Standing in Sacrament Meeting to Sing Hymns

[lajackson]

I like to stand to sing the intermediate hymn - so if the chorrister doesn't gesture to the congregation to stand, then I just stand up instead

You may be standing alone! And that usually works for stake conferences.

Our stake president has asked that we not stand for intermediate hymns in sacrament meetings, so around here, we don't. But that only applies around here.

[dannykos]

You may be standing alone!

as it happens - as soon as I stand, then my counsellors do, and then everyone else does… not necessarily as 'smooth' as having the congregation stand en masse, but effective all the same.

[gregwanderson]

In our stake, standing in Sacrament Meeting is widely known to be against policy. Of course, I've recently learned that stake-specific policies can be very common. For example, also in our stake, we do not use bells to indicate the end of Relief Society/Priesthood meetings or Sunday School classes. As far as I know, the Stake President personally instituted the policy when he was listening to an instructor wrapping up a lesson with a testimony and the obtrusive bell completely destroyed the moment.

(Rather than distract from the current topic, I'm going to start a new thread to discuss the use of "school bells" in the meetinghouse.)

[greggo]

I think I posted it in a previous thread, but during a stake presidency training meeting with the Area President in my last stake, The Area President quoted Pres. Packer saying that standing for intermediate hymns is only appropriate if the meeting is scheduled for 2 hours or longer (thus inappropriate for Sac. Meetings).

[marianomarini]

At this point an offhand question raise up.
Why?

[lajackson]

as it happens - as soon as I stand, then my counsellors do,

Wise counselors. And since you have counselors, it would appear that you also have some say about the standing and sitting that goes on during the meeting. [grin]

[dannykos]

Wise counselors. And since you have counselors, it would appear that you also have some say about the standing and sitting that goes on during the meeting. [grin]

maybe…

[nicklewis]

You are right about the instruction in the hymnbook allowing for the congregation to stand. The instruction about not standing during the intermediate hymn came to our stake from a GA giving instructions to stake presidents. That was a verbal. I haven't seen anything in writing to confirm that, but we continue to follow the verbal guidance of our line authorities. We may or may not see that addressed in the new CHOIs that are coming out in November.

[marianomarini]

I'm really surprise.
Where is the old good teaching from Joseph Smith: "We teach them the right principles and let them to act accordingly" (or something like that!
It seem to me that we are practicing: "We ask them to act as we want and let them to gess the principles":o

[clementsms]

Sacrament meeting and stake conf. are under the direction of the presiding authority. if they stand for a hymn, then you stand. If they do not then you don't. Several choristers have had have this explained to them, and I am sure that several more in the future will need this instruction as well.