Again a pair of lessons from the 1942 New Testament children’s lessons parallel in large measure the lesson from the current manual, which has the purpose of helping “class members recognize that the gospel is for all people and that the Church is guided by continuing revelation.”

GENTILES GIVEN THE RIGHT HAND OF FELLOWSHIP

The Jewish Position

The Jews who had become disciples of Christ in Palestine remained good Jews very much as they had been before they were converted. In fact, they saw little difference between being a Jew and being a Christian. Both lived in much the same way, the main difference being that one believed in Jesus as the Messiah, and the other did not.

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For background, see here
previous episode
next episode (to be added when posted)

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A Happy Family

Some of our “Sisterhood of States” have names that seem to me
Not quite so truly feminine as “sister” names should be,
With Ida Hoe and Della Ware and Louisa Anna, too,
I find no fault, and Florrie Dah and Tennie See will do.

Miss Souri, Mrs. Sippi and Virginia will pass,
While Allie Bama’s fairly good and Mary Land first class;
Besides, we’ve Callie Fornia and Minnie Sota; they
Have pleasant names quite good enough to give to girls today.

But any one who ponders on this theme must say, with me,
Ken Tucky and Con Necticut are boys’ names, don’t you see?
And so are several others; hence, our school books ought to tell
About our “Sisterhood of States” and “Brotherhood” as well.

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When the neighbors from hell with their two demon boys move in behind Alice Norris, the neighborhood is in for a shock.

From the Relief Society Magazine, 1958 –

Good Bye and Good Luck, Mrs. Kelsey

Norma A. Wrathall

It was the summer after I, Alice Norris, had my gall bladder operation that the Kelseys moved into the old Forrester place adjoining my property. I hadn’t been able to work as hard as usual that year, but my son-in-law had set out my tomato and pepper plants, and I planted the cucumbers myself. Between us, we put in the dahlia bulbs, with a tall stake beside each one. As president of the Linwood Flower society, I just about had to get in a few new flowers, although my yard is already planted nicely to perennials and roses. And I had a secret hope of exhibiting my deep maroon dahlia, the Star of Persia, at the State Fair.

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More candid answers from Catherine Hurst, the Dear Abby, Miss Manners, Martha Stewart, and Webster’s Dictionary of the Young Woman’s Journal in the early years of the 20th century –

—oooOooo—

When I receive an invitation from a young man, would it be considered over-modest to tell him I must ask mother’s permission? – Ruth.

No young man, if he be the right sort, would think any less of you for not wishing to do a thing without your mother’s permission. Should you have to decline the invitation, it would be much easier for you. It also indicates that your mother’s ideas govern your conduct.

—oooOooo—

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Brigham Young got letters. Oh, the letters he got. Some are serious, some are pleading, some are insulting, some are helpful. Most are from church members and leaders either reporting on church business or asking for help and advice. Some are from non-Mormons, both friendly and otherwise.

Most historians have been more interested in the letters Brigham Young wrote, than in those he received. Some have scoured the collection for letters from important people on important topics. Me, I’ve been as tickled by the letters from the obscure, and the letters about the bizarre, as anything of more enduring value.

So, this post inaugurates a new series at Keepa where I’ll share with you some of my favorite letters. They’re favorites for various reasons.

This one, written in the early years following the Utah War, is — you have been warned — not safe for reading at family home evening. And no, I haven’t been able to identify the highly recommended Mr. Jacob Barnum. Enjoy.

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A talk given on Sunday, July 24, 2011:

As most of you know, I have been a member of the church for about 2 1/2 years. If you’re out of diapers, you’ve likely been here longer than I have. You know it hasn’t been very long when you still count in partial years. Ask a child, “How old are you now? 3?” and she’ll say, “No. I’m 3 1/2”. That changes though. When people ask me how old I am now, I round down to the nearest decade. Still, chances are you know far more about this church than I do. Even so, at its heart, living this gospel is fairly simple. It isn’t easy, necessarily, but it isn’t complicated.

I haven’t been in this church for a very long time, but I have been on this earth for a pretty long time, so I’m hoping that I will say something today that helps you, or at least interests you, especially if it’s also correct.

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Announcing the

Leonard J. Arrington Lecture

Dr. Richard V. Francaviglia

“‘Like the Hajis of Meccah and Jerusalem’: Orientalism and the Mormon Experience”

Thursday, September 15, 2011
7:00 p.m.
Logan Tabernacle
(50 North Main, Logan, Utah)

CHANGE OF LOCATION:

LDS Institute Cultural Center
(600 Darwin Avenue, Logan, Utah)

Tokens will be provided for free parking in the nearby Aggie Terrace Parking Garage

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The Merry-Go-Round

By Alice Morrey Bailey

Previous episode

Chapter Eleven

The ensuing week was a nightmare of confusion. There were endless conferences with Tory Meade and Judge Oldham. Finally, a hearing was set for Thursday – four days off.

“John,” said Alyn one morning, “you remember I told you about calling Rufus Randolph about locating another house for us? You have the day off today, so let’s go and see what he has found.”

“It’s a deal,” said John, and they were off.

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There would seem to be something in this advice from a previous time of economic trouble for both sides of the present stalemate to consider: Prudent giving and judicious spending on the one side, and intelligent saving and the shunning of waste on the other. Now if only there were something in here about getting a second job to increase income …

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– From the Relief Society Magazine,
October 1933

(See here for background)

From 1957 –

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For background and links to chapters in this series, see here

LESSON V

THE AGRICULTURAL PURSUITS

What is Agriculture

Do you, young men, all know what agriculture is? There are a lot of misconceptions about it in the minds of those who have not made a study of the subject. It may be defined as the art, the science, and the business of producing plants and animals which are useful to man. It is an art, since successful farm work requires skill and practice. A person who has never done this kind of work is decidedly awkward when he makes the first attempt. The boy who is reared on a farm acquires so naturally the knack of milking cows, handling horses, plowing and irrigating that he considers those things require no particular skill. It is only necessary, however, to see the difficulty with which farm work is done by a boy from the city to realize that good farming is an art.

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For background and links to chapters in this series, see here

LESSON I

SUCCEEDING IN LIFE

I should like to have you spend a day with me looking over some great city and studying its inhabitants. There we shall have a splendid opportunity to see how the people have been sifted out: the saint from the sinner, the successful from the unsuccessful, the rich from the poor, the intelligent from the ignorant, those who have achieved from those who have failed. In a small community this sifting process is not so obvious because there are not enough individuals to represent all types, and the country is likely to retain only those of medium success, whereas the extremes both as to success and failure are likely to drift cityward.

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The YLMIA Board sponsored a series of articles on paid employment for Mormon girls in the Young Woman’s Journal in 1927 (search “paid employment” in the Topical Guide for links). Perhaps that series for young women was partially inspired by the full MIA course for young men taught during the 1925-1926 year.

This course goes into much greater depth than the articles for the girls, and lacks the charm of that author’s style. It is, though,  a good glimpse into the place of labor and careers in the lives of men of that generation. I generally find the background chapters tedious, and the chapters on specific career fields interesting. For that reason I’ll post these lessons in pairs as far as they go, using the table of contents in this post as an index, adding live links as each chapter is posted. If there’s a chapter you’re interested in reading, speak up in the comments.

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The Merry-Go-Round

By Alice Morrey Bailey

Previous episode

Chapter Ten

It was five o’clock in the afternoon. Alyn paced up and down the living room, not able to take her eyes from the clock. any minute now she would hear the elevator close and John’s key in the lock – John could be depended upon for punctuality. She was there to open the door for him when he came.

“John, did you see Tory Meade? did anything happen?” she asked instantly.

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James Rollins. The Devil Colony. New York: William Morrow, 2010. 480 p. ISBN 9780061784781. $27.99. ($14.99 at Amazon.com; $12.99 for Kindle edition)

A publicist for HarperCollins (parent company of William Morrow) contacted me recently offering me a copy of The Devil Colony in return for a review here on Keepa. I didn’t ask how she found me; you’ll probably be as puzzled as I was as to why she thought Keepa would be a suitable venue for a book like this. Perhaps it was nothing more than a result of Googling something like “Mormon history blog.”

In any case, the publicist is interested in reaching a Mormon audience. Her email to me offered a couple of pieces of Mormon bait:

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Note: Ordinarily I don’t favor a teacher inventing his or her own lesson in lieu of teaching the lesson — however modified — appearing in the manual. In this case, though, our ward discussed Lesson 27 less than three months ago, on Easter Sunday, and then the bishop or Sunday School president decided to repeat that lesson today. Even though I would have taught it quite differently from the way my alternate teacher gave it, I still couldn’t see it being a successful lesson following so closely on the heels of the last time it was taught. So I’ve departed from my usual support-the-curriculum pattern and written my own lesson to suggest ways to enhance our scripture study, using one of the accounts covered in Lesson 27 as the basic example. I’m sorry if that offends any strict stick-to-the-manual readers. These are exceptional circumstances.

Lesson 27: “He Is Not Here, for He Is Risen”

Matthew 28:1-15
Mark 16:1-20
Luke 24:1-12
John 20:1-10

Purpose: To help class members feel gratitude for the Savior’s Resurrection and the blessings it brings us.

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The stated goal for this lesson is “To help class members recognize that the work of the Church is done by many people, all of whom contribute their talents and testimonies to strengthen the Church,” illustrated by the accounts of Stephen, Saul, and other early converts. The several lessons below come from a 1942 Sunday School manual for one of the children’s classes concerning the conversion of some of the same early Christians as presented in the current manual.

STEPHEN – THE FIRST MARTYR

The Church of Christ was established in Jerusalem with the Twelve Apostles as its officers and leaders. These were doubtless assisted by the seventy Jesus had appointed. (Luke 10:1, 17). as the movement grew and the work of the Church increased there would be a need for more workers and officers. thus very early in the history of the Church other great men were called: James, the Just, the brother of Jesus, Stephen, Paul, and others.

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For background, see here
previous episode
next episode (to be added when posted)

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Has Been There Before

A Scottish tradesman stepped into a barber shop the other day and while he was being shaved the barber was wondering if this was a new customer.

“Have you ever been here for a shave before?” asked the barber.

“Yes, once,” was the reply.

“But I do not remember your face, sir.”

“Weel, I dare say ye don’t,” said the customer. “Ye see, it’s healed up noo.”

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The Merry-Go-Round

By Alice Morrey Bailey

Previous episode

Chapter Nine

Conscious of John’s voice, Alyn aroused herself from her meditations. “You were saying, John, that the scriptures give us the answer to what life is all about.”

“Of course,” John elucidated, ‘theologians put their own interpretation on the scriptures. Some say that men exist for the glorification of God – most of them say that, in fact.”

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Radio Services, Sunday, Feb. 19, 1933
Under Auspices of the Primary Association General Board

Primary is a place for children to have a good time – not only a happy time, but a profitable time as well. It is the aim of the organization to teach faith in God and in the gospel of Jesus Christ through the activities that appeal to children and met their needs most fully; to tie them to the church in a happy way through service.

Children love to play and they love the various forms of music, so we try to offer much of our spiritual development through these mediums.

>Sometimes the music is singing and a splendid program of work has been planned. This class of very small children sings for us one of the songs for their group.

(Singing.)

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A purely personal essay, without any Mormon history value …

Mark 10 tells of the rich young man who asked the Savior what more he had to do beyond keeping all the commandments that he had been taught from his childhood. When Jesus told him he should sell all his goods and give the price as alms to the poor previous to following the Lord, the young man “was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.” (Mark 10:22)

I know it’s a misreading of that scripture to twist it this way, but I too have been grieved for my having many possessions – not necessarily because I was unwilling that someone else should have their value, but because they were a burden to me to buy, to store, to care for, and to move.

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Q. Is it a requirement of the Church that new members presenting themselves for baptism must be placed under a covenant by the Elder or person officiating? In some of our foreign missions the practice seems to be to thus place the candidates for baptism under a covenant at the water’s edge, while in other parts of the world, where our Elders are laboring, this custom has never been introduced.

A. The practice generally has been to ask the candidates for baptism, before administering the ordinance to them, concerning their willingness to repent of their sins, to take upon themselves the name of Jesus, and to serve Him to the end of their lives. This is in conformity with the 37th paragraph of the 20th Section of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which says:

And again by way of commandment to the church concerning the manner of baptism, all those who humble themselves before God and desire to be baptized and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the Church that they have truly repented of all their sins, and are willing to take upon them the name of Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into his Church.

This also agrees with the course taken by the first Alma at the waters of Mormon as recorded in the Book of Mosiah, 18th chapter, 7th to 10th verses.

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The Merry-Go-Round

By Alice Morrey Bailey

Previous episode

Chapter Eight

Alyn and Judith were checking the stock in the huge hat bins and in the alterations room – Judith with a pencil and tablet; Alyn counting.

“Well have to order more of these ‘Casuals,’” said Judith. “They go like hot cakes to the college trade. I want to get all this done.”

“That has been your battle cry for weeks,” observed Alyn. “Truly, Judith, when are you going to slack up?”

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Discussion 8 – Hello and Goodbye

For Tuesday, May 8, 1962

Objective: To encourage the development of one’s best behavior.

One of the most important rules as to manners is to be, for the most part, silent as to yourself. Say little or nothing about yourself, whether good, bad, or indifferent; nothing good, for that is vanity; nothing bad, for that is affectation; nothing indifferent, for that is silly. (David Hume, from The Dictionary of Thoughts.)

Again, we emphasize the importance of placing oneself second to the interests and comforts of others. This time we deal with conversations, introductions, telephone tactics, and other situations where verbal exchange is conducted between two or more people. The reminder to think of others first may seem tiresome but, if conscientiously practiced, the rules governing various forms of talking among people will be more easily followed.

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A continuing series, in which Your Humble Servant tries out recipes from past church sources, to bring you the best and spare you the worst of Mormon culinary heritage …

I like sweet potatoes, baked and with butter and salt. I’ve never cared at all for the gooey sweet potato casseroles made with marshmallows and brown sugar. Still, I like sweet potatoes well enough to have found attractive this recipe in the March 1931 Improvement Era:

Boil sweet potatoes; when cold, skin and slice 3/4 of an inch thick. Butter a baking dish. Put in a layer of potatoes, and over them a layer of uncooked sliced apples. Sprinkle with brown sugar and butter. Place in the oven and bake until apples are cooked.

Sweet potatoes and banana may be cooked the same way.

Ordinarily I follow My Mother’s Law of New Recipes: Try the recipe exactly as written first, then experiment with any changes you think would make it better. I broke the Law again this time: I think the texture of boiled sweet potatoes is nasty. It seemed to me that the basic idea was merely to cook the sweet potatoes before adding the fruit, since the potatoes would take quite a bit longer to soften than either apples or bananas.

Besides, if our sisters of 1931 had had microwave ovens, they would have used them, no?

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From the Improvement Era, 1933 –

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With its words written by a daughter of Brigham Young, its music by the director of the Tabernacle Choir, and its dedication to the General Relief Society president whom Brigham Young had called to save and store wheat against a day of need, it’s hard to imagine a song with a more Mormon pedigree than 1915′s “Song of the Wheat.” Note that the song was published during World War I (accounting for the imagery in verse 4), and just before the Relief Society sold its stored grain to the United States government.

As you read the words (typed out below the sheet music for ease of reading and for the sake of search engines), listen to the music recorded by Keepa’s own “Phantom:”

Song of the Wheat (audio link)

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The Merry-Go-Round

By Alice Morrey Bailey

Previous episode

Chapter Seven

SYNOPSIS

ALYN FORDYCE struggles against her husband,

JOHN FORDYCE, who insists upon continuing his work – which he loves – at the Milton Nurseries at a salary of $150 a month when Alyn has been used to $500 a month which he used to earn at work which he did not like. She thinks him selfish not to compensate her for her inability to have children, and is annoyed with his enthusiasm over a sport, or mutation, on an apricot tree – one that blossoms earlier than the rest. She wishes John could meet

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On August 29, 1902, the home of Ezra Carter Foss (1833-1919) and Emily Cheney Foss (1851-1929), of Farmington, Utah, caught fire, when a deficient kitchen flue allowed sparks from the stove fire to reach the walls of the upstairs story. When it was discovered, the cry of “Fire!” went out through the streets and the neighbors rushed to see what they could do.

The fire had gained hold unnoticed upstairs, but the main story was still relatively smoke free when the fire was discovered, so men were able to enter the house and carry out most of the furnishings downstairs before they were driven out by smoke.

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