Episode 184: D&C 83 – Section 106 and 107 part 1
Like herding puppies through a bacon factory, things haven’t been going smoothly. Joseph and his BFFs have returned to Kirtland after the Zion’s Camp fiasco. First, Oliver’s older brother is sent out to be a missionary, then we learn specifics of how the priesthood works. Specifically, it rewrites church history/timelines such that Joseph
is a legitimate elder in the church rather than just a guy who decided to start a religion.
Patron Bonus Episode: Mormon Craigslist Encounter, The Continuation
CofC: Melchisedec
LDS: Melchizedek
Warren A Cowdery.
David Whitmer: And Address to All Believers
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My Book of Mormon 
November 25, 2017 at 5:32 pm
For what it’s worth, I was taught that keys are like a specific assignment that requires priesthood authority. For example, a bishop needs the Melchezidek priesthood, but hs keys only give him authority over his specific ward. Two bishops hold the same priesthood, but each only has keys over his respective ward. Don’t know if or how that might apply in history; it’s obviously a modern explanation.
November 25, 2017 at 6:13 pm
Keys are basically authority to use the priesthood. Mormons are really big on having the authority from God to do things. A bishop has the authorization from God to do his job and to receive revelation about his congregation and to make different decisions. Just like if you try to unlock a door with a wrong key, it won’t work. Think of “keys” as authority.
November 25, 2017 at 10:31 pm
So “keys” is a euphemism for “authority”? That’s way less interesting than I thought it was! 😛
November 26, 2017 at 2:08 am
Yeah, not too exciting. Everything is based on hierarchy. Also, it could mean the specific authority to officiate an ordinance. For example, at twelve, when a boy is ordained a deacon, the only keys he’ll be given is to pass the sacrament to the congregation. The further up the priesthood ladder you go, the more you can do as a boy.
November 26, 2017 at 2:16 am
This is why it’s misogynistic. Without priesthood, God doesn’t give you keys to do anything. Since women can’t get the priesthood, she can’t ever be in position of power. Even as a RS President, she still needs to defer to the bishop who has the keys to decide things for the congregation.
November 26, 2017 at 2:19 am
Patriarchy hurts us all.
November 29, 2017 at 7:11 am
Joseph Smith loved the word “key”, and used it in all kinds of contexts, so a simple, all-encompassing definition might not be possible, if we’re just sticking with sources contemporary to his lifetime. As for the modern church’s take on keys, Joseph F. Smith, nephew of Joseph Smith Jr., and sixth LDS church president, described the squishy distinction between priesthood and priesthood keys as follows:
“The priesthood in general is the authority given to man to act for God. Every man ordained to any degree of priesthood has this authority delegated to him. But it is necessary that every act performed under this authority shall be done at the proper time and place, in the proper way, and after the proper order. The power of directing these labors constitutes the keys of the priesthood. In their fullness, the keys are held by only one person at a time, the prophet and President of the Church. He may delegate any portion of this power to another, in which case that person holds the keys of that particular labor.”
So you were ordained with God’s own authority? BFD! You need authority from the Church too, or you’ve got nothing. Being ordained to the priesthood is basically nothing more than being given an empty keychain. You really can’t use your priesthood for much of anything unless your superiors in the hierarchy have given you a key or two to put on your little keychain, that is, unless they have delegated a more immediate authority to you than that useless blanket authority you got from the Supreme Being that one time when you were 18. You may have the priesthood authority to baptize, but you’re not allowed to baptize anyone, even your own kids, without the bishop’s permission (which is typically a tacit consent, unless you’re a trouble-maker, as we all should be.)
I don’t think just any dude who’s been temporarily called to a priesthood duty is ever described as “holding the keys” in LDS parlance, though. That is only said of those with the authority to do the delegating. It’s mainly said of the President of the Church alone, since he has all the keys. Whether it’s the original set Joseph Smith had, or a copy they made at the hardware store, I don’t know.
December 15, 2017 at 5:17 pm
Random tidbit here: “At general conference many years ago, President Spencer W. Kimball reminded us that there are other priesthood keys that have not been given to man on the earth, including the keys of creation and resurrection.” -Elder Oaks, The Keys and Authority of the Priesthood, April 2014 LDS General Conference