Menrichment
I am pleased to report that the Elders Quorum Menrichment meeting last weekend was a resounding success. Saturday evening, the brethren of the quorum were edified by copious baby-back ribs, ping pong and darts. We also spent 400%
of our annual budget.
Every quorum that I have attended has received the sweepings from the budget room floor. Relief Society: $2,000; Youth: $3,000; Elders Quorum: $50. And I am grateful for $50; I have been privy to less.
Now, I realize that the youth are important and that we need to get a house boat on the lake for them. I also realize that the Sisters need dinner once a month and a craft. Crafts are very important.
The Elders are happy to set up the chairs and move you in an out of the ward. Next year, we will be happy to receive our humble stipend. We will supplement it by those who are willing to further the cause of Zion.
I love the idea of Manrichment. I intend to support the cause by hosting Manrichment at Evans Manor, where salty snacks will accompany a showing of Die Hard (or its PG-13 equivalent).
Comment by Steve Evans — August 22, 2005 @ 3:32 pm
So this was an EQ activity where wives were not invited? I don’t know that I’ve ever attended such an event.
Comment by Frank McIntyre — August 22, 2005 @ 3:39 pm
I’m sooo all over this idea! Let’s make it happen!
MRKH
Comment by Mark Hansen — August 22, 2005 @ 3:49 pm
An elders quorum president has the opportunity to submit a budget and ask for more funds. It will raise eyebrows but it is possible to get a little more allocated to the EQP.
“Menrichment.” What a great concept. Sounds like a name for a LDS blog — the eternal nemesis of Feminist Mormon Housewives.
Comment by danithew — August 22, 2005 @ 4:01 pm
Nice work J. We also had an manrichment night in one of my wards — it was great. Loud movies, video games galore, way too much food… Who said the men in the church don’t get to gether and just hang out and do guy stuff occasionally?
Comment by Geoff J — August 22, 2005 @ 4:30 pm
For the record, “Menrichment” is not a moniker I came up with. That honour goes to a particularly funny member of my Baltimore Ward.
Comment by Ronan — August 22, 2005 @ 5:42 pm
Hey, we have menrichment every time we play Halo2 online and it doesn’t even cut into the budget (it’s usually two from the bishopric, two elders, and one young man). Good times.
Comment by Rusty — August 22, 2005 @ 5:49 pm
J., Count your many blessings. I was in a ward once where the EQ budget was zero (0). When we asked for money to send Christmas cards to members who had requested no home teachers, the bishop asked us how many letters we planned to send, then sent the clerk to his desk in the next room. He came back with exactly 27 stamps, the number we had said. In order to salvage the small amount of self-respect we had left, we told him to keep it, and paid it ourselves out of pocket. There’s no feeling like leaving the bishop’s office with your nose in the air!
I know of a ward in a certain college town where a monthly *brotherhood night* is held. Based on the descriptions I have heard, the object is to see how many Halo boxes can be networked together, and how much red meat you can eat before they revoke your recommend for violation of the WoW. Everybody involved is guilty, with Joseph Smith, “of the sin of levity, and of associating with jovial company”.
Comment by Mark — August 22, 2005 @ 5:52 pm
Clearly, you’ve discovered the way to increase the Elder’s Quorum budget — spend more than you have on a very successful activity, then ask for more money the next year.
Comment by Bryce I — August 22, 2005 @ 8:50 pm
My friend says her ward’s EQ has a monthly activity. I forget what they do. EQs are allowed to have activities. They just usually don’t bother.
Comment by JKS — August 22, 2005 @ 11:52 pm
The men in my ward take a big trip down the Colorado River for four days every year, they take boats and tons of food and fish and have a ball. They have a special fireside and testimony meeting. It’s been a real good friendshipping thing.
Some women have complained because they’re not invited, I’m just glad to get rid of my husband, that is not my idea of a good time. But now I will remind them of our Relief Society budget and ask them if they think the men should have dinner every month.
Comment by annegb — August 23, 2005 @ 10:21 am
Next month, my quorum will repeat what our president calls our “man’s only night” with a chili cook-off. Last year there was karaoke, which there are mixed feelings about. One good touch is that the priests’ quorum is invited too.
Comment by John Mansfield — August 23, 2005 @ 10:36 am
I think a pretty common “man” activity is to set up a weekly game of basketball during the week. Usually it is put late enough that young children have already been put to bed.
Comment by Frank McIntyre — August 23, 2005 @ 10:42 am
Ah, yes. Basketball. Seems more like an auxiliary activity. Like play group, book group, recipe group, etc. I think they are a good thing, but they don’t go very far from the handful of indaviduals that regularly prticipate. That, and I pretty much loathe the game.
Comment by J. Stapley — August 23, 2005 @ 10:51 am
J;
Please don’t lump basketball in with auxiliary activities. I’m scared to death that this will happen and basketball will go the way of the Home Schoolers - with liability being the excuse.
I agree that basketball is not a great actitivty for all as many don’t enjoy the game, but it is a starting point to quorum cohesion. Our ward has two groups the basketbrawlers and the Halo guys. It seems to included just about everyone.
Comment by RS — August 23, 2005 @ 12:01 pm
Our old wards had halo activities (one was any school holiday), the other was any weekend on xbox live.
My current ward just got back from a men only weekend trip to cedar city for golfing and mountain biking. A few weeks before we had a saturday am golf outing. Fun allround.
Comment by Jay S — August 24, 2005 @ 7:29 pm
When we did video games with the Teacher’s Q we did it “Imax Style”
Pulled out video projector used to project General Conference & Stake Conference onto big screen in Cultural Hall
Brought out sound system bought years ago to use for Youth Dances, so we don’t have to pay a DJ.(Pays to have friends with master key to building. )
Brought in couches from Foyers
Set it all up in Gym, projected games about 16 feet tall onto screen in gym… sound blasting. Bishop’s counselor, old guy, kind of scratched his head, but left us alone. Didn’t play Halo though, stuck to Football & racing games so we didn’t get jammed up on the violence thing.
Comment by porter rockwell — August 26, 2005 @ 1:05 pm
Wow, these are great ideas. I’ve been trying to come up with a good activity for my quorum
I don’t think Halo will fly with my ward though. My wife has tried her best to essentially ban me from Halo anyway.
Comment by Dustin — September 11, 2006 @ 4:08 pm
Hey, if we gave women the priesthood, do you think they’d let us lower their Relief Society Budget to $50? Think about how much money that would save across all wards in the church! They may even be able to reduce tithing a bit.
Comment by DKL — September 11, 2006 @ 4:30 pm
You know DKL, after being completely disgusted with you on other threads, I am amazed by your ability to make me smile.
That said, we just had our Second Annual Menrichment replete with ribs and it looks like we will getting an increase in budget to pay for next years event!
Comment by J. Stapley — September 11, 2006 @ 8:01 pm
We just started a solidarity movement of our own in my EQ. We call it “Enhancement” instead of Manrichment.
Comment by Brad Kramer — September 11, 2006 @ 8:05 pm
Wow - you guys all have great budgets! What ward would that be? I want to move into your boundries. Our whole ward budget is that of the $3000 you say the youth recieve.
Lucky ducks! We want the fun you’re having!
Anyway, if the men in our ward want to go to “menrichment” paintballing, shooting, movies, video games, computer games and so forth they go anyway just as the women do in almost all cases - (marriage and etc.) they ask for forgiveness and not permission.
Do you invite bishopric members? ‘Cause if you only are inviting EQ it may make the young members of the bishopric or HP that have been called at an early age to a High Council calling or bishopric jealous of your “Menrichments”. (And then they will ban them j/k)
Comment by k- — September 11, 2006 @ 10:07 pm
Well, J, thanks. This just hasn’t been my week for adoration, what with all the vitriol bubbling over in different places. (Funny thing: the level of vitriol expressed towards me correlates nicely with my level of commenting activity.) But some very nice, stand-up people have come to my defense, and that more than compensates.
Anyway, in fairness to the Relief Society and their budget, I was just taking a pot-shot for the sake of cracking a joke. They’re a lot busier in areas that require funds than the Elders are.
That’s not to say that woman shouldn’t have the priesthood. It sure would be nice when someone needs a blessing to refer them to a visiting teacher. And, as I’ve commented elsewhere, I fantasize about women holding the priesthood every time I have to wake up early for PEC.
Comment by DKL — September 11, 2006 @ 10:21 pm