audio recording in sacrament meeting?

[Gary_Miller]

Funerals are one thing. But if I sense that someone is recording a sacrament meeting, my talk changes.

Why would your talk change just because its being recorded?

[lajackson]

I sense that someone is recording a sacrament meeting, my talk changes.

Why would your talk change just because its being recorded?

There are limits to what the Spirit will allow. In the case of a known congregation, I would say certain things to edify and uplift that were meant for their benefit, that I would never say if I thought they were being recorded and might be passed on to those who were not present, who did not benefit from the context of the meeting, and who might misunderstand what was said without additional explanation.

[dotson98]

Out ward has a lot of "shut-ins". With Stake Presidency approval, we have installed a separate "line-out" feed to a computer that digitally records the sacrament meeting. The computer has been in the Clerk's office and now it's in the library. After the recording is complete, we then edit out the sacrament service. We then burn a master CD. I built a CD duplicator (with the generous donation from a ward member- Thanks, Dad). We can burn 7 CDs in 3 minutes.

The Bishop has a list of members we regularly take the CDs to. If one of them shows up that day, he crosses them off the list. We make enough copies for those on the list. We include a program from Sacrament Meeting so that they know who was speaking. On Fast Sunday, the Bishop will take notes of who bore their testimony. We'll type that up and include it so that the listener knows who they are listening to.

We can have the CD "packet" ready by the end of Sunday School. Then the Aaronic Priesthood can take it to the member when they take the Sacrament to them.

The goal is to help the shut-in feel included. The Sabbath day was meant to worship and this system (with its expediency) allows them to do so. We have had such great success with it that we've expanded it to the other wards who meet in our building. The process has been refined so that it is really simple and not time-consuming or intrusive. I've really enjoyed it.

[gregwanderson]

That's a lot of busywork but if someone's happy doing it then who am I to complain? Do the speakers know they're being recorded? If so, I would think it would be really nice of them to sometimes acknowledge the shut-ins during their talks. I suppose each speaker is different. Some would find it fun to know that their words were going to the kindly widows. Others would be nervous about having their words preserved in any way.

What kind of "feedback" are you getting from the people who actually speak in your meetings, knowing that they're being recorded? What happens to the CDs after the people have listened to them? Seems like they should be collected at some point because having them out there forever is, well, something about that seems wrong to me.

[russellhltn]

What happens to the CDs after the people have listened to them? Seems like they should be collected at some point because having them out there forever is, well, something about that seems wrong to me.

I'm personally more concerned by the potential preservation/unknown distribution aspect then the actual recording and including the shut-ins.

[gregwanderson]

I can immediately imagine a dozen potential problems with having that material preserved indefinitely by who-knows-who. For example, what if, in a moment of youthful carelessness, the youth speaker says something that seemed funny at the time but will be embarrassing later when he's a father, an elders quorum president, a bishop, mission president, general authority, etc.? It's one thing if someone in the ward remembers the embarrassing moment. It's another if they have a CD of it!

[dotson98]

I'm not sure if the wards have made it overtly clear that the speakers are being recorded. I do know that some speakers have requested recordings for their own records. Also, there is no effort to recover the CDs. As for busy work, it sounds like a lot, but it really isn't. The entire package is ready to distribute by the 3rd hour. Pretty neat process, all things considered.

The potential risks mentioned pale in comparison to the blessings that are evident week in and week out.

[Gary_Miller]

The entire package is ready to distribute by the 3rd hour. Pretty neat process, all things considered.

Which means that someone is needlessly missing their Sunday School Class.

[gregwanderson]

I'm inclined to keep picking this apart but, since this is locally authorized by priesthood leaders and the general feeling is that the obvious benefits of doing this outweigh the costs, then I'll let it go. After all, the origin of this discussion was to find out if anyone is successfully doing something like this and, it would seem, someone is.

As for missing Sunday School, we have Sacrament Meeting last, so at least two young men miss the end of Sunday School each week to prepare the Sacrament table.

[sasgrw]

...After all, the origin of this discussion was to find out if anyone is successfully doing something like this and, it would seem, someone is.

Actually, my original question was whether it's ok to make a recording, not if anyone is successfully doing it. The handbook says video recordings should not be done but it doesn't mention audio recordings.