Faith in God requirements


ruthiechan
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My daughter was near tears today because so many things in the requirements want her to address things in family home evening. This is troubling because it'd just be me, and thus not a complete family home evening. Her father is a not a member of the church. We have family home evenings but not the kind where you have a gospel lesson for obvious reasons.

I told my daughter that's fine we can just create or modify our own activities. She said that she has to complete every single activity by the time she enters young women's if you want the faith in god reward.

That sounds wrong to me because she's right, that would not take into account individual circumstances which is what she was crying over in the first place.

My thought it is that these activities are guidelines and they are not meant to be a hardship but to be as delightful learning opportunities.

I tried looking up details in the church handbook and in the faith in god handbook itself but nothing specifically says that you have to complete those activities that are outlined with only one being a complete free choice. However, it could be implied.

Does anyone know one way or the other?

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Ruthie, this is from lds.org :

For Parents and Primary Leaders

Adapting the Faith in God Program

The Faith in God program is designed to help each Primary child ages 8 through 11 become all that Heavenly Father wants them to become and is an important part of your responsibility. Encourage each child to complete the requirements. As they do so, girls will be prepared to continue their spiritual growth in the Young Women program and boys will be worthy and ready to receive the Aaronic Priesthood.

To align the Faith in God program with the new Handbook 2, a few of the requirements have been omitted or revised:

Faith in God for Girls

• Page 9, bullet 8: Omit (quarterly activities are no longer held).

• Page 18, paragraph 2: Omit (quarterly activities are no longer held).

https://www.lds.org/callings/primary/for-parents-and-primary-leaders?lang=eng

You need to talk with the Primary President regarding this. I don't see having only you and your daughter for FHE as a bad thing. It would be nice if her father sat in and listened- it would let her know that he supported her. But I don't see it as a failed situation.

Talk with the Primary President, let her know your concerns, and have her clarify what exactly is expected.

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My daughter was near tears today because so many things in the requirements want her to address things in family home evening. This is troubling because it'd just be me, and thus not a complete family home evening. Her father is a not a member of the church. We have family home evenings but not the kind where you have a gospel lesson for obvious reasons.

Despite the tears, I think it wonderful your daughter has such a strong desire to complete her faith in God.

Your daughter is correct, and she needs to complete every activity mentioned in the Faith in God to earn this achievement.

The Church however takes into account all circumstances when completing the Faith in God. This takes into account for single mothers, single fathers, part-member families, etc...

It is up to the family to decide how they would honor and fulfill each assignment. Have you and your daughter specifically talked with your husband, her father?

He may, for his love for his daughter, be willing to listen to the lesson she provides. Whether or not he accepts the lessons, is his choice, however you won't know unless you have asked him.

If you have asked him already, and he has decided to not participate, then she still honors and completes the lesson assignments by teaching you or her siblings. The important aspect is that the father was invited, and then honor his agency.

What a precious heart your daughter has as she desires to complete her Faith in God, accompanied with her love for her family.

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We can ask, but I don't think it'll go well. This past year was the first year he went to the primary program despite being asked every year.

Hazel told me last night that she's concerned that if she has to do it in FHE in order for the activity to count that it'll ruin the spirit of the activity. It's a valid concern.

She does not want to just teach me, it feels contrived since I'm her spiritual mentor and we have spiritual discussions all the time. She has no siblings.

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We can ask, but I don't think it'll go well. This past year was the first year he went to the primary program despite being asked every year.

This reminds me of Elder Bednar and his desire to be a "good boy" for his father who wasn't active.

I think it wonderful that he finally came!

Hazel told me last night that she's concerned that if she has to do it in FHE in order for the activity to count that it'll ruin the spirit of the activity. It's a valid concern.

The activity doesn't need to be accomplished in FHE, it is just an option for the children to accomplish the task. The important part, is that they teach the lesson, it doesn't have to be in FHE. FHE is just one of the provided options.

She does not want to just teach me, it feels contrived since I'm her spiritual mentor and we have spiritual discussions all the time. She has no siblings.

I think it is wonderful your daughter cares so much about her father. If he went to the primary program this year, then if introduced correctly, he may be willing to sit and hear her lesson.

Best wishes, and hopefully the Lord will soften his heart.

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When I was growing up, FHE was the only family fight that started and ended with prayer.

Who said that FHE had to be "formal"?

If your daughter has to give a lesson at FHE, why not call it a presentation at home instead? Let your daughter teach on the topic and call it done.

Your husband will probably want to hear it if it helps your daughter to fulfill a requirement for church. I would think he would be supportive in that way, even if he chooses not to participate in other church activities.

Mold the requirements to the way it needs to work in your home while keeping the spirit of the requirements in mind.

Then, as the parent, go ahead and sign it off! :)

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She does not have to do all the requirements in every section. She only has to do eight requirements in the first 3 sections (and one of those can be of her own planning) and then the 5 that are in the last section.

Learning and Living the Gospel: 8

Serving Others: 8

Developing Talents: 8

(there are a total of 10 possibilities in each of those)

Preparing for Young Women: 5 (there are only the 5)

So really she could skip the ones for FHE (the first two in the Learning and Living the Gospel section) and still be totally fine. If she does want to do them, i'd say doing them with the only family members willing is totally fine. I would also allow her to present to her primary class on Sunday or to the activity day group. In our ward we have lots of inactives that come to activity days and even some nonmembers. We also have a little autistic girl who comes. So we do a lot of modification for individual circumstances.

Good luck to you. I hope your daughter finds a solution to her satisfaction.

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It's four years. Starts when they turn 8 and ends when they turn 12 and go into Young Women. If you look in the very back of the Faith in God book at the achievement record where they can mark off what they've done, you will find only 8 squares in each of the first three sections.

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Is it so terrible that I don't care about the Faith in God award? We don't do the stuff according to the handbook. We do stuff according to how our children's spiritual journey is going. Then if we find something in the Faith in God book that more or less matches with their journey, we check it off. Like, teaching FHE lesson, for example. We don't do FHE "lessons". We have "lessons" at any time in any place when the situation that needs a lesson arises. It could be while driving the kids to and from school, on the way to pick up grocery, whatever. And it's always a discussion. So, if one of them matches the Faith in God - like when we had a discussion about the sacrament (which we've had jillions of times), we check it off. My kids have talked about Joseph Smith to our neighbor who is constantly at our house that he's like my 3rd son... so, we check that off. That kind of stuff.

If they get the award at age 12, good, if not, then they'll get there eventually. My kid is now 11, almost 12. Most of the stuff is checked off. If I remember correctly, he is only missing the Deacons Quorum stuff. Lots of them are done at scouts. Lots of them just come by naturally as they grow in the gospel and we talk about gospel stuff at home. Lots of it come by naturally when they bear their testimony - on Fast Sundays or when talking among family and friends. Lots of it are in their journals. So, I think he'll get to qualify for the award when he gets to 12. But we're not consciously doing things for the purpose of getting that award, know what I mean?

Sorry... didn't mean to derail the thread. I really don't have any input to the OP...

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Derp. Connie, I feel like a dork. How'd I miss that? >_<

Hazel just sang "Hallelujah" in response to this new information too.

Anatess you did not derail the thread. That's how our approach has been but the Gospel topics my daughter and I have been largely discussing don't match up because she doesn't have issues with those things, it's clear and done. So, we have to do something extra to get the award, but that's okay.

Thank you all so much for your help. <3

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