Doctrinal Library

The Unspeakable Gift of the Holy Ghost

Not only does this account emphasize the importance of the Holy Ghost and seeking His influence, it also brought to my mind these principles and truths:...The adversary seeks to disorganize and to destroy (see D&C 10:6–7, 22–27), especially families, as evidenced today by abortion, divorce, and same-gender marriage. I asked myself if the growing practice in your age group of postponing marriage contributes to disorganizing families.

Roots and Branches

What do you suppose will happen if, when the Lord comes, he doesn’t find anything but homosexuality and lesbianism and birth control and abortion and sterilization, all of which are rampant upon the earth, as you well know. In other words what will he feel if he finds that we will no longer allow his Father to send his children to this earth? Do you suppose the earth would be wasted as far as he is concerned?

Be 100 Percent Responsible

The Korihor Principle—Separating Agency from Responsibility. One of Satan’s most crafty strategies to gain control of our agency isn’t a frontal attack on our agency but a sneaky backdoor assault on responsibility. Without responsibility, every good gift from God could be misused for evil purposes. For example, freedom of speech without responsibility can be used to create and protect pornography. The rights of a woman can be twisted to justify an unnecessary abortion. When the world separates choice from accountability, it leads to anarchy and a war of wills or survival of the fittest. We could call agency without responsibility the Korihor principle, as we read in the book of Alma “that every man conquered according to his strength; and whatsoever a man did was no crime” (Alma 30:17; emphasis added). With negative consequences removed, you now have agency unbridled, as if there were no day of reckoning.

Them That Love Him

On an average day in America... 3,231 women will have an abortion [American Way, July 1980, p. 64–67]” Can you begin to see the need? Oh, how our Father in Heaven is counting on you! There is a great responsibility that goes with the privilege and blessedness of having received the added knowledge that is ours.

You Are My Hands

Love is what inspired our Heavenly Father to create our spirits; it is what led our Savior to the Garden of Gethsemane to make Himself a ransom for our sins. Love is the grand motive of the plan of salvation; it is the source of happiness, the ever-renewing spring of healing, the precious fountain of hope.

Mothers Who Know

Mothers who know desire to bear children. Whereas in many cultures in the world children are “becoming less valued,” in the culture of the gospel we still believe in having children. Prophets, seers, and revelators who were sustained at this conference have declared that “God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.”

Women’s Greatest Challenges

On matters of morality he has given more specific counsel. On such issues as abortion, the Equal Rights Amendment, homosexuality, and pornography—current issues sometimes categorized as women’s issues—he has given direct counsel. Mormon women know that they have the right to accept or reject the counsel; but in keeping with fundamental doctrine, they must also realize that to reject it is a heavy responsibility. It is the calling of a prophet to see to the very heart of a moral issue, to envision its future course, and to warn the people of its consequences. Sometimes those who do not agree with what he says may refuse to heed the warning. Only later, sadly, is the truth of his words made obvious to all.

A Strategy for War

Satan does rage in the hearts of some. Many he will lull away into carnal security; others he flattereth, or he says there is no hell. He has lured and enlisted many followers with enticements of fame, riches, and power. He forges a Rembrandt-quality representation by calling evil good and good evil. He has confused many people, even nations and leaders, to the point of an immoral approach to moral issues. Let me mention just three examples of voices that are ungodly and powerful among Satan’s many proclamations. First, he says individual agency is justification for the destruction of a human life through abortion;

Having a Form of Godliness

And what of the safety of a nation? Is our nation any less exempt from the blessings of obedience and the consequences of disobedience? Were the matter not so serious, I could chuckle at the similarities between David’s census of the Israelites and our own nation’s compulsive counting of nuclear warheads. How many missiles does it take to protect a nation in which abortion is currently the most frequently performed operation in hospitals and clinics throughout the land?

Defending the Family

I pointed out, for example, that extensive studies had shown that the incidence of teenage pregnancy and abortions actually increases following the initiation of “traditional” sex education programs that emphasize the teaching of technical sexual “know-how,” including the use of prophylactics. By contrast, however, the incidence of adolescent pregnancy, abortion, and sexually transmitted disease is dramatically reduced through family-based education programs. At the conclusion of my short remarks, I emphasized the essential message of the First Presidency’s proclamation on the family: that there is a “fundamental connection” between a decent society and “the reinforcement of strong, stable families. Instead of numerous explicit paragraphs mandating worldwide abortion on demand, only one (somewhat hedged) reference to “reproductive health” remained.