselves. LDS women are well respected by faithful LDS men who are keeping their covenants. There is always an exception to the rule- but for the most part, the Men are gentlemen and they take care of their women and love and respect them.

The Family: A Proclamation to the World-
http://www.lds.org/library/display/0,4945,161-1-11-1,00.html

Edit**
Thank you for your Additional comments. I hope this can be a peaceful discussion.

Answer 6

Let me cheat and answer this way

I went to the NOW website and looked at the "issues" page

Taking the top Issues -- I summarize MY TAKE on the positions of NOW and the LDS church.

Abortion:
NOW -- all abortion is never to be legislated against
LDS -- Abortion to save the life of the mother or in cases of rape and incest can be OK

Violence Against Women:
NOW -- All Violence against women is an abomination
LDS -- All Violence against women is an abomination

Racism and diversity:
NOW -- Racism is bad -- Diversity is good
LDS -- All are children of God -- All worthy male members can hold the priesthood

Lesbian Rights:
NOW -- Lesbian Marriage is a right
LDS -- Marriage is between one man and one woman and sexual relations only within marriage

This is all Way over simplified and imperfect but you get the idea.

Not all things promoted by feminists are bad for society but some things are (according to MY OPINION of Mormon doctrine).

No offense anyone -- sorry if I got things way wrong

D

Answer 7

I've never heard that (only heard about the gay movement). But I think that there is nothing wrong with some but not extreme feminism. I mean, look, there is a woman running for president, that is totally great and I support that + she's democrat :D

Answer 8

He is right for all the wrong reasons. These 'movements' always carry people far beyond the initial valid intentions. I believe people should be treated fairly. I could have supported these groups at stage one. When they started to go overboard, they lost me. Its a lot like being a Democrat. You just see the party go from progressive to socalist. Or Republican and see it go from conservative to big spenders.

Answer 9

They are most concerned with the intilectual movement....because all of the stuff theyve covered up about their history is in jeopardy of being revealed.

Answer 10

Great answer fotomama!!!!!!

gw