Charity and Forgiveness

I have listened with much attention to our President's remarks, and I hope that every heart will retain the good counsel he has given, and that all will remember it and make it the moving principle of their lives. ¶

Key Words of the Conference

Love and charity, forgiveness, and doing our duties that the Lord has laid upon us are the key words or the key note to this conference. You who have had much experience in life know the truth of what the president has expressed. In our intercourse with one another it often happens that a word may displease us, or the act of our brother cause us to blame him, and, perhaps, enlarge upon what he has done until we make it almost a crime. We ought to be careful not to let anything like this cause bitterness and hatred in our hearts, for as the president read to us, the Lord will forgive whom he will forgive, but he commands us that we shall forgive one another. This is a beautiful principle. When we remember the relationship in which we stand to our heavenly Father and to his children we ought to practice the principle of charity toward one another. We generally love our own brothers and sisters, we are tender about what is said concerning them, we even feel anything said derogatory to their character to be almost the same as if it were said about our own. As we feel toward our own brothers and sisters, so we should likewise feel towards our brethren and sisters in the covenant and for all men. We should not let hatred enter our hearts. Let us forgive others their offenses in the hope that we can have forgiveness for our own. ¶

Blessedness of Charity and Forgiveness

The scriptures give us many examples of the blessedness of charity and forgiveness. I recall the story of David and Saul. Saul had learned that David had been anointed to become king of Israel. Although at one time he loved David, and David had been able with his singing and his harp to drive out the evil spirit from the old king, yet when the king heard of the destiny of his own house, that his son was not to rule in Israel, that the kingdom was to be given to David, his heart was filled with hatred. He took three thousand men and went down into the southern part of Palestine, among the mountains, hunting for David and the few followers he had with him, determined to kill him. Saul entered a cave where David and his associates were hiding. David knew the king had come to make him a captive and to take his life; yet he would not hurt Saul, because he was the anointed of the Lord. He cut off the skirt of Saul's robe and left the cave. In the morning when the king left the cave David cried to him and showed him what he had done. The king felt repentant for a little while. He knew he had been in the power of the man whose life he sought, and he acknowledged that David was more just than himself. He saw that David had not exercised the power he had to kill the one who sought his life. David felt reverence for the man who had been anointed by a prophet of God. I am sorry to say that Saul's good mood did not last long, but still there was a moment when he felt the power of forgiveness working upon him. ¶

Scriptural Examples

Jesus in one of his parables tells about the servant that owed his master a great sum of money, so much that he could never pay it, but because of his pleading his master forgave him and let him go. When going from his master's house he met a man who owed him a very small amount. The servant that had been forgiven so much was not willing to forgive this other man the small amount that he owed, and being unable to pay the wicked servant cast him into prison until he could pay the debt. When the master heard of this unforgiving man's act he called him back and measured out to him his punishment for being so hard-hearted and so ungrateful for the blessings he had received. ¶

Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, and one part of that prayer is, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." That is the principle. We all know how greatly we are indebted to our heavenly Father, and remembering this we ought to be willing to forgive all men their trespasses against us. ¶

Christ Set the Greatest Example of All

Let us not entertain hatred against anyone, whether he is connected with the Church or not. That feeling ought not to be harbored in our breasts. Let us rather feel to imitate our great Master. He not only taught, as he did in the parable just related, the necessity and the importance of forgiving others as we want to be forgiven, but he showed forth this spirit in his life. When he was crucified at Golgotha -- and it is said that the suffering of crucifixion is the keenest kind of torture -- suffering intensely and knowing that he was innocent, and that those, for whom he had labored and desired greatly to save, had hung him on that accursed tree, he did not ask the Lord to take revenge upon them, but asked his Father in heaven, "Forgive them, for they know not what they do." Just think of his asking for their forgiveness when he was under such intense suffering on the cross! There is the example for us. We must exercise charity for one another and avoid letting ill-feelings rankle in our hearts against any person. ¶

Let Charity Drive Out Bitterness

We have not the right to hate any of the creatures of God, but we have been commanded to love them, and also to forgive them if they have offended us. I believe that you can put this down as a principle, that to start with there are very few offenders who wilfully intend to offend, not having given full thought to their acts. They do something that offends us, and we at once feel offended and angry and, perhaps, we let it grow to that greater amount of anger that we call hatred. This should not be. Perhaps if we had spoken to our brother at once we would have learned that he did not really mean what we thought he did, and that we have become offended too hastily. Let us have enough charity for one another that we will not allow anything to be an offense to cause us hardness of heart. ¶

Forgiveness and Charity Bring Happiness

I remember once I went with President Grant and two others of the apostles to investigate complaints against a certain bishop. Among those opposed to the bishop was a man who had much influence with the people. He and the bishop almost hated each other. We brought them together, they freely expressed their feelings and what had caused them. We acted as peacemakers, and when they saw their error, with tears in their eyes they clasped hands and forgave each other. It was a touching scene and joy filled all our hearts. After that the bishop was reconciled to his opposers. Now, brethren and sisters, those men felt happy afterwards. They felt that they had suffered for a long time from something that they ought not to have borne in their hearts. As President Grant has told us, anyone who forgives his enemy or his brother what he has done against him feels joy in his heart and the spirit whispers that he has done the right thing. ¶

Now, let us learn to have charity for one another, and carry it out in our every-day lives, and we will make life happy to ourselves and to our neighbors and our path will be much smoother. ¶

May the Lord help us to do our duties in all the different lines of work given us, and may we ever remember what we owe to our heavenly Father and try to show love to our brethren and sisters. I ask the Lord to help us in this matter, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶