Authority to cancel second hour meeting?

[webbles]

I learned of a ward where the bishop recently announced that the second hour would be cancelled (because of covid) and then shortly reversed the announcement.  The bishop said that he actually can't cancel the second hour.  That confused me since I've had the second hour cancelled when Christmas falls on Sunday so I know that it can be cancelled.

So I'm wondering if anyone knows what the rules are around the second hour?  I checked the handbook and I couldn't find anything obvious.  Section 29.2 was the closest and it doesn't mention anything about when the second hour can be cancelled.

[SkyRock]

My ward has just canceled 2 hour for this Sunday.  The stake president told the bishops to discuss it with their ward councils and decide. 

[The Nehor]

The First Presidency tells everyone to skip Second Hour on the Sunday closest to Christmas.

Generally the Bishop can cancel second hour. I have seen it happen due to weather or whatever. The stake presidency can overrule that decision and generally the bishop consults with the stake presidency before cancelling on own initiative. It is possible the stake or the area has issued specific instructions about covid cancellations.

[LoudmouthMormon]

I'm reminded of that fine bit of LDS cinema Baptists at our Barbeque, where the new guy hits town and arrives at church, just in time to see everyone leaving early.  He asks, and is told "Church is cancelled, because President Jones has had it."  Apparently the small branch burst into argument over whether hymn books were evil or not.

[InCognitus]

Our bishop once canceled half of sacrament meeting (it was fast and testimony meeting) and the second hour, and it was the most exciting church meeting I have ever attended!  My then three year old twin grandsons loved it too.  It was canceled because of some smoke coming from some vents in the cultural hall, and the fire department was called.  We stood outside and watched the firetrucks for a while before heading for home.  There was never any fire, and they later found the cause of the smoke, so there was no damage or anything like that.  But it made for a great sacrament meeting!  My only regret is that we didn't sing "The Spirit of God like a fire is burning" for the opening hymn that day.

[carbon dioxide]

Is it possible if one thinks testimony meeting is going too long, they can go up and instead of giving a testimony, they just give a closing prayer?

[The Nehor]

3 hours ago, carbon dioxide said:

Is it possible if one thinks testimony meeting is going too long, they can go up and instead of giving a testimony, they just give a closing prayer?

You can try. It probably won’t work.

[Stargazer]

20 hours ago, carbon dioxide said:

Is it possible if one thinks testimony meeting is going too long, they can go up and instead of giving a testimony, they just give a closing prayer?

I was once in a testimony meeting where some random guy (don't know if he were a member or not) stood up in the congregation (we had a wandering mic) and went on at some length over seemingly random things that wasn't along the lines of testimony. Then he gave the mic back to the young deacon who had handed it to him. And then, about five minutes before the bishop (who was conducting that day) would have stood up to end the meeting, the random guy started trying to get the deacon's attention again -- he apparently had more to say. Well, I wasn't going to go for that, so since I was sitting in the aisle just opposite the guy and a row or so further to the front, I got the deacon's attention first and took possession of the mic. When the then-current testimony bearer finished, I stood up to bear a longish testimony using up those five minutes, and then began intentionally rambling about a gospel topic while I attempted to get the bishop's attention, pointing at my watch while he watched me, and looking imploringly at him, hoping to get cut off somehow. 

Well, it didn't work. I finally gave up, and handed the mic back, then the deacon responded to the guy's motions to get the mic next. And he proceeded to drivel on for another 3 or 4 minutes about something else not particularly cogent that he had thought about in the meantime. Later, the bishop asked me: "You were trying to save me, weren't you?" 

In retrospect, I think it might have been better just to let the guy have the mic, and then the meeting might have ended on time. But I wasn't really interested in timing; I was more interested in the spirit of the meeting, and this guy just wasn't contributing -- and he had had his say already, after all.

It was memorable.

[rongo]

In our ward on Chicago, we had an ancient Filipino brother whom no one could understand. He would bear a testimony the entire meeting. The bishopric, thinking that if he prayed, he might feel like he had contributed to the meeting, had him give the opening prayer. He gave an opening prayer that lasted about 25 minutes. Which no one could understand.