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I was hoping just to read about this topic but I cannot find it on the site. Anyway… I am having problems with PPI’s (Personal Priesthood Interviews). Frankly, I just don’t want to do them. I don’t like them. They make me uncomfortable. It just feels creepy. So, here is my question. Why is there a need to have them? What is it any of my elder’s quorum presidents business what I do in my home? Why can’t they just ask me if I did my home teaching or if my families have any needs? Why does it have to be so formal and condescending? Please help me understand. It doesn’t have to be, and it varies from ward to ward – both in whether or not it’s done and in how it’s done. I like the idea of Home Teachers reporting on their families and not reporting stats, since it can keep it personal and person-focused, but I’m not a fan of asking each person what’s going on in their homes. That can be handled properly by a focus on only serious issues that require help of some sort, and that information can be gained from good Home Teachers. I also am not in favor of seeing face-to-face meetings as necessary. Phones, email, Skype, etc. are part of our world, and we ought to use them to cut down on travel and non-necessary meetings.
Frankly, the more intrusive instances I have seen (and tried to correct) have happened because the leader is an micro-manager and/or because the Home Teachers don’t inform the leaders about serious problems.
If you don’t want to participate, don’t. If anyone pushes back, tell the leadership that you don’t want to add another meeting that keeps you away from your family and are fine with them getting info from your Home Teacher(s). Anyone who argues with that . . . (I won’t complete that sentence, since I know some people will argue with it.)
What Ray said. Seriously, there’s no scriptural indication they need to happen that I’m aware of. I have been fortunate enough to live in wards where they usually don’t happen anyway. I see no argument against simply but politely refusing. common twit wrote:What is it any of my elder’s quorum presidents business what I do in my home?
none, even if they think they have keys or think God is directing them and they have your best interests at heart…none.You can try to appreciate their intentions, but hold your ground on what you feel is right for you and your home.
I also have found how busy they are, it usually doesn’t stick for long, as they aren’t 100% with their responsibilities. Try to avoid the appointments before you have to just come out and decline. If you would rather go to them, don’t answer anything more than you want to. Yes/No answers and a smile works too.
I also have never seen the point of a PPI especially if the home teaching program is working… just a short story for you that may help and it may not. The stake president asked all the EQ presidencies to interview each HT companionship every month. I looked at my EQP and said no. I then volunteered to tell the stake president no if he wanted me to. (Just FYI I like my EQP he is really down to earth and as most are he is just trying to do the job.) Anyway, the point of this is that I haven’t heard anything about this for the last two months. So, as was mentioned by Heber it will probably go away, but I would be direct and honest in any requests for a PPI rather than just avoiding them. I used to hold them as a priesthood leader cuz the manual said so. I found the brethren that did not do hometeaching hated them. Eventually, they would stop agreeing to come even though I was reportedly not abrasive about them. So, I did it backwards. I did it only with the ones who were willing to hold one, most of whom were doing some or all of their hometeaching. In other words, I focused on strengthening the strong, rather than trying to change people who weren’t into it.
Ultimately, it’s your choice whether you participate in one or not. If my priesthood leader was condescending, I would tell the appointment booker “I did this much home teaching, here are the needs of the families….you can use the time to PPI other brethren”. If he pressed, I would push back, politely and assert myself.
Thanks everyone. I like HTing. I believe it is a good program for the most part. However, the ppis i havebeen to seem to be more of an interegation than a help. I guess I will just continue to avoid them. After all, who needs another meeting? The first cultural article of faith is: Quote:“We believe in meetings.”
My favorite quote about meetings is:
Quote:“It takes a **** fine meeting to be better than no meeting.”
Old-Timer wrote:The first cultural article of faith is:
Quote:“We believe in meetings.”
My favorite quote about meetings is:
Quote:“It takes a **** fine meeting to be better than no meeting.”
“If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be “meetings”
– Dave Barry
I have to ask if you can provide a source for the following as I heard it came from Brigham Young and I looked and couldn’t find it. (My library is pretty small.) Old-Timer wrote:“It takes a **** fine meeting to be better than no meeting.”
The **** is an addition I can’t source, but I believe the latest quote is from Elder Packer – which might surprise some people but is consistent with other things he has said over the years. If I ever catch up, I will try to find it. Ann wrote:Old-Timer wrote:The
first cultural article of faith is:
Quote:“We believe in meetings.”
My favorite quote about meetings is:
Quote:“It takes a **** fine meeting to be better than no
meeting.”
“If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has
not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word
would be “meetings”
– Dave Barry
Not true, meetings helped stop the Cold War from hotting up and eventually ended it.
I was also branch secretary of a society, and someone kept on canceling our meetings. The result was chaos.
I depends on the effectiveness of the leader holding the meeting. Amen, SD. Exactly. SilentDawning wrote:I depends on the effectiveness of the leader holding the meeting.
Agree with that. Also atmosphere, venue, format etc. I think the dynamics of many church meetings could be improved without losing the message.
Many churches use – maybe overuse – Powerpoint. But I’ve never seen it used in LDS.
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