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tofupup's review against another edition
4.0
This book has some relatively simple ideas for making an impact in church settings that I'm going to try to implement.
rachelhelps's review against another edition
4.0
Sometimes if you bring up gender issues in the LDS church people can get defensive. This book is a bridge between them and people who feel the pain of gender disparity within the church. I felt like if I needed to explain why Mormon feminism is important to another member of the church, I could hand them this book. Mormons in leadership positions would benefit from reading this book, as it would help them feel more compassion and sensitivity to issues that some people (including me) feel passionate about. Things like making the cub scout and achievement day activities more similar (or just having equal budgets), giving women the opportunity to occasionally mentor/teach young men (often young men have no religious, women leaders other than their mother, whereas young women have their own women leaders and the bishopric), and helping women feel heard when they are in leadership positions.
Many of the ideas feel sort of weaksauce from a feminist perspective... like having the young women bake bread for the sacrament. It's completely within gender-prescribed behavior and the women are still in the background for their service. But at the same time it's a touching compromise and an idea I'd love to see in action. Reading this book helped me feel hope for women's representation in the forefront of the church (not just in the background on a pedestal). It also validated my dissatisfaction with various gender issues in the church in a good way that makes me want to enact change in my own ward and neighborhood.
Many of the ideas feel sort of weaksauce from a feminist perspective... like having the young women bake bread for the sacrament. It's completely within gender-prescribed behavior and the women are still in the background for their service. But at the same time it's a touching compromise and an idea I'd love to see in action. Reading this book helped me feel hope for women's representation in the forefront of the church (not just in the background on a pedestal). It also validated my dissatisfaction with various gender issues in the church in a good way that makes me want to enact change in my own ward and neighborhood.
tueller42's review against another edition
5.0
It's a little bit ironic that I only felt that I had time and energy to finish this book after being released as Relief Society president. I don't know if that was the book's fault. But either way I am grateful for the faithful way it looks at real issues within the church and it gets 5 stars just for existing.
missamandamae's review against another edition
5.0
A great conversation starter. McBaine has scads of ideas to dwell on, to work with, to enact. Written with LDS leaders in mind, so make sure you lend your annotated copy to your bishop!
mychaelann's review against another edition
4.0
McBaine’s book is a helpful tool in understanding why gender issues are challenging for many women in the church. While many of her suggestions have come to fruition in the years since publication, still a worthwhile read for both those who don’t understand what the fuss is about and those who find gender dynamics at church challenging.
mlottermoser's review against another edition
3.0
I struggled to get through this book. While it covers an important topic, fantasy worlds are so much easier to escape into when I have time. But it expanded my thoughts on women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (The Mormons.) McBaine writes about women’s representation and history in the church. She discusses common pain points of a patriarchal church and simple ideas on how to fix them. Since it was written over six years ago some things have changed. Small steps have been taken to help all feel welcome. Hurray for more women participating in General Conference and giving talks in church. But there is still room to grow. Women need representation on the stand and equality with their words and activities.
erintby's review against another edition
3.0
This book is very practical and super needed -- it's so important to talk about women at church and how we can empower ourselves to make changes within the existing framework. Her book is based on several qualitative interviews with women in the LDS church, and I appreciated reading many of the specific examples, i.e. the woman who asked to hold her baby during the baby blessing, the stake that improves visibility & recognition of the stake RS presidency, wards which recognize that Young Women activities shouldn't all be fashion shows and makeover nights, etc.
I did also gain a lot of empathy for our elderly leaders from the section where she details how few rights women had in 1962 and how much of their lives they'd already lived -- they've come a long way since then & it's hard to overcome the culture and socialization of your upbringing.
I wish she'd talked in more depth about our doctrine and cultural response to Heavenly Mother. I feel like a discussion of Her is incredibly relevant to the topic at hand, yet She was only mentioned in passing a couple of times.
Also, while I really did enjoy most of the book, I really struggled with her section in chapter 4 called "Disconnect between doctrine and practice of equality" (a great title-but the content confused me). She spent the entire chapter up to this point explaining why some women are in pain and how we need to listen to and empathize with those women. However, this section seemed a little jarring to me because she seemed to accept uncritically some leaders' teachings that equal doesn't mean equally represented in leadership or handbooks, it just means equally valued. I totally get that equal doesn't need to mean identical, but she doesn't seem to even consider that perhaps our current system of male over-representation in church leadership might be man-made rather than divinely inspired. Anyways, it was a small part about a book that overall I found very useful--but this section just seemed so inconsistent with the rest of the chapter. By completely shutting down the possibility that the structure is sexist and needs divine reform, it made me feel exactly as if my concerns were unheard and invalid, which is what she was trying to address. I even read it again after I finished the rest of the book to see if I misunderstood. I know she's advocating for making local changes within the existing Handbook framework and that she needs to appeal to a conservative audience, and while I can see the merits in that, I thought there would be more room in this section for suggesting that perhaps this isn't the way it should be.
I did also gain a lot of empathy for our elderly leaders from the section where she details how few rights women had in 1962 and how much of their lives they'd already lived -- they've come a long way since then & it's hard to overcome the culture and socialization of your upbringing.
I wish she'd talked in more depth about our doctrine and cultural response to Heavenly Mother. I feel like a discussion of Her is incredibly relevant to the topic at hand, yet She was only mentioned in passing a couple of times.
Also, while I really did enjoy most of the book, I really struggled with her section in chapter 4 called "Disconnect between doctrine and practice of equality" (a great title-but the content confused me). She spent the entire chapter up to this point explaining why some women are in pain and how we need to listen to and empathize with those women. However, this section seemed a little jarring to me because she seemed to accept uncritically some leaders' teachings that equal doesn't mean equally represented in leadership or handbooks, it just means equally valued. I totally get that equal doesn't need to mean identical, but she doesn't seem to even consider that perhaps our current system of male over-representation in church leadership might be man-made rather than divinely inspired. Anyways, it was a small part about a book that overall I found very useful--but this section just seemed so inconsistent with the rest of the chapter. By completely shutting down the possibility that the structure is sexist and needs divine reform, it made me feel exactly as if my concerns were unheard and invalid, which is what she was trying to address. I even read it again after I finished the rest of the book to see if I misunderstood. I know she's advocating for making local changes within the existing Handbook framework and that she needs to appeal to a conservative audience, and while I can see the merits in that, I thought there would be more room in this section for suggesting that perhaps this isn't the way it should be.
adrienneturner's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
4.0
While it is a bit out of date now, Women At Church raises many important points, strategies, and grievances that need to come to light. Recommended reading for any church leader, especially bishops and stake presidents.
colleenbee's review against another edition
5.0
I think every member of the LDS faith should read this book. It is a faithful, compassionate perspective on women's issues and voice in the church. Fantastic. I borrowed a copy but will be buying my own.