Fascinating Womanhood: No Fall, No Savior

A Twitter conversation this morning reminded me of what I had posted in the past about Fascinating Womanhood - The Andelin Connection? and Roles - Another Andelin Connection? Today's post was in draft form for more than a year. I guess it's time to hit the publish button.


I had been posting about a possible connection between Helen Andelin's bestselling book, Fascinating Womanhood (FW), and Christian women's books/teaching. Andelin was a Mormon who believed she was called by "God" to teach women the secret to a Celestial Marriage. The average reader may take those words as a poetic phrase describing happily-ever-after wedded bliss, but the wording is specifically Mormon. Because of her religious devotion, I don't think it is simply a case of her beliefs seeping into her book via osmosis. She saw herself as a prophetess on a mission.¹ 

Here is what Andelin says about Genesis 3:16.

The father is the head, president, or spokesman of the family. He is appointed by God to this position, as clearly stated in Holy Scriptures. The first commandment given to mankind was given to the woman, "Thy desire shall be unto thy husband and he shall rule over thee." Evidently our Creator felt it was so vitally important that the woman understand this, that He directed the instruction to her.²

First she skips the command to "be fruitful and multiply" in Gen. 1:28. Secondly she reads the pronouncement in Gen. 3:16 as a command rather than the aftermath of the fall because of Adam and Eve's sin. Why is that?

Here are a few quotes describing the Mormon view of the fall³:

Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.”(1 Nephi 2:25)

This was a transgression of the law, but not a sin in the strict sense, for it was something that Adam and Eve had to do! (Doctrines of Salvation, Joseph F. Smith, p. 115)

The fall of Adam was not a sin but a blessing. It enables us to progress toward exaltation. We had to experience mortality like our Father in Heaven, and Adam and Eve fulfilled their mission to make this possible. Because of them, we were able to have a body and come to earth to gain experience in choosing between good and evil (Preparing for Exaltation, p.9).

Properly understood, it becomes apparent that the fall of Adam is one of the greatest blessings ever given of God to mankind. It is the way and the means whereby the spirit children of the Father go forth from their celestial home to gain mortal and then immortal bodies. And it provides the way for the experiences, tests, and trials that prepare the faithful for eternal life. – Bruce McConkie, “New Witness for the Articles of Faith”

There are more quotes here if you care to read them, but they pretty much say the same thing. The fall was not rebellion against a holy God but the result of a wise choice made by Adam and Eve. This allowed them to procreate, give physical bodies to "spiritual" children, and perpetuate the Mormon cycle of exaltation to godhood. Thus in direct contradiction to the Word of God and Christianity, sin is no longer sin, and the fall is seen as a positive "upward" event.

I had written this entire post with conclusions to follow, but I waited and actually deleted most of the summary. I'm glad I did because the more I pondered what Helen Andelin believed regarding Genesis 3:16, I was struck with its hopelessness. If we do not accept God's verdict that sin is sin and deserving of judgment, why would we need the promise in Genesis 3:15 of the seed of the woman who would crush the head of the serpent? If we think we are okay, why would we need a Savior?

But like all other false religions, we are left with self-salvation by works righteousness. Follow the rules, do this, don't do that, and in the end the scales will tip in our favor. But this is a dead end because we cannot atone for our sins. We cannot live a holy life to satisfy God's righteous requirement. In Andelin's case, this was to be the perfect wife and mother. So all of her micromanaged rules on how to be be a domestic goddess, the perfect combination of angelic and human qualities⁴, could not save her nor any woman for that matter. I don't know how many women took her class or took her book to heart, but she taught a false gospel where ultimately God judges you not based on your relationship with Him but with your husband.⁵ I am not decrying being a wife and mother, for those are good gifts from God. But the minute they become the basis of our standing, then we are looking to something apart from Christ. He may use these circumstances toward our sanctification but they are not salvific in themselves.

And this gets back to my original question, has Helen Andelin via Fascinating Womanhood influenced Christian women's books with her false message? I would be very glad if the answer was a resounding "No!" But unless we ask the question, we won't find the answer.

1. Helen Andelin and the Fascinating Womanhood Movement, Julie Neuffer, University of Utah Press, 2014, pp. 23-26.
2. Fascinating Womanhood, Helen Andelin, Bantam Books, original copyright 1963, 1992 edition, pg. 109.
3. Mormonism Research Ministry: The Fall.  http://www.mrm.org/fall
4. Karen Campbell has written a detailed post on Andelin's rules and more. http://thatmom.com/2011/07/21/the-sins-of-partiality-and-triviality-and-the-curriculum-that-promotes-them/
5. Neuffer. pg. 54.