First Draft on ideas for changing our approach to Home Teaching

21 March 2017

Priesthood Watchcare

Mount Hood Oregon Stake • April 2017

In October 2016, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland made an impassioned plea to holders of the priesthood “to lift your vision of home teaching. Please, in newer, better ways see yourselves as emissaries of the Lord to His children. That means leaving behind the tradition of a frantic, law of Moses-like, end-of-the-month (visit)…rather… establish an era of genuine, gospel-oriented concern for the members.”

Later he said, “…call it what you will…we are asking you…to be God’s emissaries to His children in ways consistent with your circumstances.”

Drawing from the First Presidency letter of December 10, 2001 and Elder Holland’s talk, along with Handbook 2, pp. 40-42, the Mount Hood Stake Presidency issues the following guidelines for changes to our stake’s Home Teaching efforts:

Change in Name: Home Teaching to be referred to as “Priesthood Watchcare.”

Change in Objective: We will no longer put an emphasis on monthly visits with a gospel message, but on priesthood holders providing “genuine, gospel-oriented concern,” both temporal and spiritual, for all members (and progressing investigators) as we are commanded in D&C 20:53.

Change in Home Teaching Responsibility:

·   Under the Bishop’s keys and direction, the ward Priesthood Executive Committee provides oversight of Priesthood Watchcare, such as determining which homes are to be visited monthly, quarterly or not at all.

·   All teachers and priests in the Aaronic Priesthood are to be assigned to a Watchcare companionship with a Melchizedek Priesthood holder
(D&C 84:106).

·   Priesthood Watchcare companionships are to be assigned no more than three families needing monthly home visits, but may be assigned others needing less-frequent visits (see below for Change in Frequency of Home Visits).

Change in Reporting: Reporting of a ward’s Priesthood Watchcare performance will be made once a quarter. Report months will be March, June, September, and December. All Watchcare activities during the quarter will be counted as a “visit.” The Watchcare companions and priesthood leaders determine what “counts” as a visit remembering Elder Holland’s injunction: “…every good thing you do ‘counts,’ so report it all!”

Types of regular, ongoing contact that could count as a “visit”:

·   personal home visits with a message

·   gospel-oriented activities outside the home with the persons or family

·   phone calls, text messages, emails, etc. showing care and seeking to know needs and concerns

A Watchcare gospel message during a contact might include:

·   First Presidency message from an Ensign

·   A link to an article from a Church magazine

·   A link to a social media message from a General Authority

·   A Mormon Message video and other material found on www.lds.org

Change in Frequency of Home Visits: Frequency of home visits and the topics of gospel messages are prayerfully determined by the needs of the persons or families. The ward Priesthood Executive Committee determines which persons or families fall into the following categories. The PEC may modify these categories and the assignments as needed.

MONTHLY home visits are made to:

·   Investigators being taught by the missionaries

·   New converts

·   Those who are ill or lonely (widows, singles, etc)

·   Less-active members, who allow visits

·   Single parent families with children at home

QUARTERLY home visits are made to:

·   Consistently active families, especially those with children at home

NO home visits are expected for:

·   Stake and Ward Priesthood Executive Committee members (and Area Seventy) who do not have children at home. Each of these leaders is to be counted as “visited” and assigned a contact in their respective High Priest or Elders quorum leadership to whom they can request specific help, such as assistance in administering to the sick in his family or addressing a temporal need.

·   Less-active members, who do not want a home visit, but allow contact in other ways, such as those listed above; and for whom, at the minimum, the Priesthood Watchcare companions can pray for on a regular basis.

Key Expectations of Every Whatchcare Companionship:

·   Did we look to see if our assigned persons or families attended Church services each Sunday and, if so, did we greet them?

·   If they did not attend Church, did we follow up with a phone call to see if there is a need? Did we provide gospel teaching and encouragement?

·   Did we show regular, genuine, gospel concern for our assigned persons or families by regularly praying for them and making contact in one or more of the ways listed above during the quarter?

Change in Accountability: Instead of a quorum leader asking a Watchcare companionship, “Did you do your home teaching this month?” he might more appropriately ask, “Do you feel you provided adequate watch care over your assigned persons or families this quarter?”