Stake High Council more callings ?

Why is it possible to add more callings or more than 12 high priest in the Stake High Council ?

Why this odd question ? Well, I am executive secretary in a stake composed of 17 units, spread over 8 hours drive. Our high council members are quite loaded with responsibilities and travel.
The stake presidency wants to call more than 12 high council members.
Yes I did point them to manual 2, 15.3 and D&C 102, but still they are looking at this option.

In the past, when trying to do abnormal callings (like a third counselor in the stake presidency), we (stake clerk and myself) have been able to tell them that the system doesn't allow it, so they kind of revised their position, though not quite.
Anyways, long story short, can I relie on the callings options to define what is authorized to do in the Church ?
Why can we add more high counselors ? What would be the other authorized callings within a Stake High Council ?

idefaye wrote:stake composed of 17 units, spread over 8 hours drive.

Wow. I'd be looking hard at a stake split. But I know there can be issues doing that.

The request to split the stake has been rejected, so we have to make do with what we have.

Seems like a good subject for the Stake President to discuss with the area authority. Not only in how to deal with this situation, but in doing a split.

Handbook 1:9.1.1 outlines the requirements for a new stake. I'm thinking it was a specific proposal that was rejected, not the idea. It's possible you may have to change ward boundaries to make it work - perhaps even combine wards to free up some leadership material. You might also want to consider the idea of handing off some units to neighboring stakes.

Handbook 2: 15.3 is pretty explicit about "12". Handbook 2: 17 Uniformity and Adaptation - seems to be about how to scale back the programs to work with that you have, not scaling up positions to deal with a greater workload.

I'm sure someone in your stake with access to making changed in CDOL can tell if it allows more than 12 HC. Something in the back of my mind suggests it's exactly 12 slots - with no room to add or remove.

idefaye wrote:Anyways, long story short, can I rely on the callings options to define what is authorized to do in the Church ?

No. LCR usually follows the Handbook, but there are still some escapes. What you are authorized to do is in the Handbook.

A high council has 12 members. Many years ago, stakes were authorized to call alternate high councilors, but that position was specifically ended. In a stake with more than 12 units, one or more high councilors are going to have assignments in more than one ward or branch.

I echo russellhltn's suggestion that the stake president visit with his Area Seventy concerning the state of his stake. There are specific requirements to create a stake. If a proposal to divide the stake was not approved, one of more of those requirements were not met. The stake president should know exactly what needs to happen to divide his stake.

A wise stake president will share these requirements with his two counselors and his 12 high councilors, and they will counsel together as the Priesthood Executive Committee to come up with a plan to move forward and bless the Saints in his area of stewardship.

lajackson wrote:There are specific requirements to create a stake. If a proposal to divide the stake was not approved, one of more of those requirements were not met. The stake president should know exactly what needs to happen to divide his stake.

I've had the impression from past stories in my stake that even if the requirements are met, it might be turned down if the division is too lop-sided or otherwise unequal in critical metrics. They submitted one plan for ward division and it was turned out. They drew the lines in a different way using a different tactic in thinking, and it was approved. I consider my stake rather large (10 units - 7 family, 2 language and 1 student) but it hasn't divided yet. It may be an issue of buildings since the stake center currently has 5 of the 10 units meeting there. There may be a problem in dividing and leaving both in good shape. Because of geography, we really only have one adjoining stake, but that's not much help as it falls on the wrong side.

But with 17 units, it seems like something should be workable. The only thing that can think of that might be insurmountable is lack of leadership material to form a new stake and constraints imposed by geography that prevents any reorganization to solve that. In that case, all I can suggest is targeted missionary work. <grin>

lajackson wrote:
A high council has 12 members. Many years ago, stakes were authorized to call alternate high councilors, but that position was specifically ended.

Any place I could find the official communication regarding this, to transfer it my the stake presidency ?

We've received the recommendations needed for a division, unfortunately, it will take a lot more time now because the church changed the minimal requirements to divide stakes, which we do not meet. (Canadian up north scarce population and huge distance makes it very hard to meet)
Anyways, this situation is still being adressed with area seventy, but it's already a year and a half, and we don't foresee much in near future. Anyways, it brings us back to the fact that our stake presidency is trying to find loop holes to circumvent this and ease the burden of the brethren, which I understand, but I am trying to keep them in the straight and narrow.

idefaye wrote:

lajackson wrote:
A high council has 12 members. Many years ago, stakes were authorized to call alternate high councilors, but that position was specifically ended.

Any place I could find the official communication regarding this, to transfer it my the stake presidency ?

Well, it has only been 20 or 30 years, I think. My memory is not as good as it used to be. I think it would have been in a Bulletin in the late 80s. That was the official method the Church used back then to make changes to the Church Handbook of Instructions.

I'll look around at home this weekend. No promises.

Here's a wild idea... There seems to be no limit on the number of stake assistant clerks, so appoint a bunch to help with all the units. They could essentially do what the HC do, bring messages from the presidency and report back. I'm sure some will say they have no authority, but as a former HC a couple of times, I don't remember having much authority...

There are only a few things that specifically need to be delegated to high councilors, so branching from what Zane suggests, it might be a good thing to evaluate (if you haven't already) if there are any assignments given to the limited high councilors that could be given to others instead.

See how much is Handbook and how much is "tradition".

Handbook 2: 18.2.2: "The bishopric schedules high councilors to speak as assigned by the stake president. The stake president determines the frequency of such assignments. It is not necessary for high councilors to speak in sacrament meeting every month."

idefaye wrote:

lajackson wrote: A high council has 12 members. Many years ago, stakes were authorized to call alternate high councilors, but that position was specifically ended.

Any place I could find the official communication regarding this, to transfer it my the stake presidency ?

The 1976 General Handbook of Instructions allowed up to six alternate high councilors. The number was approved by the First Presidency or by a General Authority at the time of a stake conference at which he was presiding.

The 1983 General Handbook of Instructions allowed the stake president to call alternate high councilors when there were more than 12 units in a stake and it was necessary to assign one high councilor to each ward and branch.

The 1998 Church Handbook of Instructions no longer makes reference to alternate high councilors. The high council consists of 12 high priests, and provisions are included in the Handbook to ask other high priests in the stake to participate in a disciplinary council when all 12 high councilors are not available.

So somewhere between 1983 and 1998, alternate high councilors went away.

Sorry I couldn't get it closer. I keep throwing things away.

lajackson wrote:

idefaye wrote:

lajackson wrote: A high council has 12 members. Many years ago, stakes were authorized to call alternate high councilors, but that position was specifically ended.

Any place I could find the official communication regarding this, to transfer it my the stake presidency ?

The 1976 General Handbook of Instructions allowed up to six alternate high councilors. The number was approved by the First Presidency or by a General Authority at the time of a stake conference at which he was presiding.

The 1983 General Handbook of Instructions allowed the stake president to call alternate high councilors when there were more than 12 units in a stake and it was necessary to assign one high councilor to each ward and branch.

The 1998 Church Handbook of Instructions no longer makes reference to alternate high councilors. The high council consists of 12 high priests, and provisions are included in the Handbook to ask other high priests in the stake to participate in a disciplinary council when all 12 high councilors are not available.

So somewhere between 1983 and 1998, alternate high councilors went away.

Sorry I couldn't get it closer. I keep throwing things away.

Thank you so much for all this detailed research !

zaneclark wrote:Here's a wild idea... There seems to be no limit on the number of stake assistant clerks, so appoint a bunch to help with all the units. They could essentially do what the HC do, bring messages from the presidency and report back. I'm sure some will say they have no authority, but as a former HC a couple of times, I don't remember having much authority...

I am not comfortable with for many reasons. The HC has authority to speak and represent the presidency. He extends callings and set appears to callings as specified under the direction of the presidency. This is authority.
Besides, this has been tried in our stake and the member called was also used as a third counselor in the presidency. When a general authority visited, we were asked to correct this at once.

lajackson wrote:So somewhere between 1983 and 1998, alternate high councilors went away.

Question, was there a corresponding change to HC assignments (such as speaking)? The current handbook specifically says monthly talks by the HC is not necessary. I'm not sure if that's addressing a custom or custom based on prior direction.

russellhltn wrote:Question, was there a corresponding change to HC assignments (such as speaking)? The current handbook specifically says monthly talks by the HC is not necessary. I'm not sure if that's addressing a custom or custom based on prior direction.

I think it is relatively new, but I will check this evening. Back to the library.

In the meantime, I find it interesting that, in the current Handbook, speaking in sacrament meeting is at the end of the list of high councilor responsibilities. I think there is an order in their responsibilities for a reason.

A stake with only five wards starts with 15 high councilor assignments to make. This is before any of them are assigned to work with stake auxiliaries and programs, to oversee missionary, temple, and family history work, and last of all, to represent the stake presidency by speaking in sacrament meetings and other settings.

A stake presidency that struggles with high council assignments might want to carefully read Handbook 2, 15.3.1 and then start with a clean slate as they prayerfully make assignments in the order they are listed there.

It is obvious that a high councilor will have many assignments. The more inspired the assignments, the better the stake presidency will be represented by the high councilors and influence the stake.

russellhltn wrote:Question, was there a corresponding change to HC assignments (such as speaking)? The current handbook specifically says monthly talks by the HC is not necessary. I'm not sure if that's addressing a custom or custom based on prior direction.

Back in the days when we still used to check our email by candlelight, the stake president assigned a high councilor to visit sacrament meeting once a month and be the principal speaker. He took another high councilor, elders quorum president, high priests group leader, or returned missionary with him, who also spoke. The bishop got to provide a youth speaker.

The 1983 General Handbook of Instructions just mentions the assigned high councilor speaking once a month.

The 1998 Church Handbook of Instrutions has them speaking usually once a month, though the stake president was allowed to adjust the frequency of speaking assignments according to the needs of the ward.

The 2010 Handbook currently says the stake president determines the frequency off high councilor speaking assignments, and specifically says it is not necessary for high councilors to speak in sacrament meeting every month.

So it appears that the move away from monthly began in the late 1990s and was codified by 2010.

Codified is an interesting word. In most stakes, I think high councilors still speak monthly, although I know of a stake that has stake conference in April and October, so the stake presidency does not send out high councilors in those months because the Church also holds General Conference. That, Fast Sunday, and often Easter in April would leave a bishop with only one or even no Sunday at all to teach his members in sacrament meeting.

On the other hand, I have found that most branches are more than happy to have a high councilor visit (and speak) several times a month.

lajackson wrote:On the other hand, I have found that most branches are more than happy to have a high councilor visit (and speak) several times a month.

Probably related to the "better him than me" theory.

Here is one more suggestion for the stake president with only 12 high councilors and 17 units.

We get so used to having "high council" Sunday in a stake that it is easy to forget that there are more Sundays in the month when the high council might visit and speak. The stake presidency might send out 12 speakers on the 2nd Sunday and 5 more on the 3rd or 4th Sunday. Every unit gets visited. Half the high council speaks twice one month and then only once the next month.

This works in an area where the units are spread out. It gets easier when more than one unit meets in a meetinghouse. We used to cover 18 units by having a high councilor speak in all three or four sacrament meetings in one meetinghouse on the same Sunday.

Many years ago, one stake executive secretary casually mentioned to me that part of his responsibility was not only to schedule the high council speaking assignments in his stake, but to arrange the airlines tickets, as well. That must have been fun trying to stay under budget.

lajackson wrote:Many years ago, one stake executive secretary casually mentioned to me that part of his responsibility was not only to schedule the high council speaking assignments in his stake, but to arrange the airlines tickets, as well. That must have been fun trying to stay under budget.

Looks like Handbook 1: 14.7.2 treats priesthood travel much like building construction and utilities - paid for out of a different account.

russellhltn wrote:

lajackson wrote:. . . That must have been fun trying to stay under budget.

Looks like Handbook 1: 14.7.2 treats priesthood travel much like building construction and utilities - paid for out of a different account.

Believe me, there is still a budget to stay under. And they didn't speak in person monthly, either.

I haven't had a high councilor speak in my ward for at least 6 months. I'm in a young single adult ward in a young single adult stake. All the high councilors are out-of-unit members and are very involved in the ward – they attend the ward every week and sit on the stand, for example – but they don't usually speak.