Policies and Announcements

The following items are from the August 1983 Bulletin.

Student Loans of Missionary Candidates. Missionary candidates should make sure that personal indebtedness does not interfere with their missionary work and that their missionary service does not interfere with paying their debts. Priesthood leaders should be aware that many missionary candidates have received student loans, and the priesthood leaders should make sure the conditions of such loans have been satisfied before the mission begins. Some young people and their parents do not realize that leaving school for a mission constitutes a discontinuation of schooling, such that the missionary will likely be expected to begin repaying the loan six months after he has left school. If a missionary fails to begin repayment, the loan will normally be defaulted, and the missionary’s future credit rating and loan eligibility may be seriously damaged. A forbearance agreement (which waives repayment until after the mission, when the missionary can re-enter school) is not normally difficult to arrange, but each student should accept responsibility for understanding the terms of the loan and for resolving this situation before beginning his mission.

When they discuss personal indebtedness during their interviews with prospective missionaries, priesthood leaders should make sure student loans have been resolved before the mission begins.

Changes in Stake and Ward Relief Society Boards. The following changes are to be made in stake and ward Relief Society boards:

Activation-Missionary Board Member. The activation-missionary board position is discontinued. The Relief Society president will now personally direct and coordinate the important work formerly assigned to the activation-missionary board member. The president will plan with her counselors and board members ways to more fully employ all the resources of Relief Society in that work.

Single Woman-Transition Board Member. Single woman board member is the new designation for this position. She is responsible under the president’s direction for seeing that the program and resources of Relief Society appropriately serve the needs of the single sisters; she should make sure each eighteen-year-old woman coming into Relief Society is warmly welcomed and that all single women, including single adults, have appropriate opportunities to serve in Relief Society.

Five-Minute Music Period Except for Sundays on which Spiritual Living lessons are taught, five minutes of each weekly Relief Society meeting should be used for music instruction and practice. During this period, a single idea or a skill such as note values or the learning and appreciation of a hymn (its history, type, style, and mood) should be studied. Relief Society members are encouraged to learn the hymns and find ways to teach and use them in their homes. The five-minute music period may be used to develop skills and ideas that will improve the individual musical talents of the sisters as well as their appreciation of good music and ways in which music can enhance and enrich their home life.

Sunday Meeting Revised Schedule. In order to encourage uniformity in meetings, the following schedule is recommended for Relief Society Sunday meetings:

1. An opening and closing hymn and prayer in each Relief Society meeting

2. Thirty minutes for all lessons, including Spiritual Living lessons

3. A five-minute music period, except on the day of the Spiritual Living lesson, and the remaining fifteen minutes for welcome, hymns, prayers, and Relief Society business

4. Ten minutes for testimonies on the day of the Spiritual Living lesson, and the remaining ten minutes for welcome, hymns, prayers, and business

No Objects on Piano and Organ Consoles. Please take special care to see that items are not placed on pianos and organ consoles. Plants and flower arrangements are especially hazardous, as leaking water causes extensive damage. Other items may scratch or mar the finishes of musical instruments. Priesthood and organization leaders should closely supervise funeral services and special activities, as well as regularly scheduled meetings, and should pay special attention to see that piano and organ consoles are not damaged.

See Manual for Meetinghouse Maintenance (PBBM000A), pages 21–22, 48, for instructions on care and maintenance of pianos and organs.