April 2025 General Conference Discussion

[HaggisShuu]

On 3/27/2025 at 12:15 AM, SilentOne said:

I predict

- There will be no additions to the canon or changes in meeting schedules at this time

- Somewhere between 10 and 20 new temples will be announced

- Something Easterish and something Restorationish will be sung

- At least one talk focusing on Joseph Smith and his visions/revelations/the coming forth of the Book of Mormon

I would love some additions to the canon as there haven't been any additions since the 70's if I remember. For me the canon in principle is open, but in practice feels closed. 

[LDSGator]

28 minutes ago, HaggisShuu said:

improvement requires effort which is what I think @LDSGator is trying to communicate. 

Effort and desire. 

[estradling75]

I have also heard of people prototyping 1 hour Church.   The church tries out alot of things that never make it to widespread use.  Will 1 hour church become the standard announced at this General Conference?  I do not know.  It might not work out in the testing.  But if they do go for it then the questions we have about it will be addressed, because they will have already tested and gathered the data they need to move forward with it

[Carborendum]

1 hour ago, HaggisShuu said:

I would love some additions to the canon as there haven't been any additions since the 70's if I remember. For me the canon in principle is open, but in practice feels closed. 

I'd really like to see the Proclamation being canonized as OD3.  But I doubt it will happen anytime soon.

[HaggisShuu]

20 minutes ago, estradling75 said:

I have also heard of people prototyping 1 hour Church.   The church tries out alot of things that never make it to widespread use.  Will 1 hour church become the standard announced at this General Conference?  I do not know.  It might not work out in the testing.  But if they do go for it then the questions we have about it will be addressed, because they will have already tested and gathered the data they need to move forward with it

I remember a little while ago a survey was sent round to leaders (in the UK) at least gathering feedback on opinions surrounding sacrament meetings. 
Questions like "How long should sacrament meeting last" and "how many speaking assignments should be in sacrament meeting" questions to that effect among other things like "are you happy with how many meetings are taking place" 

[HaggisShuu]

1 hour ago, Carborendum said:

I'd really like to see the Proclamation being canonized as OD3.  But I doubt it will happen anytime soon.

Which proclamation? There is several, I agree with you if you are talking about "The Family" I feel like canonising it would go a long way in shutting down progmos. 

[Ironhold]

Well folks... looks like I get to spend this Conference on pain meds... 💀

Last Saturday I found the *one* piece in a box of Russel Stover's that had toffee in it, and it was just enough to crack a tooth that had a cavity. 

I saw my dentist on Monday, he confirmed the damage, and said that I would need to have a crown. 

The earliest he could fit me in for the actual procedure would be Friday afternoon, and after my last round of dental work like this it was antibiotics and low-grade pain pills for a few days. 

[mikbone]

9 minutes ago, Ironhold said:

Russel Stover's

Dude that’s the worst.

I stopped trusting randomly assorted chocolate decades ago.

See’s milk chocolate custom mix is the way to go if you want a treat, or to ruin your figure…

[Ironhold]

2 hours ago, Carborendum said:

Many people left the Savior after He said he was not going to just "poof" bread to ease their lives.  He then asked the apostles if they would also leave.  Peter said.

Yes, many leave for the wrong reasons.  But many stay for the right reasons.

Over the past few months I've had some conversations with people as to why folks like the Tate Brothers are resonating with so many young men. 

The long and short of it is that modern Western society has done a rather bang-up job in inadvertently removing male role models from society. Far too many families no longer have a dad kids can rely on, male community leaders are being pressured to step back so women can "have a voice", popular male pop culture figures who in the past would have been a substitute are being discarded in favor of younger and hipper female replacement, and classic social structures like religion are frowned upon by the "elite". As if that wasn't bad enough, far too many "progressive" and "feminist" schools of thought regard men as being flawed & toxic by default. 

Cue a large number of teens and twenty-somethings being completely adrift in society and looking for anyone or anything that will welcome them with open arms. 

This is one of the problems the world is facing today, a lack of positive heroes and role models that people can aspire to. Younger people today don't have a Fred Rogers or a Bob Ross to gently dispense time-tested wisdom while helping to form boundaries of personal conduct; they've got the Tate Brothers and the Paul Brothers encouraging them to seek wealth for the sake of wealth and telling them that anything bad which happens to them must be society's fault. 

...Thus, a big part of why so many younger individuals, particularly young men, have a botched sense of where they belong in the world and how the world should be reacting to them: they're either being told they're worthless, or being told that anyone who doesn't bow to them is worthless. 

It's one of the structures I talked about earlier that needs to be addressed in order to try and fix what's going wrong with the world today. 

[mikbone]

1 hour ago, Ironhold said:

This is one of the problems the world is facing today, a lack of positive heroes and role models that people can aspire to. Younger people today don't have a Fred Rogers or a Bob Ross to gently dispense time-tested wisdom while helping to form boundaries of personal conduct; they've got the Tate Brothers and the Paul Brothers encouraging them to seek wealth for the sake of wealth and telling them that anything bad which happens to them must be society's fault. 

Yup.

One of my favorite books is titled Man of Steel and Velvet.  It’s a male self help book.  Jesus Christ is the exemplary model.  

A man should be steadfast and ready to lead and defend his family and principles - the Steel part.  And supportive and sensitive to his spouse and children - the velvet.

People many times only imagine the velvet part of Jesus.  He was firm and tough as nails as well.

It’s why I love the daguerreotype of Joseph Smith so much.  It displays both the steel and the velvet.

I think many saints prefer the soft portraits of Joseph Smith.

We have to provide our family, friends, saints, and community with real examples of men.

I’m doing my part.

Edited April 2 by mikbone

[Ironhold]

36 minutes ago, mikbone said:

We have to provide our family, friends, saints, and community with real examples of men.

I’m doing my part.

A lot of times, when people champion past eras, what they're actually trying to champion are those things they see as the positive aspects of that era. 

This is one thing from the past that needs to return, the adults in society making it an active point to try and be positive examples for the next generations. 

A *lot* of the people who wind up lost these days wouldn't have been lost if they had some beacon they could hone in on. 

If we fix this, we fix a good chunk of what's wrong with modern society and start bringing people back to where they need to be. 

[MrShorty]

How about this random prediction for conference? With Sunday being Apr. 6, how many references will get for the 195th anniversary of the official organization of the church in 1830? I'm going to predict 3 such references on Sunday alone. I might even suggest that some of your conference bingo cards need a "On this date in 1830, the church was organized" square.

Along the same lines, will any of the speakers follow Elder Bednar's example of 2014 and mention Christ's birthdate?

[Emmanuel Goldstein]

I would love if they announced that all members can attend baptisms in the temple, regardless of age, 8 and up. My 9 year old can't wait until she is 12.

[JohnsonJones]

On 3/25/2025 at 9:13 AM, Ironhold said:

*What* local comic shop? 

The US comic book industry has been in a dire decline for over a decade now, with the past several years seeing more shops close than open.

There are now large swaths of the United States where people can't get new comics at traditional retail, and some publishers - especially indie publishers - are now basically internet + conventions as a result. 

That's part of what I mean when I say that a lot of the traditional structures and methods by which people used to socialize in the past are either breaking down or going away entirely. 

That's interesting.  When I was younger, you could go to any store and they would have a rack of comic books.  I don't think I've seen a rack of comic books in any store for...oh, it has to be over a decade if not longer now.

I know that they started to get far more adult in themes and such during the time when my children were growing up.  By the turn of the millenium they were having such topics in them that I wouldn't want my children to read some of them. 

Comic books forgot who they were for, and focused instead on adults.  If they have lost audiences and that's why I no longer see them in stores, I would say that some of it is because they forgot who they were.  Instead of being written in a way which was appropriate for everyone to read, they wrote them focused on adults with adult material in mind instead.

That is what I would think, if they continued that trend that I had observed many years ago.  Today, they'd just be filled with smut.  Comic books from the 50s and 60s were a lot cleaner (or maybe it was my perception as a boy, but I could swear they were a lot cleaner than they became in the late 20th century).

On 3/25/2025 at 9:13 AM, Ironhold said:

 

And church? Modern society has done a *lot* to drive people away from the idea of religion, to the point that it either doesn't occur to a lot of people to go to church or they fear social isolation by doing anything that would lead others to think they've become religious. And even if a person does try to seek out religion, many churches have closed over the last few years due to declining membership, limiting one's options. 

Part of it is that "Christians" do not act like Christians anymore. 

Quote

 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

⁵ Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

⁷ Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

¹⁰ Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

¹² Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Just a few to comment on. 

How many are meek these days.  Instead of being meek I see Christians (and even members) who are boisterous, loud, and imposing their ideas and views on others.

Who are the peacemakers today?  Who here supports invading other nations, or taking over places that are not theirs.  Who supports Russia in their invasion of another nation and taking their land?  Who supports the idea that the US should invade other nations?  That doesn't seem very peacmaker like to me.

Who is doing the persecuting today?  Who is trying to tell others who to live their lives, what they can do, what they cannot do.  Rather than being in society, but not part of society, the current "Christians" seem to want to dictate what others can or cannot do, to force others to live their lives as the "Christians" feel it should be. 

How many of us feed the poor, give shelter to those in need of it, visit those in jail and prison, help the sick and the weak, and go the extra mile and turn the other cheek these days.  Christians are not seeing as doing these things most of the time, and in fact, seem to be doing the opposite. 

If Christians were more as the Lord would have us do, if they would truly be followers of Christ, I think the youth would not be having such problems with Christianity today.  However, when they see a majority of Christians supporting sinful leaders, supporting ideals that go against the Bible, they start to question why they should believe anything else Christians say they believe, if the actions of Christians do not support it.

This is probably one of the biggest complaints I hear from many young people on why they do not like religion (so, it's not just Christianity) today.  It's not that they don't feel there are good teachings and principals found there, but that those who say they follow those teachings, do not actually follow them and in many instances do the opposite. 

[JohnsonJones]

I'll hope or guess for a Temple in Charleston, West Virginia.

On 4/2/2025 at 9:27 AM, estradling75 said:

I have also heard of people prototyping 1 hour Church.   The church tries out alot of things that never make it to widespread use.  Will 1 hour church become the standard announced at this General Conference?  I do not know.  It might not work out in the testing.  But if they do go for it then the questions we have about it will be addressed, because they will have already tested and gathered the data they need to move forward with it

I'm still trying to adapt from different meetings at different times of the day  and week, to transitioning to 3 hour church!

2 hour church is still confusing me on where to go on which Sunday!

And now people are wanting 1 hour church?!

[LDSGator]

44 minutes ago, JohnsonJones said:

And now people are wanting 1 hour church?!

I’m confused in some ways. I think one hour church does diminish the community aspect of church-but than again, what’s stopping you from going to brunch with some fellow members after church? Or for a cook out with the ward? Or just casually studying the BOM together in the hallway?

[SilentOne]

My thoughts for temples not in Utah

Very likely in next few years: Tirana, Albania; western Ivory Coast - probably Yamoussoukro; Malawi - probably Lilongwe; Lomé, Togo; Little Rock, Arkansas

Likely in next few years: Corrientes or Neuquén, Argentina; Tasmania (Hobart?), Australia; more island nations -  Trinidad, Jamaica, and/or Marshall Islands?

Having trouble evaluating likelihood: Cartagena, Spain; Flagstaff, Arizona; Biloxi, Mississippi; Sioux Falls or Rapid City, South Dakota; Pullman, Washington

Unlikely but not shocking: Tierra del Fuego, Argentina; Warsaw, Poland

I'll think I must be dreaming: Gaza, Vatican

[Ironhold]

12 hours ago, JohnsonJones said:

That's interesting.  When I was younger, you could go to any store and they would have a rack of comic books.  I don't think I've seen a rack of comic books in any store for...oh, it has to be over a decade if not longer now.

Part of it is that "Christians" do not act like Christians anymore.

During the 1950s, there was a moral panic triggered by the book "Seduction of the Innocent" in which the author made several very, very questionable claims about the societal effects of comic books, especially on minors. This resulted in the end of the "Golden Age" of comics and the rise of the "Silver Age" as the industry was forced to adopt the Comics Code Authority as an internal regulating body.

The CCA was infamously strict and authoritarian in regards to what it did or didn't allow into print. As a consequence, several companies were forced to either transition their books from comics to magazines to escape CCA authority or take them out of print; EC Comics in particular faced this dilemma. Entire genres, like horror and true crime, were massively and negatively affected. Depending upon who you talk to, the CCA also inadvertently helped cull the ranks of superhero titles. 

Matters came to a head around the late 1960s when the United States government asked Marvel Comics to produce a comic warning the public about the dangers of substance abuse. Marvel responded by producing a Spider-Man story arc in which Peter must help someone he knows get out of the grip of addiction. But the CCA *refused* to certify the story arc as being CCA compliant because it depicted substance abuse, and when Marvel told the CCA they were doing it at the government's request the CCA officials responded with, in a nutshell, "Your problem; not ours". This led to Marvel choosing to run the story arc without the CCA stamp of approval, and this led to the CCA's spine being broken. 

DC would soon run their own anti-drug story arc not long after, and this time around it got a CCA stamp of approval, the result of the CCA having had to loosen their own restrictions in the wake of the controversy over Spider-Man. 

Before this, comics that didn't get the approval of the CCA were only available in "underground" venues or at dedicated comic shops that weren't devoted to CCA approval; these "comix" often pushed the boundaries in regards to content. Once it became clear that the CCA's spine was broken, both "comix" publishers and indies who wanted to explore more mature themes had a field day. By the late 1970s / early 1980s, even mainstream comic shops were now stocking comics that lacked CCA stamps, allowing customers a variety of product akin to what used to be available during the Golden Age. In response, Marvel and DC began to get a bit darker and bolder in their content and themes... while also attempting to launch all-ages spin-offs like Marvel's Star Comics to ensure that kids could still have "safe" content to read. 

Things came to a head in the 1990s, what many people like myself regard as the "Extreme" Age. In the very late 1980s companies like Image emerged that made it a point to push all boundaries they could, and as these companies often employed veteran writers & artists who had followings people eagerly got on board. This is when the content of comics really went overboard, but even then you still had all-ages fare from companies like Archie. Problem was, the industry itself went to extremes in regards to gimmicks, movie deals, TV deals, and the like, causing an industry collapse near the end of the decade. 

As part of the collapse, most major publishers ceased handling their own distribution and instead gave Diamond a de facto monopoly on comic distribution. Diamond began pulling back from mass retail to focus on comic book shops and book store chains, setting in motion the dominos that would cause the fall of the comic book shop as people started to forget that comic books even existed. 

Fast forward to the present. The Big Six -> Marvel, DC, IDW, Dark Horse, Image, and Archie -> are so mired in controversy and have so completely lost sight of who and what they were that their content is largely unreadable even if one could afford the $4 - $5 an issue cover price. This is also affecting a lot of the B-list publishers. And even if the content was worth the price, far too many writers, artists, and editors behave in such publicly unprofessional ways that a lot of folks don't feel morally comfortable handing their money over. This has led to a surge in popularity of Japanese, South Korean, and indie-produced titles, which tend to stick to the classic themes, typically have more classical tales & virtues, and have systems of accountability in place to ensure that the professionals in the industry maintain professional behavior at all times. 

In fact, since September of 2017 there's been a bit of a civil war within the US comic book industry, with the "Comicsgate" movement arising as a response to the excesses of the industry to encourage people to vote with their wallets & create the indie content they want to see. 

Comic shops are still dying faster than they're being born, however, to the point that most cities no longer have their own dedicated comic shop. The entire industry needs reforms to stop the collapse, including a deliberate return to mass retail in order to encourage people to seek out their local comic shops. 

[Ironhold]

13 hours ago, JohnsonJones said:

Part of it is that "Christians" do not act like Christians anymore. 

Just a few to comment on. 

How many are meek these days.  Instead of being meek I see Christians (and even members) who are boisterous, loud, and imposing their ideas and views on others.

Who are the peacemakers today?  Who here supports invading other nations, or taking over places that are not theirs.  Who supports Russia in their invasion of another nation and taking their land?  Who supports the idea that the US should invade other nations?  That doesn't seem very peacmaker like to me.

Who is doing the persecuting today?  Who is trying to tell others who to live their lives, what they can do, what they cannot do.  Rather than being in society, but not part of society, the current "Christians" seem to want to dictate what others can or cannot do, to force others to live their lives as the "Christians" feel it should be. 

How many of us feed the poor, give shelter to those in need of it, visit those in jail and prison, help the sick and the weak, and go the extra mile and turn the other cheek these days.  Christians are not seeing as doing these things most of the time, and in fact, seem to be doing the opposite. 

If Christians were more as the Lord would have us do, if they would truly be followers of Christ, I think the youth would not be having such problems with Christianity today.  However, when they see a majority of Christians supporting sinful leaders, supporting ideals that go against the Bible, they start to question why they should believe anything else Christians say they believe, if the actions of Christians do not support it.

This is probably one of the biggest complaints I hear from many young people on why they do not like religion (so, it's not just Christianity) today.  It's not that they don't feel there are good teachings and principals found there, but that those who say they follow those teachings, do not actually follow them and in many instances do the opposite. 

Even some atheists & agnostics I know have been forced to admit that a lot of today's "free-thinkers" are just as rigid and dogmatic in their beliefs as the more extreme religious types, and we're often hand-in-hand in trying to battle the ignorance & bigotry caused by this regardless of who it's from. 

But yeah, it's mostly the "progressive" and "intellectual" forces that are discouraging religion these days, especially if it's a religion that upholds traditional Western values and seeks accountability of its members. 

I've had more than a few self-described "progressive" types become unhinged when they learn I'm a member of the church, with several of them going on tirades about how if they had their way we'd all be erased from the planet. 

[Traveler]

14 hours ago, JohnsonJones said:

....

Part of it is that "Christians" do not act like Christians anymore. 

....

 

1 hour ago, Ironhold said:

Even some atheists & agnostics I know have been forced to admit that a lot of today's "free-thinkers" are just as rigid and dogmatic in their beliefs as the more extreme religious types, and we're often hand-in-hand in trying to battle the ignorance & bigotry caused by this regardless of who it's from. 

But yeah, it's mostly the "progressive" and "intellectual" forces that are discouraging religion these days, especially if it's a religion that upholds traditional Western values and seeks accountability of its members. 

I've had more than a few self-described "progressive" types become unhinged when they learn I'm a member of the church, with several of them going on tirades about how if they had their way we'd all be erased from the planet. 

There is a prophesy given in the Book of Mormon by Jesus himself in 3 Nephi 16:10

Quote

10 And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them.

The Traveler

[SilentOne]

I was pleased to hear God is Love. I've found that hymn to be terribly underperformed.

[Ironhold]

Already seeing at least one individual on social media bringing the fire and brimstone because one of the speakers said missions were essentially a commandment. 

The person in question was calling anyone who didn't serve wicked, sinful, slothful, and the like, then started trolling anyone who called them out over the matter or noted that there are in fact valid reasons why some members might not be comfortable with wearing a name tag (such as being neurodivergent to the point that they'd struggle to function in a formal mission environment). 

I have a very bad feeling that this talk is going to be weaponized and do a lot of damage accordingly. 

[zil2]

1 hour ago, Ironhold said:

The person in question was calling anyone who didn't serve

Actually, it was anyone who willfully chose not to serve. And he acknowledged repentance and restitution and that there can be events which prevent one from serving despite one's efforts.  But yeah, he was very fire and brimstone.

[Traveler]

2 hours ago, Ironhold said:

Already seeing at least one individual on social media bringing the fire and brimstone because one of the speakers said missions were essentially a commandment. 

The person in question was calling anyone who didn't serve wicked, sinful, slothful, and the like, then started trolling anyone who called them out over the matter or noted that there are in fact valid reasons why some members might not be comfortable with wearing a name tag (such as being neurodivergent to the point that they'd struggle to function in a formal mission environment). 

I have a very bad feeling that this talk is going to be weaponized and do a lot of damage accordingly. 

I see no reason for concern.  All is unfolding good things and moving forward as theyshould.

 

The Traveler

[mikegriffith]

5 hours ago, Ironhold said:

Already seeing at least one individual on social media bringing the fire and brimstone because one of the speakers said missions were essentially a commandment. 

Serving a mission has always been a commandment for male young adults. If you are a male young adult and are physically and mentally able to serve, you are supposed to serve. However, you have your free agency to choose not to obey the commandment.

If a young man is physically and/or mentally incapable of serving a mission, then he is exempt from the commandment.