General Authorities in attendance: President Joseph Fielding Smith and Elders Spencer W. Kimball, Mark E. Petersen, Delbert L. Stapley, LeGrand Richards, Patriarch Eldred G. Smith, Elders S. Dilworth Young, and Bruce R. McConkie.

President Joseph Fielding Smith presided at and conducted the meeting

Invocation was offered by Elder S. Dilworth Young

President Smith welcomed the brethren to the meeting. We have so many new patriarchs there are many here this morning who were not here one year ago. It is impossible for us to meet with the patriarchs every conference. When we do not have a mission president's meeting, we try to arrange a meeting. I am going to refer to some of the questions and answers given in our meeting held April, 1956

Let us be conservative in giving blessings

Be sure that the Spirit of the Lord is speaking and not let our own sympathies or our own feelings direct us in what we say, but seek earnestly for the guidance of the Spirit of the Lord

We do not need to promise those who come to us for blessings that they will live to see the building of Jackson County or to labor in the temple which will be built there. These things are not essential in a blessing. Be conservative and careful.

In writing the blessings use single space. You are furnished paper and envelopes by the Church. We furnish each patriarch, as you know, a record book in which to keep the blessings. The original copy of the blessing should be placed in the book on the sheets provided and the copy given to the person who receives the blessing. When your book is full you should send it or bring it to the Historian's office and we will give you another book. These books belong to the Church. When a book is finished or full, it should be sent to the Historian's office where it will be filed and kept in the archives of the Church.

When you give a blessing to an individual, sit down with him or her privately before giving the blessing and talk to him or her, learn all you can about them. Learn something about their parents.

I do not advocate giving blessings to children who are too young to comprehend what it is about. That should not be encouraged. If they are old enough, young men could be deacons, and girls of similar age, they might have blessings.

When a patriarch moves to another stake, his privilege to give blessings ceases. He was set apart to labor in the stake where he was sustained. When a patriarch moves into a new stake, if his services are needed, it is up to the stake president to write to the President of the Church to get approval and when that is granted he may be sustained. He does not have to be set apart again. He is already a full-fledged patriarch and when sustained by the people may serve in that stake without being set apart.

Patriarchs should not be asked to give comfort blessings, whatever that means. People may be despondent or have various difficulties and just want a blessing for comfort. That is not the business of a patriarch. A patriarch is an elder in Israel and may administer to the sick but people who want comfort blessings should go to the bishop of the ward. Let him give the blessing or appoint some members of the priesthood to give it

If you good brethren want to get information that might help you, go to the Historian's office where we will let you sit down and go over blessings given by some of our patriarchs who have had lots of experience and you can read their blessings.

A question came from one of our patriarchs a few days ago concerning temple marriage where children are involved. If a woman marries in the temple for the first time, has several children and her husband dies and she remarries and has more children, who would the second set of children belong to? They would belong to the mother and her dead husband. She was married under the covenant and when married the second time for time only, the father of these children has no claim on them. This comes out of the law given anciently that if a woman married and the husband died without leaving a son to carry on the name, it was the law that the nearest male member of the family would take the widow and the issue of such marriage would belong to the dead husband. Of course, that did not prevent a man from having a wife of his own in that day. We cannot do those things today.

In a case where a man and a woman are married in the temple for time and eternity and the man become immoral and forfeits his rights by violation of his covenants, that is another problem. The woman should first get a cancellation of her sealing, which must be done by the President of the Church, and then a second man can take that woman for time and eternity.

In looking over some of the blessings, we have few suggestions. Patriarchs should audit their blessings better. Some of the patriarchs should issue blessings a little more carefully. It is the right of the patriarch by inspiration to give the lineage of the person receiving the blessing. Now it may be that the Lord does not inspire you to say, for instance, that they are Ephraimites or from Manasseh or Judah. Maybe in giving the blessing you only say they are from the seed of Abraham. Well, if you are from the seed of Abraham that should be sufficient, but it does not seem to be enough for some people. Don't say they are from the House of Ephraim or from Manasseh unless you feel that way and the Lord gives you the inspiration. We have blessings come in where the blessing shows the candidate is from the seed of Judah or a descendant of Dan, so these things can happen. We might be able to satisfy people by saying they are from the House of Israel and that should suffice but some it won't, but it is your privilege, with the right inspiration, to declare the lineage of the person receiving the blessing.

Now here is a problem which to me is serious. A patriarch gave a blessing to an individual who had Negro blood in his veins and said you are of the House of Israel and entitled to all the blessings of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. A Negro cannot hold the priesthood and not holding the priesthood they cannot, until the Lord removes the restriction, enter into the exaltation of the kingdom of God and that would not entitle them to all of the blessings of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That is a very serious matter and we should be extremely careful to know the Lord is speaking to us because Negroes cannot receive the fullness. A Negro may come into the Church and we can do more for him than any other church on the face of the earth. If he is baptized and is faithful and true, he can enter the celestial kingdom, but he does not get exaltation, but as I understand it, the Lord will, in due time, remove the restrictions. Not in this world but the time will come, if the Negro receives the gospel and is true to the end, he may go to the celestial kingdom and when the right time comes the restrictions will be removed and he may receive all of the blessings. Now the reason as stated by President Brigham Young and some of the other brethren that the Negro cannot receive the priesthood is two fold. One is their own fault because of their attitude in the spirit world. They were not valiant for some cause which the Lord does not explain, and they were barred from receiving the priesthood but they were not barred from birth into this world, and were not denied the right to have a body. If he is faithful in his second estate, the time will come when these restrictions will be removed.

Now it seems you cannot stop a falsehood from spreading no matter how you try. Someone will profess to have had a vision and it gets circulated around and it seems you just cannot kill it. We have had people come in who were purported to have had visions or revelations which have time and time again been referred to as being spurious. One person came in a short time ago and said she had received something and was told to make twelve copies of it and distribute them. I told her to destroy this copy and do not make any other copies. It is a strange thing that an untruth or a falsehood will circulate and people will accept it and you cannot kill it. So brethren, seek the Lord in humble prayer. If a patriarch is to be a prophet, he must have inspiration from the Lord and he must live so he can receive it. All members of the Church should be humble and prayerful. We should live so we may have the inspiration of the Lord. Some are more inclined to let their sympathies control them when giving blessings. It is better for us to seek after the spirit and guidance of the Lord.

ELDER SPENCER W. KIMBALL: I suppose you are the voice of the Lord as few people of the Church are and therefore you should be the closest men in the world to the Lord. I believe every patriarch must realize that in giving blessings he himself has no blessing to give but that he is the mouth piece of the Lord and if he will keep himself in tune then the Lord will send a message through him. The patriarch is in a position to make friends with everyone. There is no need of having anything but the best of feelings. A bishop must turn down people at times. The bishop and stake president must chastise people, call them to repentance in a very definite way, but as I see it the patriarch never needs to make an enemy. You are in a position where you can always give blessings but never need to criticize because it is only those who are righteous who come to you. They have already been screened by the bishop.

It might be well not to receive at one time, groups of people, especially groups of children or youth, who will sit and contrast the different blessings. It seems to me that the appointment method is very important and dignified. When you make an appointment for a blessing it gives the member time to anticipate the blessing far more than just sitting down and immediately getting the blessing. He anticipates it, he prays to the Lord for inspiration for the patriarch, he realizes the blessing comes from the Lord.

It seems to me it would be a fine thing for all of you to go to the Historian's Office at times and read blessings by men who have given thousands of them. The content, of course, is the important thing, but if you could see it in language which is very expressive and impressive by those who have given so many, it should be of great assistance to you.

This is a glorious program and great privilege. You stand out high in the estimation of the people. You should see that every thought and act of your life is high. Every action in your life should be holy. Your thoughts should be in keeping with the Spirit of the Lord.

Your family should know that the books belong to the Church so in case you should pre-decease them, the books could be turned over to the Historian's Office. You would do well, since you have no counselors, if you took two or three of your blessings occasionally to your stake president and say, "Would you kindly glance over these blessings to see if you have any suggestions for me." Sometimes we get in ruts. Sometimes when we give so many blessings, we use the same phraseology over and over until it has little meaning. Each blessing is individual; each person only receives one blessing in their lifetime; therefore you don't give them routine. Every blessing is very special to that individual.

PRESIDENT SMITH: We would like to hear from some of the other General Authorities but we do not have time as we desire to give you time to ask some questions you may have in your minds.

Q. We have a young man who joined the Church and there is a question as to his lineage. Is there any reason why they couldn't call upon the patriarch to see if he could give it to them, to see whether or not they have colored blood?

A. A patriarch has the right to have inspiration in a case of that kind. In a case where there might be a person suspected of having Negro blood, but it is not certain, they could go to a patriarch. He has the right to inspiration. In such a case the bishop should have the right inspiration too. There are some cases where I suppose no one could tell but the Lord.

Q. Could the matter be brought more definitely to the bishops so they will understand better the relationship between an applicant and the patriarch, especially in regard to the age at which they should have blessings and also in regard to private interviews with the applicant when the parents come with the applicant? Some people look askance at private interviews and if bishops could explain this to the parents, it would help a great deal.

A. Well, we can't invite all of our bishops to come here but they should be informed it is true. We will have to give them the information when we go to their stakes.

Q. Are all bishops aware that they should actually interview a candidate before signing the recommend to go to the patriarch? Are there any questions we should ask?

A. It is my understanding bishops have been notified, but we have so many changes of bishops probably some of them are not informed. I suppose that is a matter that can be taken up in some way with teh bishops. Certainly a bishop should interview a candidate and know something about him.

Q. Last week a sister called me who is a stake leader of girls under twelve. She said there is a lesson outlined by the M.I.A. on patriarchal blessings. She advised that the teachers had stimulated these groups to a point where it caught on like fire. She asked me what to do about bringing them all for blessings. Sometimes they stimulate these children so the whole group want blessings. Are they really prepared for blessings at that age?

A. That is why the patriarch should talk to each applicant individually, especially if they are of tender years. Let them know what a patriarchal blessing is. It is not fortune telling. We have men go to the patriarchs for blessings in connection with financial matters.

Q. Some bishops do not know how strict they should be in asking questions. Do we require the same questions as for a temple recommend, such as payment of tithing, Word of Wisdom, etc.?

A. I don't think we have made any restrictions in matters of this kind like going to the temple, but a person wanting a blessing from the Lord should put himself in order to get it.

Q. These interviews are important. In some instances, while I was a stake president, applicants became very disturbed about the patriarch's interview and felt he was entitled to inspiration from the Lord. If there is anything to receiving inspiration it seems to me that a patriarch should be careful of the questions he asks so he does not mislead them. Many times they came to me disturbed about the questions asked by the patriarch.

A. You don't need to question his morality. You can question about his family. If you know all about him, perhaps you don't need to interview him.

Q. It seems a patriarch might be influenced by some of the answers to the questions.

A. He should be influenced. For isntance, a man comes in for a blessing, he comes from the Bishop who has given him a recommend for a blessing. That does not prevent the patriarch from asking about his family or his ancestry. It does not prevent the patriarch from asking if he holds the priesthood. There are many questions that the patriarch can ask. He doesn't have to quiz him regarding his conduct.

Q. That would be fine if the patriarch would ask the right questions.

A. That is all he should ask. They have no right to ask questions which they have no business to ask. They can learn a lot about the man by asking about his family, how he is getting along. You don't have to ask anything embarrassing. The patriarch should not ask whether or not he has committed adultery or some other offense. Find out what you can about him under the inspiration of the Lord. Do not put them on the carpet. That is not the patriarch's duty.

Q. Should a patriarch ask the candidate what he would like to have in his blessing?

A. No. That should be left to inspiration. The patriarch could ask about the family, who is his father, did he belong to the Church, etc.

Q. Many people volunteer these things if you just chat with them. If a person is very secretive, the Spirit gives you a different feeling. I think we just have to chat with them about the Gospel a few minutes and we will know them.

A. It is the spirit of discernment.

Q. We have a family with ten in the family. Most of them are very active. There is an adult whose mental capacity is that of a child. They have asked about a patriarchal blessing for her. She would like to have a blessing.

A. For her sake I don't know why a patriarch would not give her a blessing. It may give her some comfort. A patriarch could say that through her faithfulness she is entitled to the blessings of the celestial kingdom of God. Her condition is something which is not eternal. That is a physical condition which will disappear in the resurrection. I don't know why a blessing could not be given to such a person although the mental capacity is only that of a child.

Q. In the mission field we often get open post cards from applicants who desire a patriarchal blessing. They go through the post office where Gentiles read them and inasmuch as it is a sacred thing it would be much better if they were in sealed envelopes. Also instead of addressing them "Patriarch so-and-so" they should be addressed "Elder so-and-so."

Q. Must we have an individual alone when giving the blessing?

A. No. If a father or mother comes, let them in. It is well to have the interview by themselves but you can invite the parents in for the blessing.

Q. We have a lot of people desiring patriarchal blessings whose husbands are not members of the Church. Would it be permissible for the husband to come in?

A. I don't think so. He has given his consent to have the blessing.

Q. Blessings should be given within a short period after the recommend is issued. Not long ago a man and his wife both called for appointments for a blessing. It happened the husband got there first and I took his recommend which was two months old. When I got questioning him about his family, I said, "How about you and your wife, are you getting along?" He said, "That is the trouble. We are in the process of a divorce." I told him to go back to the wife and tried to explain the benefits of marriage. I explained this to the bishop and he said, "It all happened since the recommend was issued."

Q. We had a case where a stake president's wife wanted the patriarch of another stake to give her grandchildren blessings. What should be the attitude of the patriarch in a case of that kind?

A. Don't give the blessing. This is the rule of the Church. The patriarch has jurisdiction in the stake in which he presides and that is all, with this exception that he may give blessings to his nearest kin. I suppose that means he could give a blessing to a brother or a sister or a grandson or a granddaughter, when they don't live in his stake but he has no right to promiscuously give blessings in another stake.

Q. I am going to Los Angeles where my brother's son lives who has a daughter who wants me to give her a blessing in that stake. This is my brother's son's daughter.

A. I believe that is getting a little off the line. It should be a direct descendant.

Q. Suppose this relative of mine should come to my stake with a recommendation signed by the stake president and bishop. He comes into my stake, can I give him a blessing?

A. Not if it is not a direct lineage.

Q. What is the procedure for those living in the missions where they do not have a patriarch available?

A. We have a Presiding Patriarch of the Church who has jurisdiction everywhere.

Q. Sometimes people come to me from the mission fields and there is no patriarch's name on the recommend. A few years ago Patriarch Smith authorized me to give them blessings in such cases.

A. You can do that.

Q. Is it necessary for everyone to have a recommend?

A. Yes, sir. Bishops should talk to these people and tell them something of what a blessing means and prepare the way for it.

Q. After interviewing a person, if a patriarch decides that this person is not entitled to a blessing, can he refuse it?

A. Yes. He has the right of inspiration. If a patriarch questions a man and finds something in his life which has not been cleared up, he does not have to give him a blessing if his life has not been worthy.

Meeting adjourned at 9:15 a.m. after benediction by Patriarch Eldred G. Smith.