How to help members gain a testimony of The Family: A Proclamation to the
World principles and share it with others.
What does The Family: A
Proclamation to the World[1]
say regarding this?
“We call upon responsible citizens
and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to
maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”
What does the textbook Successful
Marriages and Families: Proclamation Principles and Research Perspectives [2]
say regarding this?
Chapter 23 is titled, “Sharing and
Defending Family Proclamation Principles.” In this chapter, the author, Alan J.
Hawkins, notes that the proclamation is to the world, not just the Church and
its members. He encourages his associates and students who study the proclamation
to initiate instances where they share a principle from the proclamation with family,
friends, and others. He promises that, “The family proclamation is an inspired
document—President Boyd K. Packer called it “revelatory” and “scripturelike in
its power”—and it contains timeless truths that will bless not only our lives
but the lives of those around us as we reach out, near and far, to share it.”[3]
What does Handbook 2:
Administering the Church[4]
say regarding this?
“14.1.1 Strengthening the Home. Followers of Christ are invited to
“gather,” “stand in holy places,” and “be not moved” (D&C 45:32; 87:8; 101:22;
see also 2 Chronicles 35:5; Matthew 24:15). These holy places include temples,
homes, and chapels. The presence of the Spirit and the behavior of those within
these physical structures are what make them “holy places.”
Wherever Church members live, they
should establish a home where the Spirit is present. All members of the Church
can make efforts to ensure that their place of residence provides a place of
sanctuary from the world. Every home in the Church, large or small, can be a
“house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a
house of glory, a house of order, a house of God” (D&C 88:119). Church
members can invite the Spirit into their homes through simple means such as
wholesome entertainment, good music, and inspiring artwork (for example, a
painting of the Savior or a temple).
A home with loving and loyal
parents is the setting in which the spiritual and physical needs of children
are most effectively met. A Christ-centered home offers adults and children a
place of defense against sin, refuge from the world, healing from emotional and
other pain, and committed, genuine love.
Parents have always been commanded
to bring up their children “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians
6:4; Enos 1:1) and “in light and truth” (D&C 93:40). The First Presidency
proclaimed:
“We call upon parents to devote
their best efforts to the teaching and rearing of their children in gospel
principles which will keep them close to the Church. The home is the basis of a
righteous life, and no other instrumentality can take its place or fulfill its
essential functions in carrying forward this God-given responsibility.
“We counsel parents and children to
give highest priority to family prayer, family home evening, gospel study and
instruction, and wholesome family activities. However worthy and appropriate
other demands or activities may be, they must not be permitted to displace the
divinely-appointed duties that only parents and families can adequately
perform” (First Presidency letter, Feb. 11, 1999).
Parents have the primary
responsibility for helping their children know Heavenly Father and His Son,
Jesus Christ (see John 17:3). Latter-day Saint fathers and mothers have been
commanded to teach gospel doctrines, ordinances, covenants, and ways of righteous
living to their children (see D&C 68:25–28). Children who are so reared and
taught are more likely to be prepared at the appropriate age to receive
priesthood ordinances and to make and keep covenants with God.
Strengthening families is the focus
of inspired Church programs such as home teaching (see D&C 20:47, 51),
visiting teaching, and family home evening. As in all things, Jesus set the
example of entering homes to minister, teach, and bless (see Matthew 8:14–15; 9:10–13;
26:6; Mark 5:35–43; Luke 10:38–42; 19:1–9).
Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and
Bishops[5]
also advises priesthood leaders:
“17.1.24 Members are encouraged to use the
Internet to flood the earth with testimonies of the Savior and His restored gospel.
They should view blogs, social networks, and other Internet technologies as
tools that allow them to amplify their voice in promoting the messages of
peace, hope, and joy that accompany faith in Christ.
Members are encouraged to share
messages from official Church websites and social accounts, as well as their
own words, images, and media. As members express their own thoughts and
feelings, they should not give the impression that they represent or are
sponsored by the Church.
As members use the Internet to
hasten the work of the Lord, they should exemplify civility and focus on
sharing praiseworthy messages that strengthen those with whom they come in
contact.”
What do the scriptures say regarding this?
2 Timothy 3:1–2, 4, 6–7 “This know
also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. “For men shall be lovers
of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to
parents, unthankful, unholy …Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God …Led
away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge
of the truth.”
Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that
call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for
darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”
D&C 88:35 “That which breaketh
a law, and abideth not by law, but seeketh to become a law unto itself, and
willeth to abide in sin, and altogether abideth in sin, cannot be sanctified by
law, neither by mercy, justice, nor judgment. Therefore, they must remain
filthy still.”
D&C 1:4 “And the voice of
warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have
chosen in these last days.”
D&C 38:41 “And let your
preaching be the warning voice, every man to his neighbor, in mildness and in
meekness.”
What do latter-day prophets and apostles say regarding this?
After reading the proclamation,
President Hinckley concluded: We
commend to all a careful, thoughtful, and prayerful reading of this
proclamation. The strength of any nation is rooted within the walls of its
homes. We urge our people everywhere to strengthen their families in conformity
with these time-honored values.”[6]
President Spencer W. Kimball prophesied and warned, “The world we are
in is a world of turmoil, of shifting values. Shrill voices call out for one
thing or another in betrayal of time-tested standards of behavior. … With so
much of deception concerning standards and values, with so much of allurement
and enticement to take on the slow stain of the world, we have felt to warn and
forewarn. …the time will come when only those who believe deeply and actively
in the family will be able to preserve their families in the midst of the
gathering evil around us.”[7]
President Harold B. Lee taught: “The only safety we have as
members of this church is to … give heed to the words and commandments that the
Lord shall give through His prophet. There will be some things that take
patience and faith. You may not like what comes from the authority of the
Church. It may contradict your [personal] views. It may contradict your social
views. It may interfere with some of your social life. But if you listen to
these things, as if from the mouth of the Lord Himself, with patience and
faith, the promise is that ‘the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; …
and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and
cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name’s glory’ (D&C 21:6).”[8]
Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles cautioned, “In
recent decades the Church has largely been spared the terrible
misunderstandings and persecutions experienced by the early Saints. It will not
always be so. The world is moving away from the Lord faster and farther than
ever before. The adversary has been loosed upon the earth. We watch, hear,
read, study, and share the words of prophets to be forewarned and protected.
For example, “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” was given long before we
experienced the challenges now facing the family.”[9]
Elder Bruce D. Porter of the
Seventy spoke on the shifting definition of tolerance when it comes to
proclamation principles and how best to testify of truths contained in the
proclamation, “Until recently in our national history, tolerance referred to
racial and religious non-discrimination. It meant civility in the political
arena; in other words, respecting the right of others to express their views,
even if we do not agree with them. It meant treating all people with decency
and respect. Such tolerance is an important and vital part of our American
heritage. Today, however, the world is in danger of abandoning all sense of
absolute right or wrong, all morality and virtue, replacing them with an
all-encompassing “tolerance” that no longer means what it once meant. An
extreme definition of tolerance is now widespread that implicitly or explicitly
endorses the right of every person to choose their own morality, even their own
“truth,” as though morality and truth were mere matters of personal preference.
This extreme tolerance culminates in a refusal to recognize any fixed standards
or draw moral distinctions of any kind. Few dare say no to the “almighty self”
or suggest that some so-called “lifestyles” may be destructive, contrary to
higher law, or simply wrong. When tolerance is so inflated out of all
proportions, it means the death of virtue, for the essence of morality is to
draw clear distinctions between right and wrong. All virtue requires saying no
firmly and courageously to all that is morally bankrupt. Curiously enough, this
new modern tolerance is often a one-way street. Those who practice it expect
everyone to tolerate them in anything they say or do, but show no tolerance
themselves toward those who express differing viewpoints or defend traditional
morality. Indeed, their intolerance is often most barbed toward those of
religious conviction. But let there be no misunderstanding or deception: the
First Amendment right of free speech applies to religious speech as well as to
other kinds of speech. Believers of all faiths have every right to participate
in and share their convictions in the public arena. Now let us go one step
further. Even in its original and correct connotation, tolerance is surely a
secondary virtue in comparison with the far higher virtue of love. Certainly it
is good to be tolerant of those who are different than we are, treating them
with kindness and civility. But love, or charity, is the highest of all, and it
is far better to genuinely love those with whom we differ. When we truly love
all of God’s children in a Christlike way, we will desire to bring them unto
Christ, the fountain of all happiness. This means proclaiming the truth,
defending that which is right, and in a mild voice inviting all to walk the
path of Christ. By defending the traditional family, Latter-day Saints bless
all people whether others recognize it now or not.”[10]
Bonnie L. Oscarson, 2015 Young
Women General President challenged, “During this 20th anniversary year of the
family proclamation, I would like to issue a challenge for all of us as women
of the Church to be defenders of “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.” …we
need to boldly defend the Lord’s revealed doctrines describing marriage,
families, the divine roles of men and women, and the importance of homes as
sacred places—even when the world is shouting in our ears that these principles
are outdated, limiting, or no longer relevant. Everyone, no matter what their
marital circumstance or number of children, can be defenders of the Lord’s plan
described in the family proclamation. If it is the Lord’s plan, it should also
be our plan!”[11]
[1] https://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation?CID=613601&lang=eng&old=true
[2] Hawkins,
A. J., Dollahite, D. C., & Draper, T. (2012). Successful marriages and
families: proclamation principles and research perspectives. Provo, UT: BYU
Studies and School of Family Life, Brigham Young University.
[3] Ibid.
p.358.
[4] https://www.lds.org/handbook/handbook-2-administering-the-church?lang=eng
[5] https://www.lds.org/handbook/handbook-1-stake-presidents-and-bishops?lang=eng
[7] https://www.lds.org/ensign/1980/11/families-can-be-eternal?lang=eng
[8] Teachings
of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee (2000), 84–85.
[9] https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/general-conference-strengthening-faith-and-testimony?lang=eng
[10] https://www.lds.org/ensign/2011/06/defending-the-family-in-a-troubled-world.p1?lang=eng
[11] https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/defenders-of-the-family-proclamation?lang=eng
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