Hysteria in my Ward

[tribrac]

There is a complete absence of anything that holds us together. Every project and program that people used to do together has been cancelled.
Building program, welfare farm, road shows, scouts. The wards used to do the local Easter egg hunt, and 4th of July celebration...no more.

Nobody does anything for the 24th of July.

We show up for two hours and leave.

Someone else mows the lawn and repairs the sprinklers, and replaces light bulbs.

We do nothing together, no common purpose, nothing unifying us.

Adults don't know each other, and don't care.

Bishop doesn't shake people's hands before the meeting, runs off to YM as soon as sacrament is over.

'Ministering' doesn't happen, or is a doorstep delivery of sugary treats.

YM and YW are an unmitigated disaster, every week the youth report about who came out, or which kid argued with the teacher about gay rights, or a teacher affirming kids feelings.

I taught a class recently and asked the teenagers about the reading from come followe...I got 7 blank faces staring back at me. I asked them about Moses and 1 kid recognized his name.

Youth activities have devolved into bi-monthly entertainment and food. With an occasional planning activity mixed in.

Primary is a rushed mess.

Men stop coming and nobody cares. Nobody goes to get them.

Divorces rage. Broken homes abound. Pride ties are worn all June.

Kids fall by the wayside and the silent herd moves on without them.

There is nothing holding us together.

I am prone to fits of melancholy, but this might be as low as I have ever felt.

Oh God forgive us for our sins and have mercy on us now before we are swept away.

[Chip]

Make Christ your rock.

We all know this, but it's hard to do with church programming.

[Christianlee]

It seems to me the only thing holding the church together is temple worship. That is what is emphasized. That is where the money is made. Extended family units are seen as the bulwark of the church while the wards and branches are seen as money drains. As long as they have a structure available on the local level to enforce tithing payment for temple attendance, their Zion moves forward. Softball leagues and roadshow rehearsals just get in the way of temple attendance. Everything is marketed to encourage the idea that spiritual experiences can only be had within the walls of the temple. Only the temple ensures the continuance of family blessings. If you don’t know the correct handshakes and do work for your dead, your family will be destroyed. If this approach leads to casualties along the way it at leasts costs them less money. Enough families will embrace the vision to keep the money flowing in.

[largerthanlife2]

Maybe I am getting too old but I don't seem to care about church activities. The same ten people have to do all the work while the moochers of the ward get all the benefits.

[NeveR]

Wow, this is sad. I feel like I joined the church just to watch it fall apart...

[HVDC]

Wow, this is sad. I feel like I joined the church just to watch it fall apart...

No, you joined the Church because you need to be here at this time.

Nothing just happens.

We need all of us.

This is a time of sorting.

Hold fast.

Storms eventually blow out.

False doctrine is being revealed.

Pretty lies are exposed.

Those with oil, and those without.

What comes next will be better than before.

This is all for our own good.

The Tares are being gathered.

The garden renewed.

What comes next.

Will astonish us all.

And cause wicked heart's to fail.

You are part of it.

We all are part of it.

The only question is.

Which part.

Sir H

[randyps]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

[Rumpelstiltskin]

This is all prophesied by Isaiah. I find it all exciting because it is one of the major signs of the times. The Davidic servant will make himself known when the apostasy of the Church reaches its zenith. We're almost there!

[Christianlee]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

If the Church cared about the future of its members it would spend money to build an alternative to the public school system which is helping to corrupt its children.

[BeNotDeceived]

This is all prophesied by Isaiah. I find it all exciting because it is one of the major signs of the times. The Davidic servant will make himself known when the apostasy of the Church reaches its zenith. We're almost there!

He posted here, but was banished to Outer Darkness.

[Mamabear]

Wow, this is sad. I feel like I joined the church just to watch it fall apart...

You joined just in time to see truths come out…. The church is a mess and isn’t following doctrine.
The most important thing we can do is come to Jesus directly and use the scriptures as our guide.

[Mamabear]

There is a complete absence of anything that holds us together. Every project and program that people used to do together has been cancelled.
Building program, welfare farm, road shows, scouts. The wards used to do the local Easter egg hunt, and 4th of July celebration...no more.

Nobody does anything for the 24th of July.

We show up for two hours and leave.

Someone else mows the lawn and repairs the sprinklers, and replaces light bulbs.

We do nothing together, no common purpose, nothing unifying us.

Adults don't know each other, and don't care.

Bishop doesn't shake people's hands before the meeting, runs off to YM as soon as sacrament is over.

'Ministering' doesn't happen, or is a doorstep delivery of sugary treats.

YM and YW are an unmitigated disaster, every week the youth report about who came out, or which kid argued with the teacher about gay rights, or a teacher affirming kids feelings.

I taught a class recently and asked the teenagers about the reading from come followe...I got 7 blank faces staring back at me. I asked them about Moses and 1 kid recognized his name.

Youth activities have devolved into bi-monthly entertainment and food. With an occasional planning activity mixed in.

Primary is a rushed mess.

Men stop coming and nobody cares. Nobody goes to get them.

Divorces rage. Broken homes abound. Pride ties are worn all June.

Kids fall by the wayside and the silent herd moves on without them.

There is nothing holding us together.

I am prone to fits of melancholy, but this might be as low as I have ever felt.

Oh God forgive us for our sins and have mercy on us now before we are swept away.

What was/is the cause of this rapid decline?
It seems to be unraveling very quickly.

[PressingForward]

Maybe I am getting too old but I don't seem to care about church activities. The same ten people have to do all the work while the moochers of the ward get all the benefits.

That’s because they are the only people “worthy” to serve, worthiness runs in family lines too……

[spiritMan]

The same ten people have to do all the work while the moochers of the ward get all the benefits.

Is it really that the STP do all the work or that they are the only ones ALLOWED to do all the work.

My ward has 120-150 show up every Sunday and yet we still have this Sister with 2-3 callings, that Brother with 2-3 callings, the wife of the 1st counselor, 2nd counselor, etc. run the youth programs or the RS programs.

There are plenty of people who would love to be more involved . . .but they only call those who are in the current leadership click. If you ain't in the circle of trust, good luck on getting a calling. I do not think it's the same ten people problem, I think it's that those are the only ones in the right clic.

The pareto principle is pretty true, so in a ward of 120-150 people you should have at least 20-30 people to call from; which is more than enough so no one has 2-3 big callings in a ward . . .but nope it's all about the clic. And what is worse is when those in the leadership clic don't even really do their jobs.

[CuriousThinker]

There is a complete absence of anything that holds us together. Every project and program that people used to do together has been cancelled.
Building program, welfare farm, road shows, scouts. The wards used to do the local Easter egg hunt, and 4th of July celebration...no more.

Nobody does anything for the 24th of July.

We show up for two hours and leave.

Someone else mows the lawn and repairs the sprinklers, and replaces light bulbs.

We do nothing together, no common purpose, nothing unifying us.

Adults don't know each other, and don't care.

Bishop doesn't shake people's hands before the meeting, runs off to YM as soon as sacrament is over.

'Ministering' doesn't happen, or is a doorstep delivery of sugary treats.

YM and YW are an unmitigated disaster, every week the youth report about who came out, or which kid argued with the teacher about gay rights, or a teacher affirming kids feelings.

I taught a class recently and asked the teenagers about the reading from come followe...I got 7 blank faces staring back at me. I asked them about Moses and 1 kid recognized his name.

Youth activities have devolved into bi-monthly entertainment and food. With an occasional planning activity mixed in.

Primary is a rushed mess.

Men stop coming and nobody cares. Nobody goes to get them.

Divorces rage. Broken homes abound. Pride ties are worn all June.

Kids fall by the wayside and the silent herd moves on without them.

There is nothing holding us together.

I am prone to fits of melancholy, but this might be as low as I have ever felt.

Oh God forgive us for our sins and have mercy on us now before we are swept away.

What was/is the cause of this rapid decline?
It seems to be unraveling very quickly.

Society at large is rapidly declining and the church full of people going in that direction too.

[FoundMyEden]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

Babies die without human interaction and physical touch. We need physical interaction, even if it is in smaller groups. I am an introvert, and large group settings make my skin crawl but having no physical contact except virtual is detrimental to our wellbeing individually or as a society.

Virtual worship is the mission of the adversary not of God’s church.

[Pazooka]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

I see a bright future for you in the COB. The Virtual reality church is the answer they are looking for! It is the next phase of the gathering. Phase 1) Gather to one literal, physical Zion. Phase 2) Gather, in person, to stakes of what we’ll call Zion, scattered throughout the inhabitable world. Phase 3) Gather individually to your remote location. All part of finding your own Zion and living your own truth.

[Serragon]

There is a complete absence of anything that holds us together. Every project and program that people used to do together has been cancelled.
Building program, welfare farm, road shows, scouts. The wards used to do the local Easter egg hunt, and 4th of July celebration...no more.

Nobody does anything for the 24th of July.

We show up for two hours and leave.

Someone else mows the lawn and repairs the sprinklers, and replaces light bulbs.

We do nothing together, no common purpose, nothing unifying us.

Adults don't know each other, and don't care.

Bishop doesn't shake people's hands before the meeting, runs off to YM as soon as sacrament is over.

'Ministering' doesn't happen, or is a doorstep delivery of sugary treats.

YM and YW are an unmitigated disaster, every week the youth report about who came out, or which kid argued with the teacher about gay rights, or a teacher affirming kids feelings.

I taught a class recently and asked the teenagers about the reading from come followe...I got 7 blank faces staring back at me. I asked them about Moses and 1 kid recognized his name.

Youth activities have devolved into bi-monthly entertainment and food. With an occasional planning activity mixed in.

Primary is a rushed mess.

Men stop coming and nobody cares. Nobody goes to get them.

Divorces rage. Broken homes abound. Pride ties are worn all June.

Kids fall by the wayside and the silent herd moves on without them.

There is nothing holding us together.

I am prone to fits of melancholy, but this might be as low as I have ever felt.

Oh God forgive us for our sins and have mercy on us now before we are swept away.

In order to build a new culture, you first have to destroy the old one.

[BuriedTartaria]

Remember what church was like in previous decades? Society is falling apart and the LDS church has not escaped this. My dad is a bishop right now. Fortunately his ward seems pretty unified and lively, but I feel bad for him. He doesn't know about my alternative beliefs on Mormon history. I love him dearly.

In order to build a new culture, you first have to destroy the old one.

I know to most people it isn't a big deal but I was recently told the Saratoga Springs, Utah temple will be the final LDS temple featuring an angel Moroni. I admit, that in itself is not some humongous, tragic thing. But when that is one thing on top of other changes that have occurred in the LDS church over the past 10 years, it feels like there is an effort to make a new LDS culture. I have mixed feelings on how the LDS temple frames temple worship but I'm saddened that the angel Moroni atop temples is being done with. Maybe the higher-ups in SLC were offended by the angel dropping his trump on their flagship temple in SLC during the earthquake a few years ago :p

[Serragon]

Remember what church was like in previous decades? Society is falling apart and the LDS church has not escaped this. My dad is a bishop right now. Fortunately his ward seems pretty unified and lively, but I feel bad for him. He doesn't know about my alternative beliefs on Mormon history. I love him dearly.

In order to build a new culture, you first have to destroy the old one.

I know to most people it isn't a big deal but I was recently told the Saratoga Springs, Utah temple will be the final LDS temple featuring an angel Moroni. I admit, that in itself is not some humongous, tragic thing. But when that is one thing on top of other changes that have occurred in the LDS church over the past 10 years, it feels like there is an effort to make a new LDS culture. I have mixed feelings on how the LDS temple frames temple worship but I'm saddened that the angel Moroni atop temples is being done with. Maybe the higher-ups in SLC were offended by the angel dropping his trump on their flagship temple in SLC during the earthquake a few years ago :p

I think not having Moroni on the temple is a big deal.

The church made a decision at some point that instead of trying to create a Zion community and bring people to it, that they would simply teach the world where they were and let them stay.

The fruit of this has been a major dilution of doctrine and a destruction of culture.in an attempt to be non-threatening to as many world governments as possible. The church really stands for very little now and has very little actual purpose. Outside of the claim to the keys to ordinances, you will get a better sense of comunity, culture, and purpose in most any local christian or catholic church.

It is ironic to me that RMN is often talking about how the youth of our church need to know who they are and they need to have a purpose. But at the same time he is busy removing everything that gives people a sense of purpose. What we do now in the church does not spring organically from our faith in Christ and the restoration of the Gospel through Joseph. It now comes from the top down in choreographed and emotion-dripping syrup that has little long term nutrional value for our faith. Our purpose seems to be membership instead of conversion, and the goal is to feel good about yourself as you are instead of change and sacrifice of will to Christ.

[TwochurchesOnly]

Remember what church was like in previous decades? Society is falling apart and the LDS church has not escaped this. My dad is a bishop right now. Fortunately his ward seems pretty unified and lively, but I feel bad for him. He doesn't know about my alternative beliefs on Mormon history. I love him dearly.

In order to build a new culture, you first have to destroy the old one.

I know to most people it isn't a big deal but I was recently told the Saratoga Springs, Utah temple will be the final LDS temple featuring an angel Moroni. I admit, that in itself is not some humongous, tragic thing. But when that is one thing on top of other changes that have occurred in the LDS church over the past 10 years, it feels like there is an effort to make a new LDS culture. I have mixed feelings on how the LDS temple frames temple worship but I'm saddened that the angel Moroni atop temples is being done with. Maybe the higher-ups in SLC were offended by the angel dropping his trump on their flagship temple in SLC during the earthquake a few years ago :p

I think not having Moroni on the temple is a big deal.

The church made a decision at some point that instead of trying to create a Zion community and bring people to it, that they would simply teach the world where they were and let them stay.

The fruit of this has been a major dilution of doctrine and a destruction of culture.in an attempt to be non-threatening to as many world governments as possible. The church really stands for very little now and has very little actual purpose. Outside of the claim to the keys to ordinances, you will get a better sense of comunity, culture, and purpose in most any local christian or catholic church.

It is ironic to me that RMN is often talking about how the youth of our church need to know who they are and they need to have a purpose. But at the same time he is busy removing everything that gives people a sense of purpose. What we do now in the church does not spring organically from our faith in Christ and the restoration of the Gospel through Joseph. It now comes from the top down in choreographed and emotion-dripping syrup that has little long term nutrional value for our faith. Our purpose seems to be membership instead of conversion, and the goal is to feel good about yourself as you are instead of change and sacrifice of will to Christ.

YES !!
Thank you

[randyps]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

If the Church cared about the future of its members it would spend money to build an alternative to the public school system which is helping to corrupt its children.

I thought about that too, wouldnt it b wonderful to turn chapels into private schools but all the lawsuits we get by just trying to operate as a church is overwhelming enough.

[Chip]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

If the Church cared about the future of its members it would spend money to build an alternative to the public school system which is helping to corrupt its children.

I thought about that too, wouldnt it b wonderful to turn chapels into private schools but all the lawsuits we get by just trying to operate as a church is overwhelming enough.

Other churches in our area run schools out of them, also.

[oneClimbs]

I'm here in Texas and we have a strong ward, people are very engaged, we have an amazing group of youth who are strong and desire to do the right things together. Our YM/YM programs have made camps and high adventure a priority and those activities have been very great and building camaraderie. It's not always peaches and cream but overall, I'm very happy with my ward community and think it's the best I've been in during all my years.

[Church_of_the_Lamb]

Virtual worship is the answer. The church's website and member portals need an overhaul, it will not be cheap. The nest egg you all accuse the church of being money hungry for will come in handy to build and/or buy billions of dollars worth of I.T. infrastructure. Millions will join the church, more temples will be needed to accommadate.

The infrastructure is being built right now in the form of the metaverse, just as the world built the internet the next phase is going to be metaverse ar/vr. I'm not a big fan of Apple, but what they do very well is design. They will be releasing their form of vr/ar and that is when it is going to take off. Just as with the internet the church will bolt its stuff on the back of what the world has built. Just as our world changes with the advent of the internet, then the smartphone in every hand, the next phase will be more life changing.