Return to Church

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

Dear Ward Family,

Mark July 19, 2020 on your calendars. We have tentatively scheduled that Sunday for our ward to return to Sunday Services at church. We will have more specific details about the return between now and the 19th, but we will follow these basic guidelines:

• We will follow all state and local guidelines for social distancing and group meetings
• No meeting will have more than 99 attendees
• Masks will be strongly encouraged
• Those in high risk categories are discouraged from attending
• The Sacrament will be authorized to be done in all homes until it is safe for everyone to return

We are very excited to enter this phase of gathering together again. As we prepare for the return next month, please pay special attention to what is making your at-home services so special. Our altered Sunday Services must be better when we return.

I also highly encourage everyone to plan on maintaining a similar practice to at-home services even when we gather together again. Plan on studying together in your homes. Plan on gathering for a short time to worship together in your homes. While we go through these crazy times, take all the good that has come from it and keep those things.

I look forward to seeing you at the chapel again next month! In the meantime, please let your neighbors know of the update and we will do our best to get all details to you in the coming weeks.

With Love,

Bishop Sullivan

Preisthood Keys

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

Enjoy this quick, 5 min, Sunday School lesson this weekend.

"What are Priesthood Keys and How are You Using Them in your Home Today?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkQFMCfnK18&t=10s

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there and have a great weekend!

Bishop Sullivan

Bridges of Cooperation

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

 Dear Ward Family,

I cannot say anything better than our dear Prophet, President Nelson. Please read his remarks from today and consider what you can do to “build bridges of cooperation rather than walls of segregation and alienation.”

Read his remarks here: https://medium.com/.../locking-arms-for-racial-harmony-in...

At this time of unrest, seek for peace, truth, and happiness at its source, Jesus Christ.

With Love,

Bishop Sullivan

Spiritual Preparation

Archive of messages sent while serving as a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

I cannot wait until we can return to gathering at our chapels. As that day approaches, there are two areas of preparation to consider: logistics of returning and spiritual preparation.

Logistics

As I mentioned in my message two weeks ago, we do not have a date scheduled for return. We are following the guidelines from the First Presidency that advised, “Wards with large attendance at meetings may need to wait to begin holding meetings at the phase-2 level.” There are simply parts of phase-1 that would make it difficult to have a reverent, spiritual meeting at this time. We will be looking for the state of Utah to ease their guidelines and for the Church to allow for phase-2. This will allow for our ward to meet together appropriately and for more members to enjoy the Sabbath together.

I anticipate having an update on our return within the next two weeks.

Spiritual Preparation

In the meantime, I want to point out the very important spiritual preparation that should be taking place before we return. It has to do with what we have learned during our home-centered worship. Ask yourself some or all of these questions:

What have I learned about worshiping Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ at home?

What is the importance of gathering in the gospel?

What insights have I gained about the importance of the Sacrament?

Have I been a better minister?

How will my home worship continue when we return to Sunday worship at church?

How can I apply the insights I’ve gained at home to worshiping together at the church? (No, the answer to this question is not to continue home church only )

Before we return, I hope we can all understand better how to properly worship at church and at home. I hope we can find areas of our worship, and life, that we will continue to simplify. I hope we continue to care for one another at the level I’ve seen the last couple months. I hope we can keep the importance and reverence of the sacrament in our minds.

Most of all, I hope to see you very soon and live the gospel along side you each Sunday and throughout each week.

With Love,

Bishop Sullivan