What happens if I can’t sustain a church leader?
Question
Gramps,
We have ward conference coming up soon. I cannot sustain our Relief Society President but I sustain the rest of the Relief Society Presidency. What happens when I don’t raise my hand to sustain her?
Belinda
Answer
Dear Belinda,
If all you do is abstain from sustaining, the votes will be seen as unanimous and the conference will move forward as planned. If, however, you decide that you will oppose the sustaining, something else happens.
From the transcript of the October 1980 conference:
“It is proposed that we sustain President Spencer W. Kimball as prophet, seer, and revelator, and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All in favor, please manifest it. Contrary, by the same sign.
“[A call of “no” from several in the congregation]
“Elder McConkie: President Romney, it appears that there are three negative votes. This is to advise those so voting that they may meet with Elder Gordon B. Hinckley of the Council of the Twelve following this session. Thank you.
“President Romney: Thank you.”
Similarly, should you choose to oppose the sustaining, you will be invited to meet with a member of the bishopric after the meeting to voice your concerns in private. Appropriate action will then be taken based on the information you share. For instance, if you know of some grievous sin committed by the president, the bishop can convene a disciplinary council. Conversely, the bishop may already be aware of the information and have knowledge that you do not (of her repentance, or that rumors are unfounded), in which case you will be thanked for sharing and nothing further will be done. If there is something of a less grievous nature but which still needs to be addressed, this knowledge can be used to instruct and train the president. Finally, if the reasons for opposing are wholly yours – that is, the president rubs you the wrong way, or the two of you just don’t get along – then the bishop may take the time to give you some much needed counsel.
Regardless, if you feel that you can’t sustain a leader, you don’t need to wait for a formal setting to voice it. Ask to speak with your bishop (or even your Relief Society president) to either aid your president or to seek counsel.
Gramps
Are we sustaining the individual, or sustaining the brethren in their decision to call the individual?
There are many meanings of the word “sustain.” To me it means to honor and to help that person in his/her position and help give them the strength/knowledge to perform the calling that he/she has accepted and informed the Bishopric that the calling is acceptable to him/her and he/she will serve with all his/her heart and soul. I believe that there is an implied meaning that we are approving the selection by the brethren, not sustaining them.
Here’s what is states in Handbook 2
When presenting a person for a sustaining vote, an authorized priesthood officer asks him or her to stand. The officer may say:“[Name] has been called as [position], and we propose that he [or she] be sustained. Those in favor may manifest it by the uplifted hand.
We sustain the individual in said calling.
If you can’t sustain someone, maybe it would be better to say so then let feelings of bitterness brew inside you. It might give you just the chance you need to sit down and voice your concerns with the presiding authorities, so that you can see if it’s really the person in question who shouldn’t be sustained for something they have done or a personal beam that needs to be removed from the eye. My policy with questioning is: the dumbest question is the one that’s never asked or the one that merely seeks to waste time.
I did not sustain our Stake Presidency today because of the actions of the 2nd counselor. I believe his lifestyle to be against all doctrine – he is a divorce attorney and makes his money destroying families. When people defend him by saying “that’s his job”, I want to scream! If your job causes you to behave unChristlike – FIND ANOTHER JOB! I have seen this man in court and he thrives on destroying innocent people just for money. I felt that not raising my hand made me as much a hypocrite as I state he is – so I had to vote against ….
And when they noted my opposition – that was it. No one asked me anymore about it.
The process of sustaining leadership is a redundancy. It is nothing more than a way to get a “buy-in” from the membership
p. For example, if Spencer Kimball was really called of God, then not sustaining him is speaking against God. I personally have never understood the process, nor do I find it necessary. If someone has an issue, they should seek a meeting to discuss the issues in private. I know it is Church procedure, but it is a meaningless process. Religion is not a democracy. The leaders lead and the followers follow. That is the way it really works.