'Call her blessed:' Mothers essential
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With all of the doctrines and teachings on priesthood, prophets and patriarchy, some casual readers might draw the erroneous conclusion that the scriptures relegate women in general, and mothers in particular, to a secondary role in the kingdom of God.
But an analysis of some key passages militates against this notion and leads to the opposite conclusion: that motherhood is as essential as priesthood leadership in saving souls and that Paul was right when he declared, "Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:11).
As people in the United States and other parts of the world celebrate motherhood, now is an especially appropriate time to consider such passages.
The name that Adam gave to his wife bespeaks the key role that mothers play in the eternal progression of mortal men and women. He called her Eve, "because she was the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20; see also Moses 4:26). Indeed, the word Eve in the Bible is a translation of the Hebrew Chavvah meaning "life" or "living." Perhaps this suggests not just the idea of procreation but carries a more profound connotation involving the nurturing, care and teaching that are so integral to the duties of motherhood.
Proverbs, in describing the archetypical "virtuous woman," declares:
"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.
"Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates" (Proverbs 31:28, 31).
Surely, the "fruit of her hands" includes children who apply the teachings they learn at her knee. Proverbs enjoins:
"Hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
"For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck" (Proverbs 1:8-9).
As the "Viewpoint" on page 16 of this issue of the Church News points out, there are objective indications that righteous mothers in Zion, in our day as well as in times of old, are nurturing valor and honor in their children.
The Savior's tender concern for His mortal mother, even as He was suffering on the cross, demonstrates the regard in which He holds motherhood:
"When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
"Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home" (John 19:26-27).
John, of course, wrote this incident about himself, he being "the disciple . . . whom (Jesus) loved." That Jesus would commend His mother into the care of His beloved disciple in these terms indicates the depth of feeling the Savior had for His mother and the trust He reposed in John.
In the latter-day dispensation, prophets and apostles have elucidated scriptural doctrines and teachings pertaining to motherhood. On Sept. 23, 1995, at a general Relief Society meeting, President Gordon B. Hinckley introduced a document from the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve titled "The Family: A Proclamation to the World." This has become the Church's definitive statement on the family (see "Family" entry in True to the Faith, p. 59). The proclamation declares that "by divine design," mothers are "primarily responsible for the nurture of their children." Ideally, while "fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners," the proclamation makes clear that fathers "are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families," thus freeing up mothers for their primary role of nurturing children.
Grasping how crucial the role of the mother is in the divine plan of happiness perhaps is key in understanding why Heavenly Father has assigned respective roles to men and women as He has. Speaking in general conference of April 1978, Elder Neal A. Maxwell, then of the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy, commented:
"We know so little, brothers and sisters, about the reasons for the division of duties between womanhood and manhood as well as between motherhood and priesthood. These were divinely determined in another time and another place. We are accustomed to focusing on the men of God because theirs is the priesthood and the leadership line. But paralleling that authority line is a stream of righteous influence reflecting the remarkable women of God who have existed in all ages and dispensations, including our own. Greatness is not measured by coverage in column inches, either in newspapers or in the scriptures. The story of the women of God, therefore, is, for now, an untold drama within a drama. . . . "When the real history of mankind is fully disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound of lullabies? . . .The great armistices made by military men or the peacemaking of women in homes and neighborhoods? Will what happened in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what happened in congresses? When the surf of centuries has made the great pyramids so much sand, the everlasting family will still be standing, because it is a celestial institution, formed outside telestial time. The women of God know this.
"No wonder the men of God support and sustain you sisters in your unique roles, for the act of deserting home in order to shape society is like thoughtlessly removing crucial fingers from an imperiled dike in order to teach people to swim. . . .
"Finally, remember: When we return to our real home, it will be with the 'mutual approbation' of those who reign in the 'royal courts on high.' There we will find beauty such as mortal 'eye hath not seen'; we will hear sounds of surpassing music which mortal 'ear hath not heard.' Could such a regal homecoming be possible without the anticipatory arrangements of a Heavenly Mother?"
E-mail to: rscott@desnews.com
