One-of-a-kind conference

BY: LEIANI BROWN

Above: President Nelson announced eight new temples. Photo by the Associated Press. Below: Logo provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

April’s semiannual General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints –previously promised to be “different from any previous conference” by President Russell M. Nelson last October – brought a new symbol for the Church, a solemn assembly with a Hosanna Shout, a bicentennial proclamation and a call for another worldwide fast.

The conference, broadcast from a nearly empty auditorium in Salt Lake City, Utah, commemorated the First Vision of the Church’s first president, Joseph Smith, which took place 200 years ago.

“We pray that this conference will be memorable and unforgettable because of the messages you will hear, the unique announcements which will be made, and the experiences in which you will be invited to participate,” said Russell M. Nelson, president of the Church, in his opening statement during the Saturday Morning Session. have to be six feet apart, not really being able to greet each other when that was something they’ve always done.

“It makes me want everything to go back to normal and see everyone all together [again] … but I also really love the Church and Church leaders even more that they’re taking it seriously and showing that [they’re] doing this but still following regulations.”

In accordance with these restrictions, music was prerecorded for all five sessions.

The Saturday evening session, usually a time for either all male members of the Church or all female members to meet, was opened up this year to all members ages 11 and up.

The session included two youth speakers, Laudy R. Kaouk and Enzo S. Petelo, teenagers from two different congregations in Utah.

Traditionally, talks are given by general

President Nelson recapped the Church’s efforts to focus on the full name of the Church. He added the purpose of this new symbol is to further “help us remember Him and to identify The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the Lord’s Church.”

Because of restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic, only participants of the session were allowed to attend, instead of the usual mass gathering at the Church’s Conference Center, in efforts to “be good global citizens,” explained President Nelson.

Isabella Reed, a sophomore from Mililani studying history education, said it was hard for her to see the First Presidency sitting six feet apart, but she said she admires their respect for the situation.

“They take the pandemic very seriously ... I can’t even imagine what that’s like for them to authorities and church leadership. According to LDS Living, the last youth to speak in General Conference was Matthew S. Holland in April 1983, who was called as a general authority in the Saturday Afternoon Session this year.

In this special bicentennial conference commemorating Joseph Smith, President Nelson introduced a new symbol to be used on all Church “literature, news and events.” He added, “It is important to remember that while we revere Joseph Smith as a prophet of God, this is not the church of Joseph Smith. Nor is it the church of Mormon. This is the Church of Jesus Christ.”

The symbol, President Nelson explained, includes the full name of the Church inside a cornerstone – representing Christ’s centrality in the doctrine of the Church – and a depiction of the Christus statue as the focal point of the symbol, positioned underneath an arch representing the Savior emerging from the tomb following his resurrection.

Aubriela Blair, a junior from Utah studying psychology, said she usually gets anxious around General Conference, but after talking with a friend who helped her identify some personal anxieties and deciding to take notes, she was able to have a spiritually uplifting experience. © 2020 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Version: 1/20. PD60010469 000. Printed in the United States of America

“I love the new symbol,” said Blair. “It strengthens my testimony a lot because I love Christ. Sometimes, like everyone, I forget about Christ and how He’s my best friend, and He’s always there for me. To have this new symbol everywhere is going to be really helpful for a lot of members, including myself.”

President Nelson added, “This symbol should feel familiar to many, as we have long identified the restored gospel with the living, resurrected Christ.”

He continued, noting the Easter holiday. “As followers of Jesus Christ, living in a day when the COVID-19 pandemic has put the whole world in commotion, let us not just talk of Christ, or preach of Christ, or employ a symbol representing Christ, let us put our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ into action.”

The president of the global church, which reported 16,565,036 members as of Dec. 31, 2019, then called for another worldwide fast to take place on Good Friday, a Christian holiday commemorating Christ’s death and crucifixion.

Fasting, a practice with biblical roots where members abstain from food and water

for a period of two consecutive meals or 24 hours, was held previously on March 29 in search of relief from the global pandemic, explained President Nelson.

Blair, who invited a friend of another faith to participate in the fast, said, “I’ve always believed in sacrifice and showing the world or showing God that we’re willing to sacrifice something to earn something.”

BYUH sophomore Isabella Reed says it was hard to see Church leaders sitting six feet apart at the conference due to social distancing for the coronavirus. Photo by the Associated Press

One of the first announcements President Nelson made in his opening statement was for members of the Church to prepare for a Hosanna Shout and solemn assembly to occur during the Sunday Morning Session.

Usually not morning people, Reed said she and her family made it a point this year to wake up early enough to watch each session live.

She added she had never heard of or participated in a Hosanna Shout. She immediately began texting all her friends after it was announced, excited and hoping for everyone to have the opportunity to participate.

The Hosanna Shout, according to the 15th President of the Church, Gordon B. Hinckley, is a “sacred salute to the Father and the Son.” It is usually done at temple dedications, according to Deseret News, and it involves the waving of a clean, white handkerchief while shouting in unison, “Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna to God and the Lamb” three times, concluding with “Amen, Amen and Amen.”

The shout also symbolizes Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, leading up to his crucifixion. According to the Church Newsroom, the shout was first experienced for Church members at the dedication of the Kirtland Temple in 1836.

Reed said it was special knowing her mom participated in the Hosanna Shout for the Laie Hawaii Temple re-dedication as well as learning about the significance behind the word “hosanna.”

“I knew from seminary that ‘hosanna’ meant ‘save me now,’ or that’s how I [understood it]. I just love the simple, but powerful words, saying it three times, ‘To God and the Lamb,’ and then closing it off with the ‘Amens,’” said Reed.

“It was super special ... because I was thinking about it, and they do it at every dedication of a temple, but only a few select times will they do it worldwide. It was worldwide. Millions of people were doing it, and knowing that is really cool too, [knowing] we were all unified in doing it.”

Matthew Bowen, assistant professor in the Faculty of Religious Education, further explained that “hosanna” is a Hebrew term

The Hosanna shout, demonstrated by President Nelson, is a sacred salute to the Father and the Son, said President Gordon B. Hinckley. Photo by the Associated Press.

taken from Psalm 118, verse 25, as part of scripture that was important to the Passover in biblical times. “It’s a plea for salvation. That’s really what it boils down to.”

Bowen also said the name “Jesus,” which means “Jehovah saves” or “Jehovah is salvation,” is etymologically related to “hosanna.”

He added how it was appropriate the Hosanna Shout took place on Palm Sunday, the day the crowds shouted their hosannas as Christ entered Jerusalem at the beginning of the last week of His life. Bowen stressed that in this instance, the plea for many of them probably referred to their hope that Christ would deliver them from Roman rule, rather than the spiritual deliverance he would actually offer.

“With the coinciding of the 200th anniversary of the First Vision and the COVID-19 pandemic, we can appreciate the levels on which that plea works,” said Bowen.

“We’re pleading for both physical and spiritual deliverance, and those two things are ultimately entwined.

“Jesus is the one who will save us both from physical death and spiritual death ... Ultimately, He will put all enemies under His feet, including death and including COVID-19 and every other problem that has beset humanity.”

According to Church Newsroom, solemn assemblies are sacred meetings, usually held when a new Church president is called but can be held for other holy purposes. As announced by President Nelson, the purpose of this solemn assembly was the introduction of a new Church proclamation entitled, “The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World.”

Bowen explained solemn assemblies were significant in ancient Israel, usually convened on the seventh day of Passover and eighth day of the celebration of the Feast of the Tabernacles, which typically occur around the same time of year as General Conference.

In this dispensation, Bowen said there have only been five other official declarations and proclamations, two of which are accepted as canon, or official scripture.

Bowen added his admiration for how the proclamation addresses the entire world and serves as a bold declaration of what the entire Church believes.

“This is sort of a collective bearing of a testimony from the First Presidency and the Twelve … This is us as a church affirming and testifying of what we believe.

“And in doing that, as we unite in our testimony and faith, it serves to strengthen our faith in a world where people increasingly tend to back away from statements of certainty and try to be politic and diplomatic in their language. This is the kind of statement that’s really needed right now.”

The proclamation was immediately uploaded in full in 12 languages at ChurchofJesusChrist.org. •

We solemnly proclaim that God loves His children in every nation of the world. God the Father has given us the divine birth, the incomparable life, and the infinite atoning sacrifice of His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. By the power of the Father, Jesus rose again and gained the victory over death. He is our Savior, our Exemplar, and our Redeemer. Two hundred years ago, on a beautiful spring morning in 1820, young Joseph Smith, seeking to know which church to join, went into the woods to pray near his home in upstate New York, USA. He had questions regarding the salvation of his soul and trusted that God would direct him. In humility, we declare that in answer to his prayer, God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph and inaugurated the “restitution of all things” (Acts 3:21) as foretold in the Bible. In this vision, he learned that following the death of the original Apostles, Christ’s New Testament Church was lost from the earth. Joseph would be instrumental in its return. We affirm that under the direction of the Father and the Son, heavenly messengers came to instruct Joseph and re-establish the Church of Jesus Christ. The resurrected John the Baptist restored the authority to baptize by immersion for the remission of sins. Three of the original twelve Apostles—Peter, James, and John—restored the apostleship and keys of priesthood authority. Others came as well, including Elijah, who restored the authority to join families together forever in eternal relationships that transcend death. We further witness that Joseph Smith was given the gift and power of God to translate an ancient record: the Book of Mormon—Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Pages of this sacred text include an account of the personal ministry of Jesus Christ among people in the Western Hemisphere soon after His Resurrection. It teaches of life’s purpose and explains the doctrine of Christ, which is central to that purpose. As a companion scripture to the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies that all human beings are sons and daughters of a loving Father in Heaven, that He has a divine plan for our lives, and that His Son, Jesus Christ, speaks today as well as in days of old. We declare that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints, organized on April 6, 1830, is Christ’s New Testament Church restored. This Church is anchored in the perfect life of its chief cornerstone, Jesus Christ, and in His infinite Atonement and literal Resurrection. Jesus Christ has once again called Apostles and has given them priesthood authority. He invites all of us to come unto Him and His Church, to receive the Holy Ghost, the ordinances of salvation, and to gain enduring joy. Two hundred years have now elapsed since this Restoration was initiated by God the Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Millions throughout the world have embraced a knowledge of these prophesied events. We gladly declare that the promised Restoration goes forward through continuing revelation. The earth will never again be the same, as God will “gather together in one all things in Christ” (Ephesians 1:10). With reverence and gratitude, we as His Apostles invite all to know—as we do—that the heavens are open. We affirm that God is making known His will for His beloved sons and daughters. We testify that those who prayerfully study the message of the Restoration and act in faith will be blessed to gain their own witness of its divinity and of its purpose to prepare the world for the promised Second Coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints