by Amber Elisabeth Sanders With dust upon their feet, They weep where grief and grace meet. Not less than because of a fall, But called by the Shepherd who knows all. Their hands shake holding the weight of the lost, Their prayers taste of salt as they count the cost. As priesthood keys rest in appointed hands, The power and healing flow through the lands. Nothing lacking from the mercy seat Where they kneel, undone, at His nail-scarred feet. Christ atones with blood and with tears, Silencing each and every one of their fears. They rise in the night with an ache in their chest, To sing Zion awake while the wounded still rest. They come to Him fractured, yet He heals each heart, As each woman rises to do her own part. They cradle the broken, they kindle the flame, To build up His kingdom in Jesus’ name. Amber Elisabeth Sanders lives in Phoenix, Arizona, and is a member of the Shadow Mountain Ward in the Paradise Valley Stake. She writes from the messy middle of being a devoted wife of 18 years, a mother of three, and a ward missionary, relying daily on her anchor of faith. She is convinced that Christ is in the business of mending fractured hearts and trusting ordinary women to build Zion. Her words are written for anyone who has ever knelt at the mercy seat and stood back up to light a candle for someone else.

By Angie Ora Whittemore One morning my mom and I walk a remote island coast near her home. Watch your step, she tells me, these beaches are littered with glass. Shards of white and foam green lie amid discarded caps and lone shoes. We scan the sand before placing our feet. A quarter mile on now, I bend to examine these pieces and wait look the glass is rounded, smooth, opaque. There are no rough edges, no jags to pierce my skin. Decades of churning in the sea, weathered by rock and grain, and salt to turn it milky raw, allows the refining, the tolerance, the acceptance. Lord let this be me: let me cup my hands to the coarseness of life. The sickness, the seeming rejection, the hunger I have not yet sated. And Lord let me behold this refinement not just in others, but in myself. Hashlamah. Hashlamah is a Hebrew term meaning the surrender to or alignment with the will of God and the nature of reality. Angie Ora Whittemore lives in Santa Barbara, California, with her husband and three daughters. She is happiest near the ocean, where she finds balance, inspiration and play. As a committed friend of Jesus, she is drawn to the ways the Divine is manifest in the natural world and in everyday life.

by Candace White Whimpers of a four-year-old girl sequestered between the wall and her bureau light up heaven as a bright red beacon. “Help,” she cries, weakly but sincerely, like the offering of the remains of her piggy bank to cover the broken dish, the dolls on the floor, the postage stamps used as stickers, the inconvenience of her existence. The martinet is determined, a heat-seeking missile, and she knows if she is found before he moves on to other targets, the beatings will resume. “Help,” she cries—just one word from her little girl heart, from her little girl red mouth—onto the bureau with a white grease pencil. And then it comes. Not as expected, but as she needs, with the stillness and penetrating clarity only the Gods of heaven can offer. “He is only your earthly father, but I am your heavenly Father.” Candace White is a creator with a love for faith, history, travel, beauty, and lifelong learning. She believes some of life’s greatest treasures are found in unexpected places: a well-told story, a hard-earned lesson, a quiet act of kindness, a piece of art, lunch with a friend, or a glimpse of heaven in an ordinary day. She lives in a sunny corner of the world with her darling husband and their sweet dog.

by Candace White In this child of four years old, There burned a spark of heavenly gold. She knew the earthly father’s punishing rod Would melt ‘neath the gaze of God. Like stars concealed by noonday light, The promise lingered out of sight. Though clouds of sorrow veiled her view, The heavens held their witness true. Through fields of shame her feet did stray, In weeping night and stolen day. For thirty years the serpent spoke, Shrouding her in a heavy cloak. “Awake!” the Heavenly Ones cried, “Come forth, My daughter, to My side!” Her Savior broke the iron bands, And took the maiden by her hands. In her prime her head held high, Beneath a clear, eternal sky, Her soul rebuilt, her spirit free, Clothed in symbols of Christ’s Majesty! Candace White is a creator with a love for faith, history, travel, beauty, and lifelong learning. She believes some of life’s greatest treasures are found in unexpected places: a well-told story, a hard-earned lesson, a quiet act of kindness, a piece of art, lunch with a friend, or a glimpse of heaven in an ordinary day. She lives in a sunny corner of the world with her darling husband and their sweet dog.

by Emily Hawken What does He do with His sorrow? Does He find comfort the same way I do? When He’s sad, does He paint a sunset? Does He compose a birdsong in the trees? Does He run like the wind? When He cries, does He weep into a meadow so the wildflowers can grow? Did He write a psalm on David’s heart? Did He give us these gifts because He knows how they help? Emily Hawkens, Creating is my lifeblood.

by Emily Hawken As she lays her head on my chest, She listens. For my breath. For my heartbeat. Soon, our breathing is synchronized And our hearts beat together, in unison. I lay my head down and listen for His breath and His heart. I find peace in His words; strength in His voice. I want to be aligned with His breath, His heart. Emily Hawken, Creating is my lifeblood.

by Justine Bingham Oh Lord, my heart sends humility and gratitude upwards to Thy throne. Thou hast heard my heart’s yearning to be. Thou hast sent friends with listening ears and caring souls to walk beside and sit with me. They have heard my plight. With nonjudgment, they hold my pain, tenderly reflecting perspective and bearing Thy messages to me as gifts. Thou hast bestowed comfort upon my spirit. Thou hast enlightened my mind with inspiration through genuine text messages and heartfelt prayers. When ways forward appeared hedged, Thou enlarged my understanding to possibilities I hadn’t previously considered. These illuminations have been itineraries toward growth, perspectives, wisdom, and understanding. Praise be to the Lord forever for imbuing wisdom a little here, and a little there. One cometh bearing a line, another graciously gifteth me a precept. I treasure them up, the whole of them greater than their sum. Justine Bingham lives in northern California USA with her family. She treasures connection with her sisters and it is often through them that she hears the Lord.

by Linda Atkinson Joyfully in Baroque style. Snap fingers on beat after “heart”. In 6/8 time, in 2. Eighth-note beats for parts with movement. Let God judge between me and thee; He looks on the heart. (snap) He alone can judge with equity; He looks on the heart. (snap). (with movement) All our thoughts and deeds He knows, Each word and action here below. Ev’ry intention is known to Him; He looks on the heart. (snap) Let God judge between me and thee; He looks on the heart. (snap) He alone can judge with equity; He looks on the heart. (snap) (with movement) Cleansing and vengeance are His alone. Nothing is to Him unknown. All He does is just and right; He looks on the heart. (snap) Linda Atkinson grew up and joined the Church in Michigan. She has had many opportunities to serve in Zion, currently as a Primary teacher with her husband in Fountain, Colorado. They have four adult children and four grandchildren.

by Miriam Barlow Should you find yourself at a dance and death seeks your card, call on heaven for a paso doble. The angels like a lively tune. The steps may seem inaccessible, but a fantastic Partner will lead you through. Over here to avoid a semi-truck Over there to the ER Step inside to dodge that tree crashing down. Though death has fine offers “Rest of their bones, and soul’s delivery”, in a paso doble Where he’d like to cut in make sure you’re on steady footing. You will not fall into his reach, the tempo won’t shake you and your Partner will hold you close. Should you find yourself at a dance with death skulking for your hand, make sure your card is full so that he must wait and wait and wait. When the dance is over you and your Partner can finally say hello and let him walk you home.

by Heather Ruth Pack My mother died with disfigured feet. Bruised, battered, and broken. I never went near them. I never washed them. I couldn’t bear the mess. Years later it was my feet that were washed by the same hands that had washed hers. As living water fell between my toes, I understood what I had missed. I could have been Christ to my mother. Why didn’t I wash her broken feet the way Thou washes mine? Thou accepts me bruised, battered, and broken. Teach me to accept the brokenness of others. Heather Ruth Pack used to study cells under a microscope. Now she studies the scriptures the same way. She's possibly the only grandmother moderating chat for three Zelda streamers on YouTube. She lives in Utah with her husband Bradford. Find her work at www.timesoffaith.com

I come from a long line of plucky widows. My great-grandmother, Eliza Jane, lost her husband when she was thirty-three and was left with eight children to raise on her own. Another great-grandmother, Hannah, was widowed at age forty-three (five children). My Grandma Lula became a widow at thirty-nine (six children). And my own mother, Evelyn, was thirty-eight when my father died, leaving her with seven children. None of these women ever remarried. If something had to be done, my indomitable mother just did it. Even as a younger woman, this can-do attitude was a hallmark of her personality. In 1948, when she was twenty years old, the Church temporarily lowered the age at which women could serve missions from twenty-three to twenty-one. My mother decided she wanted to go on a mission—and that she would leave as soon after her birthday as possible. Her parents were dubious. It was rare for women to serve missions at this time. But my mother persisted and entered the mission home on October 10, 1949, paving the way not only for her younger sister to serve a mission a few years later, but also all three of her future daughters, the majority of her nieces, and many of her granddaughters. My mother had fervent testimony of the restored gospel, but it rankled her that men made all the decisions in the Church. I’d never seen her so upset as when the new meetinghouse our little rural ward community had worked so hard to raise the money to build didn’t include basic, commonsense features—especially in the kitchen and women’s bathrooms. “If ever they’d think to ask a woman, maybe they could get it right!” It's a frustration many of us still share. Still, there is cause for hope for those of us who look forward to the day when women in the Church will be fully heard, valued, and empowered. Forward movement is evident. It’s a beautiful thing to be part of a church that believes in progress, growth, and ongoing revelation. In 2024, Sister J. Anette Dennis of the Relief Society General Presidency unwittingly created a firestorm when she said: “There is no other religious organization in the world, that I know of, that has so broadly given power and authority to women.” This statement elicited over 17,000 online comments, most from LDS women pushing back against this claim. Granted, the Church teaches that “when men and women go to the temple, they are both endowed with the same power, which is priesthood power.”[1] But what does this mean, in a practical sense? How does this translate into lived experience? Because the reality is that many women in the Church don’t feel at all empowered, as evidenced by the majority of those 17,000 comments. In examining these questions and others related to the empowerment (or disempowerment) of Latter-day Saint women, it’s important to distinguish between individual experience, institutional practice/policy, and doctrine. Finally, no discussion of this topic would be complete without an exploration of possible ways forward. Individual Experience Individual experience can vary widely and is always dependent on a number of variables, including the agency of all those involved. While it is true that many women in the Church feel as empowered as they want to be (see, for example, this op-ed in the Deseret News)[2], it is also true that many do not. It is critical that we not discount anyone’s personal experience.My own experience with practical service in the Church has been largely positive. The male leaders with whom I have served have been genuinely respectful of my opinions, perspectives, and leadership. I know other women, though, who have had very painful and demeaning experiences with local leaders in the Church and who have felt routinely overlooked and undervalued. Regardless of anyone’s personal experience, the broader, systemic issues cannot be overlooked. Institutional Practice and Policy One can love the restored gospel and be firmly committed to it and still recognize that the institutional church is decidedly patriarchal. A quick glance at the Church’s leadership chart bears this out. Only 9 of the 145 top leaders of the Church are women, and all their decisions must be approved by the men who oversee them. General Authorities In the Church, only men can be bishops, stake presidents, mission presidents, temple presidents, area authorities, and general authorities; only men hold priesthood keys (or “the right to preside over and direct the Church within a jurisdiction”)[3]; and, with the exception of certain temple ordinances (an exception it behooves us all to consider more carefully), only men can officiate in priesthood ordinances. What this means, in effect, is that not only do men have the final decision-making power over every aspect of Church policy and governance, but they also hold all sacerdotal power. This, in concert with the massive gender imbalance in leadership, also means that male perspectives are often the only ones considered—a genuine problem for a church whose membership is at least half female. When decisions affecting individuals, groups, and entire institutions are made only by a select group, and when that select group excludes women, everyone suffers. Both women and men are diminished under such a system. Doctrine What about doctrine? The Church clearly teaches that men and women are equal in value and “stand in a position of absolute equality before the Lord.”[4] And yet many women in the Church continue to feel like (and be treated like) second-class citizens. The Church also teaches that both men and women are endowed with priesthood power in the temple. And yet women are not ordained to priesthood offices. It is not clear whether this exclusion is doctrinal or merely based on tradition. As articulated in the Gospel Topics Essays (under the heading: Early Latter-day Saint Understandings of Priesthood): “Early Latter-day Saints likewise thought of priesthood primarily in terms of ordination to ecclesiastical office and authority to preach and perform religious rites. As in most other Christian denominations during this era, Latter-day Saint men alone held priesthood offices, served formal proselytizing missions, and performed ordinances like baptism and blessing the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.” The question of why women are not ordained to offices in the priesthood appears to be one that will require additional revelation. Is it because men and women have different roles in God’s plan (the explanation most commonly given)? Is it because women innately possess a different power (the priestesshood, if you will) that does not require ordination, as some have suggested? If so, what does this mean in practical terms? Or is it an exclusion based on historical precedent and nothing else? Only additional light and knowledge can provide the answer. But whatever the case, as long as those who occupy the key administrative roles and hold the ultimate decision-making power in the Church are always and only men, true gender equality will remain elusive. The disconnect between doctrine and practice with regard to women is both puzzling and painful to many in the Church. If women “stand in a position of absolute equality before the Lord,” why are our voices so often not sought or heard? Why do we not have equal representation in the spaces where decisions that affect us all are made? A Way Forward Though currently excluded from the positions that serve as the formal repositories of traditional power and authority in the institutional organization, it is critical that women in the Church not feel powerless. We have access to divine power through our faith in Jesus Christ, through the gift of the Holy Ghost, and through our temple covenants and endowment. We need not wait for permission to use that power for good. God urges us all to be “anxiously engaged” and to do “many things of [our] own free will” because “the power is in [us]” (Doctrine and Covenants 58: 26-28). We can be active agents for righteous change. There are numerous examples throughout the history of the Church of women who have claimed this power and used their moral authority to make their voices heard and their influence felt. Typically, they have done this in one of two ways: 1) by working within the structure of the institution, or 2) by doing independent work outside the institution. Examples of the first are abundant: Eliza R. Snow helped solidify the doctrine of a Heavenly Mother when she penned the words to the poem/hymn “O My Father” (originally entitled “Invocation”). Sarah Granger Kimball’s idea for the formation of a sewing society to aid those working on the Nauvoo temple led to the organization of the Relief Society. In 1878, Aurelia Spencer Roberts was concerned about the lack of moral training for the little boys in Farmington, Utah. She later recorded: “A fire seemed to burn within me . . . The query then arose in my mind could there not be an organization for little boys wherein they could be taught everything good and how to behave.”[5] She took this idea to Eliza R. Snow, General President of the Relief Society, who took it to President John Taylor. Soon the Primary Association of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was formed and placed under the supervision of President Eliza R. Snow. Granted, examples like this of women influencing Church doctrine, organization, and policy were more common at a time when the Church was smaller and more localized. Still, more recent innovations such as greater equity in the budgets for YW and YM programs and the 2019 change to the YW theme were undoubtedly influenced by women. A second but often unrecognized way that women have affected positive change is by doing independent work outside the institution while remaining supportive of the doctrines and leaders of the Church. Examples include women-led organizations such as the Mormon Women’s History Initiative, Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG), the LDS Women Project, Meetinghouse Mosaic, and others. The influence of these groups is often less easily discerned, but is nevertheless very real. When these organizations bring to light compelling new research, make public statements on ethical issues, share the stories of a wide variety of LDS women from around the world, or otherwise shine a light on Church practices and members, the official institution can be moved to acknowledge new research and scholarship, make inspired statements of its own, recognize and celebrate the diversity of experiences and perspectives within its membership, and seek additional light. My mother and grandmothers would be thrilled with many of the recent changes regarding women and the Church. But there is still work to be done. Thankfully, we belong to a church that believes in ongoing revelation and is fully committed to progress and growth. [1] M. Russell Ballard. “Men and Women and Priesthood Power.” BYU Devotional Address. August, 2013. [2] Caralynn Clark. “As a Latter-day Saint woman, I’ve been heard, valued, and empowered for decades.” Deseret News. March 21, 2024. [3] “Priesthood Keys.” Ensign. May 2012. [4] “Equality of Men and Women.” Eternal Marriage Student Manual. [5] Aurelia Spencer Rogers. “Life Sketches of Orson Spencer and others: and history of Primary Work.” Sharlee Mullins Glenn is an author, advocate, and community organizer. She founded Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG) in 2017 and served as its first executive director. She currently serves as Relief Society president in her ward, volunteers with a number of humanitarian organizations, and sits on the boards of several nonprofit organizations.

Sharlee Mullins Glenn During the 2016 US election cycle, Sharlee Mullins Glenn grew increasingly concerned about ethics in US politics and knew that she could no longer remain on the sidelines, so she created Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG). She assumed the group would consist of a relatively small number of women committed to working for ethical government, but over four thousand women joined within the first two weeks. Can you tell me about yourself – where you came from and what you’ve done with your life? I was raised in the small farming community of Arcadia in northeastern Utah. I come from a big family with pioneer ancestry on both sides and lots of relatives. My father was killed in a mining accident when I was five, and four months later, my oldest brother (age 14) died in a drowning accident. That left my mother a widow with six children ranging in age from twelve years old down to six months. It was a hard time for our little family, but our beautiful rural ward members circled their wagons around us and we were surrounded by loving family and friends. When I was sixteen, my family moved from Arcadia to Twin Falls, Idaho, which to me was a thriving metropolis. My uncle owned a shelter home for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities there, and he offered my mother a job as the resident supervisor. We moved into the shelter home (which was a wild and lovely experience) the summer before my junior year in high school, and I attended Twin Falls High for the next two years. About the same time, my husband James's family moved from California to “the sticks” of Twin Falls, and we ended up in the same ward. I was called as Laurel president and he was the first assistant to the bishop in the priest quorum. His grandfather was the bishop and his grandmother was my Laurel advisor. His dad was the Young Men president and my mom was called as Young Women president. It seemed fated! James was a year behind me in high school though, so we remained just very good friends. After I graduated, I went to BYU, and as soon as I turned 21, I served a mission in Milan, Italy. My mother and aunt had served missions in the 1940s and 50s when it was uncommon for women to serve, and my older sister and all my older female cousins had served missions. It's something I always wanted to do and I had a marvelous mission experience. I had been home less than 48 hours when James, who had returned from his mission six months prior, asked if I wanted to go to the temple with him. I said, sure. Well, in the celestial room, he proposed to me! Now, you have to understand: we had never even kissed. We had spent a lot of time together in high school, gone to dances, and so forth, but we hadn’t really dated. And so, I was stunned to say the least. “Wait, what?” I was still experiencing jet lag and reverse culture shock. I made the poor guy wait for over a month while I re-acclimated to normal life and prayed about his proposal. Eventually, I did put him out of his misery and said yes. Sharlee Mullins Glenn with Her Family We had a long engagement because I was on scholarship at BYU and he was on scholarship at the College of Southern Idaho and teaching seminary, so we waited for the next spring to get married. James transferred to BYU and we finished our degrees there. I went on to get a master's degree in humanities and comparative literature, focusing on art history, Italian literature, and English. We had our first child right after I finished my bachelor's and by the time I finished my master’s, I was pregnant with our second. I taught Intensive Writing through the Honors Program at BYU for many years after that. By then, we had five children – one girl, then four boys. My dream had always been to write books for children, and after our youngest child was born, I decided it was time to stop teaching at BYU and focus on my own writing. My first book, a middle-grade novel, was written between the hours of 11 pm and 2 am over many months, and that about killed me. So I decided to switch to picture books because they're short! It took me a long time to figure out how to write a picture book because in some ways they’re harder to write than a novel. But eventually, I fell in love with the picture book genre and went on to publish several picture books with national publishers. In the meantime, I was doing life – PTA, Primary president, raising kids, taking care of aging parents, trying to write in the little scraps of time I had. But my children always took top priority. And I don’t regret that at all. We have them with us for such a short time, and my children (and now, grandchildren) are my joy. But I did look forward to the day I would be able to focus more on my writing. You graduated from college with a master's degree and went straight into teaching while you were having children. This was during the 1980s and 90s, when President Ezra Taft Benson said that women should not work outside the home. How did that work for you? When he gave that talk, we lived near BYU in Provo and both my husband and I were in grad school. All of our closest friends were also in grad school. That talk definitely created dissonance and pain for many. The saddest thing for me was what it did to the women in the Church—it created real division and judgment. Suddenly, it was working women versus stay-at-home moms. I remember one of my friends saying, “I’m not sure what President Benson meant for us to do with this talk, but I know that he didn't mean for us to roll it up into a stick to hit each other with.” But that's what happened. Shortly after this talk was given, we moved to Pleasant Grove, Utah and into a ward that was very traditional and conservative. This sounds naïve, but I honestly did not realize that “feminism” was a dirty word for many members of the Church until we made that move. I was harshly judged by a few of the women in our new ward because I was teaching at BYU. One woman used the Benson talk in a very punishing way in her Relief Society lesson, and it’s the only time I ever walked out of a meeting. I couldn't stay or I would have said something regrettable. I continued teaching part-time and my sister watched my kids. Sometimes I felt the need to explain all that to people, so they could see I was still being a good mom. It was ridiculous, but it was a tricky time. Thirty years later, I am still here in this same ward—and I adore my neighbors and ward members. I’m currently serving as the Relief Society president and I feel so grateful to be able to serve these sisters that I have come to love with all my heart. They are wonderful, deeply good people. But that was a challenging period to navigate. I love that you claimed your feminism when it was not acceptable to do so. When did you become active in politics and government? Sharlee Mullins Glenn Our youngest son graduated from high school and left on his mission in 2016, and I thought, “Okay, here we go! I get to be a full-time writer now.” But then I accidentally started MWEG – Mormon Women for Ethical Government – and that took over my life completely for the next three years until I could finally hand off the reins of leadership. I had always been an engaged citizen. I always voted. I always tried to be informed, but I did not consider myself particularly “political.” I definitely didn't consider myself an activist. Until the 2016 election cycle. I knew then that, given what was happening in our country, I could no longer remain silent. As expressed in our MWEG motto: I could not be complicit by being complacent. You accidentally started MWEG? How did that come about in relation to the 2016 US election? I accidentally started MWEG in the sense that I had no idea it would grow so quickly and become a legitimate and formidable nonprofit organization within just a few months. The 2016 election lit a fire within me—as it did for thousands of other women of faith (as I quickly learned). I love this great American experiment. I love our Constitution. I love the rule of law. I love the precious freedoms and rights that our Constitution grants to all people. And as I saw these things being attacked, I knew I could not remain silent. My conscience required that I act. As I wrote in an email exchange with my close friend around this time: “What can we do? We must turn our dismay into action. First, and above all, we seek the guidance of the Spirit. We stay on our knees and pray our hearts out until we know we have the Spirit with us. And then we get to work. Calmly, with focus, impelled by the ferocity of love; not fear, not anger.” A lot of Latter-day Saint women share your concern. How did MWEG bring them all together? Just a few days after the inauguration in January 2017, I sat down at my computer to create a Facebook group for women who, like me, were concerned about the polarization and vitriol in our public discourse and about the lack of ethics in our government. I had a list of women who had indicated interest in such a group—all of whom I knew well and trusted completely. Still, as I later wrote in an article for BYU Studies, for some reason I felt impelled “to formalize the guidelines and foundational principles by which the group would operate and which still guide MWEG today: the absolute commitment to civility and peacemaking, the laser-like focus on ethics and ethical government, the requirement that this not be a space where we criticize the Church or discuss Church governance and policies, the guarantee that it be a strictly nonpartisan group, and the insistence that the group be action oriented. We later encapsulated these guiding principles into what we call MWEG’s four core attributes: faithful, nonpartisan, peaceful, and proactive. Because of my grave concern about the contempt and general lack of civility abounding in political discussions, I also felt prompted to stipulate that anyone joining the group would need to commit to the six principles of nonviolence as articulated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We later adapted these principles into our own Principles of Peacemaking.” Once all these things were in place, I began adding the women on my list. There were maybe 25 or so. I didn’t tell anyone to not add anyone else because that never occurred to me. Well, those original 25ish women immediately began adding friends, who added friends, who added friends. Within two weeks, over four thousand women had joined the group. And membership continued to snowball. I realize now that, given how high emotions were running at that time, had those guidelines not been firmly in place right from the beginning, we would have imploded within a few days. But the guidelines were there, and we were very firm about enforcing them. And the organization has become a vibrant and powerful force for good. What I did not know when I first set up the group was that there were literally thousands of other Latter-day Saint women out there feeling exactly as I was—and they were just waiting for someone to build the field of dreams, so to speak, so that they could come and play some activist ball! One thing I knew from the beginning was that MWEG should not be an hierarchical organization. Women tend to work best not in pyramids but in circles. We wanted the organization to be very synergistic and collaborative. As we were trying to figure out what the structure of MWEG should look like in those early days, I went for a walk one morning. I had been working 16-20 hours a day (no, that’s not a typo) trying to build an organization that could support thousands of women who were energized and ready to roll. We were also already in the trenches, engaging in the direct action that MWEG was created to facilitate (holding prayer vigils, organizing peaceful protests, hosting letter-writing campaigns, helping to register voters, etc.). I really needed some fresh air and sunshine on this particular morning. It was early spring, and all the trees were in bloom. And they were beautiful! Miraculous! It occurred to me that MWEG is like a tree. We had roots (our four core attributes: faithful, peaceful, nonpartisan, proactive) which kept us grounded. And we had strong, healthy branches (our primary objectives: to encircle, educate, empower, and engage). We had a robust trunk (our leadership team and various committees). And we had thousands of leaves (all the members of MWEG who collect light, photosynthesize, bring energy to the tree, and release life-sustaining oxygen into the world). MWEG wants to help women know how to claim their power. We want to give them the skills they need to go out into the world and engage in whatever causes are meaningful to them—and to do it in peaceful, civil, effective ways. MWEG Moms Rising And so that’s how MWEG came to be, and it’s been the education of a lifetime. I’ve met the loveliest people and had the most extraordinary experiences. It did about put me in my grave in those first crazy years, but I’m so thankful we persisted. Everything happened so quickly and we were building the car as we barreled down the freeway at 100 miles an hour (we had a chassis and a motor, but no doors, no windshield, no brakes!). None of this could have happened without the extraordinary women who stepped up to be part of the initial core leadership team: Melissa Dalton-Bradford, Erica Glenn, Jacque White, Michelle Lehnardt, Linda Hoffman Kimball, and Diana Bate Hardy. I’m also very grateful for those who are the current leaders of MWEG. They are women of remarkable capacity who are doing amazing things and continuing to have significant impact. And thousands of women of faith are learning how to effectively engage in causes that matter to them. I'm no longer involved in the day-to-day operations of MWEG, but I remain engaged and fully supportive. I recently published my 59th op-ed. (I try hard not to write op-eds these days, but sometimes I can’t help myself!) Most have been published in the Salt Lake Tribune or the Deseret News and a few other Utah papers. Nationally, I’ve had op-eds in the New York Times, USA Today, The Hill, and the Washington Examiner. I also currently serve as a Utah State delegate, sit on the advisory boards for BYU’s Civic Engagement Program and the Association for Mormon Letters, work as a contributing editor for Wayfare Magazine (Faith Matters), and volunteer for a number of humanitarian and advocacy organizations. How is the organization of MWEG now, nine years later? It is thriving! As new leaders have taken the reins, they've taken things in a little different direction than the original founding members probably would have, and that's okay. The organization will continue to grow and evolve. Future leaders will make more changes. We do have a foundational document called “The Inviolable Principles and Practices of MWEG,” which memorializes those parts of the organization that must not ever change to ensure that the original mission and vision of the organization be maintained and preserved. These inviolable principles and practices include the principles of peacemaking, MWEG’s four core attributes (faithful, peaceful, nonpartisan, proactive), the focus on ethical government, and the commitment to a synergistic, collaborative model. As long as these fundamental standards are honored, all will be well. On another subject entirely, your writing recently expanded beyond children’s books and political essays. Tell me about your new book. Brighter and Brighter Until the Perfect Day Book Cover In the past few years, I have been able to return to writing (and not just all those op-eds!). I’ve put my writing of children's books on the back burner temporarily, though that is still my first love and I hope to get back to it eventually. But, for now, I've started writing a lot more for adult audiences—mostly poetry and essays. I'm on the editorial staff at Wayfare, and I’ve published poetry and essays there and in other places. And I recently published a book for adults—an epic poem called Brighter and Brighter Until the Perfect Day (BCC Press, 2025). Never in a million years did I think I would write an epic poem, but here we are! Like many people, I’ve spent a lot of time wrestling with the big existential questions around the purpose of life, the nature of God, suffering, etc. A few years ago, I started putting all of my thoughts about these things into narrative form. Stephen Sondheim famously said that content dictates form, and I think he’s absolutely right. I quickly realized that big ideas require a big form, and since the subject matter I was dealing with involved the entirety of human existence—what we call the Plan of Salvation—it became apparent to me that what I was writing could be nothing other than an epic poem. I honestly wasn’t sure that I was capable of writing page after page of unrhymed iambic pentameter and making it engaging, but I thought I might as well give it a try. So I started … and then I couldn’t stop. It was almost impossibly challenging, but also genuinely fun! Sort of like working out a really difficult puzzle. One of the many things I wanted to do in this epic poem was to center the divine feminine. This desire was driven by two questions I’ve had as long as I can remember: 1) Where are the women? Where are the women in this grand, ancient story of our existence? And, 2) What good is a doctrine (a “cherished doctrine,” no less) if we never talk about it and if we don’t seek further light and knowledge about it? I call this book an offering of imagination. I am not in any way purporting to set forth doctrine. It's speculative fiction, which is a formal genre. It invites the reader to think deeply about existential and theological questions, to more closely examine the boundaries of their own paradigms, and to consider fresh new possibilities. I’ve been really pleased by the reception the book has gotten. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. The key question to everything we ask at the LDS Women Project is: how have these experiences affected your testimony of Christ and your relationship with our Heavenly Parents? In the creation of MWEG, virtually everything was motivated by my faith and my discipleship to Jesus Christ. My entire impetus came from feeling the call to stand up and speak out against those behaviors that were so antithetical to the teachings of Jesus Christ. My devotion to God has expanded and deepened exponentially as a result of the work I've been engaged in and the people I’ve met. It's been tremendously gratifying, and has given me great hope for the future. There are so many good people in this world. I am deeply committed not just to the gospel, but to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I like to say that “I’m all in, eyes wide open.” I clearly see the problems, but I’m not going anywhere. I choose to stay and do whatever I can to make things better. My capacity to accommodate paradox has grown, and my comfort level with ambiguity, human frailty, and mystery has increased. Sometimes I do long for the simple faith I used to have, but my faith is now so much richer, deeper, and more nuanced. I could never leave for so many reasons, one of them being our mind-bogglingly glorious and expansive theology. Our doctrines of Heavenly Mother, eternal progression, agency, covenant relationships, the sealing together of the entire human family are so powerful, and the more I grapple with these things, the more precious it all becomes to me. I’m also grateful that ongoing revelation is so fundamental to our theology. It’s one of the things I love most about our church. It gives me such hope to know that there are many great and important things yet to be revealed. I'm fully optimistic that as we continue to seek greater light and knowledge and prepare ourselves to receive it, it will come. At A Glance NAME: Sharlee Mullins Glenn AGE: 65 LOCATION Pleasant Grove, Utah MARITAL HISTORTY: Happily married CHILDREN: Five (Erica, Kedric, Patrick, Dylan, Devin); nine perfect grandchildren CONVERT TO THE CHURCH?: Born into the Church (baptized at age 8 in 1969) EDUCATION BA in Humanities (summa cum laude); MA in Humanities/Comparative Literature OCCUPATION Author, nonprofit founder LANGUAGE SPOKEN AT HOME English FAVORITE HYMN: Be Still, My Soul