Sunday, October 11, 1970

Following Sunday School we listed to the last half of the sixth session and all of the seventh session of the semi-annual general conference. Except for a few times, reception was fair. The messages were instructive and inspiring. As the conference closed, President Smith left his blessing on the Church. Hugh B. Brown was ill and did not attend any of the conference.

Tonight’s sacrament meeting was one of the best and most spiritual I have seen in a long while. Simone spoke about the necessity of having love and friendship between members of the branch. Elder Smith then spoke in explanation of the chart we had made. He explained the será program after I had gone over the chart itself. The choir sang “More Holiness Give Me” (“Mais vontade dá-me”). I delivered a few remarks concerning the necessity of problems and the God-given gift of weaknesses. As I bore my testimony, I expressed my love for and left my blessing upon the members.

Then the fireworks started. Aldo was in a mood like I’ve never seen before, still steaming over the incident from last weekend. Agamemnon went up to him to see if there were any difficulty. Aldo blew up and right in front of everybody tore into Agamemnon and all his brothers and Paulo Santos Filho. Vitória was crying, saying she could never come back (and tonight she had just been sustained as a Sunday School teacher). Aldo hinted that he might not return himself and certainly Alexandre would not be around for a while. Everybody except Aldo was pretty animated when the meeting was over, but now everybody was disanimated and half of the members crying. Elder Smith tried to defend Vitória and company, and Aldo is rather ticked off at him too.

As we walked home, my companion and I alone, the tears would not stay back. Months of effort spent building the branch seem futile as it all seems to just crumble apart. The members seem to me as children, and I am pained as I see them quarreling and wrecking the good things of their lives. I felt particularly discouraged and lonely. In my prayers I poured out my whole heart, pleading for comfort and direction.

In answer the Lord taught a valuable lesson: I feel and understand a little how He must feel when He sees His children screwing up their lives. I see how my sins must make Him feel. It adds fuller meaning to the account of Enoch seeing God weep because of the iniquity of His children on the earth (see Moses 7:28–40).