As brothers called to serve the Lord in the office of High Priest, we recognize a responsibility of helping to provide spiritual guidance to the body of Christ. It is in the bonds of charity and humility that we come to you at this time, offering what we believe is inspired counsel - a call to a specific season of fasting, prayer and study for the purpose of thanksgiving, repentance, and preparation.

Part One - Thanksgiving and Praise (10 days, August 28 - September 6)

Part Three - Consecration and Preparation (10 days, September 27 - October 6)

Why are we calling for a fast?  We see the signs of the end times upon us and we recognize accordingly that the Lord requires an extraordinary response from His people to meet the end-time challenges and fulfill His purposes before the Lord’s return.  Several separate groups and individuals have been inspired with light and counsel that share this common theme, and we feel the Lord is guiding us all to humble ourselves and prepare for the days ahead.  This call to fasting is in response to that guidance.

Who is included in the call to fast?  We invite all the Saints of the everlasting covenant that was restored in 1830, regardless of affiliation.  Whether or not you recognize our priesthood authority as High Priests or Elders to call the Saints to such a fast as this, we ask that you recognize our common brotherhood in the Restoration as fellow Saints, or at least recognize the signs of the end times and the need for all of the Lord’s people to fast and repent and prepare for the work ahead.  In that spirit, we humbly ask in the bonds of peace and in the pure love of Christ that you join us in this fast.

     We want you to know that this is something we will be doing in our own lives. We invite all the members of the body of Christ, wherever they may be, to join with us in this endeavor.
    To conclude the fast, we will be inviting the pastors, priesthood, and leaders of as many churches and groups of the Restoration Movement as we can contact to join us in coordinating special services in the Center Place of Zion (Independence, MO) as well as other locations. Details for this will be forthcoming.
    Along with the Fasting Guidelines, a series of Questions and Answers and Words of Counsel are included on the following pages.  We hope these will address any questions you may have regarding this period of fasting.

On behalf of the High Priests Quorum, and in Gospel bonds,
Brad Gault
Secretary
 

Words of Counsel Introduction

    As the High Priests met in quorum at the 2011 Seventy Missionary Family Reunion at Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa, Chuck Perry (president of the quorum) presented the letter below from Brother Kerry Lancaster to the quorum for prayerful consideration.
    It was agreed in the quorum that the letter contains wise counsel, and a committee was formed to plan the means for following through with the counsel given.  This call to fast to all the saints of the Restoration Movement is the result of these efforts.  While we recognize there are many who will not regard the following as inspired or wise counsel from the Lord, we include it here as a means of further explanation.
    While you may not agree with parts or all of this counsel, we hope you will understand and accept that we feel
bound and obligated to diligently follow what we feel is the call of the Lord at this time for fasting and repentance, and forgiveness of our brothers and sisters, our families and friends, our enemies and strangers, and turn to the Lord for mercy.
 

Words of Counsel, given to the High Priests Quorum July 1, 2011

 
Dear Brother Chuck,
     In a burning and sober manner it has been heavily impressed upon me, more than I can bear, that it is time for the Saints to be on our knees in humble supplication to the Lord in repentance, seeking forgiveness and mercy. The conditions of the world today are rife with the signs we have studied and preached for generations - wars and rumors of wars, tumult in the nations, the Middle East in unrest and chaos, societies breaking down across the world, record droughts, record fires destroying the land, record floods as rivers burst their banks and levies, record tornadoes and hurricanes, record earthquakes and tsunamis, economic collapse and ruin, immoral and corrupt leaders in all the nations including ours, unemployment, huge institutions and businesses failing... the earth is groaning under the rampant sin and oppression covering her face.
    And many are asking: “Where is the Lord?”
    But the Lord responds: “Where are My Saints, where is My storehouse, where is My Zion?”
    As a church, we have suffered for decades in the wilderness as scattered and lost sheep. We have taken refuge in our own self-perceived righteousness by shunning the apostasy of the leadership of the RLDS / Community of Christ and casting ourselves off from their errs and deceptions. We rebuked and rejected the sons of Joseph because they stumbled and spoke falsely.
    Yet look at us. We are scattered. We are beaten down. We are trodden underfoot in the world. We are weak. We have no voice to warn the world and prepare for the Lord’s return. And we have not asked ourselves what the Lord now asks us to examine and understand: if we are the righteous of the Church, then why did the Lord allow wicked servants to bring us to this captive state, in effectual bondage?
    We have somewhat sought to forgive those who have done this to us (as individuals, but not corporately), but we have not examined ourselves to look to our own culpability.
    “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me” declared the Lord. Yet we did raise up a god before Him... a god we thought was holy and good and worthy of being worshipped. Over the years, the RLDS had come to worship the Church, instead of the Lord. We worshipped its history, its structure, its holy places in Kirtland and Independence and Nauvoo, its quorums, its conferences, its councils, its stakes and districts and offices and missions.
    The Church became our god, and the Lord took it from us to turn us back to Him. And we have been asking the Lord to give us back the Church, and give us a Prophet again. Yet the Lord asks: “Will you accept and hear My true prophets, or will you stone them and rend them in the courtyard like the children of Israel did?”
    The Lord would have us humble ourselves and prepare ourselves to hear Him before we can receive and accept what He has to say.
    “Sanctify a fast before Me,” says the Lord, “and turn from your pride, and humble yourselves. Yea, declare a fast, and forgive all who have wronged you, before seeking mercy and forgiveness from Me. Yea, seek to know and understand your own sins and transgressions which have led you to this state such that you can truly repent, and be forgiven. Uphold the sons of Joseph to Me in mighty prayer, that the covenant I swore in My righteousness to their father Joseph, and that was appointed unto and inherited therein by his son Joseph, and as was inherited in righteousness and truth also by his sons Frederick Madison, and Israel Alexander, and William Wallace, yea, and as was inherited therein also, because of My Covenant, with his son Wallace Bunnell, yea, uphold them to Me that the covenant I made with Joseph may be restored and fulfilled, even as I swore to him in My righteousness.”
    “Yea, uphold the sons of Joseph in mighty prayer to Me, with much love and compassion and mercy and forgiveness, yea, even that same love and compassion and mercy and forgiveness that ye seek from Me, or I shall turn My face from you and reject your prayers for yourselves, as you bleat about aimlessly for safe pastures and the comfort of the Shepherd’s rod and staff.”
    “Humble yourselves before Me, and cast off your pride and your righteousness, for it is as filthy rags before Me, and lest ye humble yourselves and repent, ye shall fade before Me as a dry leaf, and your iniquities, which I can no longer bear, shall take you away like the wind.”
    “And seek earnestly to be reconciled one with another, for if ye are not one, even as I have commanded that ye be one, ye are not Mine, saith the Lord. Contend with no brother, but come together in prayer and fasting. Invite all to fast and pray before Me - even those who will not meet with you in conference, or even at the Lamb’s table.  Your divisions and separations from each other over matters of organization are a stench to Me. It is the work of the adversary, and behold, he sifts you as he desires, for you have given yourselves over to him. Seek your brothers in prayer and fasting, and invite them all to pray and fast. Those who have My Spirit will hear My call to fast and pray, to repent, and to forgive. It is necessary that the Saints come together as My people in unity and single purpose of heart and mind, or I can in no wise minister unto you, or receive you unto Myself.”
    “The time is at hand, saith the Lord, that My people come out of Babylon! Look! The signs are before you, and ye seek that I should redeem you before the end! How can ye be redeemed if ye repent not, if ye forgive not, if ye unite not as one? How can ye hear Me, if ye hear not My servants? If ye reject them, ye reject Me, and ye shall remain a hiss and a byword - salt that has lost its savor and is trodden under foot - spewed lukewarm from My mouth.”
    “Repent! Declare a fast! Pray for the sons of Joseph, and for the sheep who remain scattered! Call everyone who will hear to repentance and humility. I speak this concerning all the Saints who love Me, yea, all the children of the work that was restored through My servant Joseph in 1830, for there are many who will hear and who will respond. Come together in prayer and fasting, in humility and meekness, in charity one for another, esteeming each other above yourselves. This is My word and My will. Ye who will hear, see that ye do. Amen.”

Kerry Lancaster
 

Fasting Guidelines Introduction

    We ask that you review and consider these guidelines along with the following Questions and Answers as you prepare to join us in this fast.  It is our hope and expectation that we can be united in this effort as we seek to grow closer to God and each other during this season of fasting and prayer and study.
    In the outline below, some scripture passages are recommended for special study during this fast.  Because we are inviting all the Saints of the divergent paths of the Restoration Movement to participate, scripture references will include chapter and verse indicators for common passages that we share from the following where applicable:

Bible
   KJV = King James Version
   IV = Inspired Version of the Holy Scriptures
   [KJV / IV indicated only where chapter/verse numbers differ]
Book of Mormon
   LBM = LDS Book of Mormon (1981 edition)
   RBM = RLDS / Community of Christ Book of Mormon (1908 Authorized Version)
 Doctrine and Covenants
   LDC = LDS Doctrine and Covenants
   RDC = RLDS / Community of Christ Doctrine and Covenants
   BC = Book of Commandments

    Please note:  If you have any medical conditions or special nutritional requirements or considerations please consult a physician before entering into any dietary fast.

               Part One - Thanksgiving and Praise (10 days, August 28 - September 6)

    During this first period of the fast, we wish to spend time with the Lord for no other purpose than that of praising His name and expressing our heartfelt thanks for the wonderful things He has done for us through the ages.  Please bring no petition to the Lord in prayer during this time.  Rather, offer prayers of gratitude and thanksgiving for the gift of His Son, the plan of Salvation, and all the gifts and blessings He shed forth on the whole world at the time of the Restoration of the gospel in 1830.  These gifts and blessings include knowledge of lost scriptures and covenants, the fullness of the gospel and its ordinances, the restored priesthood, the restoration of spiritual gifts, the continuing light of on-going revelation, and the call as partners with the Lord in bringing forth the cause of Zion.  Let us with gladness and praise set aside the first ten days of fasting and prayer as a period of reflective gratitude and constant thanksgiving to God for these precious gifts.

Questions and Answers