Meaghan Barrett

Sociology 1010

26 April 2020

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Young Single Adult Ward

I belong to a single’s ward.  The YSA ward is very much like falling into the ocean, you

fall in and don’t know what kinds of sharks or other sea creatures will attempt to sink their teeth

into you. I joined this group at eighteen.  I had no idea what I was in for. I now realize, the

purpose of this group is for a Mormon girl to meet a Mormon boy, get married, and make

Mormon babies.  A singles ward is like a normal functioning family ward in The Church of Jesus

Christ of Latter-day Saints without the screaming children. A ward is a geographical area divided

into about 200 – 500 members. Wards are organized to give members an opportunity to

participate in gospel learning, service, cultural and social activities. Members attend Sunday

worship meetings where they participate in religious rites and listen to speakers.  Speakers are

chosen from the ward members to talk about a specific topic with the exception of one Sunday a

month which is Fast and Testimony meeting.  This is where members of the ward, when

compelled by the spirit, get up and bear their testimony of Jesus Christ. In a singles ward, this

becomes more of something you might call, “Tinder, Live”.  Everyone seems to be advertising

themselves instead of bearing testimony. Then, there are the weekly activities to increase our

social interactions. 
 Each ward has a leader called a

bishop.  He has two counselors.  Together

Figure 1: The Bishop and his Counselors they make-up the leadership of this ward

and call or assign members of the ward to

serve in callings like Elder’s quorum

president.  The elder’s quorum president

is a man and he calls two other men to

Figure 2: Bishop and Counselors
serve as his counselors.  They watch over,

serve and lead all the male members of the ward.  Then, there is the Relief Society President. 

This is a female called to watch over, serve and lead the women.  She also calls counselors.

There are many other callings within a ward, but I will not name them all. You could be asked to

do anything from lead the music, play the

piano, greet people as they come, or

even organize the monthly Munch and

Mingle or weekly activities. We

believe marriage is fundamental to

fulfilling your divine purpose. As you

can imagine, there is a lot of social

Figure 3: Monthly Munch and Mingle
maneuvering within this group. Men

and women and their interactions are the real heart of the ward. Conflict Theory is the best social

structure to describe the power struggle you find here. 

 In truth, the men are the ruling
Figure 4: The Conflict
class. They hold all the power.  The

women represent the working class.  They actively do all they can to keep the men happy,

hoping it will lead to marriage. They think that fairytales and Hallmark movies are real.  Sadly,

guys aren’t that simple and we are faced

with the sad reality that fairytales and

Hallmark movies, lied! The girls ask the

men to dinner and pamper them like

royalty.  The men get their needs met.

This “Hanging Out” becomes the status

Figure 5: The Unrest quo. The working-class women become

more and more anxious as time ticks on.

They viciously backstab, slander, and even emotionally maim each other in an attempt to win the

prize...a marriage partner.   This group of women are in an increasing state of unrest.   Then,

Barbie arrives on the scene. It is survival of the fittest and she is the most fit.  She even appears

to have a testimony. She upsets the whole equilibrium. The women are not happy and all the men

begin the chase. Suddenly, everyone wants to marry Barbie.  It’s almost like Hunger Games

meets Bachelorette. Everyone and Figure 6: Ken and Barbie

everything is in an uproar.  Luckily, Barbie is called to be the Relief Society President and

begins working with the Ken Doll Elders Quorum president. It doesn’t take long for them to get

engaged and the status quo resets.  This produces even more unrest and desperation in the

working-class women.  The hanging out becomes even more prevalent and the cycle begins

again.  

  In the real world, a girl may meet a boy at a bar, on a dating site, or even at work. Then,

if they like each other, they just move in together. If it is a real serious relationship, they may

even get a dog. Marriage is not the norm in our society anymore.  Why should they marry? Like

my Granddaddy always said, “If you can get the milk over the fence, why buy the cow?”  In The

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we are supposed to save sex for marriage. This

becomes a real selling point of the whole marriage idea for Latter Day Saints.  Marriage rates

have dropped both within the church and out of the church.  However, sixty-six percent of the

church is married, while only forty-eight percent of the United States population is married.  

So now you know about a single’s ward and the conflict structure that controls its social

dynamic. The ruling class of men who hold all the cards.  The working-class women who work

endlessly to please the ruling class in hopes of marriage.  The unrest grows until suddenly, the

new middle-class Barbie moves in and disrupts the status quo.  All of the men want her, Ken

Doll wins and the cycle starts all over again.  The faces may change, but the conflict remains the

same. 
Work Cited page 

Barbie and Ken picture

Goggin, Benjamin. “People Love This Instagram Account That Follows the Sordid Drama of
Barbie Dolls. Its Creator Explains Why She Murdered Ken on Christmas Eve.” Insider, 31 Dec.
2019, www.insider.com/barbie-doll-instagram-fan-account-murders-ken-on-christmas-eve-2019-
12.

Bishop and Counselors picture

“New Stake President Aims to Build a Community of Faith.” Tooele Transcript Bulletin – News
in Tooele, Utah, tooeleonline.com/new-stake-president-aims-to-build-a-community-of-faith/.

Jealous Girl picture

Gilligan, Matthew. “The Unfaithful Guy/Jealous Girlfriend Meme Couple Has An Entire Story
On Shutterstock.” Did You Know?, 22 Mar. 2019, didyouknowfacts.com/unfaithful-guyjealous-
girlfriend-meme-couple-entire-story-shutterstock/.

Marriage Delay

Deseret News. “LDS Singles Are Delaying Marriage.” Deseret News, Deseret News, 31 Mar.
2007, www.deseret.com/2007/3/31/20010128/lds-singles-are-delaying-marriage#newlyweds-
amy-and-shane-bonella-kiss-outside-of-the-salt-lake-temple-on-march-3-the-bonellas-met-
online-about-a-year-before-they-got-married.

Marriage Statistic for LDS

Lipka, Michael. “Mormons More Likely to Marry, Have More Children than Other U.S.
Religious Groups.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 22 May 2015,
www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/05/22/mormons-more-likely-to-marry-have-more-
children-than-other-u-s-religious-groups/.

Marriage Statistic for World

Suneson, Grant. “These States Have the Highest – and Lowest – Percentage of Married People in
the US.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 7 Mar. 2019,
www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/03/07/marriage-us-states-highest-percentage-married-
people/39043233/.
Munch and Mingle picture

“Eat a Cookie and Take a Lookie.” Virginia Is for Missionaries, 25 Jan. 2014,

virginiamissionaries.wordpress.com/2014/01/24/eat-a-cookie-and-take-a-lookie/.

Purpose of Singles Wards

Proctor, Mariah. “What Is the Purpose of a Singles' Ward?” LDS Magazine, 8 Sept. 2015,
latterdaysaintmag.com/what-is-the-purpose-of-a-singles-ward/.

Two Girls on one boy picture

Dewey, Ashley. “How Do You Make Friends in a Singles Ward?” LDS Blogs, 17 Jan. 2016,
ldsblogs.com/27923/how-do-you-make-friends-in-a-singles-ward.

YSA Information

Taylor, Scott. “LDS Church Drops Student Wards, Stakes for YSA Units.” KSL.com, 14 Apr.
2011, www.ksl.com/?sid=15150766&nid=.