The Paul Hatch Family April 2008
My parents drove out to Colorado on the way to Salt Lake City for Conference this weekend. They stopped by early in the week and we had a family gathering. My Dad snapped this shot of our family with his digital camera. My parents will be in the conference center for the solemn assembly this morning in Salt Lake City.
Here is a link to an article published this morning on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints web site explaing General Conference! The conference is streamed live on the internet, so click on the link to get to the site!
We will be sustaining our new Prophet Thomas Monson:

“Men and women who are offered various opportunities to serve in the Church are given this kind of acknowledgement by common consensus of other Church members in local congregational meetings. When a new First Presidency is sustained, the meeting is called a solemn assembly.

Common consent in the Church is an agreement among the members and leaders of a congregation, local or worldwide, regarding proposed assignments given to people within that congregation. Individuals choose to accept an assignment, and fellow members then have the chance to show support for that decision. A form of congregational common consent was practiced in biblical times, as found in the book of Exodus, when Moses “told the people all the words of the Lord” and the “people answered with one voice.”

What is General Conference?
General Conference is Personal

“Mormons find that the same address can be understood in different ways by different people. Mormons ascribe this to a desire on the part of each person to receive uniquely relevant and applicable instruction and inspiration from sermons, with the help of God’s Holy Spirit. This form of tailor-made learning, experienced by people of all faith traditions who sincerely engage with sacred texts or in religious services, is something that must be experienced to be truly comprehended.

For Mormons, general conference is an exciting time when large numbers gather to hear sermons, sacred music and news. But the most satisfying, profound and exhilarating thoughts and feelings of inspiration come when one person receives an answer to a serious personal question or is reassured by a connectedness to God and others.”

As a confirmed News Junkie, General Conference is an opportunity for me to relax, sit back, and over a two day span hear eight hours of pure unadulterated truth. It always recharges my batteries and keeps me grounded for the next six months of “the philosophies of men mingled with scripture” as I closely follow current events.
Jenny Hatch

Paul and Jenny Hatch with my parents.

This is a short montage of some of the pictures my Dad took at our gathering.