The Proclamation As Prophetic Guidance for Strengthening the Family

1. The Proclamation As Prophetic Guidance for Strengthening the Family

2. What Is the Proclamation? • A statement of revelation and fundamental Church doctrine. • An official Church proclamation. • A document of universal truth. • A sign of increasing prophetic emphasis on family. • A Latter-day Liahona. • A solemn prophetic warning and call to action.

3. A statement of revelation and fundamental Church doctrine. “…an extraordinary document outlining Church doctrine concerning the family and the relationships between husband and wife, parents and children.” Elder Merrill J. Bateman • Doctrines include: • Heavenly Father’s Plan of Happiness • Gender • The sanctity of life. • The nature of marriage • The sacred responsibilities of spouses and parents • Principles of successful marriage and family life

4. An official Church proclamation. Only the fifth proclamation issued by the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints during its 170 year history. “In performance of their calling as apostles, prophets, seers, revelators, and spokesmen for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have from time to time issued formal written proclamations, declarations, letters, and various public pronouncements. These have been addressed sometimes to the members of the Church (as a type of general epistle) and sometimes to the public at large. All such declarations have been solemn and sacred in nature and were issued with the intent to bring forth, build up, and regulate the affairs of the Church as the kingdom of God on the earth . . . . Only a few of the many formal declarations have been labeled “Proclamations.” (Daniel Ludlow, The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, p. 1151)

5. The Family Proclamation in Context with other Proclamations • Issued January 15, 1841, by the First Presidency (Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith): “reviews the progress of the Church in spite of hardships and persecution, and speaks at length on the prospects of the settlement of Nauvoo.” (EM, p. 1151) • Issued April 6 (in New York) and October 22 (in Liverpool, England), 1845, by the Twelve Apostles (no First Presidency due to the martyrdom). This proclamations “was addressed to the rulers and people of all nations” and “was an announcement that God had spoken from the heavens and restored the gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth” and “invited all who were interested to assist in the building of the kingdom of God on the earth in preparation for the Savior’s second coming.” (EM, p. 1153) • Issued October 21, 1865, by the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles to “correct certain theories about the nature of God that had been published by one of the Twelve in official Church literature, without having those statements cleared and verified by the First Presidency and the Twelve.” (EM, p. 1155)

6. Issued April 6, 1980, by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the organization of the Church. This proclamation concerning the progress, doctrine, mission, and message of the Church, stated, among other things, • “We affirm the sanctity of the family as a divine creation and declare that God our Eternal Father will hold parents accountable to rear their children in light and truth, teaching them ‘to pray and walk uprightly before the Lord’ (D&C 68:28). We teach that the most sacred of all relationships, those family associations of husbands and wives and parents and children, may be continued eternally when marriage is solemnized under the authority of the holy priesthood exercised in temples dedicated for these divinely authorized purposes.” (EM, p. 1156) • On September 23, 1995, President Gordon B. Hinckley introduced and read The Family: A Proclamation to the World in the General Meeting of the Relief Society. (January 1, 2000, the 15 living apostles issued “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” This document testifies of the life, the mission, and the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although not formally called a “proclamation” it certainly proclaims the divinity of the Savior to Church members and our friends of other faiths alike. )

7. A document of universal truth. • “…whatever the proclamation says could help anyone in the world.” Elder Henry B. Eyring • Three things are significant: • Subject: The Family • Audience: The World • Proclaimers: Prophets, Seers, Revelators

8. A sign of increasing prophetic emphasis on family. In recent years the Lord’s prophets have emphasized the eternal importance of marriage and family and taken steps to strengthen the Saints in their family responsibilities more than at any time in sacred history. In addition to the Proclamation, there have been: • Increased number of talks in general conference devoted to family • Increased training concerning family principles given in various meetings of the Church. • Various changes in Church policies and curricula designed to support families (e.g., the consolidated Sunday schedule and new manuals for priesthood and Relief Society). • Accelerations in temple building. • Changes of program names and emphasis: • “LDS Social Services” to “LDS Family Services” (with change of emphasis toward strengthening the family) • “Genealogy” to “Family History” • Recent First Presidency letters emphasizing the family.

9. A Latter-day Liahona. I believe the proclamation is a latter-day Liahona for those seeking guidance through the wilderness of contemporary family life (1 Nephi 16; Alma 37:38-46). I like the metaphor of the Liahona in this instance. As I read the account of Lehi and his journey in the wilderness and some commentaries on it, it appears that Lehi had some familiarity with the wilderness through which he journeyed, yet it seems that the Lord knew that Lehi would need greater guidance in those challenging circumstances. Thus, He provided the faith-activated Liahona as their physical compass to point the way that they should go (1 Nephi 16:28). Alan J. Hawkins, Devotional Address, June 2, 1998

10. A solemn prophetic warning. • Those who violate the law of chastity or who neglect or abuse spouse or children will be accountable to God. • Calamities will result from rejection of eternal truths about family life. A prophetic call to action. • Issued to “responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere” to DO something to strengthen marriage and family.

11. Why a Proclamation on the Family Now? • The family is under attack. • All across the world families are falling apart. • The place to begin to improve society is in the home. Children do, for the most part, what they are taught. • “We are trying to make the world better by making the family stronger.” President Hinckley

12. What Has the Proclamation Achieved Thus Far? Indicative of the importance of the Proclamation to the Church, since 1995, the Proclamation has been used extensively both within the Church and as an important missionary tool: Importance within the Church: • Within the Church, the Proclamation has been the subject of or impetus for training given by General Authorities to Church leaders, as well as in training given by stake and ward leaders. • Attractive copies of the Proclamation were distributed too all Church members. • It is now prominently displayed in Church buildings and in the homes of many members. • It is now the foundation of a courses at BYU-Provo and BYU-Idaho.

13. Importance in Missionary Work: • The Proclamation has been translated into dozens of languages and has been presented to numerous world leaders. • It has been used to articulate the Church’s doctrine on family on the Church’s Internet site (www.ldschurch.org). • It has been given to countless individuals to explain the doctrine of the Church on family.

14. What Kind of a Class is Family Life 100? • It is the foundational course for School of Family Life • The Proclamation on the Family is the foundational document in the School of Family Life. Thus, FAMLF 100 introduces students to the study of marriage and family life based in a gospel perspective and supported by scholarship. • The class draws from both gospel and scholarly perspectives • The course begins and ends in a gospel perspective but also includes supportive scholarship from the social sciences and other disciplines. Thus, although the course is not a religion course, there is a great deal of gospel doctrine throughout the textbook and course.

15. It is a General Education Course (SBS elective) • The textbook for the course was written by scholars from over 30 disciplines who drew from their training and expertise. Thus, the course is strongly multi-disciplinary in nature. The course draws heavily from philosophy, law and policy, literature, history, and religion, as well as from various social and behavioral sciences (I.e., family studies, social work, psychology, sociology). It has a strong writing component. • It teaches both principles and practices of successful family life • There is nothing quite so practical as a true principle, but the class is not wholly doctrinal. It also includes practical information for maintaining and strengthening marriage and family life drawn from the scholarly, professional, and personal lives of the textbook authors and the course instructors.

16. The Textbook for the Class(Strengthening Our Families: An In-Depth Look at the Proclamation on the Family) In keeping with the Prophet Joseph Smith’s well-known statement about teaching the Saints “correct principles,” the textbook: • More fully articulates the principles found in the Proclamation using the words of ancient and modern prophets. • Provides a reasoned critique of those philosophies in opposition to Proclamation principles with supportive documentation: • 2,000 citations64% from sacred sources36% from scholarly sources • Suggests various ways to successfully apply these principles in order to strengthen both marriages and families and the institutions of marriage and family in society.

17. How the Text is Unique • Commission by an Apostle: The textbook attempts to respond faithfully to a call made by President Boyd K. Packer in his address at the creation of the School of Family Life at BYU to produce textbooks on family that would • - Be worthy of a great university.- Be filled with moral and spiritual truths in full harmony with the restored gospel.- Help students be good spouses and parents. • Dual Audience: Intended as both a textbook for students, and as general reading to help the broad membership of the Church. • Rigorous Editorial Process involving Students: The editorial board provided extensive peer review of manuscripts at every stage of development, as well as feedback from more than one hundred students at BYU in three successive “Proclamation Seminars.” • Variety of Information: Topics cover a wide variety of issues related to marriage and family life in a wide variety of ways to reach many individuals with different learning styles. Includes both sacred and scholarly information.

18. Number and Diversity of Authors: The 100 authors are all committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ and to strengthening families and willingly submitted their work to rigorous peer and student review. Authorship includes: • - 53 men and 47 women - More than 30 academic disciplines - Thousands of collective hours of wide variety of professional experience (including family professionals, attorneys, physicians, homemakers, and others) - Thousands of collective hours of wide variety of personal and family experience (single , married, divorced, parents, childless, etc.) - Many leading experts in their fields of scholarship - All involved with BYU in some way, including 80 current or retired BYU professors/instructors • A Labor of Love: This project has also been an effort of consecration. No one involved in writing or editing this book received any income from it. All royalties are donated to the School of Family Life at BYU to support further development of the course, help students, and support research.

19. Mixing Scholarship with Scripture A reasonable question may be asked, “Why mix human wisdom with eternal truth? • The Church has always been open to correct principles and praiseworthy ideas from sources beyond the Church. “ ‘Mormonism,’ so called embraces every principle pertaining to life and salvation, for time and eternity. No matter who has it. . . . All that is good, lovely, and praiseworthy belongs to this Church and Kingdom. ‘Mormonism’ includes all truth. There is no truth but what belongs to the Gospel . . . . It is the business of the Elders of the Church . . . to gather up all the truths in the world pertaining to life and salvation, to the Gospel we preach, . . . to the sciences, and to philosophy, wherever it may be found in every nation, kindred, tongue, and people and bring it to Zion.” President Brigham Young

20. Many important things about marriage and family life have been learned by scholars - including Latter-day Saint scholars – who study couples and families. • An understanding of these ideas, in concert with Proclamation principles, can be of great value in strengthening marriage and families in a contemporary culture that often undervalues marriage and family.“Whatever our particular fields of scholarship, the real test is individual discipleship, not scholarship. But how good it is when these two can company together, blending meekness with brightness and articulateness with righteousness.” • Elder Neal A. Maxwell (“Discipleship and Scholarship,” BYU Studies 32, no 3 (1992))