After a stake president's tenure is complete, or a new stake is to be organized, a new stake president is selected. The selection or calling of the new stake president is done by two General Authorities , usually members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles or the Quorums of Seventy.
They interview leaders in the stake or stakes from which the new stake will be organized. If the new stake is to be organized from mission districts, the same process takes place. The new presidency is then sustained in the organizing conference; this is also done if the presidency is reorganized later. If a counselor is the only one being replaced, often due to one of the previous counselors moving from the stake boundaries, the stake president will often call and present the counselor himself in the stake conference.
Under the stake president there is a high council. The high council consists of twelve men from all the wards in the stake, who also hold the office of high priest.
They serve under the direction of the stake presidency, overseeing the programs of the Church throughout the stake. As of , stake missions no longer exist. The work that they did is now what the bishop and ward mission leader do to ensure that new converts are taken care of. This allows full-time missionaries to better utilize their time finding those who are ready to hear and accept the gospel. The members are now responsible for fellowshipping making the new members feel welcome and accepted.
Stake presidents and bishops have been clearly identified as the links in the organizational chain between the General Authorities and local Church members. The historical importance of stakes in the Church is exemplified by the stake-level innovations that have been adopted throughout the Church. Family home evenings and the Welfare program began as programs of the Granite Stake in Salt Lake City in the early s.
The "Home Evening" program was designed to help parents develop closer relationships with their children. The suggested format for these weekly family meetings included prayer, music, scripture reading and gospel instruction, discussion of family concerns, recreational and cultural activities, and refreshments. The Granite Stake Welfare plan was designed to promote temporal well-being by stressing home industry and cooperation.
Stake committees were appointed to promote gardening, the development of canneries, livestock raising, and the establishment of new industries. This program foreshadowed the work of President Harold B. Lee as president of the Pioneer Stake during the Great Depression, which led to the establishment of a Churchwide Welfare program.
Other Church programs that originated in stakes include the seminary program for high school students, stake missionary work, systematic stake supervision of temple and genealogical work, and a variety of youth programs. The continuing centrality of stakes in the Church's organizational structure is emphasized by additional recent expansions of the responsibilities assigned to stakes.
Stake conferences are held semiannually, with stake presidents responsible for presiding when Regional Representatives or General Authorities are not present. Other functions formerly performed by General Authorities but now assigned to stake presidents include issuing temple recommends, setting apart counselors in the stake presidency and missionaries, ordaining bishops and stake Patriarchs, and giving special temple recommend clearances.
Stake officers have primary responsibility for training ward priesthood and auxiliary officers. Stake presidencies recommend new bishops to the General Authorities and, with their high councils, train ward bishoprics and quorum leaders. Under the direction of the stake presidency and the high council, stake auxiliary leaders hold regular leadership meetings to train their counterparts at the ward level see Leadership Training.
Stake presidencies and high councils continue to serve as the major judicial organization of the Church and conduct disciplinary councils for members who have committed serious sins. New stakes are created when the membership of an existing stake becomes too large or when Church numbers and leadership strength in a mission district where a stake has not previously existed reach a level that justifies its organization Kimball, p. This essay identifies reasons for the Church discontinuing stakes, the ramification of stakes closing on local LDS populations, methods to avoid future stake closures, and an outlook for future trends in discontinuing stakes.
Stakes which operated for the most years that were closed between and present include the Ogden Utah Mount Ogden 82 years , Salt Lake Park 68 years , Glendale California 58 years , Walnut California 49 years , and Barstow California 49 years Stakes. On average, stakes discontinued between and operated for 15 years. The median number of years discontinued stakes operated was nine whereas the mode number of years a discontinued stake operate was five.
Years between and which had the most stakes discontinued where 26 , 19 , 10 , and 10 whereas no stakes were discontinued in and and only one stake was discontinued in , , and The average year between and had five or six stakes discontinued. The average stake discontinued between and was organized in the late s and discontinued in Declining numbers of active members due to members moving out of the geographic boundaries of a stake is the primary reason for stakes closing in the United States.
Nearly all discontinued stakes in the United States operated in California and Utah in urbanized locations where real estate prices have increased, the socioeconomic status of the area has generally declined, and many Latter-day Saint families relocate to newly constructed suburban communities often in different cities or states. Many of these former stakes had small geographic boundaries and five or six congregations for most the time they operated, making them prone to closure if large numbers of members left the area, few members moved into the stake, and small numbers of converts joined the Church.
Many of the converts baptized in these locations are not retained or like their seasoned-member counterparts relocate to other locations which offer more affordable housing and living standards and exhibit community culture perceived as more compatible with traditional LDS lifestyles. Member activity rates also appear lower in locations where stakes were discontinued compared to other locations.
This finding may be due to the differing lifestyle of less-active and inactive members compared to active members which do not prompt relocation to suburban communities that are perceived as culturally LDS. Overtime this results in an increasing percentage of members who are not active as more active members than less-active or inactive members move outside a given stake. Stake closures generally occur after several wards are consolidated or just prior to the realignment and closure of wards and branches in areas with declining active membership.
Low member activity and poor convert retention rates are the primary reasons for the Church discontinuing stakes outside the United States. Oftentimes many of these stakes were organized during the years of the most rapid membership growth experienced by the Church in Latin American countries and the Philippines and also during the years when convert retention rates were the lowest.
The substantial time and effort required to administer a stake and meet the needs of the members is carried out by the members themselves. Most members are asked by local leaders to contribute in specific capacities.
Duties include local administrative, teaching or service-oriented positions. These responsibilities are changed on a regular basis, according to the needs of the congregation.
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