How Should I Handle Bishopric Involvement in my Class?

In the short term, I’m reverting to a teaching method where I write out a list of questions and scriptures, and then group people into small discussion groups where they answer the questions, with a seasoned member of the Church in each group to guide the discussion. My role becomes one of a summarizer and simply bringing high-level closure to the class. But over the longer term, I would like to do lecture/discussion as I see fit….

I was actually going to suggest something along theses lines. You might try experimenting with variations on this theme. Sometimes the right question can be the most powerful way to teach.

Vigorous head shaking is pretty close to heckling in my book. Perhaps you can talk privately with this bishopric member and kindly explain that while you welcome open and honest (and preferably courteous) discussion, his behaviour is distracting and makes it difficult for you to concentrate on your lesson. I know it would me.

That was the exact impact the head shaking had on me last time. In fact, I invited him to share what he was thinking with the class, as I’m usually on the look-out for signals someone is reacting strongly to the classroom experience. This Bishopric member just deflected my invitation and pointed to someone else who wanted to speak and left me wondering what was going on. I was EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE after that wondering what the heck he was reacting so strongly to, and it put me off base the rest of the lesson — now that I’m confortable in front of people, I find I can be teaching yet be in a parallel world of thinking at the same time — teaching, but in a distracted way. That was the impact of his behavior.

I have to confess, prior to this event, I was OK with gospel essentials teaching — it was a bit boring, but the class kept getting fuller and fuller and people were really benefiting. It made it OK. I’m feeling under the lens right now in ways that make me dread standing in front of that class.

I’ll take your suggestions under advisement and come up with some more. It could also mean having missionaries and other seasoned members stand up and teach a principle — take 5-10 minutes of the lesson each week, and also put the Bishopric member in one circle occasionally and myself in another. He’ll be so busy teaching that he won’t have time to listen to me.

Another alternative — pull out some principle that is justifiable from some obscure talk — teach it, and when I get an objection, pull out the authoritative source. Be REALLY prepared and help him see that he doesn’t have a corner on the knowledge; this his objections have firm answers grounded in widely believed authoritative sources — Truth Restored, Conference Talks, writings by the prophets.

The other alternative is just to get out of it entirely. I’m not growing in this calling, other than perhaps in how to respond to people above you who are causing problems in the class…I’ve not yet learned to deal with that effectively. However, I don’t have a lot of interest in growing in that direction either. It never happens in my full-time work.

Finally, would you rather have an ultra-traditional literalist teaching the Gospel Essentials class? Just something to consider – even though that also isn’t the best reason for staying as the teacher. Doing it because you love the class members and want to help them feel the spirit and be better Christians is the best reason. Is that a possibility for you, despite the irritation and blow to your ego?

The reason I’m here at this site so much, is that I’m on the edge when it comes to Church given the history I’ve shared on this forum, as well as those items perhaps too private to share.

Frankly, stuff like this gets under my skin lately, and I have a low tolerance for it.

Also, much of what I believe about certain scriptures is the result of other lessons I’ve experienced over the years….what if those weren’t correct? I’m now thinking I’ve got to invest 4 hours a week making sure anything I say is quoteable, citeable, passed over the vocal chords of some GA, and will experience mental blocks in front of the class. Usually, much of what I teach just comes to me as I respond on impulse to the things class members come out with — the thought of a censor in the class will definitely stem all that.

[Case in point — for years, after hearing it in Sunday School Class, and reading it in a book by Gerald Lund called The Coming of the Lord, and reading a talk by Ezra Taft Benson on the subject, I believed that Joseph Smith made the comment that the constitution would hang by a thread, and that the elder’s of the Church will save it. It was only after participating on a website where there were some Mormon Scholars and well-read lay-people that it came to the fore that we have no direct quote that he ever said it, and that many consider it conjecture. Then, someone taught it in Sunday School and I kept it to myself. Sure enough, a well-read person in the crowd raises the very things I was thinking, and sort of embarrassed the teacher — I could see how it put him off-base. Better to mention things like that privately, in my view]

So much of my survival in the Church in later years is through avoidance — avoiding those situations that are potentially damaging to me, and this may well become one of them.

I’ve been thinking of changing my role to the guide on the side lately anyway — it’s monotonous teaching the lessons in the same format all the time — and there are so many other methods available. I will do that for a while, but if the calling out continues in any format — I will have to take other measures.

I managed to get through tithing by being open and without guile to my Bishop, and feel right about it. I may have to come up with something for this one as well. One thing’s for sure — I’m not tolerating this for a long period of time. Something has to change — the current state of affairs is unacceptable to me.

If it becomes damaging, absolutely walk away from it.

Agreed. If there are others in the ward that can do it…I would let them do it. This is not always an option, but if it is, I wouldn’t hesitate to step away if it was destroying my peace.

I agree with cwald. If it is totally messing with you then get out of it.

My concern is that I’m not ready for much else right now in the Church — there is cubs (my wife is Primary President and says there is a need), but that is at a time that conflicts with my full-time work. Plus once out of the calling, it becomes a wild card about what they will call you to do next, and you have to confront the stigma of saying “No” to a calling if it’s something I object to.

Therefore, before I go that route of withdrawing (still a possiblity though, and a good suggestion), I’m considering this — I just read the new CHI and it says the Ward Mission Leader can be assigned to teach the class by “a member of the Bishopric”. I may suggest that we team-teach the class to the WML. If he agrees, I suggest he takes it to the Bishopric member. I think he might be receptive to this based on some other conversations we’ve had. I might take the class two weeks, and he takes it for two weeks of the month to provide variety to the class and a different perspective on the gospel. I still attend the class in all weeks, or go to Gospel Doctrine in the off-weeks if he wants — whatever.

[There is a nice clause that also says the lessons can be adapted to the needs of the class by the way, and that we should emphasize the Book of Mormon — something I did the prior week when we analyzed the Psalm of Nephi for positive thinking patterns in overcoming sin and promoting inner peace. I mention that as an aside. Here I thought I was being renegade but I was actually being consistent with it]

The other bit of inspiration here is to invite members of the class to read the Book of Mormon each week and share their impressions about it — another thing suggested in the manual. This could enrich the class and reduce my risk-time in front of this BP member, along with the group discussion technique. The manual also suggests inviting other members to the class who have strong testimonies of certain perinciples to share their feelings in the class — another face-time reducer. Taken with the small group discussion, this could seriously lessen the at-risk time and keep me in the calling. Plus it will break the monotony. This could be yet another way of off-loading objectionable lesson material to someone else.

See, at times the CHI can be your best friend

I would like to echo Bridget,

I too teach Gospel Essentials, but I do so in Spanish so it happens that there is less chance of interference. However, I am very empathetic to your situation. I don’t have any good answers but please know that I care.

Thanks for the empathy — glad to see that I’m not just being oversensitive, and that this is something that would concern others.

I had another thought while out on a bike ride — perhaps come up with soft ways of disagreeing with his participation in front of the class. It will mean expressing disapproval, but not in a way that is confrontive or disprespectful — more by implication. Here are some examples:

If he brings up some private interpretation and presents it as absolute, I will indicate that

“Brother so and so has obviously done some deep study, and that we’d love to see the source — it would make interesting reading since after 20 years of lessons. institute and a full-time mission I’ve never heard that before”. Use this more than once so it sends a message that these private interpretations are just that — private intepretations.

“Brother so and so always has interesting personal interpretations of such principles that I think demonstrates a kind of spiritual maturity we could all aspire to — even if those conclusions aren’t consistent with the interpretations of our own; I hope everyone understands that in spite of the certainty the gospel provides on some matters, this class is one where there is also room for diversity of opinion”

Or, for highly confrontive statements (like the one a former mission president/stake president did to me a few years ago).

“I think brother so and so’s comment provides a good example of the kinds of concerns I personally prefer to discuss privately. I’m glad he brought this up so I can share my own personal orientation to such comments while everyone is tuned in — as I’m sure you’ll encounter other teachers who have similar preferences”. And then quickly move on…..

Do you have any other ideas of sending out a gentleman’s form of disapproval without being confrontive?

(I also had another example — put together my own parable that gets my message across. In Teaching, No Greater Call, it suggests writing your own parables to get across various messages. I could have one ready and pull it out as necessary, but I’m not sure how to word it yet).

Other thoughts are welcome if you have them….