Members of the group Ordain Women say they’ll try to attend the priesthood session of the LDS General Conference at local meetinghouses this weekend.
The Ordain Women Facebook page shows meetinghouses across the United States and Canada where women plan to show up to attend a meeting that’s normally reserved only for men and boys. There are only a few sites in Utah, but one of them is the Marriott Center. Supporters of ordaining women to the priesthood of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints say they’ll meet on the northwest corner of the 20-thousand seat arena on the campus of Brigham Young University.
Joanna Wallace was part of the attempt to gain admission to the priesthood session at Temple Square during the past two conferences. She’s helped to organize plans for attending at local meetinghouses. She’ll go to her home ward in Atlanta, and she says the atmosphere has changed since the excommunication of Ordain Women founder Kate Kelly.
“This time," Wallace tells KUER, "I feel there’s a palpable fear among our supporters as opposed to last time, when it didn’t feel scary to go as a group. It felt galvanizing and strengthening to us as supporters. Even when we were turned away, it wasn’t a scary thing.”
Church officials accommodated some women who attended the priesthood session at local wards and stakes during the last conference. So far, though, there’s been no word from church headquarters about how this action by Ordain Women will be handled or whether there will be restrictions on media access to church property.