[President George Albert Smith Journal] "Jos Patriarch Met Presidency." (1)
-- May 2, 1946
The First Presidency instructed local Church leaders that in meetings where the sacrament is passed, it should be passed to the presiding officer first. (2)
Purpose of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper-- Church Archives, Salt Lake City, Utah.
The pure of the ordinance of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper is stated in this letter of instructions.
May 2, 1946 To Presidents of Stakes and Bishops of Wards
Dear Brethren:
Inquiries received at the office of the First Presidency disclose the fact that there is a divergence of opinion and varied practices among ward officers with respect to the kind of music, if any, that should be rendered during the administration of the sacrament.
Recently, this question came before the First Presidency and the Twelve who unanimously approved the recommendation that the ideal condition is to have absolute quiet during the passing of the sacrament, and that we look with disfavor upon vocal solos, duets, group singing, or instrumental music during the administration of this sacred ordinance.
There is no objection to having appropriate music during the preparation of the emblems, but after the prayer is offered, perfect silence should prevail until the bread and the water have been partaken of by the full congregation.
It was further suggested, and unitedly agreed upon, that the sacrament should be first given to the presiding authority in the meeting. This may be the bishop, perhaps one of the stake presidency, or one of the visiting General Authorities. It is the duty of the priest officiating to determine who is the presiding authority present; thus, whenever the sacrament is administered, members of the Aaronic Priesthood officiating will have a lesson in Church government.
When the sacrament is given first to the presiding authority, those officiating may pass the sacrament consecutively to members of the Church who are sitting on the rostrum and in the audience.
It was also the conclusion of the Council to recommend to the Superintendency and General Board of the Deseret Sunday School Union that local Sunday Schools be advised that the significance of partaking of the sacrament will be enhanced if no music be given at that period. Undoubtedly, there will be those who will claim that soft, appropriate music contributes to better order; but careful consideration of the institution and purpose of the sacrament will lead to the conclusion that anything which detracts the partaker's thought from the covenants he or she is making is not in accordance with the ideal condition that should exist whenever this sacred, commemorative ordinance is administered to the members of the Church.
Reverence for God and for sacred things is fundamental in pure religion. Let every boy and girl, every man and woman in the Church, manifest this principle by maintaining perfect order by self-communion whenever the sacrament is administered.
Sincerely yours, GEO. ALBERT SMITH, J. REUBEN CLARK, JR., DAVID O. MCKAY, First Presidency. {1946-May 2-Original circular letter, L.D.S.} (3)
-- May 3, 1946
[President George Albert Smith Journal] "In bed regretting that I am not able to keep my work up at the office." (1)
-- May 04, 1946
President George Albert Smith autographs five specially bound leather copies of the recently completed Tongan translation of the Book of Mormon for Tonga's Queen Salote, Tupou III, Prince Tupou To'a; Premier Ata; and two Tongan governors. (4)
-- May 19, 1946
[President George Albert Smith Journal] -May 31, 1946, he is in Mexico to attend Mexican Mission meetings in Mexico City (1)
-- May 25, 1946
More than a thousand Saints gather at the Irmeta Branch chapel, near Mexico City, for a two-day Mexican Mission conference. President George Albert Smith gives one of the first speeches ever made by a Church President in Mexico. (4)
-- May 26, 1946
Twenty-one people are baptized into the Church between sessions of the Mexican Mission conference. President George Albert Smith presides over the conference during his visit to Mexico. (4)
-- May 29, 1946
Five hundred former members who had been part of a group that had left the Church over a dispute regarding native leadership spread flowers along the lane leading to the chapel in Tecako, Mexico, and stand on each side, singing "We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet" as President George Albert Smith arrives to address them. He invites them back into the Church, and some twelve hundred eventually return. (4)
Footnotes:
1 - Journals of George Albert Smith
2 - Church News: Historical Chronology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/58765/Historical-chronology-of-The-Church-of-Jesus-Christ-of-Latter-day-Saints.html
3 - Clark, James R., Messages of the First Presidency (6 volumes)
4 - The Woodland Institute 'On This Day Historical Database,' http://www.woodlandinstitute.com
LDS History Chronology: George Albert Smith
Mormon History Timeline: The life of George Albert Smith
http://lds-church-history.blogspot.com/
