- Two youths in Mexico with decorated face masks
Due to flu worries, and on the advice of the United States government, LDS church services were cancelled in Mexico today.
On a historical note, how many times has the LDS General Conference been cancelled due to flu outbreaks?
Portia has the right answer.
Here is an article reporting the most recent instance from the Deseret News/Salt Lake Telegram on September 27, 1957.
From the next day, here’s the paper’s editorial on the cancellation.
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I suspect 1918, no?
They may also have canceled some or all of April 1919, since there was a late-spring relapse.
“Conference schedules were altered twice as a result of flu epidemics: in April 1919, when conference was rescheduled for June, and in 1957, when the October sessions were cancelled because of the Asian flu epidemic.” -http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/55086, “The History of General Conference”
From the article: “Farah says the church is following recommendations from the Mexican government to suspend public gatherings in its capital city and other affected areas.”
Did the recommendation come from US goverment or Mexican government?
Queno,
Good question, I was intentionally vague, and was referring to the federal government of the Estados Unidos Mexicanos, as Mexico is formally called.
Portia is correct, according to a Deseret News/Salt Lake Telegram article from September 27, 1957. I’ll update the post to include part of the article.
If there were a flu outbreak in this era similar to the ones for which conference has been cancelled in the past, I think the church would cancel the mass meetings, but would still televise the speeches.
@ Queuno,
It was the Mexican government who ordered, with varying levels of compliance, that all major meetings to be cancelled. The Mexico City Temple has also been closed. The country is expected to return to activity today, though some primary schools will return next Monday, May 11th.