By MARIESA WHITAKER
As millions of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints throughout the world gather to watch General Conference this weekend, many BYU students plan to enjoy conference from the comfort of their couches.
Conference will be broadcast live on KSL, channel 5, to homes throughout Utah Saturday and Sunday.
Jenny Rebecca Jensen, a senior majoring in humanities from Greensboro, N.C., tried to attend conference in the Salt Lake Tabernacle two years ago.
“We got there at 3 a.m., stood all night in the freezing cold, and we still didn’t get in,” Jensen said.
“I decided I was never going to do that again,” she said. “Unless I have tickets, I’m just going to watch conference from the comfort of my own home.”
However, students admit that the trip to the Tabernacle has its benefits.
“Even though we didn’t get into the session, the atmosphere on Temple Square was beautifully peaceful,” Jensen said.
Kim Summers, a sophomore majoring in humanities from Grand Junction, Colo., attended a session of conference in the Tabernacle in April.
“The spiritual strength of all those men sitting in one room just blew me away,” she said.
Many students relish the opportunity of bringing that spirit into their homes through conference.
“I love watching the broadcast at home,” Jensen said. “We’re supposed to have the Spirit in our homes anyway, and having the opportunity to worship like this heightens that.”
Randy Bell, a sophomore majoring in biology from Modesto, Calif. agrees.
“It’s just so personal,” he said. “You’re there in your comfortable surroundings, and it’s like the speakers are talking right to you.”
The comfort of watching conference at home is important to many students.
“I like to listen to conference in my sweats,” said Sarah Beal, a junior majoring in English from Woodenville, Wash. “It’s like I’m worshipping in my most natural element that way.”
“You don’t have to sit primly in the same uncomfortable chair for hours,” Beal said. “And the Spirit still seems to answer all of the questions you have.”
“You can lie on your stomach, you can lie on your back. And the meeting is still spiritual,” Summers said. “You just can’t do that at church.”
Of course, not everyone prefers to watch conference at home.
“I like to watch it at a church, because I’m less distracted that way,” said Taren DeHart, a junior majoring in business and Chinese from Boise, Idaho. “At home it’s hard to find a balance between being spiritual and accomplishing all the things you have to get done that day.”
For those students who do not want to watch conference at home, the Saturday and Sunday sessions will be shown live in the Varsity Theater in the Wilkinson Center.
