Visiting Teaching

The visiting teaching program was a program set up by Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was administered by the Relief Society. Those who participated were referred to as "visiting teachers."

During the Sunday afternoon session of April 2018 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson announced a significant change to the way members serve and care for each other.

The separate programs of home teaching and visiting teaching will be “retired,” he said, becoming a coordinated effort called “ministering,” a “new and holier approach” to Christlike caring for others and helping meet their spiritual and temporal needs.[1]

Under this new way for members to serve and care for each other, the terms "home teacher" and "visiting teacher" were replaced with "ministering brother" and "ministering sister."

History of the Visiting Teaching Program

Throughout the Church the program was set up so that two female members were assigned to families in their congregation that have at least one adult female member. They were asked to visit their families on at least a monthly basis and share a spiritual message with them from the Church leaders. Their purpose was to watch out for the family, be friends with them, and help them when needed. The Relief Society Presidency and Visiting Teaching Coordinator of each ward assigned partners and families to each partnership. Visits were reported monthly and any needs were communicated to the Relief Society presidency for confidential assistance.

A passage from the Book of Mormon, Moroni 6:4, helps explain the purpose behind visiting teaching: "And after they had been received unto baptism, . . . they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way." Part of the purpose of visiting teaching is to make sure that each member is remembered and nourished in the Church.

President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency furthered explained this idea: “You are called to represent the Savior. Your voice to testify becomes the same as His voice, your hands to lift the same as His hands. . . . Your calling is to bless lives. That will be true even in the most ordinary tasks you are assigned. . . . You see, there are no small callings to represent the Lord.” The idea behind visiting teaching is to have someone in contact with all of the families of the ward so that if a family is in need the members can do what the Lord would do and uplift and help them.

Church leaders reminded the sisters that being called to be a visiting teacher was an important calling. President Spencer W. Kimball in an address, said that visiting teaching can sometimes be a hard task, but that women should remember that "God called you, then it follows that you cannot fail if you do your full part."

When planning to go visiting teaching, a visiting teacher studied the lesson and prayed about the message that should be given. The time was typically prearranged out of respect for the family’s time. The meetings were relatively brief unless there was something that the sister is needed.

Other Links:

• LDS Teach, a website to help visiting teachers with ideas and support

• See also Home Teaching