As
of this month the Church is going away from the traditional Home
Teaching/Visiting Teaching Messages and is now doing ‘Ministering’ with message
and thoughts for Members to use various Conference talks from the previous
General Conference. What we do is go back and re-listen to current General
Authority talks from the past 20+ years and specifically President Nelson’s
talks. Which is what I’m sending today. chuck
“Teach Us Tolerance and Love”
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Dear brothers and sisters,
I join my brethren in extending Easter greetings to each of you, while
expressing personal gratitude for the atonement of Jesus Christ, for His
example, and for His teachings that have motivated my message today.
I have been impressed to
speak on the subject of tolerance—a virtue much needed in our turbulent world.
But in discussing this topic, we must recognize at the outset that there is a
difference between tolerance and tolerate. Your
gracious tolerance for an individual does not grant him or her license to do
wrong, nor does your tolerance obligate you to tolerate his or her misdeed.
That distinction is fundamental to an understanding of this vital virtue.
I attended a “laboratory of
tolerance” some months ago when I had the privilege of participating in the
Parliament of the World’s Religions. There I conversed with good men and women
representing many religious groups. Again I sensed the advantages of ethnic and
cultural diversity and reflected once more on the importance of religious
freedom and tolerance.
I marvel at the inspiration
of the Prophet Joseph Smith when he penned the eleventh article of faith: “We
claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our
own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where,
or what they may.” [A of F 1:11]
That noble expression of
religious tolerance is particularly poignant in light of the Prophet’s personal
persecution. On one occasion he wrote, “I am at this time persecuted the worst
of any man on the earth, as well as this people, … all our sacred rights are
trampled under the feet of the mob.”1
Joseph Smith endured
incessant persecution and finally heartless martyrdom—at the hands of the
intolerant. His brutal fate stands as a stark reminder that we must never be
guilty of any sin
sown by the seed of intolerance.
Two Great Commandments to Love
Revealed to that revered
prophet was the fulness of the gospel. He was tutored by the resurrected
Christ, whom Joseph adored. He taught doctrines declared by the Lord, including
these He gave in response to the question of an exacting lawyer:
“Master, which is
the great commandment in the law?
“Jesus said unto
him, 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.”2
Hence, our highest
priorities in life are to love God and to love our neighbors. That broadly
includes neighbors in our own family, our community, our nation, and our world.
Obedience to the second commandment facilitates obedience to the first
commandment. “When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in
the service of your God.”3
Parental Love
That concept is easy
for mothers and fathers to understand. Parental love includes gratitude for
service extended to any of their children, especially in their time of need.
I was amused
recently when one of our grown children confided that she had always thought
that she was her daddy’s favorite daughter. She was surprised to discover later
that each of her eight sisters harbored that same feeling. Only when they had
become mothers themselves did they realize that parents hardly have favorites.
(Incidentally, our only son never had to wonder who was our favorite son.)
Our Father in Heaven
loves all of His children, too. Peter taught that “God is no respecter of
persons:
“But in every nation
he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.”4
Yet His children can
be so intolerant with one another. Neighboring factions, whether they be
identified as groups or gangs, schools or states, counties or countries, often
develop animosity. Such tendencies make me wonder: Cannot boundary lines exist
without becoming battle lines? Could not people unite in waging war against the
evils that beset mankind instead of waging war on each other? Sadly, answers to
these questions are often no. Through the years, discrimination based on ethnic
or religious identity has led to senseless slaughter, vicious pogroms, and
countless acts of cruelty. The face of history is pocked by the ugly scars of
intolerance.
How different our
world would be if all parents would apply this inspired instruction from the
Book of Mormon: “Ye will not suffer your children … that they transgress the
laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with another. …
“But ye will teach
them to walk in the ways of truth and soberness; ye will teach them to love one
another, and to serve one another.”5
If such training
occurred, children and parents around this globe would join in singing, “Fill
our hearts with sweet forgiving; Teach us tolerance and love.”6 Men and women
would respect their neighbors and the beliefs held sacred by them. No longer
would ethnic jokes and cultural slurs be acceptable. The tongue of the tolerant
speaks no guile.
Independence and Cooperation
While we strive for
the virtue of tolerance, other commendable qualities need not be lost.
Tolerance does not require the surrender of noble purpose or of individual
identity. The Lord gave instruction to leaders of His restored church to
establish and maintain institutional integrity—“that the church may stand
independent.”7
Meanwhile, its
members are encouraged to join with like-minded citizens in doing good.8 We are grateful
for the many examples of heroic service rendered in times of earthquakes,
floods, hurricanes, or other disasters. Such cooperative efforts to help
neighbors in distress transcend any barriers posed by religion, race, or
culture. Those good deeds are latter-day love in action!
Humanitarian relief
rendered by members of this church is extensive, multinational, and generally
unpublicized. Even so, there are doubtless many who wonder why we don’t do more
to assist the innumerable worthy causes to which our hearts respond.
Of course we are
concerned with the need for ambulances in the valley below. But at the same
time, we cannot ignore the greater need for protective guardrails on the cliffs
above. Limited resources needed for the accomplishment of the higher work
cannot be depleted in rescue efforts that provide only temporary relief.
The biblical prophet
Nehemiah must have felt that same commitment to his important calling. When he
was asked to divert attention away from his primary purpose, he replied: “I am
doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease,
whilst I leave it, and come down to you?”9
Fortunately, we in
the Church rarely have to make such a decision. We consider love of neighbor an
integral part of our mission. And while we serve one another, we continue to
build a spiritual house of refuge on the cliffs above. Such a sanctuary becomes
a blessing for all mankind. We are but the builders; the architect is almighty
God.
Missionary Responsibilities
Latter-day Saints
throughout the world work side by side with others—regardless of race, color,
or creed—hoping to be good examples worthy of emulation. The Savior said: “I
give unto you a commandment, that every man, both elder, priest, teacher, and
also member, … prepare and accomplish the things which I have commanded.
“And let your
preaching be the warning voice, every man to his neighbor, in mildness and in
meekness.”10
This we are to do
with tolerance. While in Moscow in June 1991, in that spirit of preparation and
with sincere respect for leaders of other religious denominations, Elder Dallin
H. Oaks and I had the privilege of meeting with the presiding official of the Russian
Orthodox Church. We were accompanied by Elder Hans B. Ringger and the mission
president, Gary L. Browning. Patriarch Aleksei was most gracious in sharing a
memorable hour with us. We perceived the great difficulties endured for so many
years by this kind man and his fellow believers. We thanked him for his
perseverance and for his faith. Then we assured him of our good intentions and
of the importance of the message that missionaries of The Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints would be teaching among his countrymen. We affirmed
that ours is a global church and that we honor and obey the laws of each land
in which we labor.11
To those with an
interest in the fulness of the restored gospel—regardless of nationality or
religious background—we say as did Elder Bruce R. McConkie: “Keep all the truth
and all the good that you have. Do not abandon any sound or proper principle.
Do not forsake any standard of the past which is good, righteous, and true.
Every truth found in every church in all the world we believe. But we also say
this to all men—Come and take the added light and truth that God has restored
in our day. The more truth we have, the greater is our joy here and now; the
more truth we receive, the greater is our reward in eternity. This is our
invitation to men [and women] of good will everywhere.”12
Each of you with a
testimony of the truth of the restored gospel has opportunity to share that
precious gift. The Lord expects you to “be ready always to give an answer to
every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness.”13
Baptism Transcends Background
On every continent
and across isles of the sea, the faithful are being gathered into The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Differences in cultural background,
language, gender, and facial features fade into insignificance as members lose
themselves in service to their beloved Savior. Paul’s declaration is being
fulfilled: “As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on
Christ.
“There is neither
Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor
female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”14
Only the
comprehension of the true Fatherhood of God can bring full appreciation of the
true brotherhood of man. That understanding inspires desire to build bridges of
cooperation instead of walls of segregation.
Our Creator decreed
“that there should be no contention one with another, but that they should look
forward with one eye, having one faith and one baptism, having their hearts
knit together in unity and in love one towards another.”15
Intolerance seeds
contention; tolerance supersedes contention. Tolerance is the key that opens
the door to mutual understanding and love.
Risks of Boundless Tolerance
Now may I offer an
important note of caution. An erroneous assumption could be made that if a
little of something is good, a lot must be better. Not so! Overdoses of needed
medication can be toxic. Boundless mercy could oppose justice. So tolerance,
without limit, could lead to spineless permissiveness.
The Lord drew
boundary lines to define acceptable limits of tolerance. Danger rises when
those divine limits are disobeyed. Just as parents teach little children not to
run and play in the street, the Savior taught us that we need not tolerate
evil. “Jesus went into the temple of God, and … and overthrew the tables of the
moneychangers.”16 Though He loved
the sinner, the Lord said that He “cannot look upon sin with the least degree
of allowance.”17 His Apostle
Paul specified some of those sins in a letter to the Galatians. The list
included “adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
“Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, … wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
“Envyings, murders,
drunkenness, revellings, and such like.”18
To Paul’s list I
might add the regrettable attitudes of bigotry, hypocrisy, and prejudice. These
were also decried in 1834 by early Church leaders who foresaw the eventual rise
of this church “amid the frowns of bigots and the calumny of hypocrites.”19 The Prophet
Joseph Smith prayed that “prejudices may give way before the truth.”20 Hatred stirs up
strife21 and digs
beneath the dignity of mature men and women in our enlightened era.
Paul’s list included
“uncleanness.” As members of the Church entrusted with its holy temples, we are
commanded that “no unclean thing shall be permitted to come into [His] house to
pollute it.”22
That assignment
requires great fortitude as well as love. In former days, disciples of the Lord
“were firm, and would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin.”23 In latter days,
devoted disciples of the Lord are just as firm. Real love for the sinner may
compel courageous confrontation—not acquiescence! Real love does not support
self-destructing behavior.
Tolerance and Mutual Respect
Our commitment to
the Savior causes us to scorn sin yet heed His commandment to love our
neighbors. Together we live on this earth, which is to be tended, subdued, and
shared with gratitude.24 Each of us can
help to make life in this world a more pleasant experience. Not long ago the
First Presidency and the Twelve issued a public statement from which I quote:
“It is morally wrong for any person or group to deny anyone his or her
inalienable dignity on the tragic and abhorrent theory of racial or cultural
superiority.
“We call upon all
people everywhere to recommit themselves to the time-honored ideals of
tolerance and mutual respect. We sincerely believe that as we acknowledge one
another with consideration and compassion we will discover that we can all
peacefully coexist despite our deepest differences.”25
That pronouncement
is a contemporary confirmation of the Prophet Joseph’s earlier entreaty for
tolerance. Unitedly we may respond. Together we may stand, intolerant of
transgression but tolerant of neighbors with differences they hold sacred. Our
beloved brothers and sisters throughout the world are all children of
God. He is our Father. His Son, Jesus, is the Christ. His church has been
restored to the earth in these latter days to bless all of God’s children. I so
testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
“Teaching Me
Tolerance”
cji
5/1/18
Understanding of love
patience
sometimes I judge too
quickly
forgetting to see all
sides
needing to be a
peace-keeper
uniting with
sisters/brothers
reminding my example
of who
thus teaching others
as I
knowing of eternity
this day
teaching me tolerance
ever!
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