Gospel Learning at Home

Elder Quentin L. Cook's General Conference talk elaborated on a change that was hinted at by President Nelson. Starting at the beginning of next year, our regular Sunday meetings will change from three hours to two hours, and, as has already been announced, the curriculum for the second-hour lessons will change as well, so that just about everyone will have a lesson on the same topic, regardless of age or gender. Both President Nelson and Elder Cook explained that these changes were being made to facilitate Gospel learning in the home, supported by the church. As Elder Cook said, "Our purpose is to balance the Church and the home experiences in a way that will greatly increase faith and spirituality and deepen conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

Personally, I welcome these changes, and not just because we'll get to spend more time at home. Sharing a curriculum will mean that we'll be more able to have deep, inclusive conversations about what we learned in church that day. We'll be able to build on each other's insights and explore each topic without having anyone dominate or be left out of the conversation. I think that this will start a good trend of learning the Gospel together, as a family, in the home. It'll help the home become a more sacred place, and it'll help family members grow closer together. I can see many benefits coming out of this.

Of course, it'll be up to us to make sure that those blessings actually come, or rather that we actually have those Gospel-centered conversations in the home, or all we'll get out of this change is another hour for our Sunday naps or for our family dinners. Those benefits could be nice, but there's a nobler purpose for this change from three to two hours of church. I imagine that God would like us to use that extra hour to draw closer together as a family and form a deeper understanding (and memory) of what we learned in church by discussing it as a family. God could give us all the time in the world (and, in a sense, He does), but it's up to us to make sure we use that time as He intended, to increase Gospel learning at home.