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| | #REDIRECT[[Word of Wisdom implementation over time#Why does the presiding Mormon authority receive the sacrament before the rest of the congregation?]] |
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| ==Question: Why does the presiding Mormon authority receive the sacrament before the rest of the congregation?==
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| ===By partaking of the sacrament first, the presiding officer is signaling or communicating to the congregation that the ordinance has been performed properly===
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| The practice of passing the sacrament first to the presiding leader is a practice that started about 100 years ago in the Church. There are at least two reasons for which the presiding authority is passed the sacrament first:
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| #All ordinances take place under the direction of priesthood keys. For example, if I am a member of a ward and a priesthood holder, this does not mean that I can have a sacrament service on my own. The only person who can authorize that is the person that holds the keys for me--and that is my bishop.Thus, by partaking of the sacrament first, the presiding officer is signaling or communicating to the congregation that the ordinance has been performed properly--that the person who blessed it was ordained, authorized, and approved to do so. It also demonstrates that the prayer was offered properly, etc.
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| #The second reason is that those who are led by someone holding keys have a right to know that that person is living worthy. Thus, they can witness the renewal of that person's covenants with the sacrament.
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| ===The practice is, however, a tradition: The ordinance is still valid even if the tradition is not followed===
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| There are, for example, stories of Church authorities who passed the sacrament to the congregation before partaking of it themselves.
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