Was Emma Smith Ordained or Set Apart?

Was Emma Ordained or Set Apart?

I know that some will see this as a twisting of things to make them fit my personal interpretation; but, since everyone in the Ordain Women camp loves to make the claim that Emma Smith was ordained, I feel that the subject must be touched upon and another point of view given.

First of all, it must be made clear that in the Protestant Churches, there is absolutely no difference whatsoever between being Set Apart and being Ordained. They see it all as being one and the same. They make no distinction between the two whatsoever.

So, where did most of the early Latter-day Saints originally come from? They came from Protestant Churches. Therefore, by default, the first Latter-day Saints would see absolutely no difference between being Set Apart and being Ordained. Thus, in the early days of the LDS Church you would and should see the two words being used interchangeably because, while the first Latter-day Saints were learning how God really works and what God really wants or really intends, the Saints would naturally make some mistakes and get various terms and ideas mixed up all the time. Even Joseph Smith seemed to use these two words interchangeably for a long period of time.

In the beginning, the Saints were still learning, so they were bound to make some mistakes and to get some things wrong. The early Latter-day Saints were still developing the definitions for a lot of these different things. Even Joseph Smith was making up some things as he went along.

My claim, though, is that even though the early Latter-day Saints might have gotten things mixed up all the time, the Lord did not! The Lord knew exactly what He intended, even if the Latter-day Saints did not.

So, if you had some inexperienced individual like me setting apart a boy into the Aaronic Priesthood and then ordaining that boy into the office of a Deacon, how would that Ordination be recorded in Heaven by the Lord and His Angels? Think about it for a bit.

Here on earth, the Ordination might erroneously be recorded on the books of the Church as the boy being ordained into the office of a Deacon and set apart to the Aaronic Priesthood. However, the Lord knowing the sincerity and righteousness of the act would compensate for the people's lack of understanding; and thus, the Lord would record the Ordination in Heaven as the boy being Ordained into the Aaronic Priesthood and then set apart to the Office of a Deacon. The Lord would know what He intended to see happen, even if the early Latter-day Saints didn't.

I can't discover when it first happened; but eventually, it was revealed to the LDS Apostles that the Lord sees “Setting Apart” and “Ordination” as two completely different things. The Lord sees “Setting Apart” as being something temporary. In contrast, the Lord sees an “Ordination” or an “Ordinance” as something that is meant to be “Established” or “Set Sure”. In other words, the Lord sees Ordinations and Ordinances as something that is meant to be permanent, Eternal, and Everlasting.

Sometime during the ongoing Restoration of the Gospel, we have come to know from the Lord that the Lord Himself makes a definite distinction between Ordination and Setting Apart. That truth has been slowly revealed to us, line upon line, and precept by precept.

So, now we come to the million dollar question. When Emma Smith had hands laid upon her head and she was ordained as the Relief Society President and it was recorded in the records of the Church that she was ordained as the Relief Society President, how was that transaction recorded by the Lord and by the Angels in Heaven? That's what really matters! It doesn't matter if we get the terms wrong or get them right. What matters is how the Lord records things in Heaven. It's the Lord's Priesthood and the Lord's Church; and in the end, it will all be done the Lord's way and according to the Lord's words and terms.

I suggest for your consideration that this particular transaction was recorded on Heaven's books this way: “Today, Emma Smith was set apart by a Melchizedek Priesthood holder as the President of the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” Why? It's because the Lord eventually revealed to us that that is the way that He and the Angels recorded that transaction (and all similar transactions) in Heaven when it was presented to Him.

Consequently, if I am called upon to set my wife apart as the Relief Society President of the Ward, and I erroneously yet sincerely say, “I Ordain you to be the Relief Society President of the Ward”, then the Lord will compensate for my mistake and on the Records of Heaven it will be recorded that I, a Melchizedek Priesthood holder, set apart my wife to be the Relief Society President of such and such a ward.

The Lord knows what He intends to see happen, even if we don't. And, the Lord has revealed to the LDS General Authorities over the decades that He doesn't intend for a female to be Ordained into anything within the LDS Church. The Lord has told us that He does not intend for a female to be Ordained (or Set Apart) to the Patriarchal Order or the Fatherhood Order of the Priesthood of God. The Lord has made it abundantly clear that it would make NO sense to do so. It's the Lord's Priesthood and the Lord's Church; and, the Lord knows what He intends to see happen and what He will allow to happen, even if we don't.

In the LDS Church, a female can be Set Apart to various Priesthood Roles, that much is clear; but, the Lord has revealed to us that He does not want us deliberately giving a female the Priesthood or Ordaining a female into the Priesthood. If we were to do so, it would violate His intentions and He wouldn't allow it; and thus, it would NOT be recorded in Heaven as being a valid ordination, even if someone records it as such here on the earth.

That's why there are two records kept of every transaction, Ordination, and Ordinance – one record here on earth and one record in Heaven. The one in Heaven trumps the one here on earth if any disputation or controversy arises. In the end, it will all be done the Lord's way, even if we deliberately intend to do it some other way. If the Lord refuses to record it on the Records of Heaven, then it will not be recorded on the Records of Heaven, even if we record it on our earthly records.

If in the LDS Church we honestly and sincerely yet mistakenly Ordain a woman to something here on the earth, the Lord will compensate for our mistake and record it as a “Setting Apart” on the Records of Heaven and the Book of Life. The Lord knows what He intends to see happen and knows how things should work, even if we don't.

So, was Emma ordained or set apart?

As I see it, the whole issue comes down to how the Lord chose to record the transaction on the Records of Heaven. It doesn't matter what we mere mortals choose to call it. We can call it anything we want, and it won't change what the Lord chose to call it. If the Lord chose to call it an Ordination, then it was an Ordination. If the Lord chose to call it a “Setting Apart”, then it was a “Setting Apart”.

In the final analysis, the Lord Himself seems to be the one who is most concerned about making a distinction between Ordination and “Setting Apart”. We mortals in general aren't all that concerned about making the distinction between the two, unless one of us happens to be an LDS Bishop or an LDS Stake President. I trust God to be able to tell the difference between the two, and to make any necessary adjustments on the Records of Heaven if we mortals occasionally get it wrong.

So, was Emma ordained or set apart?

You will have to ask the Lord. Only the Lord knows how He chose to record that transaction on the Records of Heaven. However, I do suggest that the Lord has already revealed to us how He recorded that particular transaction (and similar transactions) on the Records of Heaven and in the Book of Life, because the Lord seems to be intent on making a definite distinction between Ordinations and “Setting Aparts”; and thus, the Lord would definitely know the difference between the two and how He wants things to be recorded on the Records of Heaven.

I trust God to be able to tell the difference between the two and to make any necessary adjustments on the Records of Heaven so that all things will be done His way, the right way. I put all of this into the hands of the Lord, because it is His Church and His Priesthood, after all. He knows what He is doing, how He wants things to go, how He wants things done, and how He wants things recorded, even if we don't. Therefore, when it comes to this matter, I place the burden of proof into the hands of the Lord; and, I also trust that if He doesn't like the way things are going, then He will speak up and say so, through His designated channels. Even if we mess it all up, trust God to set it right and true in the end. Trust God to get it right.