The region around Belfast was still “Ireland” in 1910 and wouldn’t become “Northern Ireland” until 1921. There are at least two points in these minutes that especially interest me from the point of view of history. What do you see in them?
The Irish semi-annual conference was held in Belfast, October 2, 1910, at 48 York street. There were present President Rudger Clawson and family, Elder S. Norman Lee of the Liverpool office, President W.P. Monson of London conference, Elders H.W. Bond and H.B. Clawson of the Sheffield conference, President William W. Osborn of the Irish conference and 26 traveling elders.
The first meeting began Sunday morning at 10:30. The opening prayer was offered by Elder H.B. Clawson. The Sacrament was administered by Elders William W. Freckleton and W.H. Bolton. During the passing of the emblems, the elders sang most excellently the hymn, “Rev’rently and meekly now.”
President Osborn bade the Saints and visitors welcome and asked the blessings of the Lord upon the conference and visitors.
Elder H.R. Merrill, conference secretary, read the statistical and labor reports, which were accepted.
Elder D.P. Williams, presiding elder of the Belfast branch, reported and discoursed on the Book of Mormon as fulfilment of prophecy.
Fred Baker, presiding elder of the Dublin branch, reported his district and bore his testimony.
Four voices sang as a duet, “Speak to me kindly, dear Papa.” ((Text, and possibly music, by Evan Stephens; published in the 1908 Songs of Zion. See copy here. ))
President Clawson said, “We have the same facilities for worship as they have in Zion. We need not go to Zion, or any particular place to worship the Lord, especially where we have the power of the priesthood and an organization such as we have here.” Read figures showing the amount of work done in this conference; then some further figures giving the aggregate of the work of the two thousand elders in the world.
Meeting was dismissed after singing, and prayer by Elder Elijah Davis.
The afternoon meeting commenced at 2:30. Elder James W. Fitches offered prayer.
Elder Leo L. Harris, who is soon to return home, spoke of the restoration of revelation and the re-establishment of the Church of Christ.
Elder Horace W. Bond, of the Sheffield conference, discoursed upon the personality of God, “For this is life to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.”
Elder A.A. Ellis and Elijah Davis sang, “Sometime, somewhere.”
Elder Ellis, who is to return to Zion on the 15th, spoke of his missionary experience, saying, “We are spoken well of where we are known, though we may be evil spoken of where we are not known.” Bore a strong testimony.
Elder Hyrum B. Clawson, of the Sheffield conference, spoke of the remarkable unity among the Latter-day Saints. “Man hasn’t done this by his own power and wisdom, but it is the result of the unifying Spirit of God.”
President Clawson spoke of the relative proof of the authenticity of the Bible and the Book of Mormon. He said, “If anyone should ask me on what grounds I believe the Book of Mormon to be true, I would tell him, ‘On the same grounds as you know the Bible to be true, and on the additional grounds of its substantiation by modern testimony. It is corroborated by the Bible and contains the doctrines of Christ as given to the inhabitants of the Western continent.’ It doesn’t supersede the Bible; it supports and sustains the Bible.”
Benediction was offered by Elder Albert H. Powell.
The evening meeting commenced at 7 o’clock. Prayer by Elder D.M. Powelson.
President Osborn presented the names of the general and local authorities, who were all accepted.
Elder S. Norman Lee said the Latter-day Saints were a peculiar people, so regarded because they worship as did the Saints of old. Showed some reasons for believing in the standard works of the Church.
Elders Beatie, Fitches, Corbridge and Merrill sang a quartet, “See, the mighty angel flying.”
President Walter P. Monson of the London conference spoke of the personality of God, showing that while God is a spirit, he has also a body. The fact that Christ ascended unto his position at the right hand of the Majesty on high, with his resurrected body, is proof of the fact that the body is necessary to exaltation, rather than a hindrance. In God’s economic plan of progression there are no steps backward.
Benediction was offered by President Clawson, and the conference was adjourned for six months.
A priesthood meeting was held on Saturday afternoon, in which reports of the elders were given and appointments made. On Monday morning, President Clawson met with the elders and gave them good and timely instructions pertaining to their work in the ministry, answering some points of doctrine.
The report of this conference would not be complete without mention of the singing. The male choruses and quartets, under the able direction of Elder Alma A. Allis, were excellent, and the congregational singing was very pleasing.
HARRISON R. MERRILL
Clerk of Conference.
I’ve linked to “Speak to Me Kindly, Dear Papa” because it is unfamiliar and its title doesn’t sound very hymn-like. The others are more familiar. If you’d like to read the words but can’t find a link, let me know and I’ll put one up.
The idea that it was no longer necessary to move to “Zion” seems ahead of its time in 1910.
I wondered if that were the same Walter P. Monson who showed up a few years later as president of the Eastern States Mission. The Early Mormon Missionaries at history.lds.org confirms that it was–his service in the British Mission was the second of three missions for Elder Monson.
Singing as the sacrament is being administered?
Yes, the de-emphasis on gathering to Zion?
Gary beat me to it – I was going to note the singing while the sacrament was passed (something I’d be fully open to bringing back, btw).
The sacrament music and the cessation of gathering are the two points that struck me most. While the First Presidency had asked mission presidents to encourage people to stay at home for the previous 15 years, this is the earliest I remember seeing that policy actually discussed with the Church membership. Likewise, I’d read about the old-time practice of music during the passing of the sacrament, but don’t recall seeing such a nice contemporary description of it.
Mark B., good eye for Bro. Monson. He turns up a bit in my work on the Church investigation because he was interviewed in local newspapers about the canard of shipping boatloads of girls to Utah harems. He’s far better known, I suspect as the Eastern States Mission President.
Anything else?
How about the names and places indicating Irish (from Catholic Dublin and Protestant Ulster), English, and Welsh. No Scots?
By ‘the work of the 2000 elders in the world’ was he referring to the number of missionaries then called? That number has gone up a bit in the past hundred and seven years.
There sure are a lot of elders involved. I think the mention of a separate “priesthood meeting” and President Clawson meeting with the elders mean that this was a conference for members, not just missionaries — did I get that right? But it seems like this was still a period where missionaries were running the show.
There seems to be a lot of emphasis on “proving” basic gospel principles.
(Chalk me up as one more who would welcome good singing while the emblems are being passed.)
Yes, Mike, you have the right idea. This conference would have looked very much like a multi-session ward or stake conference today, for members and investigators and anybody who wanted to attend, with an additional session for the missionaries themselves. This is where they would have taken care of any missionary business (transfers, assignments for rural areas in the times and places where elders sometimes worked away from their base for a few weeks at a time), discussions of mission policies and new instructions from Salt Lake, that kind of thing.
The “proving basic gospel principles” part was, I’m sure, very wearying on the local members. It’s to be expected that missionaries would preach about what they used in their normal work with investigators, but to never get past those basic principles even when you had been a member for years and years? #NeverthelessTheyPersisted
I noticed music during the administration of the sacrament and not gathering to Zion as well. It appears that the sacrament music was in lieu of a congregational sacrament hymn. Interesting.
My late mother remembered when music was played during the passing of the sacrament. This was in the Berkeley Ward in California, where the practice benefited from a lovely pipe organ and accomplished organists. I do not know when the practice ceased, but I’m guessing in the 1940s or ’50s. When the no-music-during-sacrament word came down, the Berkeley Ward adjusted by having a short “organ voluntary” after the sacrament but before the bishopric member announced the rest of the program.
I like that idea, Jim … but I see that Handbook 2 (14.4.4) forbids even that today:
“No music should be played during the sacrament prayer, while the sacrament is being passed, or as a postlude after the sacrament is passed.”
In October 1910 the Belfast skyline would have been dominated by the rising hulks of the Titanic and its sister ship, Olympic, under construction at the Harland & Wolff shipyard. Olympic would be launched on October 20, and the Titanic the next May.
As the Titanic’s engine rooms flooded in April 1912, her radio operator tried to adjust his signal strength by sending out two “v”s in Morse Code–the last message the sinking liner ever sent. This last gasp was heard by the Allan Line’s S.S. Virginian, one of whose passengers at the time was . . . Elder Rudger Clawson.
Here’s a picture taken that winter in Belfast after Olympic’s launch, with Titanic’s bow clearly visible in the distance:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Knocking_off_at_Harland_%26_Wolff%2C_Belfast.jpg
Ardis, we’re moving far from Belfast, but I’m familiar with the current Handbook 2 language. Previously, the language was open-ended and did not prohibit an “organ voluntary.”
I can’t help wondering if I had a hand in the language change. About 30 years ago, I moved to the eastern United States and as ward organist introduced the organ voluntary (with the approval of the bishop). The ward music chair was concerned and actually called the church music department in Salt Lake to find out if this was OK. The answer was that it was up to the bishop. Twenty years ago I participated in a Q&A with the church music committee chair at a workshop in California. The question of “organ voluntaries” came up and it was clear that the chair did not like the idea, but he could only say that it was up to the discretion of the local bishop.
At some point, the language was revised to its current form. The lesson I take from this, as readers of this blog know, is that changes in church practice never happen in a vacuum.
Great context, JimD, thanks.
Jim Wallman, I try not to make too many negative comments about Church practices and policies — it seems like when you do that in the bloggetnacle, it opens the flood gates for a torrent of complaints, real and imaginary — but in this case, this sounds like someone making a rule just because he can, not because one is needed. I know folks like that … too many of them …
The statistical and labor reports were accepted. Does that mean they voted on those?
Yes, Niklas, that’s right.
I’m glad that we don’t vote on the statistical reports in the general conferences, because I don’t feel competent to say if the numbers are correct or not.