By TONIA ANDRUS

tonia@du2.byu.edu

As some of the men in my apartment complex walked in my door after the October conference priesthood session, the first thing they said was "President Hinckley said no more sister missionaries."

My roommates and I were shocked at first. "Why did they make that announcement to the men, when it affected the women of the church?"

However, after several questions we understood that President Hinckley's message had been directed to bishops and stake presidents that pressure women to serve full-time missions.

How did President Hinckley say this?

"There seems to be growing in the church an idea that all young women should go on missions," President Hinckley said. "We need some young women. They perform a remarkable work. They can get into homes where the elders cannot ... the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve are united in saying to our young sisters that they are not under obligation to go on missions ... (However) I certainly do not wish to say or imply that their services are not wanted."

Mike Olson, bishop of the BYU 176th ward, said, "Many sisters feel great pressure to serve missions. They have expectations in their own mind that they won't measure up or be as righteous if they don't serve."

After President Hinckley's talk, some of them women in Bishop Olson's ward decided they shouldn't serve missions. Bishop Olson said President Hinckley's talk caused women to pause and consider their decision.

"It has spurred (women) to think of their life in its totality, not just where they are at the age of 21," Olson said.

Marie Andrus, 21, a junior from Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, majoring in biology, said she had already decided to serve a mission before hearing about President Hinckley's address.

"It made me think twice about it," Andrus said. "I had to make sure my reasons for serving were the right reasons."

Andrus said that after she received her mission call to Maracaibo, Venezuela, several people asked her why she was going on a mission.

"They mentioned President Hinckley's talk and interpreted it as saying girls didn't need to serve missions," Andrus said.

"I had to read the actual talk myself to understand. I realized he didn't want people going out that shouldn't, or that felt pressure to go, not that he thought sisters should not serve missions," Andrus said.

Bishop Olson said the counsel he received is that as a bishop he shouldn't encourage or discourage sisters to serve full-time missions, but help them make the right decision.

Andrus said her bishop didn't encourage her to serve a mission until she talked to him the second time and told him about her decision and how she felt. Andrus said she hopes the talk makes women think about serving a mission and evaluate if they should go.

Michelle Smith, 21, a junior from Magna majoring in English, said the support received from friends, family and her bishop to serve a mission outweighed the few discouraging comments made about sisters serving missions.

Smith said that many women, especially at BYU, still feel great pressure to serve missions despite President Hinckley's talk.

"Many girls come to a point when they turn 21, they're not married, and they feel pressure to serve a mission," Smith said.

Smith, who received a call to serve in the Copenhagen, Denmark mission, said President Hinckley's talk has increased her desire to be a good missionary.

Brooke McRae, 23, a senior from Jacksonville, Fla., majoring in zoology, served a mission in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. She said that she didn't feel pressure either to serve or not serve before her mission.

"Since October, I have heard President Hinckley's talk misinterpreted in comments and sacrament talks. Many people say sisters shouldn't go and that they don't want sister missionaries," McRae said.
Copyright Brigham Young University 29 Apr 1998