Mormon Women Observe 'Wear Pants to Church' Sunday to Promote Gender Equality
For the second year in a row, feminists within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon Church, have staged an event wherein women wear pants to worship service.
At the "Second Annual Wear Pants to Church Day" the Mormon women wore dress pants instead of the usual dresses.
Meant as a message to encourage gender equality within the Mormon sect, hundreds and maybe thousands made such statements during services across the United States on Sunday.
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Nancy Ross, an organizer of the event, told The Christian Post that she believed the "consensus is that the event was very successful."
"Several hundred people posted photos of themselves and their families wearing pants or purple on the event page," said Ross. "Almost 600 people RSVP'd to the event and there are nearly 2,500 likes on the main page…People associate Mormonism with Utah, but our participants were located throughout the U.S. and we had a number of people participate in other countries, too."
Ross also explained that while there is "no official dress code" for Mormon churches, there can be pressure from "local leaders" to have stricter rules.
"In March of this year, I started wearing pants to church every Sunday. Someone made a complaint to my local leaders and I had to explain my pants to them, but I am not breaking any rules," said Ross.
Begun last Dec. 16, the event is meant to promote "celebrate inclusiveness in the LDS Church", reads an entry on the event's website.
"We want to emphasize that there is more than one way to be a good Mormon woman and encourage changes in Mormon culture to support that idea," continued the entry. "Wearing pants to church on December 15th is an act of solidarity. We want to show our commitment to Jesus Christ, the Gospel, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We want to show our belief that God speaks to us through a living prophet."
Lyman Kirkland, spokesman for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, provided CP with a statement regarding the matter.
"Attending church is about worship and learning to be followers of Jesus Christ. Generally, church members are encouraged to wear their best clothing as a sign of respect for the Savior, but we don't counsel people beyond that," said Kirkland.
