true to the faith handout

“True to the Faith” 

President Gordon B. Hinckley

“Whether you are among the posterity of the pioneers or whether you were baptized only yesterday, each is the beneficiary of their great undertaking.”

“Most noble, as we’ve heard, among those who paid a terrible price were the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies of 1856.”

“There were not wagons enough to carry all who were converted in England and western Europe. If they were to come to Zion, they would have to walk, pulling a small cart behind them. Hundreds did so, and traveled faster than did the ox teams. But these two companies in 1856 literally walked with death. They started late, and no one knew they were coming. Their carts were not ready. A few who could afford wagons were assigned to travel with them to give assistance. They started west singing as they went. Little did they know what lay ahead of them.”

“They walked beside the Platte, ever westward. Near Fort Laramie their troubles began. Snow commenced falling. Their rations were reduced. They knew they were in desperate circumstances as they slowly crept over the high plains of Wyoming. Some 200 perished in that terrible, tragic march.”

“Legion are the stories of those who were there and who suffered almost unto death and who carried all of their lives the scars of that dreadful experience. It was a tragedy without parallel in the western migration of our people.”

“With so great an inheritance, we can do no less than our very best. Those who have gone before expect this of us. We have a mandate from the Lord. We have a vision of our cause and purpose.”

“Let us seek out the righteous of the earth who will listen to our message of salvation. Let us bring light and truth and understanding to a generation that is prone in its disillusionment to look for other things.”

“God has blessed us with wonderful facilities in which to teach the living truth. We now have meetinghouses scattered across the continents. Let us use them to nurture our people with “the good word of God.” ^{6 “}

Daughters of Utah Pioneers Activity (2nd, 3rd, 4th and 7th Wards)

Trek Activity for April 2^nd  (for 2^nd , 3^rd , and 7^th Wards) 

(April 1st for 4th Ward)

Daughters of Utah Pioneers
Pioneer Memorial Museum
300 N. Main St., SLC 84103

Preparation:

·       Arrange for transportation for your trek family. YM and YW presidencies should be included as resources. (Parents of youth can be recruited if more drivers are needed)

·       Announce the meeting time and leaving time to all of your trek youth and their parents. You will be participating as a trek family but you are welcome to combine with the other families in your ward if desired.

·       Make sure you have enough copies of the “Museum Scavenger Hunt” and the “True to the Faith” quote from President Hinckley for everyone.

·       Bring the youth’s Trek Journals so they can make an entry after the museum experience.

·       Encourage the youth to bring a pen/pencil for the scavenger hunt and journal entry. (You may want to bring some extras just in caseJ). If you plan to do the “True to the Faith” glue in during the activity you will need glue sticks as well.

Recommended Time: 6:00pm meet at ward house. Leave at 6:15pm. Adjust to a slightly later start time if needed however, the museum closes at 8pm on Wednesday nights (5pm other nights) so leaving at 6:15pm will allow for one hour at the museum. Ask someone to offer a prayer before you head out.

At the Museum:

·       Designate a meeting time and place for the activity to end.

·       Give everyone a copy of “Museum Scavenger Hunt.”

·       This will be a self-guided tour through the museum to try and find as many items on the scavenger hunt list as possible.

·       Please remind the youth to be respectful. No running around or being loud.

Before leaving the museum, on the way home, or back at the church:

·       Give time for the youth to record thoughts, impressions, feelings, something learned, etc. in their journals.

·       If possible, have the youth glue the “True to the Faith” quote in their journals. This may require time at a future activity if time before, during, or after the museum does not permit.

Purpose of this activity:

·       Help the youth better appreciate what everyday life was like in the days of the pioneers.

·       See what the pioneers carried with them on their trek west.

·       Understand a little deeper the sacrifices the pioneers made.

·       Have FUN!!

Driving Directions (Approx. 40-45 min. drive time):

1.     Head north on I-15

2.     Take exit 309 to 600 N.  (Approximately 26.5 miles from 2100 N. in Lehi)

3.     After exiting the freeway turn right (east) onto 600 N.

4.     Travel about 0.6 miles to 300 W.

5.     Turn right (south) onto 300 W.

6.     Travel about 0.5 miles to 300 N.

7.     Turn left (east) onto 300 N.

8.     Travel about 0.4 miles to Main St.

9.     Take a sharp left turn (north) onto Main St.

10.  The museum will be on your right.

Daughters of Utah Pioneers
Museum Scavenger Hunt

As you look around the museum answer these two questions:

1.     What item from pioneer days do you wish you could have used?_______________________________________

2.     What item are you glad you didn’t have to use?_____________________________________________________

Scavenger Hunt!!!  Try to answer these questions as you go through the museum:

Main Floor:

1.     Name the woman who wore the leather mask to protect from the blowing sand?__________________________

2.     How many people can sit at Brigham Young’s desk at the same time?___________________________________

3.     My favorite item/display on this floor was_________________________________________________________

Second Floor:

1.     Whose piano was buried along the pioneer trail? What was it wrapped in before being buried?______________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

2.     Who are 3 famous people represented by dolls in the Doll Room?______________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

3.     In the Clothing Room, what material was used to make Luke Johnson’s clothes?___________________________

4.     My favorite item/display on this floor was­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­_________________________________________________________

Third Floor:

1.     Who carved his own wooden leg?________________________________________________________________

2.     What are two types of material used to make pioneer canes? (Foyer)___________________________________

3.     What are 3 Utah symbols on the 1947 Centennial Gowns?____________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

4.     My favorite item/display on this floor was_________________________________________________________

Basement:

1.     What year was the two-headed lamb born?________________________________________________________

2.     Which explorer used the snow shoes?_____________________________________________________________

3.     What item was made by Native Americans from a flour sack?__________________________________________

4.     My favorite item/display on this floor was_________________________________________________________

*Feel free to walk around the Carriage House but there are no questions to answer.

temple activity handout

The Purpose of Temple and Family History Work 

The Mission of Elijah

“Many of your ancestors died never having the chance to accept the gospel and to receive the blessings and promises you have received. The Lord is fair and He is loving. And so He prepared for you and me a way for us to have the desire of our hearts to offer to our ancestors all the blessings He has offered us.

“The plan to make that possible has been in place from the beginning. The Lord gave promises to His children long ago. …

“'Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:

“'And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse' (Malachi 4:5-6).”

—Henry B. Eyring, “Hearts Bound Together,” Ensign, May 2005

Blessings for the Dead

“Many of your deceased ancestors will have received a testimony that the message of the missionaries is true. When you received that testimony you could ask the missionaries for baptism. But those who are in the spirit world cannot. The ordinances you so cherish are offered only in this world. Someone in this world must go to a holy temple and accept the covenants on behalf of the person in the spirit world. That is why we are under obligation to find the names of our ancestors and ensure that they are offered by us what they cannot receive there without our help. …

“Remember that the names which will be so difficult to find are of real people to whom you owe your existence in this world and whom you will meet again in the spirit world. When you were baptized, your ancestors looked down on you with hope. Perhaps after centuries, they rejoiced to see one of their descendants make a covenant to find them and to offer them freedom. In your reunion, you will see in their eyes either gratitude or terrible disappointment. Their hearts are bound to you. Their hope is in your hands. You will have more than your own strength as you choose to labor on to find them.” 

—Henry B. Eyring, “Hearts Bound Together,” Ensign, May 2005

Blessings for the Living

“We must accomplish the priesthood temple ordinance work necessary for our own exaltation; then we must do the necessary work for those who did not have the opportunity to accept the gospel in life. Doing work for others is accomplished in two steps: first, by family history research to ascertain our progenitors; and second, by performing the temple ordinances to give them the same opportunities afforded to the living.

“Yet there are many members of the Church who have only limited access to the temples. They do the best they can. They pursue family history research and have the temple ordinance work done by others. Conversely, there are some members who engage in temple work but fail to do family history research on their own family lines. Although they perform a divine service in assisting others, they lose a blessing by not seeking their own kindred dead as divinely directed by latter-day prophets. …

“I have learned that those who engage in family history research and then perform the temple ordinance work for those whose names they have found will know the additional joy of receiving both halves of the blessing.”

—Howard W. Hunter, “A Temple-Motivated People,” Ensign, Feb. 1995

Learn to Save Our Own Dead

“Thousands of our faithful people seldom go to the temple, and of those who do go, most are not working on their own ancestral lines. They are not saving their own dead. They seem to believe they are fulfilling their responsibilities by merely attending the temple occasionally. This is simply not so.

“We all must learn that to save our own dead we must properly identify them so that we can then perform the work for them in the temples. …

“Saints in every temple district must be taught to provide their own names. Japanese people should provide the names for their own Tokyo temple. South American people should provide the names for their own Sao Paulo temple. Likewise in Mexico and Seattle and in every other established area. If they do so, then they will save their own dead. If they do not, and depend on Salt Lake City to send names…, they do not save their own dead, but instead they work on other people’s ancestry.”

—Spencer W. Kimball, regional representatives seminar, Sept. 30, 1976