stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

Some discussions just don't fit into a well defined box. Use this forum to discuss general topics and issues revolving around the Church and the technology offerings we use and share.
shemaloto
New Member
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Nov 25, 2013 10:36 am

stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#1

Post by shemaloto »

A question has come up that we don't quite know the answer to.

A stake counselor would like to attend his home ward but doesn't know if its appropriate to always sit up on the stand and preside over the meeting when he would rather allow the bishop to exercise priesthood keys he was given. we are under 2 differing opinions. 1. He is to preside over the meeting and sit on the stand 2. He only sits on the stand only if given an assignment.

we've searched throughout handbook 1 and 2 and still cannot interpret correctly.
drepouille
Senior Member
Posts: 2859
Joined: Sun Jul 01, 2007 6:06 pm
Location: Plattsmouth, NE

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#2

Post by drepouille »

IMHO, he should sit on the stand when he visits his home ward.
Dana Repouille, Plattsmouth, Nebraska
User avatar
sbradshaw
Community Moderators
Posts: 6245
Joined: Mon Sep 26, 2011 9:42 pm
Location: Utah
Contact:

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#3

Post by sbradshaw »

Policy is found in the first paragraph of Handbook 2, 18.2. The way I interpret it is, first, that the stake presidency member always presides when he visits a sacrament meeting, and second, that he should be invited to sit on the stand – doesn't have to sit on the stand, but presides either way.

Presiding means that 1) he should be recognized as attending, and 2) if he wants to adjust the program or come to the podium to clarify something that a speaker says, he is able to (which would be harder to do, but not impossible, if he's not on the stand).

I was thinking that the sacrament would need be given to him first (which would be more difficult if he's not on the stand), but I can't find that directive in the Handbook so it may just be tradition from earlier policy!

I've heard stories of general authorities coming to a sacrament meeting and just sitting in the audience – on a rare occasion when they don't have an assignment, or if they arrive after the meeting's started.
Samuel Bradshaw • If you desire to serve God, you are called to the work.
eblood66
Senior Member
Posts: 3907
Joined: Mon Sep 24, 2007 9:17 am
Location: Cumming, GA, USA

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#4

Post by eblood66 »

sbradshaw wrote:I was thinking that the sacrament would need be given to him first (which would be more difficult if he's not on the stand), but I can't find that directive in the Handbook so it may just be tradition from earlier policy!
Handbook 2 section 20.4.3 (4th paragraph)
lajackson
Community Moderators
Posts: 11460
Joined: Mon Mar 17, 2008 10:27 pm
Location: US

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#5

Post by lajackson »

sbradshaw wrote:I was thinking that the sacrament would need be given to him first (which would be more difficult if he's not on the stand), but I can't find that directive in the Handbook so it may just be tradition from earlier policy!
Handbook 2, 20.4.3: "The presiding officer receives the sacrament first. The bishop (or a counselor in his absence) presides at the sacrament meeting unless a member of the stake presidency, an Area Seventy, or a General Authority is sitting on the stand."

A member of the stake presidency presides in any sacrament meeting he attends (within his own stake). He should sit on the stand. As the presiding officer, he is first to receive the sacrament. As the presiding officer, he is responsible for the outcome of the meeting. As has been pointed out, and as Elder Boyd K. Packer and many other general authorities have taught, it is difficult to preside from somewhere else in the chapel.

Recognizing that my home ward bishop and his counselors worked hard to plan and conduct a sacrament meeting that would edify and uplift the members of the ward, I allowed them to do just that. As I sat on the stand, the member of the bishopric would hand me a program (if I didn't already have one from the greeters). If I noticed anything irregular about the agenda, I would quietly mention it, but we trained our bishoprics well and that rarely happened.

At that same time, I would let the person conducting know if I wished to take any time during the meeting. Usually I did not, but there were some special times when two or three minutes allowed me to share something that would bless our ward.

And then there were the occasions when the scheduled speakers ended early. At first, the bishopric turned to me and expected me to fill the time. We resolved that very quickly. Sometimes I would, but other times I would point back to the bishopric and one of them got to do it. And sometimes I opened my hymnbook, which was their signal to conclude the meeting a few minutes early with a hymn and a prayer.

Sometimes I would go weeks without attending my own ward. Sometimes I would be there two weeks in a row. It averaged about once a month. The bishop got plenty of time to preside on his own. At the same time, the ward received the blessings that come from having stake leaders among their own.

It was a wonderful experience.
User avatar
Biggles
Senior Member
Posts: 1608
Joined: Tue May 27, 2008 5:14 am
Location: Watford, England

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#6

Post by Biggles »

Our Stake President is also a member of our ward. Unless he is there on Stake business he usually sits in the congregation with his family and takes no active part in the program unless invited by the presiding officer. This might just be a local custom.
BrentFiegle
New Member
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2016 10:05 pm
Location: Arkansas, USA

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#7

Post by BrentFiegle »

A presiding officer holds the keys. It means he has the right to choose as directed by the spirit. He is free to choose as the Spirit dictates. The Lord trusts them enough to leave it up to then.

What if he brought someone to church and wanted to sit with them. Nephi had to slay Laban.

Simple is better than complex,
But complex is better than complicated.
_The Zen of Python-
User avatar
marianomarini
Senior Member
Posts: 619
Joined: Sat Jan 19, 2008 3:13 am
Location: Vicenza. Italy

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#8

Post by marianomarini »

BrentFiegle wrote:Simple is better than complex,
But complex is better than complicated.
_The Zen of Python-
Stake Presidency members preside over the whole Stake.
They can go to every unit (even their own) and, as presiding authority give a look at the program, approve it and ask bishops to preside (delegate).
Simple and clear.
User avatar
wrigjef
Senior Member
Posts: 631
Joined: Sun Mar 01, 2009 8:38 am
Location: Chesapeake, Virginia

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#9

Post by wrigjef »

I was in a ward that was home to an area authority. He was instructed to always sit on the stand even when he attended his own ward.
User avatar
johnshaw
Senior Member
Posts: 2273
Joined: Fri Jan 19, 2007 1:55 pm
Location: Syracuse, UT

Re: stake counselors presiding in ward meetings.

#10

Post by johnshaw »

An area authority doesn't preside unless assigned by a member of the twelve. Technically the 70 ask must be assigned to preside, so sitting in the audience is correct for area and general 70
“A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom.”
― Thomas Paine, Common Sense
Post Reply

Return to “General Discussions”