WARD COUNCIL TRAINING
Date: September 2013
RE: Pleasant Grove Manila Stake Ward Council
RE: Pleasant Grove Manila Stake Ward Council
Dear Brothers & Sisters,
By assignment
from Elder Craig B. Terry and under the direction of the Presidency of the
Seventy, we have been asked to train each ward council in our stake in the
principles of effective councils.
As a presidency
we have felt guided in our preparations for this training, and are looking
forward to the privilege of spending time in council with each of you. Each
ward in our stake is led by wonderful bishops who devote untold hours as
shepherds to their flock. One of the most important purposes of a ward council
is to invite group revelation, leading to a sharing of the load carried by your
bishop.
A member of the
stake presidency, high council and stake council will be joining your ward
council on September 15 at 8:30 a.m. for this training. Prior to
this date, we invite you to prayerfully ponder the teachings of prophets
regarding the power and purpose of councils. The resources below are provided
for this purpose. We urge you to take advantage of these inspired words and
presentations. They will provide essential preparation for our training.
We love each of
you. We feel the love our Father in Heaven and our Savior, Jesus Christ, has
for each of you. We are grateful for your devoted efforts in furthering the
work of salvation.
Sincerely,
Pleasant Grove
Manila Stake Presidency
Pre-council training curriculum
Notes:
The Ward Council
- The Lord’s Church is governed through councils.
- These councils are fundamental to the order of the Church.
- Under the keys of the priesthood leadership, leaders council together for benefit of individuals and families.
- Plan the work of the Church pertaining to council members assignments.
- Invite full expression from council members and unify their efforts to individuals, families, and organization needs.
- Bishop is the presiding high priest and over three councils:
- The bishopric
- The priesthood executive committee
- The ward council
- Responsibility for all ward members, organizations, and activities.
- Meets weekly
- The ward clerk and executive secretary attend.
- Clerk keeps a record of assignments and decisions.
- Bishop may invite others to attend.
- During the meetings:
- Counsel together about ward matters.
- Plan ways to strengthen individuals and families.
- Evaluate quorums, auxiliaries, programs, and activities.
- Make plans to implement instructions from the scriptures, Church leaders, and handbooks.
- Identify members to call to serve in the ward.
- Identify which members are coming of age to be eligible for ordinances.
- Reporting on assignments, planning meetings, reviewing the ward calendar, and ward budget.
- Includes bishopric, ward clerk, ward executive secretary, high priests group leader, elders quorum president, ward mission leader, and Young Men president.
- Meets regularly to consider priesthood matters.
- Discussion on matters that will not be discussed in the ward council.
- Review matters on the ward council agenda.
- PEC should meet prior to ward council.
- Relief Society president may be invited to attend some PEC meetings to discuss confidential welfare matters and to coordinate home teaching and visiting teaching assignments.
- Includes the bishopric, ward clerk, ward executive secretary, high priests group leader, elders quorum president, ward mission leader, and presidents of the Relief Society, Young Men, Young Women, Primary, and Sunday School.
- Members of the ward council strive to help individuals build testimonies, receive saving ordinances, keep covenants, and become consecrated followers of Jesus Christ.
- All members of ward council have a general responsibility for the well-being of ward members.
- Priesthood and auxiliary leaders has specific responsibility to watch over and strengthen each member in their organization.
- Only considers matters that:
- Would benefit from coordination among organizations
- Benefit from the discussion and unified efforts
- General concern for the ward as a whole.
The work of salvation includes:
- Missionary Work
- Bishop and His Counselors
- Directs a ward mission plan
- Calls and sets apart a ward mission leader
- Calls and sets apart ward missionaries
- Give priority to member missionary work
- Teach the doctrines of missionary work regularly
- Encourage ward members to work with full-time missionaries to
- Find
- Teach
- And Baptize investigators
- Set example by finding and preparing individuals and families for the missionaries to teach
- Ward Council
- Fully engaged in missionary effort
- Encourage quorums and auxiliaries to participate in missionary work
- Find and prepare people to be taught
- Assist in missionaries in teaching (members homes)
- Fellowship investigators
- Prepare themselves and their children to serve as full-time missionaries
- Develop and review the ward mission plan
- Review baptismal candidates, other investigators, and others from the Progress Record from the full-time missionaries
- Make plans to help each investigator progress
- Offer counsel about home teachers and visiting teachers for investigators
- May invite the full-time missionaries to meet with the ward council
- Ward Mission Leader
- Coordinates the ward's efforts to find, teach, and baptize investigators
- Leads discussions on missionary work
- Conducts missionary coordination meetings and directs the work of ward missionaries
- Convert Retention
- Activation of less-active members
- Temple and Family History work
- Teaching the gospel
Notes:
- In Councils, when we follow the Spirit, we understand and do the Lord's will.
- Meet regularly
- Discuss individual families and to make plans to serve them.
Notes:
- Seek to reduce the workload of the bishop by enhancing the role of the ward council and its members.
- Assisting the bishop on matters of importance to the whole ward.
- Helping in the rescue role of activation and retention.
- The importance of Councils
- Handbook 2 - shows how councils are affected which include bishopric, priesthood executive committee, and the ward council.
- PEC meets regularly to handle items from the ward welfare committee but probably decrease because of the frequency of ward council.
- Elevating the Ward Council
- Ward council is elevated in administering under the keys of the bishop.
- What the bishop can delegate to expand the roles of council members.
- Primary effort is the work of salvation in the ward.
- Council member delegated counseling to assist members in recovering from addictions, financial issues, family matters, or other problems.
- Members of council do most of work outside the ward council meeting assisting home teachers, visiting teachers, and others in reaching out and ministering.
- Leaders to identify and resolve concerns that can be appropriately handled within quorum or organization to alleviate the burden on the bishop and ward council.
- Every member counts
- Revelation can come to members of the council and not inclusive to the bishop.
- Unity once the bishop has made a decision under the influences of the Holy Ghost.
- The value of women in councils.
- Wise leaders listen.
- The gift of discernment operates more effectively when we're listening as opposed to when we're talking.
- No one person dominates the conversation.
- When the Spirit operates with the council system of the Church, the work will go forward, and will rescue many more of our Father's children.
- Effective Ward Councils
- Spend minimum time during meetings on calendaring, activity planning, and other administrative business.
- Focus on matters that will strengthen individuals and families.
- Invite full expression from all council members, who then unite behind the bishop's decision.
- Unify organizational efforts to respond to individual, family, and organizational needs.
- Meet regularly, more often than under the previous handbooks, but typically not longer than 60 to 90 minutes.
- Protect confidentiality
- The primary effort of the ward council is the work of salvation in the ward.
