When I was a 16 year-old priest I was called to be the YM Sec., don’t know if that would be kosher now, I had my last bishop tell me about a year ago that a sister could be the SS Sec (2006 Hand book of Ins.) but neither of us had ever seen it done. I was only about 6 in 1978 so I don’t remember this personally but my father told me that in our ward in Cailf. in the mid 70′s the SS Sec was a black man.

A year or so back our Stake RS pres spoke to the ward I was in on HC Sunday. She started her talk by tearfully bearing her testimony that one of the signs by which we could know for sure that this was the true church and was set up by God himself was that it had not chagned at all since the the day Joseph Smith started it. I briefly looked around the congregation for our “First Elder” and when I could not find him I took a mental nap for the rest of her talk.

And the deacon thing, this is close to a conversation we had just this last Sunday in Teachers Quorum. One teacher, happened to by my youngest son, said that a Priest, who just happened to be his older brother, had told him that teachers should never ever touch the sacrament table. I tactfully corrected saying that the scripture authorization for you to even be there is just to assist the priests so I think it’s OK and I’ll have a talk with your brother (which I forgot to do until now!) I also remember when I was a deacon that we believed we would be struck down if he did any sacrament preparation and as a teacher that we didn’t dare touch the sacrament table during the actual ordinance.

And i know a good number of female Mormons, both self-identified feminists and non-feminists, plus a few male Mormons of whatever level of feministishness, who are quite aware that the members of the church passing the sacrament trays amongst themselves is a nice bit of evidence that the distribution of the sacramental bread and water isn’t a specifically priesthood responsibility, no matter what longstanding church practice may be.

For much of the 20th century, he (rather than the bishop) identified teachers, and was responsible for training them. The classes he was responsible for ranged all the way from nursery to several adult classes (Gospel Doctrine or whatever it might have been called at any period, and missionary, and parent/family relations, and family history). He ordered the supplies for the Sunday School. He was responsible for the opening exercises, including talks and concert recitations and music practices. He held a regular weekly prayer meeting for his faculty. There were Union meetings with other Sunday Schools in the stake, and beyond, with additional training.

Now we’ve done away with opening exercises, split responsibility for the children entirely to the Primary, eliminated music practice, don’t bother to train teachers at all, don’t hold prayer meetings, and the clerk orders supplies.

What was going on with the deacons in 1890 to create so much concern? (I admit that having the “most sacred ordinance outside the temple” administered by 12-year-olds is something of a non-sequiter, and I have no background on the history of how the Aaronic advancement by age developed.)

In my brother’s stake in Northern California, the SP authorized deacons to held prepare the sacrament, as many wards had a shortage (or absence) of Teachers, and a deacons duty is to “assist the teachers in their duties”!

I especially like the Sunday School setting apart bit. fits into the older practices, like RS president setting apart primary officers.