2008
Conference Summary for the 178th Semiannual General Conference
November 2008

“Conference Summary for the 178th Semiannual General Conference,” Ensign, Nov. 2008, 2–3

Conference Summary for the 178th Semiannual General Conference

Saturday Morning, October 4, 2008, General Session

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: President Thomas S. Monson. Invocation: Elder Shayne M. Bowen. Benediction: Elder Craig A. Cardon. Music by the Tabernacle Choir; Mack Wilberg and Ed Thompson, directors; Clay Christiansen and Andrew Unsworth, organists: “High on the Mountain Top,” Hymns, no. 5; “Redeemer of Israel,” Hymns, no. 6, arr. Wilberg, pub. Hinshaw; “Oh, May My Soul Commune with Thee,” Hymns, no. 123; “Come, Ye Children of the Lord,” Hymns, no. 58; “Do What Is Right,” Hymns, no. 237, arr. Wilberg, unpublished; “O Thou Kind and Gracious Father,” Hymns, no. 150; “I Need Thee Every Hour,” Hymns, no. 98, arr. Wilberg, unpublished.

Saturday Afternoon, October 4, 2008, General Session

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: President Henry B. Eyring. Invocation: Elder James M. Dunn. Benediction: Elder Don R. Clarke. Music by a Primary choir from Kaysville and Fruit Heights, Utah; Colleen Paddock, director; Linda Margetts, organist: “I Am a Child of God,” Children’s Songbook, 2–3, arr. Wolford/Margetts, unpublished; “The Light Divine,” Hymns, no. 305; “Teach Me to Walk in the Light,” Hymns, no. 304; “I Love to See the Temple,” Children’s Songbook, 95; “We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet,” Hymns, no. 19, arr. Watkins, unpublished.

Saturday Evening, October 4, 2008, Priesthood Session

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: President Thomas S. Monson. Invocation: Elder David S. Baxter. Benediction: Elder Keith R. Edwards. Music by a priesthood choir from the Provo Missionary Training Center; Douglas Brenchley, director; Clay Christiansen, organist: “Called to Serve,” Hymns, no. 249, arr. Boothe, pub. New Vision Music; “Lord, I Would Follow Thee,” Hymns, no. 220, arr. Dayley, pub. Jackman; “Praise to the Man,” Hymns, no. 27; “Hark, All Ye Nations!” Hymns, no. 264, arr. Ipson, unpublished.

Sunday Morning, October 5, 2008, General Session

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: President Thomas S. Monson. Invocation: Elder Earl C. Tingey. Benediction: Elder Daniel L. Johnson. Music by the Tabernacle Choir; Mack Wilberg, director; Andrew Unsworth and Clay Christiansen, organists: “Now Let Us Rejoice,” Hymns, no. 3; “I Know That My Redeemer Lives,” Hymns, no. 136; “Oh, What Songs of the Heart,” Hymns, no. 286, arr. Wilberg, pub. Jackman; “Rejoice, the Lord Is King!” Hymns, no. 66; “I Feel My Savior’s Love,” Children’s Songbook, 74–75, arr. Cardon, unpublished; “The Morning Breaks,” Hymns, no. 1, arr. Wilberg, unpublished.

Sunday Afternoon, October 5, 2008, General Session

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. Invocation: Elder Paul B. Pieper. Benediction: Elder Marcus B. Nash. Music by the Tabernacle Choir; Mack Wilberg and Ed Thompson, directors; Bonnie Goodliffe and Linda Margetts, organists: “Guide Us, O Thou Great Jehovah,” Hymns, no. 83, arr. Wilberg, pub. Jackman; “Faith in Every Footstep,” K. Newell Dayley, arr. Dayley, pub. Jackman; “How Firm a Foundation,” Hymns, no. 85; “We Ever Pray for Thee,” Hymns, no. 23, arr. Wilberg, unpublished.

Saturday Evening, September 27, 2008, General Relief Society Meeting

Presiding: President Thomas S. Monson. Conducting: Julie B. Beck. Invocation: Ann W. Farnsworth. Benediction: Jana P. Staples. Music by a Relief Society choir from Alpine and Highland, Utah; Merrilee Webb, director; Linda Margetts, organist: “Come, O Thou King of Kings,” Hymns, no. 59, arr. Ipson, unpublished; “Lord, I Would Follow Thee,” Hymns, no. 220, arr. Webb, unpublished; “Now Let Us Rejoice,” Hymns, no. 3; “Rejoice, the Lord Is King!” Hymns, no. 66, arr. Kasen, unpublished.

Conference Recordings Available

Recordings of conference sessions are available at www.lds.org. Generally within two months following conference, recordings are also available at distribution centers. Recordings for individuals who are deaf are available at www.lds.org/asl and generally within two months following conference from distribution centers (three DVDs with a signing inset). For more information, call 1-800-537-5971 or log on to www.ldscatalog.com.

Conference Talks on Internet

To access general conference talks on the Internet in many languages, visit www.lds.org. Click on “Gospel Library” and “General Conference.” Then select a language.

Home and Visiting Teaching Messages

For home and visiting teaching messages, please select an address that best meets the needs of those you visit.

On the Cover

Front: Photograph by Matthew Reier. Back: Photograph by Christina Smith.

Conference Photography

Scenes of general conference in Salt Lake City were taken by Craig Dimond, Welden C. Andersen, John Luke, Matthew Reier, Christina Smith, Les Nilsson, Scott Davis, Lindsay Briggs, Rod Boam, Alpha Smoot, Cody Bell, and Mark Weinberg; in Argentina by Javier Coronati and Maria Gabriela Igarzabal; in Brazil by Israel Antunes and Laureni Ademar Fochetto; in Italy by Jason Cole and Tyson Rollins; in Moldova by Dane Rigdon; in Nigeria by John Olu Faoseke; and in Ukraine by Marina Lukach.

Speakers in Alphabetical Order

  • Aidukaitis, Marcos A., 15

  • Allred, Silvia H., 10, 112

  • Andersen, Neil L., 13

  • Ballard, M. Russell, 81

  • Beck, Julie B., 108

  • Bednar, David A., 41

  • Caussé, Gérald, 32

  • Christofferson, D. Todd, 37

  • Cook, Quentin L., 102

  • Corbridge, Lawrence E., 34

  • Dalton, Elaine S., 78

  • Eyring, Henry B., 25, 57, 68

  • Gavarret, Eduardo, 98

  • Godoy, Carlos A., 100

  • Hales, Robert D., 72

  • Hamula, James J., 50

  • Holland, Jeffrey R., 29

  • Jensen, Jay E., 47

  • McMullin, Keith B., 75

  • Monson, Thomas S., 4, 60, 84, 106

  • Nelson, Russell M., 92

  • Oaks, Dallin H., 17

  • Oswald, William D., 95

  • Packer, Boyd K., 88

  • Perry, L. Tom, 7

  • Scott, Richard G., 44

  • Thompson, Barbara, 114

  • Uchtdorf, Dieter F., 21, 53, 117

  • Wirthlin, Joseph B., 26

Topic Index

  • Activation, 98

  • Adversity, 7, 13, 26, 72, 102

  • Angels, 29, 57

  • Atonement, 47

  • Blessings, 75

  • Book of Mormon, 10, 15

  • Callings, 53

  • Change, 84

  • Charity, 21, 37

  • Children, 32

  • Church growth, 4, 81

  • Church history, 81, 88

  • Comfort, 29, 102

  • Compassion, 117

  • Compensation, 26

  • Conversion, 10, 15

  • Courage, 72

  • Covenants, 112

  • Creativity, 117

  • Debt, 7

  • Discipleship, 72

  • Discouragement, 117

  • Duty, 60

  • Eternal life, 106

  • Exaltation, 92

  • Example, 60, 72, 114

  • Faith, 13, 21, 41, 102, 108

  • Family, 92, 108

  • Fasting, 75

  • General conference, 106

  • Gratitude, 41, 84

  • Happiness, 26, 92, 117

  • Holiness, 37

  • Holy Ghost, 34, 50, 100

  • Home, 98

  • Hope, 21

  • Humility, 68

  • Humor, 26

  • Inspiration, 72

  • Jesus Christ, 34, 75, 84, 106

  • Joy, 68, 84

  • Kindness, 68

  • Knowledge, 32

  • Last days, 50

  • Learning, 60

  • Lifting, 53

  • Love, 95

  • Marriage, 44, 92

  • Missionary work, 10, 81, 98

  • Modesty, 7

  • Obedience, 34, 50

  • Optimism, 102

  • Patriotism, 88

  • Perspective, 26

  • Pondering, 95

  • Prayer, 41, 50, 68, 75

  • Preparation, 7

  • Priesthood, 44, 53, 57, 60

  • Protection, 29, 78

  • Relief Society, 108, 114

  • Revelation, 68, 88

  • Reverence, 17

  • Righteousness, 102

  • Sacrament, 17, 47

  • Sacrament meeting, 17, 47

  • Safety, 47

  • Scriptures, 95

  • Service, 53, 57, 75, 98, 106, 108, 114

  • Simplicity, 7, 32

  • Soberness, 50

  • Teaching, 95, 114

  • Temples, 4, 78, 92, 112

  • Testimony, 13, 15, 100

  • Trust, 26

  • Unity, 37, 68

  • Virtue, 78

  • Welfare, 75

  • Women, 44, 108, 114, 117

  • Word of God, 32

  • Word of Wisdom, 7

  • Worthiness, 44, 112

  • Zion, 37