Scott Taylor: Do not take ‘holidays’ and get lost of memorable experiences of Sunday worship worldwide

During a recent personal trip to Kauai, my wife and I attended a sacrament meeting in the Kapaa 2nd Ward of the Kauai Hawaii Stake. We were warmly greeted outside the chapel doors and found a place to sit in the chapel, with attendees observing state COVID-19 precautions by sitting in alternating rows and wearing masks.

It was a beautiful start to a beautiful January Sabbath — the ordinance, the messages, the hymns, and the prayers. The setting matched, too — a clad chapel with glass doors that could be opened to allow natural ventilation from the island breeze and trade winds when the heat and humidity became uncomfortable.

I took a couple of photos with my cell phone after the meeting — one with the Latter-day Saint members starting to walk into class at second period and one just of the inside of the chapel — so I could show them to friends and relatives later and talk about our experience that morning.

Our Sunday morning attendance on Kauai was the most recent, as we often meet with the Saints wherever we travel. We have enjoyed attending Church services around the world, enjoying the local language, local architecture, local culture, and local flavor along with the consistency of the global gospel message, and most importantly, the opportunity to participate in the sacrament.

Attending with traveling family or friends and talking with local Latter-day Saints before and after meetings is an added bonus.

Scott Taylor: Don't take 'vacation' ' and miss out on memorable Sunday worship experiences around the world

The pandemic has limited travel and made it difficult. Some Latter-day Saints traveling during the pandemic choose to join videoconference broadcasts from their home wards and branches while on the road, for ease, safety, and familiarity.

Some on vacation may find it inconvenient to pack Sunday clothes and make the effort to identify the time and place of nearby Sunday worship services.

We found it easy, enjoyable and memorable. Some notable experiences include:

And the list goes on — sacrament meetings from Austria and France to Australia and New Zealand, from the Ukraine and Russia to Haiti and the Virgin Islands, and from a neighborhood in Venezuela to an MTC branch in Mexico City.

When we travel — for business or pleasure — we use the Church's online Meetinghouse Locator (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps/meetinghouses/) to identify the most convenient locations and meeting times. start.

Oh, there have been some glitches. Once in the Washington, D.C., area for a convention, I took a cab to a meetinghouse in northern Virginia to attend Sunday meetings there, only to find the parking lot empty and the doors locked.

More recently, but before the pandemic, I was making time to at least visit the local temple grounds during out-of-town trips. When possible, I have tried to participate in temple ordinances, such as in the Calgary Canada, Hamilton New Zealand, and São Paulo Brazil temples in recent years.

Therefore, when traveling on vacation, do not take a “vacation” from Church services or partake of the sacrament. When traveling for business, make it your 'business' to attend services.

So, pack a set of Sunday clothes. Find a chapel. Meet new Latter-day Saints. Remember and renew your agreements.

It is a meaningful and memorable Sunday worship experience.