A bishop's storehouse in

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church) usually refers to a commodity resource center that is used by

bishops A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

(lay leaders of local congregations analogous to

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

s or parish priests in other Christian denominations) of the church to provide goods to needy individuals. The storehouses stock basic foods and essential household items. The term can also be used figuratively to refer to all of the time, talents, skills, materials, compassion, and financial means of the members of the church that are available to be applied in the service of the needy. there are 138 bishop's storehouses in operation.

Origin

The concept of the bishop's storehouse is based on a revelation received by

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...

, founder of the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by ...

, on February 9, 1831, whereby he was instructed to keep goods "in my he Lord'sstorehouse, to administer to the poor and the needy". Doctrine and Covenantsbr>42:33–34, 55.
/ref> The first bishop's storehouse was established in Bishop Newel K. Whitney's store in Kirtland, Ohio.

Operation

Most of the goods in the storehouse are purchased with fast offering funds or produced on church-owned agricultural property. The storehouses are staffed by volunteers or church service missionaries. Persons in need, whether members of the church or not, can access the storehouse by approaching a bishop or local Relief Society president. The bishop decides whether or not the person will be given assistance and works with the Relief Society president in determining what the person will be given. The usual practice is to ask the recipient to work or render some form of service in exchange for the goods given them. Bishop's storehouses are not commercial entities and goods are generally not for sale to the public through them.

Building vs. available resources

There are buildings owned throughout the world that serve as bishop's storehouses. In areas of the world without a dedicated building, the bishop can render assistance by purchasing food and household necessities with church fast offering funds and delivering the goods to the recipient. This may also be done when the recipient has special dietary needs not catered to through the storehouse. The bishop can also draw on the "storehouse" of church members' available time, talents, and abilities to assist the needy.

Notes

References

*LDS Church (2004)
''Providing in the Lord's Way: A Leader's Guide to Welfare''
*R. Quinn Gardner
"Bishop's storehouse"
in '' Encyclopedia of Mormonism'', pp. 123–125. * {{citation , first= Jennifer , last= Garza , title= Storehouse of Faith: For Mormons, being prepared for any emergency is nothing new , newspaper=

Sacramento Bee ''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...

, date= 2003-03-01 , url= http://www.sacbee.com/content/lifestyle/story/6196877p-7151602c.html , archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20030804013026/http://www.sacbee.com/content/lifestyle/story/6196877p-7151602c.html , archivedate= 2003-08-04. * Glen L. Rudd (1995). ''Pure Religion: The Story of Church Welfare Since 1930'' (Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church) * Janet I. Tu
"Mormon canneries preserve the spirit of self-reliance"
'' Seattle Times'', 2008-11-08

External links

Bishop's Storehouses
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