As the first president of the RLDS Church who was not a direct descendant of Joseph Smith, McMurray sought to formalize changes in thinking about prophetic leadership, the historical basis of the Book of Mormon, and the concept that priesthood authority had been restored in the 1830s after centuries of apostasy. During his presidency, the church moved from closed communion to open communion, and McMurray began to open the door to priesthood ordination for non-celibate gay people, something which he acknowledged was occurring anyway. A backlash on this issue forced McMurray to reaffirm the official policy of the Standing High Council, which prohibited the ordination of sexually active gays and lesbians. However, the church allowed those who were ordained to continue in priesthood office. In 1998, Gail E. Mengel and Linda L. Booth became the first two women apostles in the church.