Aaronic Priesthood (Latter Day Saints) - Role Within The LDS Church

Role Within The LDS Church

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the Aaronic priesthood has taken on a role as a source of training, leadership and service for adolescent boys and new converts. It is often called a "preparatory priesthood." Holders of the Aaronic priesthood whom the church considers worthy are advanced to an office in the Melchizedek priesthood as a matter of course around the age of 18, or in the case of adult converts, after approximately a year of active church membership.

The Aaronic priesthood is open only to men and boys, twelve years old or older, who are considered worthy after a personal interview with their bishop. Requirements for worthiness include abstaining from all extra-marital sexual practices, following the Word of Wisdom (a code requiring abstinence from drinking alcohol, smoking, and consumption of coffee and tea), and attending church services, among other requirements.

With the exception of bishop, the offices of the Aaronic priesthood are organized primarily by age, and an adolescent boy will automatically be ordained to the next office if found worthy upon reaching the appropriate age. Seldom do those who are old enough stall their advancement in the priesthood though this has occurred before. The conferral and ordination to an office in the Aaronic priesthood is performed by the "laying on of hands" by a Priest or by those holding the Melchizedek priesthood.

With the exception of bishop Aaronic priesthood holders of the same office are organized into a quorum led by a president and counselors within each quorum. The president of the Priests Quorum is the bishop or branch president of the congregation. Each ward has one or more quorums of each office of the priesthood, if there are young men in that age group among the membership.

The church-wide titular head of the Aaronic priesthood is the Presiding Bishop. However, because the Aaronic priesthood is composed primarily of the youth of the church, the presidency of the Young Men Organization supervises much of the church-wide organization involving the Aaronic priesthood.