Sacrament at home prep


mikbone
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14 minutes ago, Fether said:

The canceling of church was, but it isn’t obvious to me or most other people that the instruction on doing the sacrament was from the FP

It obviously did come fro the first pres. If takes an act of congress and is prefty much i possible to get permission to do at scout or girls camp, so naturally blanket authorization for pretty much any preisthood holder came from the top given the widespread nature of this. I have family members on the other side of the country who have been directed to do the same thing. Except, well witha million variations and stndarss just like what has already been shared on this thread.  

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As the OP I wrote this as a realization that the Sacrament ritual is probably not well understood or appreciated by the general membership.

Is it the ritual that is important?  Or is the understanding of what the sacrament represents and a broken heart and contrite spirit.

The first presidency cannot give us a broken heart and contrite spirit via an official recommendation during this Coronavirus crisis.

Perhaps they have given Stake Presidencies the authority to make local decisions according to the needs of their members.

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12 hours ago, mrmarket said:

Kinda hard to understand when even our neghbors a block away in a different stake have been given totally different instructions as to how to do it and we are under the same area authority.

So rather than criticize others, perhaps invest that same energy into trying to better understand things.
Step 1. Learn about Priesthood Keys, here is a preview:

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What are priesthood keys?

Priesthood keys are the right to preside over and direct the Church within a jurisdiction. Keys usually apply to a geographic area, like a ward, stake, or mission. They also usually include authority over specific ordinances and activities (for instance, baptism, the sacrament, missionary work, and temple work).

Step 2. Sign up to receive notices/emails from the Church, this will better keep you in the know. The email sent out from First Presidency (3/12/20) to all members of the Church explained what was about to happen. Here is a portion since you must of missed it:

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Bishops should counsel with their stake president to determine how to make the sacrament available to members at least once a month.

The FP gave direct authority to SPs to use their local keys to determine what/who/how things should work in their specific Stake. The fact that two neighboring Stakes do things differently means nothing. Local keys for local circumstances.

Edited by NeedleinA
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My thought - the ordinance of the Sacrament is perhaps the most important and sacred of all Sabbath activity currently possible.  Hopefully we will not become too centered on details that do not matter or distract that we miss that which is of upmost importance and to which our attention ought to be centered.  Having read through this thread - I believe I have a good idea why the sacrament is seldom allowed outside of regular scheduled sacrament meetings.

For me - the wife and I are empty nesters.  We were honored and thankful that for the first time in our home this very sacred ordinance was authorized.  This is a great time to be living.

 

The Traveler

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My son sent me a kind of "I told you so" email from his mission.  Cut and pasted below:

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>Prophets reduce church time and focus on home-centered learning
>People complain and don't understand (mother)
>Kung Flu makes it necessary for a suspension of church meetings
>Hope you listened to the Prophet's counsel to focus on worshipping at home
 
Never doubt the Prophets; they are told what to prepare for before you even know what's coming.

 

So, we had Sacrament Meeting at home.  My son is a Priest and he just happened to have the "home service sacrament equipment" because he is assigned to give sacrament to our home-bound ward members.

My husband conducted the meeting, I was chorister, grandma was invocation, my son blessed and passed sacrament, the missionaries gave a talk on Matthew 18:20, my husband gave the concluding talk and read my missionary son's letter above, grandpa gave the benediction.

It was the most spiritual Sacrament Meeting I've had in my memory.

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4E016014-474C-410D-A366-C9278D2DB9B0.jpeg.7ccc8cb3a2ca34aa06523d733ef8e468.jpeg

We had a wonderful meeting.  Our living room has never been so clean.  We invited another family to share the sacrament with us as their priesthood leader was out of town.

I gave an impromptu talk.  Altars in our home.  

 

 

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Interesting remarks from Elder Alvarado during his Saturday afternoon address at last October's General Conference. Quoting President Nelson, he said

President Nelson has said: “As Latter-day Saints, we have become accustomed to thinking of ‘church’ as something that happens in our meetinghouses, supported by what happens at home. We need an adjustment to this pattern. It is time for a home-centered Church, supported by what takes place inside our branch, ward, and stake buildings.”

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10 hours ago, anatess2 said:

I am 100% certain he'll like you too.  Like you he is a logophile who loves spacey sciency stuff and has a tendency for black-and-white moral standards.  You need to meet.

I passed not too far from your son less than two weeks ago when my wife and I drove along Temple Drive and passed the Manila MTC. 

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17 hours ago, Anddenex said:

Did anyone else receive additional information from an area presidency regarding sacrament in the home?

We have received no additional information regarding sacrament. Our area presidency has reiterated the:

Quote

Bishops should counsel with their stake president to determine how to make the sacrament available to members at least once a month.

Apart from the sacrament, some additional info they shared relates to:
1. We are sorry, but there aren't any funerals, weddings or receptions at the meetinghouses either.
2. Do what we can do to help shop for the elderly, who should avoid going out and being in grocery stores/grocery store lines.

Edited by NeedleinA
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1 hour ago, NeedleinA said:

We have received no additional information regarding sacrament. Our area presidency has reiterated the:

Apart from the sacrament, some additional info they shared relates to:
1. We are sorry, but there aren't any funerals, weddings or receptions at the meetinghouses either.
2. Do what we can do to help shop for the elderly, who should avoid going out and being in grocery stores/grocery store lines.

Thank you. That is what I was seeking to know. Our area presidency has provided further information. As this pertains to our area I don't see a need to go into it further. Local leadership handles and interprets things differently, and that is OK. We obey and move forward.

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4 minutes ago, Anddenex said:

Thank you. That is what I was seeking to know. Our area presidency has provided further information. As this pertains to our area I don't see a need to go into it further. Local leadership handles and interprets things differently, and that is OK. We obey and move forward.

No problem. Perhaps our area presidency will also provide more info too, but as of right now they have not. Like you said, we obey and move forward.

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A couple months ago, I started going through old conference talks, starting in 2001 when I was preparing for my mission.  This morning I just listened to Pres. (then Elder) Oaks' talk in April 2004.  I really liked his comparison of 72-hour kits to the 10 virgins' supply of oil and having spiritual preperation kits.  I think that's what we've been developing with the last year of Come Follow Me.  My family's transition to home church went a lot smoother than it would have a year or two ago.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2004/04/preparation-for-the-second-coming?lang=eng

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Guest Scott
19 hours ago, Anddenex said:

Did anyone else receive additional information from an area presidency regarding sacrament in the home?

Our bishop sent us all an email.   He says that all priesthood members of age are eligible to bless and pass the sacrament in their own homes.

He also said that members are to avoid contact with other members who aren’t living in the same home and that only houses without a priesthood member can be visited for ministering, giving blessings, or administering the sacrament.  

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7 hours ago, Scott said:

Our bishop sent us all an email.   He says that all priesthood members of age are eligible to bless and pass the sacrament in their own homes.

He also said that members are to avoid contact with other members who aren’t living in the same home and that only houses without a priesthood member can be visited for ministering, giving blessings, or administering the sacrament.  

Looks like you received a similar addition to the original email we received in your second paragraph. There were other things we were informed of.

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13 minutes ago, Traveler said:

A little question - How many priesthood holders that administered the sacrament in their homes wore a white shirt and tie?

 

The Traveler

We held church in our home for about 2 hrs, during that time we all dressed in our normal church clothes.
My wife and I are determined not to let Sunday turn into just another day.
This is the least we can do to show some semblance of Sabbath respect.

If, for now, we have lost: seminary, YW/YM activities, Church meetings... wearing our church clothes to partake in the 'ordinance' of the sacrament is very little to ask of my myself and my family. 

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Guest LiterateParakeet
49 minutes ago, Traveler said:

A little question - How many priesthood holders that administered the sacrament in their homes wore a white shirt and tie?

 

The Traveler

My husband and boys did, and a friend posted a picture of her family before their home church, their were white shirts and ties.

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54 minutes ago, Traveler said:

A little question - How many priesthood holders that administered the sacrament in their homes wore a white shirt and tie?

 

The Traveler

My family wore Sunday clothes so the priesthood holders were in full suit with white shirts and tie.  But we were in house slippers because I didn't feel it necessary to lift the no shoes house rule for Sacrament.

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