Elder (Latter Day Saints)
Elder is a priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood of denominations within the Latter Day Saint movement, including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). LDS Church Office of the Melchizedek Priesthood In the LDS Church, "elder" is considered the introductory—or lowest—of five offices of the Melchizedek priesthood. Every person who receives the Melchizedek priesthood is simultaneously ordained to the office of elder; this may be done to male members who are at least 18 years old. In order to be ordained, the member must be determined to be worthy by his local bishop and stake president."Ordinance and Blessing Policies", '' Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church, 2010) § 16. The consent of the priesthood holders of the stake is also required before the ordination is performed, and this is usually done at a semiannual stake conference or an annual general stake priesthood meeting. Ordination is accompl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Priesthood (Latter Day Saints)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, priesthood is the power and authority of God given to man, including the authority to perform ordinances and to act as a leader in the church. A group of priesthood holders is referred to as a quorum. Priesthood denotes elements of both power and authority. The priesthood includes the power Jesus gave his apostles to perform miracles such as the casting out of devils and the healing of sick ( Luke 9:1). Latter Day Saints believe that the Biblical miracles performed by prophets and apostles were performed by the power of priesthood, including the miracles of Jesus, who holds all of the keys of the priesthood. The priesthood is formally known as the "Priesthood after the Order of the Son of God", but to avoid the too frequent use of the name of deity, the priesthood is referred to as the Melchizedek priesthood ( Melchizedek being the high priest to whom Abraham paid tithes). As an authority, priesthood is the authority by which a bearer may pe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Calling (LDS Church)
A calling, in the religious sense of the word, is a religious vocation (which comes from the Latin for "call") that may be professional or voluntary and, idiosyncratic to different religions, may come from another person, from a divine messenger, or from within oneself. History The idea of a vocation or "calling" has played a significant role within Christianity. Since the early days of the Christian faith, the term has applied to candidates for the clergy. It soon began to be applied to those who felt drawn to a more rigorous observance of their faith through the contemplative lifestyle of the hermits and monks and nuns. Later, Martin Luther taught that each individual was expected to fulfill their God-appointed task in everyday life. Although the Lutheran concept of the calling emphasized vocation, there was no particular emphasis on labor beyond what was required for one's daily bread. Calvinism transformed the idea of the calling by emphasizing relentless, disciplined labor. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mormon Missionary
Missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—widely known as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the church who engage variously in proselytizing, church service, humanitarian aid, and community service. Missionaries of the LDS Church may be male or female (''Sister Missionaries'') and may serve on a full- or part-time basis, depending on the assignment. Missionaries are organized geographically into missions, which could be any one of the 411 missions organized worldwide. The LDS Church is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, reporting that it had more than 54,000 full-time missionaries and 36,000 service missionaries worldwide at the end of 2021. Most full-time LDS missionaries are single young men and women in their late teens and early twenties and older couples no longer with children in their home. Missionaries are often assigned to serve far from their homes, including in other countries. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Seventy (LDS Church)
Seventy is a priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Traditionally, a church member holding this priesthood office is a "traveling minister" and an "especial witness" of Jesus Christ, charged with the mission of preaching the gospel to the entire world under the direction of the Twelve Apostles. The church teaches that the office of seventy was anciently conferred upon the seventy disciples mentioned in the Gospel of Luke . Multiple individuals holding the office of seventy are referred to collectively as seventies. History of the seventy in the LDS Church Place in church hierarchy In practical terms, the priesthood office of seventy is one which has varied widely over the course of history. As originally envisioned by church founder, Joseph Smith, in the 1830s, the seventy were to be a body composed of several separate quorums of up to seventy members each, all of which would be led by seven presidents. T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stake Patriarch
In the Latter Day Saint movement, patriarch (also called evangelist) is an office of the priesthood. It is considered to be either an office of the patriarchal priesthood or the Melchizedek priesthood. Latter Day Saint movement In the early days of the Church of Christ and the Latter Day Saint movement, a single patriarch, known as the Presiding Patriarch or Patriarch to the Church, exercised his office throughout the whole church. The first patriarch was Joseph Smith Sr.; after his death, his oldest living son Hyrum became the patriarch. Some Latter Day Saint denominations continue the practice of a single Presiding Patriarch, who in some cases holds the highest office of the church organization; others have multiple patriarchs who hold more general positions in the organization. Patriarch in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints While the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) originally continued to have a single church-wide position of "Presiding ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stake Presidency
A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name "stake" derives from the Book of Isaiah: "enlarge the place of thy tent; stretch forth the curtains of thine habitation; spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes" (Isaiah 54:2). A stake is sometimes referred to as a stake of Zion. History The first Latter Day Saint stake was organized at church headquarters in Kirtland, Ohio, on February 17, 1834, with Joseph Smith as its president. The second stake was organized in Clay County, Missouri, later that year on July 3, with David Whitmer as president. The Missouri stake was relocated to Far West, Missouri, in 1836, and the Kirtland Stake dissolved in 1838. A stake was organized at Adam-ondi-Ahman in 1838 and abandoned later that year due to the events of the Mormon War. In 1839, the church's central stake was established at Nauvoo, Illinois, with William Marks as its president. Addit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Stake High Council
In Mormonism, a high council is one of several different governing bodies that have existed in the church hierarchy on many Latter Day Saint movement denominations. Most often, the term refers to a stake high council in a local stake, but other high councils include the standing Presiding High Council in Zion, and the "travelling high council", better-known today as the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. History of high councils On February 17, 1834, Joseph Smith, the founder of the movement, created a presiding high council at church headquarters in Kirtland, Ohio. This body consisted of twelve men and was headed by the First Presidency. The original members of the high council in Kirtland were: *Joseph Smith, Sr. * John Smith * Joseph Coe * John Johnson * Martin Harris *John S. Carter * Jared Carter *Oliver Cowdery * Samuel H. Smith *Orson Hyde * Sylvester Smith * Luke S. Johnson This high council took on the role of chief judicial and legislative body of the local church and han ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bishop (Latter Day Saints)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, a bishop is the highest office of the Aaronic priesthood. It is almost always held by one who holds the office of high priest in the Melchizedek priesthood. The Latter Day Saint concept of the office differs significantly from the role of bishops in other Christian denominations, being in some respects more analogous to a pastor or parish priest. Each bishop serves with two counselors, who together form a bishopric. The role of a bishop varies in the different Latter Day Saint denominations; however, they derive from a common history. History of the office On February 4, 1831, Edward Partridge became the first man called to the office of bishop in the early Latter Day Saint church. The duties of the office were to oversee the temporal affairs and accounts of the church through the implementation of the law of consecration. Partridge was called to preside over the Missouri church in Joseph Smith's absence. Soon thereafter, Partridge and his fa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Setting Apart
Setting apart is a ritual or priesthood action in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where a person is formally blessed to carry out a specific calling or responsibility in the church. Once a person has accepted the responsibility of holding a church calling and has been accepted by the members for that position, one or more Melchizedek priesthood holders "set apart" the person to serve in that calling. The priesthood holders accomplish this by giving the person a priesthood blessing by the laying on of hands. If the recipient is being set apart as a president of a priesthood quorum, including a stake president or a bishop, "priesthood keys" are also conferred upon them. Generally, only general authorities and local leaders of stakes, wards, missions, districts, and branches may set apart a member to serve in a position.LDS Church (2006). '' Church Handbook of Instructions, Book 1: Stake Presidencies and Bishoprics'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church) pp. 47â ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ministering Brethren
Ministering is the term for Christian service given to fellow congregants, known as "ward members," within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Prior to April 1, 2018, a somewhat similar program within the church was termed "home teaching", "block teaching", and "ward teaching", when performed by male priesthood holders and "visiting teaching," when performed by female members of the church's Relief Society. The previous dual home- and visiting-teaching programs had been designed to allow families to be provided spiritual instruction in their own homes, in addition to weekly church services. The present joint program deemphasizes teaching, replacing it with prayerful consideration given to the needs of one's assigned congregants, finding ways to serve and fellowship them. In areas with few church members, the local units are called branches, rather than wards. The ministering program operates within these branches in a like manner to the wards. Histor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |