Conference Address

My brethren and sisters, it is with humility that I seek the sustaining influence of your faith and prayers while I endeavor to fill this most important responsibility. ¶

The Ways of the World ¶

I have been impressed, since this call came to me, with the fact that it is very easy for the children of our Heavenly Father, in their lives, to follow the will and the ways of the masses. There seems to be something that naturally attracts us in our weakness to go with the ways of the world. In so doing we lose sight of the fact that one of the greatest gifts bestowed upon us is our own free agency, and that free agency of ours should compel us to make our own decisions, to exercise our own judgment, to know where we are going, and to know the means by which we expect to arrive at our destination. There is so much that could be said upon this subject because, unwittingly, it would seem that so many of us are sacrificing this right of free agency. We are so imbued with the idea that we must do as the world does, be one with our neighbors regardless of what their ideals and ambitions may be, that we are unwittingly forfeiting the right to make our own judgments and our own decisions. ¶

Objectives of Life Sidetracked ¶

There are few of us who, if we were to take a trip, would not give some concern to the vehicle in which we would travel, the road along which we would walk or go, and the goal we would seek as a destination. Now all of these things seem commonplace to us in our everyday life, but when it comes to knowing where we are going, so far as life is concerned, where our goal is, the objective of our creation, the fulfilling of our purposes here upon this earth, we seem to be very easily sidetracked. ¶

I was very much impressed in reading recently a statement of the Prophet Joseph Smith. He said: ¶

Consider for a moment, brethren, the fulfilment of the words of the prophet; for we behold that darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the minds of the inhabitants thereof — that crimes of every description are increasing among men — vices of great enormity are practiced — the rising generation growing up in the fulness of pride and arrogance — the aged losing every sense of conviction and seemingly banishing every thought of a day of retribution — intemperance, immorality, extravagance, pride, blindness of heart, idolatry, the loss of natural affection; the love of this world, and indifference toward the things of eternity increasing among those who profess a belief in the religion of heaven, and infidelity spreading itself in consequence of the same — men giving themselves up to commit acts of the foulest kind, and deeds of the blackest dye, blaspheming, defrauding, blasting the reputation of neighbors, stealing, robbing, murdering, advocating error and opposing the truth, forsaking the covenant of heaven, and denying the faith of Jesus — and in the midst of all this, the day of the Lord fast approaching when none except those who have won the wedding garment will be permitted to eat and drink in the presence of the Bridegroom, the Prince of Peace! (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 47.) ¶

Loss of Natural Affection ¶

In thus enumerating the crimes of which the world would, in the future, be guilty, the Prophet Joseph evidenced his true prophetic nature — the power which he possessed, given him from on high to see into the future, for I warrant that in the days of the Prophet no one realized the extent to which the people of the world, would lose their, "natural affection," in the years to come. Today there seems to be a greater urge to destroy this "natural affection" than to commit any other offense of comparable enormity. ¶

We are for the most part, not conscious of the existence of agencies at work in our midst with this result as their purpose. We are losing one of our most precious prizes which mankind can hold on to if they will. ¶

Certainly natural affection is something that was bestowed upon us at birth. We had an abundance of love at that time for our parents. The child loves its mother. We are brought to a time in our lives, in the history of this world, today, when we should begin to inquire as to whether there is any less degree of affection existing between us, as we grow to maturity, for our parents, than that which existed in the days of our childhood and our youth. If we find the slightest difference, if we find that there has been any loss of affection, then we should examine our lives carefully to ascertain what we can do to bring about its restoration. Of all the people upon this earth we should be the last people to consider accepting any of the philosophies of the world, no matter what the prize attached thereto might be, if so to do would be to withdraw from that close affinity and affection which must exist between father and son and mother and daughter if we are to realize here in our mortal existence the full purpose of our creation. ¶

It is a serious matter to me and one which has been brought close to my heart, because of my work in our welfare program. I am thrilled when I read the statistics of how much we have accomplished in the welfare program, how many trainloads, carloads, shiploads of supplies we have sent to the needy Saints in Europe and how much we have accomplished in the organized stakes of Zion. It seems as though those things may be measured in tons, but there has been a benefit come to the people of "this Church as a result of this welfare program of a spiritual nature which cannot be measured. It cannot be estimated, but the good which has been accomplished can be seen in the increased affection which this work has brought between the children and the parents. If we were to work all the days of our life and sacrifice all of our surplus and keep only that which we actually need for ourselves and bring into our lives as a result thereof a closer love and affection for our children than we have heretofore had, no one would deny but what we have spent our means well. ¶

The Significance of the Home ¶

It would seem that all of the philosophies of the world today are set upon destroying the home. As we travel through the world, the people of the world seem to have lost in their lives the significance of home. We as Latter-day Saints cannot do this. We must still maintain the home as a place where we can kneel down daily with our children and teach them to pray. Our home is the place where we can teach them the gospel. We cannot be saved in ignorance, and neither can our children. What a wonderful work it would be if today we could bring back into the home the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ as a means of overcoming the delinquency there is in the world, among the youth. We can't deny the fact that there is greater delinquency among the young people of the world than ever before. We as Latter-day Saints have the responsibility to see to it that this delinquency of which the world is guilty does not creep into our homes. I have had occasion many times, to suggest that maybe if we would enter into this family relationship with the same enthusiasm, with the same ambition and the same energy and the same desire as we do our temporal affairs that our families and the home would mean more to us than they do now. It has been my thought for a long time, certainly my considered opinion and my testimony to you today that one way to combat divorce in the world is for men to pay more attention to their wives and for wives to pay more attention to their husbands, and let some of the things of the world go by and do not take the example of the world as that which we must follow but rather apply ourselves to the performance of some of the humbler duties of life. ¶

The Lord bless the mothers in Israel who keep their flock under their arms, who teach them to pray at their knees, and the Lord bless the fathers in Israel who are willing to take time off from their business and from their farms to spend with their sons and their daughters. ¶

Virtue in Church Activity ¶

Of course I see a great deal of virtue in this welfare program. If fathers would pull themselves away from their work and would engage themselves in the various projects that have been initiated in this welfare program, they would soon see the blessing to be derived from taking their sons with them and mothers their daughters. ¶

As I go into the meetings of the Saints, I always have a feeling, I have it today, that the adversary has absolutely no power over us so long as we are assembled here in the Lord's house and worshiping him. Brethren and sisters that same protection goes with us throughout our lives and in all our activities if our associations be with those who have the same ideals and the same objectives in life. The priesthood was given to us to be a protection, and in order that it be a protection we must be active in the quorums to which we belong. Men who associate actively in the priesthood quorums of this Church will keep themselves from the power of the adversary. Their motives will always be righteous. They will bring into their homes a spirit and an atmosphere that will keep their children in the line of their duty. It will give to each and every one of us a desire which we cannot overcome except we fulfil it, to see to it that every son and daughter with whom we are blessed knows as much about this gospel of Jesus Christ as we do. ¶

It would be a reflection upon the people of the Church if their sons and daughters as they come to us to be interviewed to go on a mission should tell us that they had never heard their father or their mother bear their testimony. So we should go to our various places of labor throughout the Church and teach our people to bear their testimonies to their children and to teach them the simple but the fundamental principles of this gospel. There will be none of our youth leave our Church and join any of the churches of the world if they once have within themselves a knowledge of the true gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through the instrumentality of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I tell you, my brothers and sisters, we have a responsibility to make of our homes a sacred place where our children will want to come and bring their children and kneel with us in prayer and read the scriptures with us and discuss with us the problems of life. ¶

Parental Influence in the Home ¶

Now, if we devote ourselves to the institutions of the world, and they are multiplying daily, we will have no time for the Church. All of us have opportunities to join this organization or that organization, and it is time for us to realize that every organization which we join, no matter how good its purposes may be, detracts, to some extent at least, from our observing and practising the things which we should do in our home and above all giving of ourselves to our families. It is not enough in this day and age to make money, to be able to bestow the riches of the world upon our children to let them live in luxury, give them all of the things of life that they might want. Better than all that is to give a little of ourselves to our children, that they might know us for what we are and feel of the spirit which we have and which we receive through keeping the commandments of our Heavenly Father. ¶

I was reading the other day what President George Albert Smith said many years ago, and in conclusion I want to read his statement: ¶

Grateful should we be for a knowledge of the eternity of the marriage covenant. If in this life only have we hope we would indeed be of all men the most miserable. The assurance that our relationship here as parents and children, as husbands and wives, will continue in heaven and this is but the beginning of a great and glorious kingdom that our Father has destined we shall inherit on the other side, fills us with hope and joy. One of the greatest evidences to me of the divinity of this work is that it teaches there is life eternal on the other side and that there will be a reunion there of the loved ones who have known each other here, consequently as parents we may well be patient and loving toward our children, for they will eternally abide with us on the other side, if we and they are faithful. The few years that we live here will be regarded as a time in which we become acquainted, but when we mingle in the other life, we will know each other better than we have here. ¶

. President Wilford Woodruff said on one occasion: ¶

Bless your souls, if you live here in the flesh a thousand years, as long as Father Adam and lived and labored all your life in poverty and when we get through, if by your acts you could secure your wives and children in the first resurrection to dwell with you in the presence of God that one thing would amply pay you for the labors of a thousand years. ¶

Now let us make the sacrifice, my brothers and sisters, of the labors of a day or two a month to spend with our children and help them to gain a place in the celestial kingdom of our Heavenly Father, there to dwell with us and to add to our glory eternally. I pray humbly this may be our happy lot, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶