A Message Against Women in the Priesthood
by Patriarch Roy Kopp

On Sunday, October 29, 2000 the Mt. Ayr congregation had a visiting day. Delbert and Mildred Smith were teamed up with Yvonne Galusha and visited Patriarch Roy Kopp at unit 1-1 of Crown Colony about 1:45 pm. During the visit Mildred asked Brother Kopp to share his favorite testimony. He started to cry and had difficulty getting control of his emotions. When he spoke, he shared something very powerful.

A week before a Lamoni Stake conference shortly after Section 156 was brought forth, he had gone to bed but he was not yet asleep when there was a knock at the door. He got up and went to the door. There was no one there, so he went back to bed. The knock came again. Again he went to the door and found no one. The third time the knock came, he didn’t get up for he said he knew who it was and said, “Come in Lord”.

Immediately the room began to become light until it was very bright, and there was a personage standing beside his bed, His feet did not touch the floor. Jesus Christ told Roy that on the morrow in the Sunday service they would sing a song, and then he was to remain standing to be recognized to speak. The Lord said that he was to testify that woman called to His priesthood was not of Him. Immediately the room became darkened and the personage was gone. Two more times the Lord came and gave him the same message.

The next day, it happened just as Jesus had said it would. They sang a song and Roy remained standing as the Lord directed. Even though it was not a sharing service the man presiding over the service directed that Roy be recognized to speak. Immediately Rex Boswell was beside Roy with a microphone. Roy began to speak as he was instructed by the Spirit.

He addressed the women of the congregation telling them they were not called to be Priesthood nor would they ever be. Then they were commended for the work they were doing, especially with the children, teaching them and introducing them to the gospel. After the service many people came and thanked Roy for sharing and said they felt the witness of the Spirit. Yet the following week women were approved for ordination at the conference and Roy Kopp was eventually silenced from his priesthood.

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Norman Nelson retold the experience to Winnie, Kenneth, Lorna, Gilbert and Polly yesterday and mentioned a part of the experience that I (Mildred) either had not heard or had forgotten, so I called Brother Kopp the morning of September 15, 2003 and asked him to tell me. With great emotion, Brother Kopp told me that he noticed Bishop Leslie Kohlman and High Priest Willard Moon were watching him intently during the time he stood to speak, so he asked them why. They told him that as he spoke he was completely surrounded by light. Brother Kopp also said Sister Harold Tabor (Laura) testified that she saw  Jesus standing behind him as he spoke.

Brother Kopp said the leaders who were at the meeting confirmed what he had to say as coming from the Lord and then went right ahead and did what the Lord said was not of Him. Also, of the women who were there, many accepted Priesthood when it was offered them.

I mentioned the testimony to High Priest Robert Rolfe at the Shaw Auditorium where we were all attending Romeo and Juliet the evening after we first heard the testimony. Rob confirmed the testimony. He said he remembered it. He was in the meeting when the message was given.