In April 2020, I found myself kneeling in my own living room to bless the sacrament for my family. The first national pandemic in 100 years had cancelled Church services indefinitely, but in that room there was only peace. As I passed a plate of broken bread and then small medicine cups of water to my children, I had a new understanding of the love God has for each member of his family. It was the first of many spiritual moments that came as I heard my children share their testimonies, provided sacrament service, and shared teaching the gospel with greater depth and breadth than most episodes of family scripture study had ever allowed.
Then churches began to open again. We were reminded of some of the drama that comes with any group of people. Friends and neighbors commented how nice it was to not have church at all for several months. Staring at the dress shoes we hadn't worn for months, we wondered: why does the Lord command us to go to church each week?
Perhaps Moroni knew something of what we were feeling. Hunted by his enemies, Moroni was the last of the faithful in the Book of Mormon. Isolated with only his thoughts, he wandered "whithersoever [he could] for the safety of [his] life" (Moroni 1:3). When he had evaded the Lamanites longer than he expected, Moroni decided to risk the noise of pounding a few more words into plates of gold "that perhaps they may be of worth unto my brethren, the Lamanites, in some future day" (Moroni 1:4).
After writing about how to perform certain ordinances, Moroni records that the names of those who were baptized and confirmed "were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and finisher of their faith" (Moroni 6:4).
He continued, "And the church did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak with one another concerning the welfare of their souls. And they did meet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in remembrance of the Lord Jesus" (Moroni 6:5-6).
Moroni knew, by doctrine and by experience, that the gospel cannot be lived alone. It requires giving and receiving. It needs others to forgive and to ask forgiveness. Sometimes our ability to grow in the gospel will hinge on exiting the echo chambers of our own thoughts or pausing our own self-centeredness to serve someone else. Essential gospel ordinances can only be performed for others; we cannot baptize or confirm or endow ourselves. Indeed, the highest goals of the gospel are to become bound to our families, to the greater human family, and to our Heavenly Father.
Elder Robert D. Hales taught, "When you attempt to live life's experiences alone, you are not being true to yourself, nor to your basic mission in life." Just as we do not return to live with our Heavenly Father alone, the gospel intentionally gathers the faithful to learn, serve, rely, gather and strengthen one another.
In every generation, the Lord has taught his children that church attendance is an essential part of gospel unity and togetherness. The Law of Moses admonishes the Israelites to "keep my sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary" with a promise that, in so doing, "I [the Lord] will walk among you and will be your God and ye shall be my people" (Leviticus 26:1-12). Nehemiah described the children of Israel "assembled with fasting" to confess their sins and read the scriptures (Nehemiah 9:1-3). Joel relayed the Lord's commandment in his time to, "Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land in to the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord" (Joel 1:14). King David also taught the Israelites to worship in congregations, "And all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the Lord" (1 Chronicles 29:20-21).
Those who walked and talked with Christ were no less diligent and "came together" on the first day of the week to "break bread" and partake of the sacrament (Acts 20:7). Paul wrote to the members of the ancient church in Israel that they should draw near to the Lord, hold fast the profession of faith without wavering, and "consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another" (Hebrews 10:22-25).
Just as Moroni was willing to risk his life to write a few words about the importance of gathering, the prophet Alma, who lived five hundred years earlier, risked his life for the right to gather the faithful. Alma believed the prophet Abinadi and fled with other believers from a wicked king. Once hidden, the scriptures record that "he commanded [the faithful] that they should observe the sabbath day, and keep it holy, and also every day they should give thanks to the Lord their God... And there was one day in every week that was set apart that they should gather themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their God, and also, as often as it was in their power, to assemble themselves together" (Mosiah 18:25, 27).
Alma reorganized church leadership, cleaned up the church records and ensured that "the word of God was liberal unto all" (Alma 6:1-5). Gospel messages were now in everyone's newsfeed, as it were, but it was not enough. These members also needed to be remembered, nourished by the good word of God, and concerned with the welfare of one another's souls. Alma records that, despite the accessibility to the word of God, "the children of God were commanded that they should gather themselves together oft, and join in fasting and mighty prayer in behalf of the welfare of the souls who knew not God" (Alma 6:6).
The Lord has renewed his commandment for the faithful to meet together often "to partake of bread and wine in the remembrance of the Lord Jesus". Describing these meetings as expedient to the organization of the Church (D&C 20:75), he expounds:
And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day; For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High; Nevertheless thy vows shall be offered up in righteousness on all days and at all times; But remember that on this, the Lord's day, thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brethren, and before the Lord.
And on this day thou shalt do none other thing, only let thy food be prepared with singleness of heart that thy fasting may be perfect, or, in other words, that thy joy may be full. Verily, this is fasting and prayer, or in other words, rejoicing and prayer. And inasmuch as ye do these things with thanksgiving, with cheerful hearts and countenances, not with much laughter, for this is sin, but with a glad heart and a cheerful countenance-- Verily I say, that inasmuch as ye do this, the fulness of the earth is yours... to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul." (D&C 59:9-19).
Moroni knew perhaps better than anyone that living the gospel is not something that can be done solo. We need to be remembered and nourished by the good word of God to keep us in the right way, continually watchful unto prayer, and relying upon the merits of Christ. We need the strength of others to help us flee from wickedness and find sanctuary in gospel truths. We need the ordinance of the sacrament, the opportunities to fast for each other, and even some encounters with sharp edges to help smooth some of our own rough spots and keep ourselves more unspotted from the world.
The experiences our family had while worshipping at home will always be precious memories. We are grateful for prophets, seers and revelators that prepared us for these experiences by various means. In the tumult of the world, it seems possible that worshipping from home may be necessary again someday. Until then, it is a privilege to live the gospel more fully in the company of his disciples.
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