On Some Deep-ish Doctrine of My Church

I know a sweet, lovely lady who writes beautifully.  Recently she wrote a post which contained questions she proposed that others might have about our Heavenly Mother.  I'm LDS (plain to see by lots of things in the sidebars).  If you didn't know we believe in a Heavenly Mother, like unto our Heavenly Father, then I encourage you to learn more about my religion.  And if you'd like a great blog to read about this and other topics pertaining to the LDS Faith, I'm happy to share!

So, I'm not the final word, or anything, of course, but I feel like I have something to say about this quote I found in this amazing lady's blog.  She wrote, "If we worship our  Father, what could be inappropriate about worshiping our Mother? Is there something inherent about being female that makes Her unworthy of worship? Is She a lesser being, not quite as divine as the Father, a sort of demi-goddess? Or not divine at all? Is She perhaps just some lucky woman who ended up married to God?"

Good questions, right?  Well, I hope you think my answers are somewhat acceptable!  ^_^  I'm not the final word, but I feel like I've been Led pretty strongly to some great points of understanding... I feel great clarity about this subject... I only hope, by The Holy Spirit, I'm able to communicate it here to you!!!  ^_^

One answer I'd always heard is that Heavenly Father loves his wife so much that He cannot stand for her to be profaned.  This could (did to me!) seem like a bit of a cop out.  "Yeah, right.  SURE!  What-ev!" I thought and felt!!!  Truly.  I did!  Don't you!?!

But I've had some experiences in my own horribly human marriage (which is not eligible for sealing by the Holy Spirit of Promise as yet since my husband is not LDS and so, of course, we have not been sealed in the temple).  Notwithstanding our marriages cyclic horrible and numerous problems, Jessie is a good guy.  A really good guy, when he's on that side of the line!  There have been quite a few instances, a few distant and one all too recent, when others in the world have been on "attack Tori" mode.  To my great surprise and pleasure, Jessie has put on some mighty spiffy armor and gone in sword raise to defend me.   Then there are some instances in which our children have shown more than the normal disrespectful behavior toward me with my husband present and his armor appeared out of thin air.  The point?  The point is that his outward show of protective love for me is a mere smidgey, practically insignificant relatively speaking, show compared to how Heavenly Father loves His woman.  A smidgey... insignificant... (NOT to ME... but in comparison!)

Can you imagine how much our Heavenly Father would want to do harm to those who would malign our Heavenly Mother (His Wife)?  I mean, think about the peeps at Noah's time... that was for, what?  Because they didn't worship Him, right?  I mean... it wasn't like he gave them a day and said, "If you don't shape up, you're all going to die!"  He gave them more than 600 years worth of days.  Right.  But reason the whole earth was depopulated was for lack of devotion and worship of their creator... not necessarily constant maligning of Him... just disobedience.  ("Just"  HA!  I know that's silly... but I use it to make a point.)  I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to think that, among the other bad choices made, there were plenty enough of those who didn't get on the boat who were worshipping Gaia (or some such heavenly mother of all (including any and all gods)).  I guess I can just see so much more now how that really could be a BIG part of the direction to focus on worshipping God, rather than trying to split worship.  And as I wrote those last few words of that last sentence there comes to my mind a scripture that references serving two masters.  I'm sure you know the one.  I'm not going to look it up right now.  The meaning is written on my heart, if you need the book, chapter, and verse, I'll leave you to that.  ;)

I also feel like Heavenly Mother doesn't care for the attention.  Now, this could come from observation of some really amazing women (and some men), but the most amazing servants I have observed are usually those who don't want anyone to know they are serving.  They feel uncomfortable when others speak to them of their service.  I think this is a trait born of our Heavenly Mother.  She is the origination point (from the Whole) of that feeling... at least, this is what I feel and believe!  :)

Also, I think it becomes difficult for humans to differentiate between God worship, God AND Godess worship versus exclusive worship of a godess.  I think that the way I just wrote that may not be very clear....  To explain differently: if we, as the LDS church, were to try to promote worship by addressing the pair as a whole, too many Mormons AND non-members alike would be unable to focus on the two and would turn to only one or the other.  (go back to the book, chapter and verse I know you totally had to look up... and we find a potential key to the problem?)  Yes, Mormons (mostly) know that the Heavenly Couple are United - a whole, incomplete without the other.  However, the very nature of your (our) questions, reveal how much we truly do NOT understand the totality of the wholeness and unity which IS Them.  Ya know?

I think, also, that our egos are way more of a problem than we realize.  We, as humans, but perhaps especially women (because we live in a Patriarchal world (for the most part)) are put in a position in which we "must" be humble... maybe even more humble, generally speaking than men?  I mean, what man could deal with constantly being told he was (whether purposefully or not, whether by word or deed) "less than" his wife.  Admittedly, those men who do this (whether in leadership or simply in the home are exibiting the epidomy of unrighteous dominion, but that's basically a whole other subject, isn't it??)  Okay, well, the current mainstream culture is being excluded from my consideration for the sake of the position I'm presenting (particularly because the whole man-hate thing is really NEW in the scheme of things - at least in the last hundred + year)... Guys just couldn't deal/cope/function and still stay faithful and attend church regularly and feel good about themselves generally.  Feel free to tell me if you think I'm wrong about that.  I am NOT male bashing here.  I'm just suggesting that men cannot cope with being in women's shoes (just as I could not and DO NOT want to be in a man's!!!!).  Not most guys, anway!  But as a woman, we must do as most men could not because human males are, well... HUMAN!  They (general assumption, I DO know there are exceptions!) just don't GET the unity thing and, instead, buy into the easier: "I'm the man, so what I say goes," malarky.  Which means they are discounting or completely ignoring  other aspects of how Father God has told them to be toward their Wife (even in only the Holy Bible, for crying out loud)!

To answer the above quoted questions more directly (for my own clarity of thought):

Question:
"If we worship our Father, what could be inappropriate about worshiping our Mother?"

My DIRECT answer:
Taking the two apart is a bit of sacrilidge, maybe?  I mean, they twain shall become ONE is so much more complete than I think we can possibly understand.  So, trying to take them apart and address them seperately is #1 beside the point, #2 disobedient to what we have heard from our Prophet, and #3 see number one.  Right?

Question:
"Is there something inherent about being female that makes Her unworthy of worship?"

My DIRECT answer:
ABSOLUTELY positively and without a shadow of a doubt: NO!  It is, I believe, truly the opposite of this.  It is desire to protect, shield, shelter, defend that our Father God would have us not address her.  For to address her respectfully puts Her in the light of awareness to all and thus sort of paints a target on her for those who would DISrespect her....  I mean, there must needs be opposition in all things.  So if there are 10 folks (like you) who desire to worship Her openly, there must needs be 10+ folks who would malign, disrespect, abuse, and otherwise negatively treat Her to the best of their ability.
Question:
"Is She a lesser being, not quite as divine as the Father, a sort of demi-goddess? Or not divine at all?"
My DIRECT answer:
No way.  See above.  Not just the direct answers.  :)

 Question:
"Is She perhaps just some lucky woman who ended up married to God?"

My DIRECT answer:
Certainly you know this is a rather silly question as soon as it is re-read.  Don't you??  We learn and must know, on some level, that Godhood (of male or female) is UNachievable without the Other.  So, the Other is a key "ingredient" or a key Member of the whole that achieves.

If one (lone male) cannot achieve that Celestial degree of Glory, then the contributions of the Other will necessarily CONTRIBUTE to the achievement.  Right?  Thus, she is not the lucky "one," but, in fact, they are the "lucky" pair to have found and worked hard enough together to stay together and stridently enough to achieve unity.

I'm thinking of a climbing analogy.  I don't climb, but tried it.  I wasn't good at it.  I slipped a LOT.  I dislike holding others down or back!  Anyway... the analogy:  A couple meet in the midst of their climb.  They get married.  By their married (sealed or civil) they accept bindings to each other.  A temple sealed marriage has a sort of binding that is more complete than a civilly married couple.  The two look ahead and plan the point to which they desire to climb and agree on a course to achieve it (hopefully).  So, they set out.  Sometimes they each climb really well and they are both happy with each other.  Other times one slips and the other has to try to not slip.  This is frustrating for the one who did not slip and can result in some negative returns.  If there are too many slips on the climb to Celestial Glory from either (or, heaven forbid both) partner(s), the pair will not reach the pinnacle in any sort of timely fashion... if ever.  Only when there is constant thought, desire (emotion for my analogy), spiritual commitment, and temporal effort made from both spouses will the pair achieve the topmost point/goal of their climb.  Once sealed, two are tether together by almost unbreakable chords.  Discord, malcontentment, anger, hate, etc. can break them, it is true, but only after long sawing at the bindings.  Those who reach the top have achieved a point of Unity which is Sealed by the Holy Ghost, which makes their binding truly Eternal, more complete than we can understand in our finite condition.

The point?  She didn't just luck out in finding a good climber.  They were either both good climbers.  OR the better climber taught the other, in a way that the other could receive, how to climb so that they could achieve their goals.  Is one luckier than the other?  I think not!  For even if one started out a better climber, s/he could not have achieved the top unless the other made equal efforts.

So, too, with our Heavenly Mother.  She did not dangle on the end of her bindings.  The Holy Spirit would not Seal such.  Don't you think so?