Page 1 of 1

Witness for MP ordination

Posted: Mon Feb 18, 2013 5:09 am
by drepouille
I know this is going to be painful. An elder from our stake was interviewed here for ordination to high priest. His father is the patriarch in a distant state, so he took the ordination form with him. We had told him to have a witness from that stake sign the form, but the stake president in that stake told him not to bother -- just have his father ordain him at home without a witness.

A humorous side-note: this brother is the Elders Quorum President, and is now a high priest. Our stake needs to act quickly to replace him!

Re: Witness for MP ordination

Posted: Mon Feb 18, 2013 1:22 pm
by lajackson
drepouille wrote:. . . the stake president in that stake told him not to bother -- just have his father ordain him at home without a witness.
Due to an interesting set of circumstances, I was authorized by my current stake president to confer the Melchizedek Priesthood and ordain one of my sons an elder away from home. He did not ask me to locate a witness from the stake where the ordination took place. My stake president's only instruction was, "do it properly."

There were witnesses: my brother in whose home the ordination took place, my other brothers who were present, all of whom assisted. There were two bishops, two counselors in stake presidencies, and an elders quorum president in the circle.

When I returned and reported the completion of the ordinance, the stake president instructed the clerk to prepare a certificate listing my position as the stake representative (I happen to serve in a position which qualifies), and then the stake president and I signed the certificate and sent it to my son.

In effect, I became the assigned "stake representative" at the ordination, even though I also was the one actually doing the ordination.

Handbook 2: 20.7.2 instructs the stake president to sign the ordination certificate. If another stake priesthood leader was assigned to represent the stake president at the ordination, he also signs the certificate.

So we did.

I think the only place the Handbook calls for witnesses is at a baptism, where two priests or Melchizedek Priesthood holders fulfill that requirement.