“It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” Martin Luther King Jr. (courtesy of www.history.com)
“...We are all connected, and we have a God-given responsibility to help make life better for those around us. We don’t have to be alike or look alike to have love for each other. We don’t even have to agree with each other to love each other. If we have any hope of reclaiming the goodwill and sense of humanity for which we yearn, it must begin with each of us, one person at a time.”
“We are willing to help each other because we love each other, and my brother’s needs become my needs, and mine become his. No matter what language my brother speaks or what country he comes from, we love each other because we are brothers, children of the same Father. …It is not enough to avoid being a stumbling block for others; it is not enough to notice the needy on the road and pass by. Let us take advantage of every opportunity to help our neighbor, even if it is the first and only time we meet him or her in this life. Why is love for God the first great commandment? I think it’s because of what He means to us. We are His children, He oversees our welfare,…
“How can we as Church members help to create a global community of Saints in which everyone feels welcome and strives to live in peace and harmony with each other regardless of race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, age, gender, education, socioeconomic status, ability level, or any other difference? ... The answer is, of course, through our Savior Jesus Christ. ...Jesus Christ can change our hearts (see Mosiah 5:2). He has “power to heal” (Mark 3:15). ...We Can Lead Out in Reaching Out. If we find in ourselves anything that reflects attitudes or behaviors based on prejudice, we need to abandon it in our efforts to become one. ... As members of “the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 12:27), we need each other, “that there should be no schism in the…
“The question for each of us, regardless of race, is the same. Are you willing to let God prevail in your life? Are you willing to let God be the most important influence in your life? Will you allow His words, His commandments, and His covenants to influence what you do each day? Will you allow His voice to take priority over any other? Are you willing to let whatever He needs you to do take precedence over every other ambition? Are you willing to have your will swallowed up in His?"
“To focus the congregation on what really mattered, Mr. Stevenson spoke to them about [of] the woman accused of adultery who was brought to Jesus. The accusers wanted to stone her to death, but Jesus said, “He that is without sin … , let him first cast a stone at her.” The woman’s accusers withdrew. Jesus did not condemn the woman but charged her to sin no more. After recounting this episode, Mr. Stevenson observed that self-righteousness, fear, and anger have caused even Christians to hurl stones at people who stumble. He then said, “We can’t simply watch that happen,” and he encouraged the congregants to become “stonecatchers.” Brothers and sisters, not throwing stones is the first step in treating others with compassion. The second step is to try to…
“I thought for many years that love was an attribute. But it is more. It is a commandment. In His dialogue with the lawyer, a Pharisee, Jesus said: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matt. 22:37–40; see also Gal. 5:14). President Hinckley has said that “love is like the Polar Star. In a changing world, it is a constant. It is the very essence of the gospel."
“...we as Church members, more than ever before, must take the obligation upon us to learn foreign languages.”
“But some members like to think that civic participation by Latter-day Saints in democratic countries is seldom appropriate. On what grounds do they arrive at such a conclusion? Some argue that since the world is presently engaged in the last tragic scenes of a drama which (as the Lord has revealed) must inevitably end in the destruction of all the kingdoms of men, it is hopeless to try to maintain (or restore) honesty, accountability, or effectiveness to one’s political system. Others maintain that the demands of active Church membership leave little time or energy for engaging in “active citizenship.” With the constant pressures of making a living, caring for a family, and almost daily Church responsibilities, how can one sandwich in participation in political activity such as delivering a petition…
“Given the monumental challenge of addressing inequity in the world, what can one man or woman do? The Master Himself offered an answer. When, prior to His betrayal and Crucifixion, Mary anointed Jesus’s head with an expensive burial ointment, Judas Iscariot protested this extravagance and “murmured against her.” Jesus said: “Why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work. …“She hath done what she could.” (Mark 14:6, 8) “She hath done what she could”! What a succinct formula! “Brothers and sisters, such a sermon demands that I openly acknowledge the unearned, undeserved, unending blessings in my life, both temporal and spiritual. Like you, I have had to worry about finances on occasion, but I have never been poor, nor do I even know how the poor feel. Furthermore, I…
