A youtube of a sacrament meeting

[askandanswer]

Does anyone know anything about this? I thought the church generally discouraged the use of cameras inside chapels for Sunday services.

 

 

[JohnsonJones]

During the Pandemic, or at least when the Pandemic was at it's most dangerous (the Pandemic is not gone, but transitioned to being more endemic if I understand correctly), the church regularly had wards and stakes record their meetings for those who were trying to follow health guidelines that were suggested by health professionals around the world. 

There has been many benefits from this.  Unlike the United States who think they are the only people in the world (and thought that health suggestions were political ploys done to only win points in the US...which is about as stupid as you can get...but hey...US citizens have a hard time realizing that there are others in the world besides themselves sometimes), the rest of the world still has concerns about Covid-19 and many places are still take precautions.

That said, the video above comes from the United States.  Different wards and stakes are still continuing the video broadcasts of meetings even after the dangers of the Pandemic have decreased.  Part of this is a continuing concern over those who are immunocompromised or have other health concerns which keep them from going to church.  In relation to Covid-19 they may still be highly susceptible to it.  This is also a service that can help those with this avoid other contagious diseases.  Some wards also continue it for the elderly who may have a very difficult time going to church.  This is a reason I see churches still doing this for their wards.

Overall, I can only see it as a good thing.  Not only does it help serve those above, but one difficulty the church has today is it's inability to adapt to the modern workforce in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere.  People are forced to work on Sunday these days.  Not everyone has the luxury of banker's hours or farmers days.  Instead of having a more flexible schedule (it would also help to be able to provide the sacrament in a more flexible schedule as well) that would accomodate todays' workforces, we expect everyone to be able to attend at a set hour each week. 

Recording the meetings and letting people be able to access it through the week helps them be able to attend, or at least see the service, even if work or other things does not allow them to be there.  I wish the Church would be even more adaptable and help today's modern workforce rather than the ideas that were prevalent over 50 years ago.

It causes difficulty with some of my university investigators who were in college at times because they worked during the weekends and could not go to church on Sundays when they were investigating.  One, who was baptized recently, hasn't been to church since they were baptized.  It is because of this reason.

Now, I'm not sure what site they used to be broadcasting the services on in our area, but it wasn't Youtube.  It was a service that didn't keep up the videos.  I know another ward that has their services on Youtube, but I think it's only up for that week.  After that it gets taken down and replaced with whatever service is for that next week.

I'm not sure about all of how it works today or supposed to work (I'm not the ward or stake tech specialist and don't know what their instructions are), but I think it would be great if the church adapted more to how modern society works than what worked over half a century ago.

[LDSGator]

2 hours ago, askandanswer said:

Does anyone know anything about this? I thought the church generally discouraged the use of cameras inside chapels for Sunday services.

 

I remember when an investigator we had been meeting with spoke in church for the first time. I recorded his speech and a member of the bishopric told me to “be discreet” about it. But no one cared other than that. This was about 2015ish. 

[Carborendum]

2 hours ago, askandanswer said:

Does anyone know anything about this? I thought the church generally discouraged the use of cameras inside chapels for Sunday services.

It is generally discouraged.  But not everyone knows that.

Edited November 16, 2023 by Carborendum

[LDSGator]

Some humor about the topic. 

[zil2]

3 hours ago, askandanswer said:

Does anyone know anything about this? I thought the church generally discouraged the use of cameras inside chapels for Sunday services.

This is clearly not an ordinary member of the congregation.  The ward set up a camera and connected it into the audio system to broadcast meetings during COVID (this is a logical conclusion - the audio and video are too good, and the angle such that, it couldn't be someone in the congregation with a cell phone).  It may be that this ward decided to post or leave their videos on YouTube rather than just stream and then delete (after some length of time).  Or it could be that the person responsible for streaming didn't realize that YouTube keeps streamed videos on the channel for anyone who wishes to view thereafter.  And they could be relying on security by obscurity - assuming no one would find their videos (having few views, few likes, and few subscribers drastically reduces the ranking one gets in search results).

Whatever the case, hopefully the two wards on this channel know they're being recorded.  My stake record the stake conference sessions, but then delete them after some time.  (I love this fact as I can learn better from the talks this way - pausing, noting, starting again.)

[LDSGator]

24 minutes ago, zil2 said:

love this fact as I can learn better from the talks this way - pausing, noting, starting again

Exactly. I would record lectures in college so I can listen to them again after class for this very reason. 

Edited November 16, 2023 by LDSGator

[Emmanuel Goldstein]

1 hour ago, LDSGator said:

Some humor about the topic. 

Oh, the good ol days of kitten lawyers, lol:

[LDSGator]

1 minute ago, Emmanuel Goldstein said:

Oh, the good ol days of kitten lawyers, lol:

That’s awesome. Lol!!!! 

[Emmanuel Goldstein]

2 hours ago, LDSGator said:

That’s awesome. Lol!!!! 

"I'm here live, I am not a cat." LOL

 

[NeuroTypical]

7 hours ago, askandanswer said:

Does anyone know anything about this? I thought the church generally discouraged the use of cameras inside chapels for Sunday services.

It's covered in section 29.7 of the handbook.   "Stream recordings of ward and stake meetings should be deleted within one day after the meeting." would be the relevant section.

I've been happily broadcasting sacrament since the COVID shutdown, and the 3 wards in my building basically plan to keep doing it until the camera breaks.  Been able to do a couple of funerals as well - probably 30+ people, including folks in other countries, were able to say goodbye to their loved ones remotely.

Here's 29.7 as it currently stands:

Quote

29.7

Streaming Meetings and Holding Virtual Meetings

When possible, Church members should strive to attend meetings in person. However, sometimes this is not possible. Streaming and holding virtual meetings make it possible to reach those who otherwise would not be able to attend. These people may include (but are not limited to) those who:

• Live in remote locations or have limited ability to travel.

• Have physical, mental, or emotional health challenges.

• Are immunocompromised or in a care facility or hospital.

• Are essential workers or otherwise are required to work on the Sabbath.

• Care for someone who is homebound and cannot be left alone.

• Need sign-language interpretation.

• Have allergies that put their health at risk in a meeting.

For the benefit of these members and others, the bishop may, as an exception, authorize a livestream of sacrament meetings and of funerals and weddings held in the meetinghouse. Streams allow others to see and hear a meeting remotely but not participate directly.

A livestream of a sacrament meeting should not include the administration of the sacrament. The stream should be paused during the sacrament and restarted afterward. Or the bishop may move the administration of the sacrament to the end of the meeting after the livestream has ended. The meeting would then close with a hymn and prayer.

The bishop may authorize a priest or Melchizedek Priesthood holder to administer the sacrament in person to those who cannot attend the meeting (see 18.9.1).

For some meetings, the bishop or stake president may authorize members who cannot attend in person to participate virtually. These meetings may include:

• Leadership meetings, such as presidency or council meetings.

• Quorum, Relief Society, and Young Women meetings.

• Sunday School classes.

• Primary classes and singing time.

Unlike streams, virtual meetings are interactive. Those who join remotely can contribute by asking questions, making comments, and participating in other ways.

The stake president may authorize a livestream of stake conference to other locations in the stake, including to members’ homes when needed. He may also authorize stake leaders to join leadership meetings virtually when they cannot attend in person (for example, for the reasons listed earlier in this section).

Streams and virtual meetings are not meant for the convenience of those who could reasonably attend in person. For example, the bishop does not authorize streaming of sacrament meeting for ward members who are traveling and could attend another ward.

Ward and stake technology specialists can help leaders set up streams and virtual meetings (see 33.10). These individuals can also help members access these meetings.

Streams and virtual meetings should not distract from the Spirit. Generally, only one device should be used to capture the meeting. Both the device and the person using it should be inconspicuous.

Stream recordings of ward and stake meetings should be deleted within one day after the meeting.

 

[LDSGator]

2 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

It's covered in section 29.7 of the handbook.   "Stream recordings of ward and stake meetings should be deleted within one day after the meeting." would be the relevant section.

I've been happily broadcasting sacrament since the COVID shutdown, and the 3 wards in my building basically plan to keep doing it until the camera breaks.  Been able to do a couple of funerals as well - probably 30+ people, including folks in other countries, were able to say goodbye to their loved ones remotely.

Here's 29.7 as it currently stands:

 

I was blessed enough to watch the virtual broadcasts on Zoom during Covid. Very cool!

[NeuroTypical]

COVID lockdown was lit.   In my stake, we had an older couple who fumbled about with their settings, such that all the attendees witnessed their 'intimate moment'.  (I didn't see it, but that's what people were calling it.)    

I basically have to play mommy to all the folks who log in, making sure I turn off their camera after they turn it on.  Nobody wants to look up your nose during sacrament, sister Newfangledcomputersconfuseme.

[LDSGator]

Just now, NeuroTypical said:

Newfangledcomputersconfuseme

I’d laugh, but I spent three hours recently trying to set up aunts new TV. So mea culpa! 

[NeuroTypical]

For the record, I love the not-technologically-saavy folks in my ward.   I go out of my way to help them when they want it.  But yes, they do produce some fun stories!

[Vort]

1 hour ago, NeuroTypical said:

In my stake, we had an older couple who fumbled about with their settings, such that all the attendees witnessed their 'intimate moment'.

An inspiring example for the young folks.

[Traveler]

I thought to add some thoughts.  Because of COVID many wards throughout the church started streaming Sunday services on Zoom.  During COVID I taught the 12-14 year old youth Sunday School Class on Zoom.  My personal assessment was that this Zoom effort was a dismal failure for the youth.   Those that I know that dealt with youth via Zoom agreed.   Now that the worst of COVID has passed many wards still broadcast just the adult Sunday services – or at least that is what my current ward does.

The most sacred part of our worship services (the sacrament covenant) is not streamed.  To have this most sacred of our covenant worship in our home requires special permission through the keys of the priesthood.  Without the sacrament covenant there is little of spiritual value to the streaming.

For fun, I watched the Sunday service.  For those that are not LDS (we have some that post on this forum) – this peek into LDS Sabbath culture is nothing short of amazing.   I thought it most interesting that the topic was tithes and offerings.  There was some reference on this forum about mega churches and there emphasis on offering that make the ministers exceptionally wealthy.   I thought the video was most interesting because of the discussions on this forum.  Not one person in the video would be recipient of any tithes or offerings from that Sabbath worship.  The talks were amazing – yet none would receive any monetary reward because of their talk.

Our current Prophet leader of our church is Pres. Nelsen.  His profession was cardiac surgeon – he was exceptional in his craft and was recognized worldwide for his contributions to cardiac surgery.   Successful cardiac surgeons make a much above average income.  As head of a multibillion-dollar organization – his current is basically intended to cover incurred expenses.  Likely his home is above average or upper middle class.  When President Monson was the head of the same multibillion-dollar organization his home was lower middle class.  Both had paid off their home before being called to full time church leadership positions.  Their net worth was not increased because of their church calling.

The concept of wealth, surplus and offerings from the “Law of Consecration” are in stark contrast to what I have seen in other church and especially governments and government public relief programs.  The concept of consecration is a means of making money (as well as goods and services) sacred and holy – which is the ancient meaning of making or offering sacrifice.  Not the giving up of something but rather making such sacred.  In other words, only by sacrifice by the giver are offerings made sacred rather than by the offering or the making of the offering (a point made by the final speaker in the video).  Thaks for the video @askandanswer

 

The Traveler

[askandanswer]

My Branch no longer zooms our services but the neighbouring branch which uses the same chapel continues to do so because their branch boundaries stretch out a few hundred kilometers. And I think all our baptismal services are streamed to the Mission Office, although not the actual baptism. We streamed a funeral a few weeks back. I think, but I'm not sure, that these services are streamed live and not recorded. 

[Grunt]

We still zoom our services for people in unique circumstances.  We do not allow recording, nor do we stream Sacrament. 

[mordorbund]

On 11/16/2023 at 2:40 PM, NeuroTypical said:

COVID lockdown was lit.   In my stake, we had an older couple who fumbled about with their settings, such that all the attendees witnessed their 'intimate moment'.

Well of course. Just because it's remote, doesn't mean the ward members should give up all their sacrament customs.