--- title: Times and Seasons description: Issues of 1842 to 1843. authors: - Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints editors: - Ebenezer Robinson - Don Carlos Smith - Smith, Joseph, Jr. - Taylor, John collections: - periodicals tags: - newspaper - times-and-seasons - nauvoo - nineteenth-century periodical: Times and Seasons volume: 4 number: 21 published: 1843-09-15 publisher: E. Robinson and D. C. Smith; later John Taylor publisher_place: Commerce and Nauvoo, Illinois language: en type: article reference: "“Afternoon Service,” *Times and Seasons* 4, no. 21 (September 15, 1843): 332–333." printed_title: AFTERNOON SERVICE. source: url: https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1843-09-15_4_21 transcription: Text from the Centerplace.org transcription (https://www.centerplace.org/history/ts/v4n21.htm), with its page breaks; this Internet Archive scan is the reference copy (its OCR was used only as a witness for OCR repair) identifier: per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1843-09-15_4_21 start_page: 332 end_page: 333 curator_note: A Mormon newspaper published by the church in Nauvoo; included for historical study. Inclusion does not imply endorsement. rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1843 (Nauvoo, Illinois); published before 1931, so public domain in the United States source: https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_times-and-seasons_1843-09-15_4_21 publication_year: 1843 --- # Afternoon Service The meeting being opened by singing the 144th hymn, elder Clark engaged in prayer.-After the second hymn, a blessing was asked upon the bread by elder Banks. President Ward then rose and gave some suitable instructions to the officers and members respecting the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. He wished them to have a clear view of its nature and design. The ordinance of baptism was a sign between the sincere believer and God, a sign of power by which we legally claimed remission of our sins, in the name of Jesus Christ, according to the ordination of heaven. So also the ordinance of the Lord's Supper was a sign between God and us, to which we attended for a distinct and certain purpose, which was, that we might have the continued influence of the spirit of God to be with us. Hence the teachings in the revelations given to direct us in the administration of this ordinance, viz:, saying, O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of they Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this bread to the souls of all those who partake of it, that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments, which he has given them, that they may always have his spirit to be with them: Amen. So likewise in blessing the wine, the idea is given us that we attend to this ordinance as a sign by which we witness these things before God, and keep his commandments, in order that we may always have his spirit to be with us. Here, then, we see the necessity of coming with clean hands to this ordinance, that we may eat and drink worthily, and not unto condemnation.-And again, we see the necessity of the exhortation, 'Neglect not the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is;' and, my dear brethren, as time rolls on, and the events that shall characterize the last days thicken around us, we shall feel the necessity of a continual influence of the spirit of the Lord God to enable us to endure all the things that shall come to pass; therefore let us comprehend the true nature of the ordinance, and seek, as Jesus exhorted, to 'do this until he come.' The representation of the branches was then resumed. Macclesfield Conference-Represented by elder James Galley, consisting of 250 members, 11 elders, 28 priests, 15 teachers, 9 deacons, comprising 6 branches. Birmingham Conference-Represented by elder Cooper Royle, consisting of 509 members, 32 elders, 32 priests, 18 teachers, 10 deacons, comprising 16 branches. Staffordshire Conference-Consisting of 377 members, 38 elders, 59 priests, 14 teachers, 10 deacons, comprising 12 branches. Edinburgh Conference-Represented by elder Henry M'Ewan, consisting of 302 members, 10 elders, 10 priests, 8 teachers, 2 deacons, comprising four branches. Garway Conference-Represented by elder Charles Taysom, consisting of 176 members, 4 elders, 5 priests, 7 teachers, 2 deacons, comprising 5 branches. Glasgow Conference-Represented by priest Peter M'Cue, consisting of 721 members, 24 elders, 32 priests, 28 teachers, 16 deacons, comprising 14 branches. Froome's Hill Conference-Consisting of 784 members, 1 high priest, 21 elders 47 priests, 21 teachers, 9 deacons, comprising about 36 branches.