Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood

Prayerfully study this material and seek for inspiration to know what to share. How will understanding the purpose of Relief Society prepare daughters of God for the blessings of eternal life?

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Kansas City Missouri Temple

Photograph of Kansas City Missouri Temple

The more we as sisters understand that the oath and covenant of the priesthood applies to us personally, the more we will embrace the blessings and promises of the priesthood.

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said, “All who have made sacred covenants with the Lord and who honor those covenants are eligible to receive personal revelation, to be blessed by the ministering of angels, to commune with God, to receive the fulness of the gospel, and, ultimately, to become heirs alongside Jesus Christ of all our Father has.”¹

The blessings and promises of the oath and covenant of the priesthood pertain to both men and women. Sister Sheri L. Dew, former counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, said, “The fulness of the priesthood contained in the highest ordinances of the house of the Lord can be received only by a man and woman together.”²

Sister Linda K. Burton, Relief Society General President, has issued this call: “I invite you to memorize the oath and covenant of the priesthood, which can be found in Doctrine and Covenants 84:33–44. By doing so, I promise you that the Holy Ghost will expand your understanding of the priesthood and inspire and uplift you in wonderful ways.”³

Joseph Smith’s instructions to the Relief Society were intended to prepare women to “come in possession of the privileges & blessings & gifts of the priesthood.” This would be accomplished through the ordinances of the temple.

“Temple ordinances [are] priesthood ordinances, but they [do] not bestow ecclesiastical office on men or women. [These ordinances fulfill] the Lord’s promise that his people—women and men—would be ‘endowed with power from on high’ [D&C 38:32].”⁴

Additional Scriptures and Information

Doctrine and Covenants 84:19–40; 121:45–46; reliefsociety.lds.org