August 14-21, 2018 - Goodbyes, Myths and Church History Sites

We have a monthly Family Home Evening with the other temple workers who are on our shift which includes both full-time and periodic workers.  The Rogers (Nigel and Denise) had the activity (this was their third and final time) which was a group trivia game. Here's what it looked like. Obviously old people are easy to entertain : )

Our FHE Trivia Game Team consisted of Brother and Sister (Brian and Penny) Wade, Elder and Sister (Raul and Karen) McQuivey, Elder and Sister (Ron and Brenda) Lindford and Elder and Sister Burkinshaw.  Elder Burkinshaw was scribe and while we got all the science and history responses correct, we fell short on popular music and movies. 

On Friday, August 18, following our shift about 3:30pm, we went to the Chatham Historical Docks near where our "Ministers" (formerly home teachers) Nigel and Denise Rogers live.  Unfortunately the docks had closed by the time we arrived because M25 which is the beltway that surrounds London was experiencing heavy traffic.  The joke here is that M25 is the world's largest car park (parking lot).  However, we did get to visit the Cadbury Factory Shop, where we took advantage of bargain prices on their dark chocolate!  We also had a delicious Chinese Buffet at "The Real China."

Sister Burkinshaw and Sister McQuivey pose in front of the Cadbury Factory Shop.  Yum!

Elder Burkinshaw doesn't mind shelling out a few pounds for some delicious Cadbury chocolate.

Our group of temple workers took up three tables at "The Real China" Chinese Buffet.  Note that the plates were piled high!  We can keep up with the young missionaries!!

Alan and Ann Woolnough are members of the Addlestone Ward, which we attend each Sunday.  For some time, they have tried to arrange lunch for us in their home and since this was the last Sunday that the Page's, who also attend Addlestone Ward with us, would be there, we had lunch with them.  Alan recently received a pacemaker and Ann lost her left leg about 8 years ago when surgery for a knee replacement went awry, so they have had their challenges.  However, they have been faithful members of the church for over 50 years and during our last testimony meeting, we heard several long-time members comment on the influence Alan had when he served as the Young Men President and Ann had as the Primary President.  We had a delicious lunch and an opportunity to hear more about their lives and their children. Ann was one of the children who were evacuated (sent to live with another family in a safer area) during the war. They are a wonderful couple. 

Sunday Lunch at the home of Alan and Ann Woolnough who are members of the Addlestone Ward where we attend.  This is Elder and Sister Page's last Sunday there.  It was a delicious lunch and very fun, interesting and faith-filled discussion as well.

These are the small porcelain curios that Ann Wolnough has collected over the years.

Following our lunch with the Woolnough's, we had to dash back to the Temple, where we participated in the "Hi and Bye" meeting for the arriving temple workers and the departing temple workers.  Sister Burkinshaw plays for the London Temple Choir and Sister LuAnn Wolsey is the director and we sang an arrangement of Nearer My God To Thee during the meeting.  The experiences of the incoming and departing workers are always impressive and remind us that we work with some of the very elect.

The departing Temple Workers with the Temple President and Matron.  From left to right, Brother Ed and Sister Linda Kelly (Duston, Northampton, UK), President Mike and Sister Cathy Otterson (Farmington, UT), Sister Teri and Elder Clyde Page (South Jordan, UT) and Sister Denise and Brother Nigel Rogers (Gillingham, Kent, UK)

A couple of weeks ago while visiting with some of the British temple workers they commented about early members who would threaten their badly behaving children with the "Mormon tunnel". Here is a little history behind the myth, along with some statistics that show that at times whole congregations, i.e. communities, migrated to the US.

Early Mormons in England faced persecution by civilians even as they were largely left alone by the state. Mormons first came to England in 1837, just seven years after Joseph Smith founded the Church in Fayette Township, New York. The first group of seven missionaries landed in Liverpool, and quickly began converting local citizens; they gained 50 new members in less than a month. In the ensuing years, more Mormons, many with English heritage, came from North America to England. They included recent English immigrants to Canada who wanted to return to their home country to expose their extended families to their newfound faith.

Anti-Mormon pamphlets—many of them distributed by Church of England clergy—surfaced within a year of the seven missionaries’ arrival. Soon, a “flourishing industry of anti-Mormon literature, and later, anti-Mormon films” developed said Craig L. Foster, a LDS historian of early anti-Mormon writing in Britain.

Some of the literature contained well-argued analysis of Mormon doctrine. But many of the pamphlets espoused falsehoods and stereotypes about Mormons, such as the notion that they had come to England to steal money.  Another major theme was that Mormons wanted to take English women back to Utah for marriage, an accusation that intensified after the LDS Church publicly admitted in 1852 that its members practiced polygamy (a practice the Church renounced in 1890).

Some of the allegations about kidnapping English women verged on the absurd. In the late 1800s a myth began to circulate in Europe that Mormons had built a tunnel to traffic young English virgins to polygamist families in Utah. The tunnel started in Liverpool and continued beneath the American continent to empty into the Salt Lake Temple, where the virgins would be immediately deflowered. News of the tunnel supposedly got around after an English woman jumped out of the window of the Temple into the Great Salt Lake (which is 20 miles away), swam to freedom and lived to tell her tale. Foster said that he heard the myth repeated as recently as 1980 in Belgium, where he was serving a mission.

Myths aside, the LDS Church was indeed in the business of bringing people from the U.K. to Utah in order to fortify its fledgling base. According to David M. Morris, co-founder of the European Mormon Studies Association, by 1852 there were 32,894 Mormon converts in Britain, “more than the rest of the worldwide Church combined.” By 1900, that number had shrunk to 4,183. “A large portion of these migrated to America to be with the main body of the Church in Utah.”

This myth most likely started because of the events that took place in the area of England that we visited this week for preparation day. 

We loaded up both vans this week and drove three hours north to visit The Gadfield Elm Chapel near the village of Pendock in Worcestershire, England, Hill Farm and Benbow's Pond and climbed The Herefordshire Beacon Hill. The following is a little History of how the work in this area began:

Wilford Woodruff could not help but wonder what would be the effect of the inspiration he felt that March day in 1840, during his first mission to England. He and Elder Alfred Cordon were already having some success at their missionary work in the Staffordshire Potteries district. But the voice of the Spirit was telling him to go elsewhere.

In February of 1873, he recalled: “I went one evening to fill an appointment at the town hall, in the town of Hanley. There was a very large congregation, and I had appointments out for two or three weeks in that town and adjacent villages. As I went to take my seat the Spirit of the Lord came upon me and said to me, ‘This is the last meeting you will hold with this people for many days.’ I was surprised, because I did not know, of course what the Lord wanted me to do. I told the assembly when I rose, ‘This is the last meeting I shall hold with you for many days.’ They asked me after meeting where I was going. I told them I did not know. I went before the Lord in my closet and asked him where he wished me to go, and all the answer I could get was to go to the South. I got into a stage and rode eighty miles south, as I was led by the Spirit of the Lord.”

This response to inspiration initiated one of the most fruitful missionary journeys in the history of the restored Church.  President Woodruff spoke of the ensuing months in Herefordshire as one of the highlights of his life. He rejoiced in the revelation that called him there, always acknowledging the hand of the Lord in the rich spiritual harvest he helped gather.

So follows pictures of our adventures to these three sites. The landscape was stunning and the realization of those that sacrificed much was evident in the spirit that was felt.

A map showing the British Church History sites we visited (upper left-had corner) which also shows London.  It was about a 3 hour drive from the London Temple.

On our trip, we made a rest stop at one of the "Services" along the M25 motorway for treats.  Sister Carla Haines (San Tan Valley, AZ) had a Krispy Kreme donut and Elder Burkinshaw has some carrot sticks (under the guidance of Sister Burkinshaw! ;-)

A close-up map of the British Church History sites, showing they were in the area of the Malvern Hills, which are very pretty despite the dry summer we have had here.

A sign pointing the way to the Gadfield Elm Chapel

This picture shows the fields near the Gadfield Elm Chapel, which is far from any real village or town.

The entry doors to the chapel of the Gadfield Elm meetinghouse.

  

The Gadfield Elm Chapel was built by the United Brethren in 1836 and deeded to the Church in 1840. It was the first building to be owned by the Church in England and one of the first chapels ever owned by the Church. Brigham Young preached at Gadfield Elm twice, once on 17 May 1840 and once on 14 December 1840.

The Gadfield Elm Chapel acted as the focal point of Church activity for thousands of Latter-day Saints. Around 1842, as many converts began to immigrate to the United States, the chapel was sold to help fund their journeys. Over the next 150 years, the chapel was used as a toolshed, a garage and a home, eventually falling into disrepair. In 1994, the property came up for auction, and a group of local Latter-day Saints joined together as the Gadfield Elm Trust to raise money to purchase and restore the building. This group then donated the building to the Church in 2004. Then-President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008), traveled to England to accept the building as an official Church historic site.

The Gadfield Elm Chapel Plaque.

Fields and farms surrounding the Gadfield Elm Chapel. 

Temple workers looking over the grounds and the plaques at the Gadfield Elm chapel. Note the picnic tables in the field, it was a little early for lunch though.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Gadfield Elm Chapel.

The plaque summarizing the history of the Gadfield Elm Chapel.

A view of the door to the small visitors center, complete with Christus statue, at the Gadfield Elm Chapel.

Looking towards the back of the chapel in the Gadfield Elm Chapel meetinghouse.

Looking towards the front of the chapel in the Gadfield Elm Chapel meetinghouse.  The supporting beams were very impressive for this exceptionally tall building for the period.

The pews in the chapel are not original to this meetinghouse but are from the same time period and were purchased from another old church in Wales to give a feel for what the chapel may have looked like during the 1840's.

The chapel had two large windows looking out on the fields in the area.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw with an obligatory selfie in the Gadfield Elm Chapel.

A picture of our group for this tour of the British Church History at the Gadfield Elm Chapel.  Sister Burkinshaw played the organ and we all sang "How Firm a Foundation."

Elder Orr selfie (he didn't want to be forgotten) from Oklahoma City (OK City South Stake) was spending his P-Day visiting the Gadfield Elm Chapel was kind enough to take the group photo.  He knows Jourdon Bean, who served with us in the Brasil Vitória Mission.

NEXT STOP: BENBOW FARM

Originally called Benbow Farm, this is currently Hill Farm.  It was here that William Benbow, a convert of Elder Wilford Woodruff near Preston, led Elder Woodruff to meet his brother and sister-in-law John and Jane Benbow.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of Benbow (Hill ) Farm. John and his wife Jane were originally members of the United Brethren and they were introduced to the Mormon faith by Wilford Woodruff. Wilford arrived at Worcester in a horse-drawn carriage and then he walked the fourteen miles or so to the farm at Castle Frome, to talk with John and Jane Benbow. A religious revival, which at the time was a huge event, was held in a barn at Benbows Farm; at three meetings that day, over a thousand people went to hear the message of Wilford Woodruff.

Adjacent to Benbow Farm are fields with sheep.  This made our walk to Benbow Pond somewhat hazardous ;-)

This is the plaque placed in front of Benbow Pond about a quarter-mile from the farmhouse.

As you can see, Benbow Pond was more like Benbow slough because of the dry summer.  The light green in the center was actually water with a lot of algae.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of Benbow Pond where hundreds of converts from the United Brethren were baptized.  The historical record stated that even at that time, they had to clean out the pond for baptisms.

Here is another picture of Benbow Pond during the spring which shows that it was indeed a pretty and functional location for the many baptismal services held here.

Our group of Temple Workers in front of Benbow Pond.

Sister Burkinshaw caught a candid photo of Elder and Sister Lindford smooching in front of Benbow Pond (Sister Wolsey is the photographer), Elder Burkinshaw in deep conversation with Elder Guenther and Elder Wolsey and Sister Otterson (yellow shirt) taking a picture of President Otterson.

NEXT STOP: LUNCH IN LEDBURY

This marketplace in Ledbury, Herefordshire, was the scene of missionary activity as well as commerce. Wilford Woodruff visited the town many times while working with the United Brethren. Brigham Young spent a week in the town and directed others to find him from this marketplace.  We had lunch here during our excursion.

NEXT STOP: HEREFORDSHIRE BEACON

Sister Burkinshaw took this photo of Elder Burkinshaw helping Sister McQuivey hike up the very steep paths of Herefordshire Beacon, the tallest hill in the area.

A view looking west from the top of the Herefordshire Beacon.

Looking northward from the top of the Herefordshire Beacon.

Sister Burkinshaw trying to keep the umbrella up with a strong wind and light rain on top of Herefordshire Beacon.

A panoramic shot looking east from the top of Herefordshire Beacon. 

A panoramic shot looking west from the top of Herefordshire Beacon.

The view from atop the Herefordshire Beacon (Malvern Hills), the site of both a pre-Roman British fortress and a Roman fort. Wilford Woodruff went there to pray on several occasions. On 20 May 1840, he, Brigham Young and Willard Richards met there and decided to print the Book of Mormon and a hymnal with funds donated by John and Jane Benbow and Thomas Kington.

Using Family Tree "Map My Ancestors" we discovered our closest relative to this area was John Abraham who would be Sister Burkinshaw's  great, great, great Grandfather born in Bleevavon, Llanover, Monmouthshire, England and buried in Abersychan, Monmouth, England which is about 17 miles southwest of where we were visiting. Under "Memories" for John Abraham in FamilyTree, there is an interesting personal timeline sharing his life history.  A similar timeline is included for each prophet in the Teachings of the Prophets manuals. Elder Burkinshaw has also done a similar timeline for us. 

An interesting comparison of John Abraham's family with the family of Joseph and Emma Smith are the number of children they had and the number of children that lived to adulthood. 

"At death of John Abraham it should be noted that John & Elizabeth had eleven children but only three of them grew to adults & were able to have decedents. James & Griffith (our line runs through Griffith) married and brought their families to the United States. Moses married and lived his life in either Wales or England. The Abraham family were Colliers (coal miners) working in the iron works in Wales under very harsh conditions and as a result, many of the children in the family did not survive." (Memories, John Abraham, FamilyTree)

"Of the many hardships Joseph Smith Jr. and his wife Emma endured, the one that was perhaps the most difficult, especially for Emma, was losing so many of her precious babies. Only 5 of her 11 children lived past the age of 2, and her only biological daughter died at birth. After her husband was killed in 1844 and the majority of the Saints moved West, Emma was left in Nauvoo to raise their surviving children alone." (LDS Living)

We are so grateful for our children and grandchildren and to be blessed to live in a time when childhood mortality is not one of the challenges we face.

Love to all,

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw

August 7-13, 2018  - Footgolf, Charity Shopping and Dinner

We discovered a new sport - footgolf.  Since many golf courses are in financial straits because the number of golfers is declining, some of the shorter courses have switched to footgolf.  Footgolf is just what the name implies, a mix of football (soccer) and golf.  Footgolf is a game to test your dead-ball power and precision.  All you have to do is complete each hole, kicking the football into the over-sized cup using your feet, in as few shots as possible.  The beauty of the game lies in being able to strategically combine power and precision every time you play.  And for £7.50, it made for a couple of hours of entertainment and fellowship.  Gatwick Footgolf is only about 4 miles from the London Temple.

Gatwick footgolf course layout.  It looks like it was a 9-hole par 3 golf course that was converted to footgolf.

Footgolf course in perspective.

Number 1 tee box.

There were some nasty water traps in the course which got quite mucky if you went too far into the rough.

Fishing a ball out of the water hazard!  As you can see, it was pretty muddy!!

Clyde Page (South Jordan, UT) taking his tee-shot.

Ron Linford (Casper, WY) with a booming tee-shot.

Jim Guenther (Sylvan Lake, AB) taking his ball out after making the only hole-in-one from either team of men.

Elder Burkinshaw taking his tee shot on the second hole of the footgolf course.  Notice the style and technique! ;-)

Footgolf scorecard - Elder Burkinshaw had 2-over-par for the winning score.  Also based on our lowest stroke per hole, we had 8-under-par to beat the other foursome of men.

While the men were playing footgolf today, the women went shopping at the Charity Stores (thrift stores) in Oxted. As Sister Burkinshaw doesn't really like shopping she went along just to enjoy the other sisters and hoping for a nice lunch. High Street in Oxted has about eight charity shops, but does not have a lot of places for lunch so those who did eat got a sandwich at subway. A few did find some good bargains so all in all it was good.

Oxted - High St. shopping district.

One of the older buildings on High Street where the Cinema is located.

Thai food Dinner at the Siam Orchid which is owned and operated by Brother Appleyard one of our periodic temple workers. We planned it for a Monday evening when they are typically closed, we had 11 couples join in the fun. Elder Burkinshaw is on the left in the back corner sitting across the table from the Turner's (Blackfoot, Idaho). Brother Turner was Nathan's (Aaron and Leah's son) primary teacher, they have just arrived and will be serving a 23 months mission. Starting on the left the Lamoreaux's (Provo, UT), Elder Burkinshaw, Turner's and Lindford's (Casper, WY). Brother Appleyard is the man in the plaid shirt standing.

The other table of missionaries. Starting on the left McQuivey's (Oakton,Virginia), Wolsey's (Raymond, AB), Page's (South Jordan, UT), Guenther's (Sylvan Lake, AB), Wade's (Northampton, UK) and Rogers' (Gillingham, UK)

As our table was served 30 minutes before the other table where the Guenther's rode with us were waiting, we walked down to the church where we had parked the car to bring it closer to the restaurant. It was an old church and had a cemetery in the courtyard. That reminded us to look at "Map My Ancestors" on Family search to see if we were close to where any family members were either born or buried. The closest family member was John Stevens born in Newington, Surrey, England about 11 miles north. Newington is just south of the Tower of London. John Stevens was Grandpa Walter Gillins Stevens' (Sister Burkinshaw's grandfather) father. He was born in England, emigrated to the US on 15 October 1863, married Sarah Ann Eyre in Parowan, Utah in 1885, returned to serve a mission in the United Kingdom in 1892 and was buried in Parowan 25 May 1934. There are numerous pictures and information about John Stevens on Family search. The obituary in the Parowan Times said, "Death came Wednesday noon to John Stevens, 77, faithful church man and esteemed citizen of this community, as a result of a paralytic stroke suffered by him Saturday night....The deceased was born in London, England in September, 1856, a son of Robert and Mary Fowler Stevens. With the family and other Latter-day Saint converts he came to American in 1853. They were passengers on the sailing vessel, Amazon, and were seven weeks on the water. They crossed the plains by ox teams with a company of emigrants and came direct to Parowan where he has since made his home...." 

It was a fun evening and doing a little family history review provided a pleasant ending to our busy day. 

Love to all,

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw

July 30- August 6, 2018  - Windsor Castle

The London Temple is located about 5 miles from London Gatwick Airport and when we first arrived here, it seemed like there were jets flying overhead all the time.  With time, we hardly notice the planes anymore but while walking early in the morning, we see them approaching the airport regularly and they fly surprisingly low.  Interestingly enough, the London Temple is constructed with sufficient sound insulation that you never hear any of the outside noises within.

One of the hundreds of planes that flies over the London Temple each day.  The Temple is sufficiently sound-proofed that you never hear the jets as the roar overhead.

Another jet flying over the Temple.

On Monday, August 6, we went to Windsor Castle, which is 43 miles northwest of the London Temple and only about 15 miles from the Addlestone Ward building where we attend weekly church meetings.  Windsor Castle is said to be the longest occupied royal castle in the world and has been the home of the United Kingdom monarchy since the 11th century.  It is currently used by Queen Elizabeth II as her weekend residence.

When the sovereign (currently Queen Elizabeth II) is at Windsor Castle, the Royal Standard, the top flag shown above, flies from the Round Tower mast.  When she is not there, the Union Flag, the bottom flag shown above.  

As a side-note, in the Royal Standard, the lion symbolizes the sovereign because it represents courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valor, because historically it has been regarded as the "king of beasts".  The three lions (also called passant guardant lions) on two quadrants represented King Richard I's (the lion-hearted) principal three positions as King of the English, Duke of the Normans (in France), and Duke of the Aquitanians (in France) in the 11th century.  The single rampant lion symbolizes the Judeo-Christian Lion of Judah (Revelations 5:5), a representation of Christ.  The Celtic harp quadrant is symbolic of Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

The Union Flag (or sometimes called the Union Jack represents the Union of England, Scotland and Ireland as a combination of the red Cross of St George which represents England and the Blue Cross (an X-shaped cross) of St Andrew represents Scotland and the red saltire (X-shaped cross) of St. Patrick represents Ireland.

The small flagpole tower atop the round tower.  As you can see, on this day the Union Flag is flying which indicates that Queen Elizabeth II is not at Windsor Castle today.

Another view of the flagpole atop the round tower from outside the castle wall.  Windsor castle is only about 6 miles from London's Heathrow airport and you can see a jetliner in the upper right-hand corner of the picture. 

Below is a layout of the castle complex with a picture of the complex from the air.  These are not our own but taken from other sources.

The layout of Windsor Castle: A: The Round Tower, B: The Upper Ward, The Quadrangle, C: The State Apartments, D: Private Apartments, E: South Wing, F: Lower Ward, G: St George's Chapel, H: Horseshoe Cloister, K: King Henry VIII Gate, L: The Long Walk, M: Norman Gate, N: North Terrace, O: Edward III Tower, T: The Curfew Tower

A picture of Windsor Castle from the air so you can see all elements simultaneously.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the King Edward III Tower which is the entrance to Windsor Castle (which is really a complex of several buildings and not just one castle).  King Edward III (1312-1377) was a very successful English Monarch and made St. George the patron saint of England and modeling the chivalrous legend of King Arthur, established the Order of the Garter which is based within the St. George chapel within Windsor Castle.

St. George's Chapel in the center from the top of the Round Tower.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of St. George's Chapel listening to the audio tour.

The interior of St George's Chapel with the stunning gothic ceiling.  It was here that the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex took place in May 2018. (Supposedly the castle has been very popular since the wedding.)

This is the symbol of the Most Noble Order of the Garter established by King Edward III in an effort to model King Arthur and the Round Table.  The name derived from an incident where the young Joan of Kent, Countess of Salisbury – allegedly the king's favorite at the time – accidentally dropped her garter at a ball at Calais. King Edward responded to the ensuing crowd ridicule by tying the garter around his own knee with the words "honi soit qui mal y pense" or "shame on him who thinks ill of it." So began this society of chivalry.

Here in the Choir of St George's Chapel, for each of the current 24 members of the Order of the Garter, known as Knights of the Garter, the member's sword is placed below a helm which is decorated with a mantling and topped by a crown. Above this, a member's banner with their coat of arms is flown.  A Garter stall plate, a small elaborately enameled plate of brass, is affixed to the back of the stall displaying its member's name and arms with other inscriptions.  On a member's death, the sword, helm, mantling, crest, coronet or crown, and banner are removed but the plate remains as a memorial to the deceased.

An example of a Garter stall plate is that of George Cadogan, 5th Earl Cadogan, Arms: Quarterly 1 & 2: Gules, a lion rampant reguardant or (Cadogan); 2 & 3: Argent, three boar's heads couped sable. Crest: Out of a ducal coronet or a dragon's head.

Many notable English monarchs are buried here in St. Georges chapel and the above is the marker for King Henry VIII and his wife Jane Seymour.

The State Apartments are a sequence of rooms forming the centrepiece of the Castle.  Charles II set out to rival his to the Palace at Versailles France and his cousin, Louis XIV.  In the 17th century he modernized the Castle’s interiors, which became the most ornate State Apartments in England.  They are furnished with some of the finest works of art from the Royal Collection, including paintings by Holbein, Van Dyck and Rubens. Many of the works of art are still in the historic settings for which they were first collected or commissioned by the kings and queens who have lived at Windsor.  They are very impressive.

The Kings Bedchamber.  The colors (green and purple) were selected from when Napoleon visited Windsor for a state visit in 1855.

The Queen's Drawing Room.  Note King Henry VIII just left of the fireplace.

The Waterloo Room celebrating the defeat of Napoleon by the First Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley, is particularly ornate. 

The Royal Ballroom can be converted to a dining area with space for 600+ guests.  Note the armor along the walls.

From the top of the Round Tower, we took a picture of "The Long Walk", a private road to the Castle where the Queen likes to walk her dogs.

The small building left of center is the Royal Mausoleum where several contemporary rulers and their family members are buried including Queen Elizabeth II's parents.

Looking directly down from the top of the Round Tower, you can see the cannons.  They are now for decoration since they are currently aimed at the Queens living quarters! :-)

This is The Quadrangle (or upper ward) of Windsor Castle with the South Wing on the right and the private apartments, where the monarch and family live, on the left. Parked in front the day of our tour were eight Rolls Royce's which were used that day by a charitable foundation who had brought a group of terminally ill children to visit Windsor Castle.

The city of Windsor with the Thames River in the center and in the upper right is the Chapel of Eaton College.  Eton College was founded by King Henry VI in 1441 as a charity school to provide free education to 74 poor boys who would then go on to King's College, Cambridge.  Today it is an exclusive full boarding school with 1,300 pupils, ages 13 to 18 where tuition is £12,910 per term, with three terms per academic year or $50K/yr.

We ended our Windsor castle tour having lunch with Brother and Sister McQuivey (Washington D.C. -- who also served with Uncle Ed and Aunt Louise in the DC temple when they were temple missionaries there and remember them well.) The number of missionaries wanting to go on the Windsor castle tour exceeded the van capacity so we volunteered to drive and the McQuivey's came with us. 

Our good friends, Clyde and Teri Page, are completing their mission at the end of this month and so another good friend, Pam Lunn who is the organist for the Addlestone Ward where we attend church on Sundays, invited us for lunch at a very fun restaurant not too far from the Temple that we didn't even know about, the Red Barn!  The food was great and the company even better!!

Lunch at the Red Barn with Sister Burkinshaw, Elder Clyde and Sister Teri Page (South Jordan, UT) and Pamela Lunn (originally from Edinburgh, Scotland) our dear friend and organist in the Addlestone Ward.  Pam teaches piano lessons to young pianists.

We had the opportunity again this week to work in the Baptistry as coordinators. The new mission president is allowing the missionaries to bring new converts (first week or two of baptism) to the temple and when they do to participate in baptizing. On Friday we had two recent convert sisters come, one with a set of Elders and one with a set of Sisters from different parts of the mission, who were both originally from Iran and raised in the Muslim faith. They had a wonderful experience together and we are sure the Lord had a hand in orchestrating the day.  We hope they will come back several more times to do baptisms and at their year mark come for their endowments. It brought to mind 1 Nephi 22:12 "....and they shall be brought out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel." There is no better place to come to know Jesus Christ than in the temple. One more testimony that the Lord is preparing people so that doors may be opened to missionary work and to temple blessings.

There is an excellent article in the April 2018 Ensign titled "Understanding Islam".  The last three paragraphs of the article read:

"While Latter-day Saints and Muslims obviously differ on important matters—notably the divinity of Jesus Christ, His role as Savior, and the calling of modern prophets—we have many things in common. We both believe, for example, that we are morally accountable before God, that we should pursue both personal righteousness and a good and just society, and that we will be resurrected and brought before God for judgment.

Both Muslims and Latter-day Saints believe in the vital importance of strong families and in the divine command to help the poor and needy and that we demonstrate our faith through acts of discipleship. There seems no reason why Latter-day Saints and Muslims cannot do so alongside one another and even, when opportunities present themselves, by cooperating together in communities where, more and more, we find ourselves neighbors in an increasingly secular world. Together, we can demonstrate that religious faith can be a powerful force for good and not merely a source of strife and even violence, as some critics argue. 

The Qur’an itself suggests a way of living peacefully together despite our differences: “If God had willed, he could have made you a single community. But he desired to test you in what he has given you. So, compete with one another in good deeds. You will all return to God, and he will inform you regarding the things wherein you used to disagree.”

We love the opportunity do the Lord's work and see His hand in the work,

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw