Fed by the Priesthood
By Stephen Carter on Oct 9, 2007
This last Saturday it suddenly occurred to me that it was 6:30 and that the priesthood session of conference was already well underway.
Even though I admit somewhat shamefacedly that conference doesn’t do much for me, something inside me wanted to pull on my tie and walk over to the stake center (it’s right out my back window) before the finale.
Why did I want to go listen to speeches on chastity, tithing and hometeaching? It goes back a long way.
I went to my first priesthood session illegally. I was only 11. But I snuck in under cover of the 14-year-old teachers quorum my dad had charge of.
It was the first time I had been in the Tabernacle for an actual conference session (yes, I’ve been around long enough to remember conference in the Tabernacle, ain’t I old?). The wood pillars painted to look like marble awed me, as did the art nouveau décor. Behind us sat some guys from Japan making Japanese jokes about (what else?) the technology, pretending to electrocute each other with their headphone jacks.
Our group, however, was much more dignified. I took a chop to the throat as I gawked at the ceiling, and received a few dead arms while I watched the cameraman go up and down on the hydraulic camera. I’m sure my dad tried to protect me, but as well should a man raise his puny arm to stop the Missouri river as try to stop half a dozen overactive amygdalas from expressing themselves.
No, I don’t remember a thing that was said at that conference. This probably officially bars me from ever becoming a general authority because I’ll never be able to say, “I remember as if it were yesterday sitting in the Tabernacle and hearing President Benson admonishing us young men to …” However, I do remember that we went out to dinner afterwards, where I sustained a few shin bruises courtesy my good friends in the teachers quorum.
Ever since then, it has been a tradition for my dad to take us out to dinner after conference is over. And yes, Dad has always footed the bill (is that why we’re always suggesting the expensive restaurants?). And we get to sneak out of the session at the end of the last talk so we can beat the restaurant rush.
I have good memories of these dinners, even if the conference itself turned out to be boring (home teaching talk) or terrifying (”purity or hell” talk). I ate my first goat cheese pizza at one of these dinners. At another, my dad and I had a conversation on a notepad we pushed back and forth across the table. He was in the middle of suffering from a long-term case of laryngitis. But my favorite dinner so far has been the time one of my little brothers ate too much and threw up all over my sister’s bathroom. And I mean ALL OVER.
I have missed a few of these dinners. Once when I had a date to go to a Big Audio Dynamite concert (Monson to Mick in just one night), and four times during my mission. I also missed quite a few during my sojourn in Alaska. But every time I get the chance, I take a jaunt down to Utah and get my free post-priesthood dinner.
The end of my story is that I did indeed don my tie and walk over to the stake center. I sat out in the foyer and heard President Monson’s talk on home teaching. Then I zipped out right after President Hinckley’s talk in honor of all those great meals.
And hopefully many more to come.
Glad you didn’t talk about spiritual food!
Comment # 1 by Halfbreed | Oct 10, 2007 | Reply
I share many of your wistful memories of SNP (Saturday Night Priesthood). I may not have laughed as hard (or at all) as I did watching mid-90s SNL (Saturday Night Live), or boogied as much (or at all) as I did watching SNF (Saturday Night Fever), but I have some fond memories nonetheless. And like you, most of my memories involve the bonding moments I shared with family or friends (i.e. singing or eating afterwards) as opposed to the content of the talks themselves, though some talks certainly touched my heart.
Like you, I haven’t been for a few years, but my no-show is less about rebellion and more about the experience not being complete without a posse to share the anti-pornography message and post-SNP meal with.
Comment # 2 by Matt Thurston | Oct 10, 2007 | Reply
I was always extremely jealous of the “SNP posse”. Living in Orem, UT I could not help but encounter the groups of young men getting dinner or ice cream after the show….. my girlfriends and I were probably sitting at a table specifically to check out the cute ones as they walked by with their ties loosened and white shirt-sleeves rolled up, but I did indeed check them out with a twinge of jealously.
Somehow getting to go to the Young Women’s or Relief Society’s general conference session didn’t quite make up for missing the Priesthood session because I knew that the good stuff was happening when the men were watching their broadcast, not when we were watching ours.
I love the implication here that a church experience (priesthood session, in this case) is more about the camaraderie and friendship than the doctrine and preaching. I much prefer any type of church attending experience with friends and family.
Comment # 3 by Elise | Oct 11, 2007 | Reply
It seems like during the first few years of Pres. HInckley’s administration, he used priesthood to make some cool announcements, and I found myself actually looking forward to it more than ever. But in the last few years, it’s reverted back to total boring mode. Sometimes Pres. Monson gets SO cheesy, but this year he was a bit more restrained–until he went off on the red-haired father and son at the end.
And yes, I get post-priesthood dinner with daddy too. We used to go out to restaurants, but for the past couple of years we’ve been meeting with extended family at a cousin’s house for a barbecue. I generally wear biz-caz to priesthood, sneak out at the start of the closing song, and spend much of the time texting brothers and friends who are similarly ensconced.
Comment # 4 by Chris Bigelow | Oct 12, 2007 | Reply
This years marked an to a Rusch family tradition. Going to priesthood with dad. My brother Matt and live in Provo. Nathan is on a mission in Mexico and Jon is married and usually gets tied up in married stuff. For as long as I can remember, going to priesthood with dad has been great. We would get ice-cream afterwards or pop across the street to the Wendy’s for whatever was left (Priesthood on the East Coast ends at 10:00pm). But now that all the brothers have gone their separate ways, it leaves dad going to priesthood by himself. Kind of sad that some traditions come to an end.
Comment # 5 by Chris Rusch | Oct 12, 2007 | Reply