This title makes me sound about 80 years old, but here we are. I am finding my compact scriptures hard to read. I'm trying to decide what scriptures to buy and I wonder if going for Large is silly or even much of a difference from regular sized scriptures? What have you done as you've aged? Should I just get reading glasses for scripture time lol

Basically the title. I just got called as the ward choir director but I’ve literally never led a choir and there’s no handbook. I’ve sang in many choirs though. Also note that I’m in a married student ward so idk if that would change anything. Any basic Christmas arrangement recommendations would also be appreciated 👏

I'm someone who considers themselves spiritual but I'm not affiliated with any religion or faith. I'm trying to explore the different wisdom literatures of different faiths. For example, the traditional Christian faith has Psalms, Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes.

I'm unfamiliar with the book of Mormon so I was hoping that this community could point me in the direction of what books of wisdom to read.

In this YouTube video, Bill Smith says that some of John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff's revelations were published in a foreign language Doctrine and Covenants. Does anyone know what language and year of publication? Also, is there an English translation of these?

I strongly suspect my friend is being physically abused and is in serious danger. Her husband has anger issues and she's mentioned she is afraid of him and he is very very "politically charged" right now, so things have been ramping up.

She got real sick and ended up in the hospital then was sent to the mental hospital because shes "having emotional problems." She is on a few medical and psych drugs so she's very vulnerable and my conversations with her are very strained and they have me incredibly scared. I know her something is going on.

I contacted her Bishop and he said that he handled it by asking the husband if he was abusive and the husband said that he wasn't. So problem solved she is just "mentally ill."

According to him he doesn't need to call the domestic abuse number for advice unless there is evidence of abuse and "there is no evidence."

[I have tons of evidence of emotional abuse but I guess that "doesn't count."]

Im very worried this is going to be a "if only people had done something sooner" story.

Id love to have some info on how the Bishop is supposed to handle the situation so I can go from there while trying to work with him.

Anyone else find it hard to make friends as you get older even with people from your ward? We moved couple yes back and I really don't have any friends in our new ward.

Hello all! I am currently trying to compile all of the recorded talks that are available throughout history from some specific prophets and apostles for personal study. I know where to find general conference talks, as well as BYU speeches, but are there any other areas I should look into where apostles have given speeches/talks that are written or recorded in public records?

My mom is filing for divorce and is leaving my dad. As you can imagine I’m grieving and I’m just wondering what resources I can look at? I read the self help section on divorce in the church’s library and it’s very limited. I got to say I’m suprised there isn’t more, given this is a major issue within the church. I was assuming there would be more and as I said it’s really limited.

Okay so I have youth and was once a youth myself. When I was a youth the program revolved around scouting but there was still tons of other stuff. There were stake dances, youth conferences (at the ward and stake level), there were combined YM & YW activities, there were sports, I could go on but it was always a “show up at the church at 7 and there’s an activity.”

Now days we’ve done away with all that and replaced it with things that are almost nonexistent. I understand why we moved away from scouting. I was there for the presentation around goal setting, but then it feels like there’s just nothing from the church that supports anything. For example my YM has an activity about once a quarter and the most recent one they did was play airsoft. Super fun, all the kids loved it, but there’s no plan to do anything else. He’s never been on a camp out, this is the first year that he’s eligible to do FSY but I’m not thrilled with the lottery element of it (you can sign up and try to pick a place, day, and have a few friends pick the same thing but you’re not guaranteed to get it so you might end up getting assigned a different place, different time, and not be with anyone you know)

I’m not speaking for everyone. I’m sure there are some bishoprics that are great at having YM activities and are very consistent. I’m afraid our experience though is way too common. It’s the same for all my friends and family members. All of them that I talk to say maybe the YM have an activity in a month but they always miss a few. None I know of have sports or youth conferences, no combined activities, etc.

It does seem like the YW are way better off because they have direct support from having a YW presidency whose only focus is the YW and not the whole ward.

TLDR; is the home centered, church supported approach applicable to young men’s as well? As parents should we be running our own family Young Men’s for our son and I’m under a completely false assumption that there is still support for YM to have activities at the church?

Help me understand what this is supposed to look like and if others are having the same questions.

My wife and I have an appointment to do initiatories, but it's been YEARS since we've last done them. I've heard they've changed, so my question is this:

What do we wear during the ordinance? Do we dress in our temple whites? Wasn't even sure if I needed to take my temple bag.

Any insights are greatly appreciated.

I’m looking for insights on how to simplify these for a ward. We have a ward that benefits greatly from them, and members really enjoy them. Real food comes and real fellowship happens. However, it seems they can take up more resources mentally and physically than necessary.

How have you seen them organized simply, and who typically oversees them? Is it better to have one point person or someone assigned through Relief Society or Elders Quorum?

Someone needs to promote and announce so people bring food, someone over setup, and someone needs to make sure there are utensils.

Thanks!

Hey does anyone know if there is some blog space or something for fans of the Homecoming Saga by Orson Scott Card. It’s weird how the series is 20 years old and is 5 books long and does a wonderful job with world building yet no one really talks about it.

I have vests that I wear as a part of my regular church attire, but I was wondering if there was any rules on it for my upcoming mission. I usually wear them to help make my white shirts look better, since they are a bit too large, and the vest fits better. Anyway, just curious if anyone knows.

I am trying to remember a General Conference talk (I think) that talked about living the pattern of the gospel every day of our lives. There was a 1:1 comparison of each principle and ordinance before and after baptism. Faith in Christ and repentance are obviously the same. But then the speaker talked about how the ordinance of baptism turns into making and keeping other covenants with the Lord. And then he or she made another comparison about how the ordinance of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost translates into _____ in our daily lives after baptism, but for the life of me I CANNOT remember what it was. Was it just staying worthy of the Spirit? Can anyone help me remember, or does anyone know the talk I am referring to?

was the gospel not taught to the gentiles (non-israelites) before Jesus' time? Does that mean the gentiles,for the most part, were neglected from god's true faith during old testament times and that you would have to be fortunate to be born within the covenantal family to know the gospel before Jesus' arrival ? I know jesus first taught to the Jews , then through a vision given to Paul, it was extended to the gentiles.

I wanted to bring this up in the faithful sub. I've been trying to reconcile some stuff with my queer identity and the church. Typically, I've been one of those "being gay is ok and the church will eventually catch up" kind of people. But recently, I've seen some other people who decided to put their focus on the temple first and, as much as it frustrates me, they seem happier. Whereas, lately, I've been a lot more unhappy because of my sexuality and not feeling accepted for feeling like there was room for me in church and that I was expected to change. How does one find the motivation to choose the church's teachings first? I feel like a lot of people who end up going the church first route end up becoming hateful of LGBTQ folk that don't and I don't want that to be me. I just want to be happy and be able to feel stable in my life. Is it wrong to feel that if I just dated women, life would be simpler and easier? Sure, it's not what I want, but is the sacrifice worth it?

I been wondering and been trying to find if the church of jesus chirst of latter day saints owns their own Social Media and i would like to escape from instagram, facebook etc and i tired looking if the chuech owns their own social media plateform and i never could find what i am looking for and i also rerally want to surround myself with members of the church and even make friends and just to discuss about the savior most importantly staying away from disturbing posts and people and getting away from wicked things that around the world please help me find my answers

Thank You!

Sorry this is my third post today, but my mind has been going all day about So many things. So thanks for your patience if you've paid attention to who posts.

So a few weeks ago I taught relief society and one subject I brought up is the topic of measuring up/feeling inadequate, etc and how the atonement can heal us and make us whole again. I went on a bit of a tangent and told a story of when I was discouraged with my ADHD and I told the sisters that I prayed and said basically to HF: "I'm so sorry I keep messing up and forgetting things that are important but don't seem important to me. I don't know what to do." I then told them that I felt a calm feeling like a warm hug and had the thought (one of many during my prayer): "you don't have to repent for things you have no control over."

This is how I worded it in RS. But now I'm questioning myself. Is that right? Do I need to re-word it next time? Am I completely off the mark?

TW: discussion of suic*de as a sacrament talk below

Hi, all! My partner and I left sacrament meeting yesterday feeling super disappointed and kind of frustrated with the final speaker and the fact that it was clear our bishop sanctioned the talk (she said something to the effect of, after talking with bishop about this, etc.). I’m curious to hear all of your takes on this.

The concluding speaker, a young sister missionary, got up and opened by referring to the idea of a compliment sandwich (the method by which you offer a critique, verbal or written, bookended by compliments so as to soften the critique). She then said she was going to give us a hope sandwich; presumably, words of hope, something dark, then, something hopeful again. She then said she felt prompted to speak on the topic of suic*de.

The talk felt really rushed, only about 5 min in length, for one. Second, it was devoid of personal experience or feeling and felt weirdly prescriptive, which felt super off coming from a young sister missionary. I am very much a proponent of eliminating the stigma of mental illness, but her attempt to do this felt super hurried, incomplete, and lacking emotional depth. It also felt inappropriate for her not to introduce the topic sensitively. Suic*de can be a serious trigger for people, and being slapped in the fact with it in a public talk can be harmful for those for whom it is freshly real. My dad killed himself when I was 6, so I’m all too aware of this.

Furthermore, I kind of feel like sacrament meeting is supposed to lift us, not bring us right up close and personal with despair. The talk of course ended on a hopeful tone, but due to its shortness, it felt that none of that hopefulness had enough space to breathe in separate from the discussion of suic*de.

My question then is this: is discussing suicde in a sacrament meeting talk okay? Isn’t this something that should be more of a smaller group thing? And shouldn’t we have those conversations with the aid of trained professionals rather than claiming suicde knowledge expertise when we are not professionals? I’m trying really hard to not let this experience weigh on me too much, but I felt like I needed to see if I’m completely off base and see what you all thought. Thanks, friends!

I have often heard that herbal teas “don’t count as tea” as far as the Word of Wisdom, but the church site seems vague on this so I’m just looking for confirmation. I have always been curious to try it, particularly this time of year, but always worried a bit.

I know iced, black, and green tea all count as tea, it’s the actual tea plant that can be addictive, and is against the WoW, right?

I’m fairly certain that herbal teas would have been used as medicine a lot back in the pioneer days, so what do you think?

Update - thanks all! I figured as much, but my husband was getting all anxious when I mentioned it. Appreciate you all!

Hi! I just got done with the series Children of the Promise and Heart of the Children series by Dean Hughes. Has anyone read that series and knows more books like this? I loved them so much and want to find more like this style!!

I'm in my early 30s and will wait until my children are grown before I even attempt making it in. It's just been a huge dream of mine. Not sure if that's the Spirit telling me that's the right path or if it's just me. But I feel like it could be a possibility.

I'll give my background in music:

Piano since I was 8 Violin when I was 12 but stopped at around 16

School choir since 8th grade. Non-audition for 8th and 9th grade and then I bit the bullet and tried out for the ladies chamber choir. I made it! I again tried out for the mixed choir that consisted of Juniors and Seniors. Again I made it! I have also sing solos here and there but I don't feel like I'm super good at that to be honest.

After high school I joined some choirs here and there. I joined a religious-based community choir that sings Lamb of God for Easter and Handel's Messiah for Christmas. And our director really gets us into it.

I also am now our ward choir director (*giddy cheers). I love my calling!

I'm not trying to brag but I am very good at learning my part. I am an alto and I have been second soprano too. I find the challenge of finding the harmony as such a fun one. I listen to the music over and over to get it right. I memorized the alto part of Hallelujah Chorus just because I wanted to know it lol.

One caveat is I have no personal vocal training. I only have the knowledge from my past choir directors. I don't have the strongest voice but I have been told my voice is pretty. (I have recorded myself though and I'd beg to differ). But my husband thought so and my friends thought so. Maybe they were just being nice IDK. Lol.

I don't know if this all adds any good context for anyone on here. I just wanted to show that music has definitely been a part of my life and I love it! If I can make it in one day it would make me so happy. And if not, no sweat. But does anyone on here happen to have any advice?

I have infertility issues due to what I believe to be PCOS (it's so hard to get diagnosed for some reason). With medical intervention I was able to conceive twins 6 years ago. Just giving you some context.

We are trying for a baby again and I was wondering if it's appropriate to ask for a blessing of healing in order to conceive? Or is that for pain/sickness? I got a blessing of comfort many times last time but I was wondering about a blessing of healing. Tmi (sorry men) but I haven't had a period since getting my IUD out and I just kind of feel broken. I know I shouldn't but I do. I know that blessings are granted in the Lord's timing but I just had the thought and I'm not sure if it's just me or the Spirit.

Anyway, your thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks.

Hi, I’ve been running into a weird and embarrassing problem: my garment bottoms keep coming apart at the middle seam right between the legs! Even on newer garments, it sometimes happens. I try to take really good care of them so that they last longer but this has happened several times now. Anyone else running into similar problems or have advice on how to prevent it? Thanks in advance

I have been a member of the church my whole life, sometimes more active than others. The last couple of years I have struggled to go to church consistently for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is my wife leaving the church.

We recently moved to a new ward in the St George area, and I went to my new ward for the first time yesterday. It was the first time I have ever been to church where I hated the experience.

The ward is just too big. I bet we could split and be 3 wards. Sacrament meeting the congregation went from the front of the chapel all the way to the other end of the gym. Not a single person greeted me, asked me my name, or even recognized me as a new person, probably because the ward is so big they can’t possibly know who’s new and who’s not.

It was LOUD. there are a LOT of kids. I love kids, but the noise caused by the sheer amount of kids was very distracting.

I was raised in Utah County, and I have never been in a ward this size. I just can’t see myself getting motivated to go to church knowing this is what awaits me. Hopefully we can split soon.

I am just not very educated on this topic so I was wondering about when you receive a priesthood blessing from a bishop if it’s basically god telling the bishop what to say in the blessing?

Hello LDS members!

Very early stages investigator here. I have some questions I wanted to ask here, anonymously, before I attempt to contact any missionaries or visit a ward.

A. If I attend for several months or years, then decide I don't really want to go anymore, do I risk being ostracized in the community?

I've heard of people saying former members lose family members, best friends, husbands/wives, etc. over leaving the faith.

Making friends here has been challenging. I currently only having one "entry level friend" that gets gets lunch with me once every 2-3 weeks or so. (Cutting out alcohol and not having a consistent friend group has left me with very few options for socializing.)

B. I am a 35. Is it expected that I would need to go on a mission or do something to be welcomed in?

C. If I own a business is tithing required for the business, or just my personal income?

D. Do Mormon owned businesses have harder times employing non-members?

E. As a member with a business is it "expected" that I will be providing discounted services, or prioritizing hiring members of the faith? (I honestly don't mind this if yes, but I would want to know ahead of time.)

F. Is there any way to get help studying without having my job/income/contact info/etc be disclosed?

G. Are mustaches allowed, or is the "code of honor" more of a Utah County / BYU thing? Everyone I have ever known say I look much better with my mustache, and I don't particularly want to get rid of it. I know three LDS individuals who all have differing opinions on this. (No facial hair at all, Yeah no one cares, and Yes but keep it short and trimmed.)

H. Even tho I am single, do I have to go to a singles ward?

I. Are there any resources on how to dress for Sundays?

Thank you all, and God bless.

Hi, I met with a Mormon missionary a while back and we have a very nice conversation about the church and just life in general. I have kept up with them via Facebook (I requested a visit via Facebook messenger), but know there is a lot of rules surrounding communication. Would it be appropriate for me to write them a letter of general encouragement? If so, how should I go about this? I’m not Mormon so I’m not sure what’s allowed & want to be respectful.