Ensign » 2008 » January
"News of the Church," Ensign, Jan 2008, 76-80
"Church Curriculum for 2008 Required Years of Preparation," Ensign, Jan. 2008, 76
A thundering four-color press at a sprawling printing facility located in Salt Lake City has been running hundreds of thousands of pages per hour, 24 hours a day, six days a week preparing the 2008 curriculum of the Church.
Once printed-in languages as diverse as Burmese, Spanish, Cambodian, and English-the pages are collated and assembled by high-speed machines into books, manuals, and other printed materials to be used during priesthood, Relief Society, Sunday School, and Primary classes.
"Curriculum, the instructional material of the Church, is used throughout the world to teach the principles of the gospel to more than 13 million members, whose ages range from as young as 18 months old to adults," explains David Frischknecht, managing director of the Curriculum Department. "The languages may be different, but the lessons are the same. A Church class in Chicago learns from the same content a Church class in Chile is using."
This past year, Church members worldwide studied from the New Testament during Sunday School. In 2008 the scripture focus will be the Book of Mormon.
Priesthood and Relief Society classes will continue to take their lessons from the same book. The 2007 curriculum was the teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, the 12th President of the Church. In 2008 the study material will be from the teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith.
On average it takes the Curriculum Department one and a half years to plan and write a lesson manual. All the material is reviewed by the Correlation Department to be sure it is consistent with scripture and the teachings of the prophets.
If the lesson material needs to be translated from English into one of the 170 languages currently spoken in the Church, the process can take months more. Factoring in printing and distribution, a manual in a language other than English can take a total of two and a half years to produce.
To print these materials in a timely manner, the Church operates publication centers in a number of countries outside the United States. These centers work with local printers as coordinated through the printing center in Salt Lake City.
When the Church was formally organized in 1830 and during the Church's early history, virtually the only teaching materials available to members were the Bible and newly published copies of the Book of Mormon and later the Doctrine and Covenants.
As membership grew, the amount of curriculum materials expanded. The Church's different organizations for men, women, teenagers, and children became responsible for developing and printing their own materials.
When Church growth began accelerating in the early 1960s, Church leadership recognized the need to correlate the various curricula, and committees were established to bring together the materials. The system was modified over the years until the Curriculum Department was organized in 1978.
A milestone for the Church was reached in 1997, when the first lesson manual was placed online, making it available in an electronic format. Today, all Church curriculum material can be accessed on the Church's Web site. Go to www.lds.org and click on Gospel Library.
Caroline Johanson picks up a Young Women manual at a distribution center in Salt Lake City. (© 2007 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.)
By Molly Farmer, Church Magazines
Molly Farmer, "Tabernacle Organist Leaves Resonating Legacy," Ensign, Jan. 2008, 77-79
Under the domed roof of the Tabernacle on Temple Square, 11,623 pipes reach heavenward, comprising the world-renowned Tabernacle organ. The vast combination of sounds the instrument is capable of can have an incalculable effect on listeners.
Considered the pinnacle of the profession by many, the responsibility of commanding the keys from the organ console has been entrusted to a limited group of elite musicians throughout the organ's history.
Only 13 people have served as Tabernacle organist since the Tabernacle opened in 1867. An additional six have served as assisstant or associate organists. These gifted organists have composed hymns, performed for millions via radio and television broadcasts, and been recognized the world over as masters in their field.
John Longhurst, whose service began in 1977, has been an integral part of this storied history. After 30 years of service, Brother Longhurst retired from his post as senior organist in December 2007. Though his absence will be felt by all who associated with him, his legacy as a musician and leader will live on.
Known for his extensive performance career, Brother Longhurst has reached millions of people through the demanding full-time schedule he maintained. Over the course of his tenure, his adept accompaniment and solo work has been heard in 59 general conferences, hundreds of recitals, and has been broadcast via radio and television to millions through the Tabernacle Choir's Music and the Spoken Word.
"His life has blessed millions of people around the world both in and out of the Church," said Craig Jessop, director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
In addition to his performance work, Brother Longhurst is well known for his gifted composition. Among the 39 hymns written or composed by Tabernacle organists, one of the most beloved, "I Believe in Christ" (Hymns, no. 134), was put to music by Brother Longhurst and published in the English hymnbook in 1985. Elder Bruce R. McConkie (1915-1985) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles wrote the text, which he included in his April 1972 general conference address. The hymn has now been translated into 22 languages and is included in every international hymnbook.
Brother Jessop believes that hymn alone will continue to influence members of the Church for years to come.
Even with all his remarkable creative contributions, Brother Longhurst may be best remembered for his administrative role in bringing about the impressive organ in the Conference Center. "The Lord saw to it, in my mind, that he was in place for that project," said Clay Christiansen, Brother Longhurst's fellow Tabernacle organist and close friend.
Throughout the organ's planning, selection, and installation, which took several years, Brother Longhurst was involved in reviewing every detail. He traveled the country testing organs installed by various companies, then worked with the selected builder, Schoenstein & Co., to determine the tonal direction the organ would take.
"John's masterful administrative skills as well as his thorough understanding of the needs that an organ must fulfill in that most important building were a great blessing," Brother Christiansen said.
In addition to directing the design of the Conference Center organ, Brother Longhurst worked with former Tabernacle organist Robert Cundick in overseeing the Tabernacle organ renovation in 1988 and the installation of the organs in the Assembly Hall and the Joseph Smith Memorial Building chapel, as well as the three small practice organs used by the organists.
Brother Christiansen said he believes Brother Longhurst's hand in creating instruments on Temple Square is one contribution among many that he will be remembered for.
"With that beloved hymn in the hymnbook, his work with the Conference Center Schoenstein, and his 30-year legacy playing for the Tabernacle Choir and recitals on Temple Square," Brother Christiansen said, " 'John Longhurst' is going to be a name that is not soon forgotten."
Thirty years of service have had as profound an impact on Brother Longhurst as his kindness and talent has had on others.
"I suppose that if an organist had the opportunity to write a script for his or her career," Brother Longhurst said, "one could not possibly have written a script that would be more exciting, challenging, and rewarding than the career I have experienced. To come here to Temple Square and have the opportunity of performing in world-class facilities on world-class instruments has been like a dream."
While his fellow collaborators can't say enough about Brother Longhurst's legacy, he was at a loss for words when he tried to express his feelings about his associates and experience.
"You come to a point where words finally are inadequate to say what you feel," Brother Longhurst concluded after several attempts. "I think that's the beauty of art. When it's all said and done, art can take the human spirit beyond the point where words fail."
Senior Tabernacle organist John Longhurst retired in December 2007 after 30 years at the console.
As technology and Church membership have increased, so have the responsibilities of Tabernacle organists.
While performing at general conference is certainly a Tabernacle organist's most high-profile task, there's much more to the calling than accompanying the choir at the semiannual event. The responsibilities are so extensive, in fact, there are currently five professionals who carry them out.
Full-time organists Richard Elliot, Clay Christiansen, and Andrew Unsworth and part-time organists Linda Margetts and Bonnie Goodliffe are currently called to perform in both musical and managerial roles as organists under the auspices of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
"The workload and the pressure are very visible and very intense," said Craig Jessop, director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
They perform in Church-sponsored events on Temple Square, including Church Educational System firesides, regional conferences, and important funerals, as well as regular Choir broadcasts and concerts. They also take turns performing in daily organ recitals held on Temple Square, including twice daily between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Preparing for so many performances requires between two and six hours of practice per organist per day on top of the performances themselves.
In addition to the more conspicuous musical responsibilities, much of the administrative work of the Tabernacle organists takes place behind the scenes.
"There's a lot of non-musical work that most people don't associate with the position," said former Tabernacle organist John Longhurst.
A great deal of time and effort is spent answering letters and phone calls, performing committee assignments, engaging in public relations work, interfacing with various Church departments and outside entities, scheduling, and occasionally creating new musical arrangements.
The organists assist with the Church's various media features and give lectures at educational presentations such as the American Classic Organ Symposium and National Federation of Music Clubs. They also participate in outreach programs representing the Church and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir away from Temple Square.
Tabernacle Organists and Their Service
Joseph J. Daynes (1851-1920), organist 1867-1900
John J. McClellan (1874-1925), organist 1900-1925
Henry E. Giles (1859-1938), assistant/associate organist 1901-1908
Katherine Romney Stewart (1875-1948), assistant/associate organist 1900
Edward P. Kimball (1882-1937), assistant/associate 1905-1924, organist 1924-1937
Walter J. Poulton (1884-1939), assistant/associate organist 1907-1908
Tracy Young Cannon (1879-1961), assistant/associate 1909-1924, organist 1924-1930
Moroni Gillespie (1891-1911), assistant/associate organist 1911
Alexander Schreiner (1901-1987), organist 1924-1977
Frank W. Asper (1892-1973), organist 1924-1965
Wade Naisbitt Stephens (1908-1984), organist 1933-1944
Roy M. Darley (1918-2003), organist 1947-1984
Robert Cundick (1926-), organist 1965-1991
John Longhurst (1940-), organist 1977-2007
Clay Christiansen (1949-), organist 1982-present
Linda Swenson Margetts (1948-), assistant/associate organist 1984-present
Bonnie Lauper Goodliffe (1943-), assistant/associate organist 1984-present
Richard Elliott (1957-), organist 1991-present
Andrew Unsworth (1970-), organist 2007-present
"New Opportunities Allow More Members to Serve," Ensign, Jan. 2008, 79-80
Sister Thelma Taylor was happy with her calling at her local family history center in Mesa, Arizona, USA. For 17 years she assisted, guided, and supported men and women in their quests to find their ancestors. A move to Coolidge, Arizona, in 2005, however, put 40 miles (64 km) between her and the family history center whose patrons she had faithfully served.
Nearly blind and unable to drive, the 83-year-old woman feared her inability to travel to Mesa would mean the end of her family history service. Then a thoughtful leader offered a solution to this problem in the form of a Church-service mission Sister Taylor could perform from home. Since 2006 she has served as a FamilySearch Support missionary for the Church, using her home computer to help people do their family history work.
"It has blessed me beyond my ability to count all the blessings," she says of her experience. "I've grown so much in that area in family history and in my ability to serve."
As the Church begins testing changes to the FamilySearch.org Web site, there is a significant need for Church-service missionaries like Sister Taylor to help patrons use family history tools to find their ancestors.
FamilySearch, the Church's online genealogical resource, is being rebuilt with new features that will allow temple ordinance cards for ancestors to be printed at home and will help prevent ordinance work duplication. The need for Church-service missionaries from around the world will continue to grow as the new FamilySearch is made available worldwide.
"They have the opportunity to propel the Lord's work forward with each interaction with a patron," said Art Johnson, area manager for the FamilySearch Support.
Using a Web-based telephone program, the missionaries, who can be located anywhere in the world as long as they have broadband Internet access, respond to as many as 10,000 inquiries per month. Patrons' questions span many topics, including family history research, indexing, and submitting names to the temple.
Though her eyesight is poor, Sister Taylor-now a supervisor over six fellow missionaries-can increase the font size on her computer enough to read patrons' e-mails and respond to their questions.
Service missionaries are given extensive online training they can complete at home. They also have access to a team of individuals to help them with their questions and provide individual training and help. Once they've finished the training, they have access to a database that includes some 4,000 articles they can refer to for answers to patrons' questions.
Sister Taylor didn't learn how to operate a computer until she was 66 years old, but she says it is a beneficial, useful skill. "Your age doesn't matter," she said. "You're not too old to learn how to use [a computer]."
A Church-service mission with FamilySearch Support is not meant to be a substitute for full-time missionary service, but it provides an option to serve for those who are not able to serve a full-time mission.
"This is an ideal situation for me because I can continue to learn and serve," Sister Taylor said. She said her Church-service mission has helped her to feel useful at an age when her options are limited.
Church-service missionaries are set apart and wear name tags, just as full-time missionaries do. They receive intensive training on the workings of the Web site and learn techniques on how best to answer patrons' questions. FamilySearch Support missionaries serve some 15 to 30 hours a week for 6 to 30 months and can serve the full mission from their homes.
There are currently some 700 service missionaries assisting in this capacity, and that number may need to double over the next year as the new FamilySearch is made available to more areas. Men and women interested in becoming Church-service missionaries should contact their bishop or branch president. Those interested in more information on FamilySearch Support opportunities can call 866-406-1830 or e-mail .
The lives of many members, elderly and young, have been blessed by the opportunity to be service missionaries, their leaders point out, and many souls will feel the effects of their labor.
"The spirit of consecration [that Church-service missionaries] bring to their calls has enabled us to really see miracles in the growth and expansion of the work," Brother Johnson said.
The work is fulfilling and contagious. "The spirit of this work gets into you and doesn't turn you loose," Sister Taylor said. "No matter your age, you can be of real service as a FamilySearch Support missionary."
Brother Johnson said the support provided by service missionaries is crucial to the success of the new FamilySearch. An answer provided to a patron may help someone find an ancestor and complete his or her temple work, and that is a very important, sacred undertaking.
"Through our efforts, we can enable our brothers and sisters on the other side of the veil to receive the same blessings and ordinances of the gospel we enjoy," Brother Johnson said.
Church-service missionary Elizabeth Perry helps David Parra use the old FamilySearch Web site. The new site will allow users to do more from home, including receiving help from Church-service missionaries also serving at home.
FamilySearch is calling for 10,000 volunteers who can read both English and Spanish to help digitally preserve and index online millions of Latin American records that are now difficult to access because they are located on microfilm or in an archive.
Volunteers can spend as little as 30 minutes a week indexing records from their home computers. Volunteers simply type in the information highlighted on the digital image. The completed products will be free, fully searchable online indexes linked to the original images at FamilySearch.org.
The 10,000 bilingual indexers will be added to a growing army of volunteers that will soon top 100,000, well ahead of projections.
Those interested in volunteering should register at FamilySearchIndexing.org, which will allow them to download one batch at a time.
With the help of 10,000 bilingual indexers, online FamilySearch hopes to help those seeking Latin American ancestors avoid having to search through large archives. (© 2007 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.)
"Elder Oaks Honored in Religious Freedom Exhibit," Ensign, Jan. 2008, 80
Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was honored in an exhibit featuring those who have helped define the concept of religious freedom.
The exhibit, titled Faces of Religious Freedom, opened on September 19, 2007, in Richmond, Virginia, USA, and was created by the Council for America's First Freedom.
"Dallin Oaks was selected to represent the Latter-day Saints not only for his leadership role within Church hierarchy, but as an individual that has achieved great accomplishments in his personal life and has in turn promoted the importance of religious freedom through his work," said Isabelle Kinnard, council vice president for education and exhibition curator.
Text accompanying the photo of Elder Oaks in the exhibit extols his leadership in the Church, his time as a professor of law at the University of Chicago, as president of Brigham Young University, and as a justice of the Utah Supreme Court. It also quotes the eleventh article of faith, "We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege. ..."
Elder Dallin H. Oaks
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