Listening to Women: Jared Halverson hosts Aubrey Chaves, Kathryn Knight Sonntag, and Bethany Brady Spalding

Today we’re bringing you a special conversation hosted by Jared Halverson, who’s joined by three women—Bethany Brady Spalding, Kathryn Knight Sonntag, and me—who’ve been part of a larger, ongoing conversation sparked by one of Jared’s recent videos on social media.

If you haven’t seen the video, here’s the context: Jared highlighted the recent trend of women leaving the Church in greater numbers than men and encouraged women to stay, he connects this to D&C 25, highlighting how much depends on them. His message, meant to be supportive and hopeful, was heard by many as hurtful and dismissive—particularly by women who feel their voices and gifts are too often sidelined or unseen. The response was overwhelming. Thousands of women responded with honesty, vulnerability, and a shared sense of grief for the ways they’ve been asked to carry the Church while too often being denied a real seat at the table.

To his credit, Jared didn’t get defensive. Just a few days later, he posted a real, heartfelt apology, then did something even more rare and brave: he asked if he could sit down, ask questions, and just listen.

That’s what this episode is.

What unfolds is a conversation about pain, power, partnership, and the potential for something more whole. We talk about what “spiritual collaboration” might really look like—not just in our doctrine, which includes the radical and often untapped vision of Heavenly Parents—but in our lived experience. We ask what it means for women to be invited not just to support the work, but to shape it. And we explore what changes when women are actually believed—when their longing to be seen, to lead, and to offer their full selves to the body of Christ is not framed as rebellion, but as righteousness.

Jared holds this space with humility and openness, and Bethany, Kathryn, and I tried to speak from our own experiences—not as representatives of all women, but as people who love this tradition and believe it can do even more to reach its highest, holiest potential. We believe, as one commenter put it, that this isn’t a crisis of belief—it’s an opportunity for renewal.

This episode is tender, and we also think it’s hopeful. We hope it models the kind of listening and learning that we need more of—at home, in our wards, and across the Church.

And with that, we’ll jump right into the conversation.

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