General Conference Retrospective (October 2024)

Here’s a general conference retrospective for t he October 2024 semiannual.

I personally received less inspiration than normal but what I did receive was directly aimed at the concerns I brought in.

What you get here isn’t the inspiration.  It’s notes, some of them idiosyncratic and none the produce of mature reflection.

• Sister Bell’s quite nice talk on the sacrament was pitched almost entirely to women.  I can’t remember a similar talk for men.  Is this an imbalance, or is it a natural consequence of men and women being different?  FWIW, I do miss priesthood conference.
• If Christ wanted time just you and him, might he not select your loneliest time?  Might he not already be there waiting for you?
• There was nothing I didn’t love about Elder Renlund’s nitroglycerine talk, and hegman (sp?) Island.
• How would a loving father not care what you do?
• The Proclamation on the Family and the name of the Church are permanent commandments.
• Elder Soares had some powerful words about the dangers of authenticity.  Immediately after Elder Gong urged true authenticity.
• Elder Gong is the apotheosis of the sweetness of Mormon life.  That’s interesting in connection with true authenticity.   Everyone wants the ‘dark, gritty’ version as the real version.  No one ever says,  ‘we need to make this more authentic.  Let’s put in some touching moments and periods of quiet sweetness.’  But they should.
• A powerful testimony of Joseph Smith with repeated reference to  his asks for forgiveness.  Not because he was so deeply flawed, but because it’s the plan.  If Brother Joseph repented all the day long, so should you.  “Praise to Jehovah who communed with that man!”
• “Brother Alvarado — “Repentance is joy!”, said so gleefully.  Truly a gifted speaker.
• “We should ask ourselves why Mormon included … ” Oh, boy.
• The arrangements of Gethsemane and My Shepherd Will Supply My Need are both the highest form of middle brow art.  They are accessible to the common man and in a contemporary idiom with in a timeless form.  Hats off.
• The First Presidency’s secretary dream of his mother was very powerful.  With that and Celia Cruz’ stolen Book of Mormon and Mary’s letter to the judge there were some powerful stories at General Conference.  I really, really wish we’d publish a book of General Conference stories every couple of years.
• Elder Stephenson’s “second most significant decade” either sounds like wild hyperbole, given what he described next (the Olympics?) or as an esoteric hint, but then he took it in a direction that some will think of as a cop out but touched me profoundly.  This could be your most significant decade, and mine–it depends on what we make of it.  Shades of C.S. Lewis, What if this were the world’s last night?
• “Don’t let the world change you when you should change the world.”  Very good.  For some reason it reminded me of the concern I’ve expressed before that in areas where we have some presence and influence, we are much more likely to move in the direction of Gentile marriage and family norms than vice versa.  I hope I’m wrong.
• What you teach on Sunday, does your media undo on Monday?  This is much more than just sex and violence.  It’s selfishness, false life models, false authenticity, versions of compassion and love that make them party slogans.
• Elder Uchtdorf’s was one of several inspiring testimonies of Joseph Smith
• A whole, complete, and perfect union of all keys, powers, and dispensations.  Hair raising.
• The music of our faith is medicine for doubts.  Literal music, I think.
• Now is the time to prepare for the  Second Coming, the prophet says.  And the best is yet to come!  What I didn’t realize when I was young is those are the same messages.