by: Kate Kelly

In the world of environmental science there is a theory called “Peak Oil.” Dependency on oil is unsustainable. We are fresh out of dinosaurs, so the fossil fuels we’ve got now are static. The theory holds that at a certain point we will reach (or perhaps have already reached, depending on who you ask) a point where we have used up ½ of those reserves. Aka the “peak.” If we can’t transition into something more sustainable, and demand continues to grow while production begins to decline, we’re in big trouble. Energy prices and food prices will spike, and economies dependent on oil will run out of fuel, literally. Ergo, if we stubbornly insist on continuing to rely on this finite resource we’ve depended on in the past, there will be catastrophic consequences. In order to survive we are going to have to learn to transition to a world without oil.

I believe that we have reached “peak patriarchy”[1] in Mormonism. Which is to say, we have reached a point where the system of patriarchy is no longer sustainable both in terms of retaining members and in terms of our tolerance for an unequal system.

We are losing women. After a period of continual climb in membership since the founding of Mormonism, church members are now “leaving in droves.” A significant percentage of those leaving the church, both men and women, cite “women’s issues” as a significant reason for leaving the church. This is particularly true of single women. In fact, 70% of single women who have lost their faith ranked “women’s issues” as significant. We are running out of our most precious resources: our youth. This is in large part due to the system of patriarchy that inherently ensures female members are marginalized and underutilized. In order to survive we are going to have to learn to transition to a church without patriarchy. We are going to have to learn to rely on and put trust in Mormon women as true equals.

The move forward to an equitable, and therefore sustainable, church inherently necessitates the ordination of women. The problem is a systematic one, and so purely cosmetic or incremental adjustments will only serve to mask, and not solve the root problem. Romantic Paternalism, which, in practical effect, put women not on a pedestal, but in a cage, is no longer a sufficient excuse for excluding women from nearly all positions of clerical, fiscal, ritual, and decision-making authority in the church. We desire no longer to be flattered in a pejorative way, but to be taken seriously and treated as the spiritual equals we know ourselves to be.

The transition from patriarchy to an egalitarian system of church governance will likely not be seamless. It is very difficult for us to completely re-imagine our lives without something we have become so dependent on that we imagine it will always be there in limitless supply. Weaning ourselves off of oil dependency will require a combination of imagination, ingenuity and the best of motivators: desperation. So too, the transition out of the patriarchal order, to which Mormons have become so accustomed will require us to stretch. The ways in which fossil fuels affect our lives are in some ways so invisible, it is hard to even think about what we will be missing without them. Imagining a world without men in charge of every meeting, ritual, proclamation and auxiliary is perhaps as difficult for some as imagining a world without gas powered vehicles and all of the thousands of products we would have to live without. But, however difficult the transition may be, it is necessary and it is coming.

Like peak oil, I believe the transition after peak patriarchy will come swiftly. We are at a unique moment in time when most Mormons are exposed to the unacceptability of sexism in their personal and professional lives. Young people, and particularly young women are no longer satisfied with the status quo or willing to participate in a system that categorically excludes them. Sadly, those who have benefited from an exploitative system, whether it is the oil extraction industry or patriarchy, will often go to extreme lengths to keep it in place towards the end, even if they know the transition is inevitable. New technologies are developed to squeeze out every last bit of oil, and rhetoric will be honed and refined to prop up patriarchy. However, these frantic attempts to maintain the status quo are also signs that change is inevitable.

Often fear surrounds peaks of any kind because the unknown is always daunting; yet, there is cause to be filled with hope and optimism. The resourcefulness and creativity of our foremothers and forefathers has brought us to this point, and there is no reason to think that our reserves of inspiration are in short supply. The path forward of inclusiveness and equality is a bright and inviting one. If women are ordained, and treated as full equals in church governance a huge reserve of heretofore-untapped talent will be developed. The thought of women’s ordination makes me optimistic for the bright future I have in the church. A future without oil or patriarchy is only bleak if we do not learn to adapt in time and if those adaptations are cosmetic rather than meaningful, systematic, and permanent.

Ways you can put your proverbial “shoulder to the wheel” in helping the church transition to a sustainable structure of full inclusion:

Join Ordain Women and woman of many faiths on Equality Day Aug. 26th for a fast for gender justice https://www.facebook.com/events/548948465166297/

DC Event: 6:30-7:30 PM EST at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church 1525 Newton Street NW Washington, DC

SLC Event: 7-8 PM MDT at the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple 211 West, 100 South Salt Lake City UT 84101

Join a group of brave women on October 5th in Salt Lake City to wait in line for the Priesthood session of conference. Details TBA!

Visit us at www.ordainwomen.org to see the profiles of other women and male allies who are calling for the ordination of women and submit your own profile!

______________________________________________________________________

[1] I borrowed the phrase “peak patriarchy” from a blog post my friend Sophie pointed out to me on climate change and land management.