As the session began, before anything else, President Gordon B. Hinckley stood and said:

"Brothers and Sisters, as we open this meeting, I offer the following statement:Thank you."

President Hinckley then sat down, whereupon President Thomas S. Monson rose to open the session as he was conducting. (I transcribed the above quote by replaying it on the TiVo after the Conference session finshed. Any errors are mine. The official statement released by the First Presidency is available online here at the Church's web site.)

How cool is that, the Prophet expressing respect and sympathy for passing of this respected Catholic leader? As a Mormon myself, I echo President Hinckley in expressing sympathy to the many Catholic faithful out there. I think that Pope John Paul II was a good man and I appreciate the role he played in helping the cause of freedom, particularly in his homeland of Poland where he was instrumental in Poland's throwing off the chains of communism and the later fall of the Soviet empire.

Saturday Afternoon Session:

This session of conference is always one of my favorite, because the officers of the Church are sustained. I get to raise my right hand and manifest my commitment that I will sustain President Gordon B. Hinckley as the Prophet, Seer, and Revelator and President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, then sustain his two counselors in the First Presidency, and then the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

The choir, a combined Institute choir from Ogden and Logan, Utah, just sang "As I Search the Holy Scriptures" and it was very nice. Now President Thomas S. Monson is beginning the sustaining of church officers so I'll stop typing for a bit.

Wow, we're getting a new Primary Presidency, a new Church Historian, new members of the First and Second Quorums of the Seventy. Interesting! I'm also impressed at how well President Monson does at pronouncing officers' names especially as the Church grows internationally and the languages of nativity of the Church officers is more varied.

Some church statistics jotted down from the Statistical Report: As of 31 Dec. 2004, there are 2665 stakes, 338 missions (I didn't catch the total number of missions at first, so I had to rewind the TiVo after the session ended to get the number.), 646 districts, 26,670 wards and branches, and 12,275,822 members of the Church. During 2004, there were 98,870 new children of record and 241,239 new converts baptized. There are 51,067 full-time missionaries serving. Last year, 3 temples were dedicated, and 2 temples were redidicated, with a total of 119 temples currently in operation. Cool.

Elder Joseph B. Wirthin is now speaking. He's currently talking about kindness, sharing examples from the life of Christ, from the Prophet Joseph Smith, and from his own experiences.

I like what he's saying about kindness right now. I think I want to work on improving the tone of my voice when I express things emphatically. It's too easy for me to not pause and really listen to others and express empathy when I want to say something strongly. And I really don't want to be perceived as being angry when I'm not, nor do I want to encourage anger in others because of the intensity of my tone. I think I will work these next six months on modulating my tone better and listening with sensitivity to others, and on being kind to others. I can use my mother as an example. She does this perfectly. She's a true peace maker.

Oooh, Elder Richard G. Scott is now speaking. I love listening to him in particular. His delivery style is wonderful. It looks like he's going to talk about the recent changes to the missionary teaching materials, the "Preach My Gospel" resource. (I've only glanced at it, and it looks excellent. I need to look more deeply.) He mentioned that the new material better focuses missionaries on helping lead people unto Christ, and that it can be used in the home to prepare youth to serve missions.

This is fascinating. I like hearing how this new manual was developed. It was printed in English first, but has now been printed in quite a few languages, and soon will be available in almost all the languages spoken by full-time missionaries world-wide. Amazing. That's a big job.

I could listen to Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf forever. His accent when speaking English is enjoyable on the ear. And his powerful testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith was wonderful.

Elder Robert D. Hales spoke about missionary couples serving missions. I liked his advice. He talked about those who might not have resources to serve in a distant land, how there are opportunites that may be close by, in one's own stake or area. And about those who may not have served missions in their youth, he had wonderful words: "My advice to you: look forward, not back. Save a little money each month, study the scriptures, accept church calls, pray to feel the Lord's love..." (The last few words of the quote may not be word-for-word.) His message is applicable to more than just those preparing to serve missions. I liked his "Trust in the Lord" message. He concluded with a quote from D&C 98:13: "And whoso layeth down his life in my cause, for my name’s sake, shall find it again, even life eternal."

I sure hope my own parents have the opportunity to serve a mission together someday. I know it's the desire of their hearts to do so, after Julianne graduates from High School and circumstances permit.

Sweet, the choir is concluding with "Come, Come Ye Saints", a Mack Wilberg arrangement (I love, love, LOVE his arrangements), I believe. The arrangement is stunning! Well done, choir!

What a marvelous session of Conference. Even the benediction was perfect, concluding with a prayer to Heavenly Father asking a blessing that we participants of General Conference be able to make the changes in our lives necessary to come unto Christ.