Nephi, the son of Helaman, was praying on a tower in his garden one day when a crowd gathered. When he was finished with his prayer, he stood and began to preach to the people. As he preached, Nephi prophesied of a conspiracy to kill the chief judge, and messengers were sent to confirm that the political leader had been killed. But then the story takes an interesting turn.
Because Nephi prophesied of the chief judge's murder, he was arrested and accused of being part of the conspiracy. He then prophesied what would happen when the real murderer was confronted, and was eventually set free.
What does Nephi do at that point? He returns to preaching repentance and baptism. Later he prayed that the people would be afflicted by a famine instead of by a war.
We live in a period of time abounding with conspiracy theories, but here we read of a very real conspiracy with political intrigue and murder. Secret combinations have and do exist, nonetheless, I am a skeptic when it comes to conspiracy theories -- most of which are downright ridiculous.
But let's set that aside. Whether we believe in some or all of the conspiracy theories floating around, the real question is what we should do. Even if we don't believe in a conspiracy, we nonetheless find ourselves in a time when political discourse has broken down. We are also, in the United States of America, experiencing another contentious election.
Let us return to the City of Zarahemla for a moment. As noted, after being released from custody, Nephi returned to preaching the gospel. In fact, on his walk home he heard the voice of God:
"Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will and to keep my commandments. And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that all things shall be done unto thee according to thy word, for thou shalt not ask that which is contrary to my will" (Helaman 10: 4-5).
We, too, have been commanded to spread the gospel, either as full time missionaries or as member missionaries. We may also have other callings which allow us to participate in furthering the three missions of the Church -- preaching the gospel, perfecting the saints and redeeming the dead. At the very least we may be assigned families to minister to. Following Nephi's example, this is probably where our efforts should be directed.
Marion G. Romney taught in 1944 that "When we pray unto the Father in the name of Jesus for specific personal things, we should feel in the very depths of our souls that we are willing to subject our petitions to the will of our Father in heaven. . . . The time will come when we shall know the will of God before we ask. Then everything for which we pray will be 'expedient.' Everything for which we ask will be 'right.' That will be when as a result of righteous living, we shall so enjoy the companionship of the spirit that he will dictate what we ask" (Conference Report, Oct. 1944, 55-56).
Forty-four years later, Neal A. Maxwell invited us to look at ourselves. "For the Church, the scriptures suggest both an accelerated sifting and accelerated spiritual numerical growth -- with all of this preceding the time when the people of God will be 'armed with righteousness' -- not weapons -- and when the Lord's glory will be poured out upon them. The Lord is determined to have a tried, pure and proven people, and 'there is nothing that the Lord thy God shall take in his heart to do but what he will do it'" (Conference Report, Apr. 1988, 8).
As Joseph Smith put it, “The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; … the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.”
"Some work through political, social, and legal channels to redefine morality," noted Boyd K. Packer in October 2003. "But they never can change the design which has governed human life and happiness from the beginning."
I read a social media post not long ago which quoted Ezra Taft Benson and a book titled None Dare Call it Treason. This particular post suggested that people are afraid to fight out of fear of being judged.
But we are not called by God to fight in the culture wars; rather we are called to preach or spread the gospel, to minister and perfect the saints, and to do family history and temple work to redeem the dead. While we should participate in political processes, which we should do as informed voters, God does not need us to become culture warriors, that is not our mission.
"Church members have a special rendezvous to keep," taught Neal A. Maxwell in 1991. "Nephi [son of Lehi] saw it. One future day, he said, Jesus's covenant people, 'scattered upon all the face of the earth,' will be 'armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.' This will happen, but only after more members become more saintly and more consecrated in conduct" (Conference Report, Oct. 1991, 43).
When we read or share quotes from President Benson regarding the dangers of Communism, we should remember that he also said, "Only the gospel will save the world from the calamity of its own self-destruction. Only the gospel will unite men of all races and nationalities in peace. Only the gospel will bring joy, happiness, and salvation to the human family."
Politics have always been rough and tumble, prompting Harry S. Truman to suggest that those who cannot handle the heat should get out of the kitchen. Fighting in the cultural wars of the 21st century suggests full on participation in contentious debate; sharing memes (photos with words) and cheap digs. The culture wars are all about bashing.
"This popular behavior is indulged in by far too many who bash a neighbor, a family member, a public servant, a community, a country, a church," said Elder Marvin J. Ashton in April 1992. "Some think the only way to get even, to get advantage, or to win is to bash people. Often times character and reputation and almost always self-esteem are destroyed under the hammer of this vicious practice. How far adrift we have allowed ourselves to go from the simple proverb 'If you can't say something good about someone or something, don't say anything' to where we now are often involved in the bash business."
Contention and bashing are not compatible with the gospel of Jesus Christ -- which we are called to spread.
"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another. Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away" (3 Nephi 11: 29-30).
Can we, therefore, spread the gospel and fight the culture wars at the same time? We may be tempted to put some of our principles aside in order to fight for other principles we deem to be of vital urgency. A number of years ago, Jeffrey R. Holland spoke of this idea of setting principle aside, but in the context of a sporting event, where one player was the target of vitriolic abuse pouring from the stands.
"The day after that game," said Elder Holland in 2012, "when there was some public reckoning and a call to repentance over the incident, one young man said, in effect: 'Listen. We are talking about basketball here, not Sunday School. If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. We pay good money to see these games. We can act the way we want. We check our religion at the door.'
"'We check our religion at the door'? Lesson number one for the establishment of Zion in the 21st century: You never 'check your religion at the door.' Not ever.
"My young friends, that kind of discipleship cannot be -- it is not discipleship at all. As the prophet Alma has taught the young women of the Church to declare every week in their Young Women theme, we are 'to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in,' not just some of the time, in a few places, or when our team has a big lead."
We cannot set principles aside, or check our religion at the door, in order to participate in the contentious debates and the bashing of the culture wars. We cannot set principle aside, even if only temporarily, and then pick them up in order to spread the gospel. We cannot check our religion at the door on occasion while becoming more saintly and more consecrated in conduct. We cannot be armed with righteousness while using our tongues (keyboards, smart phones, etc.) as swords.
As David A. Bednar taught in 2006, "The Spirit of the Lord usually communicates with us in ways that are quiet, delicate, and subtle. . . . The standard is clear. If something we think, see, hear or do distances us from the Holy Ghost, then we should stop thinking, seeing, hearing, or doing that thing."
Elder Bednar used entertainment as an example. "If that which is intended to entertain . . . alienates us from the Holy Spirit, then certainly that type of entertainment is not for us. Because the spirit cannot abide that which is vulgar, crude, or immodest, then clearly such things are not for us. Because we estrange the Spirit of the Lord when we engage in activities we know we should shun, then such things definitely are not for us" (Conference Report, Apr. 2006, 29-30).
Participating in the contention and bashing of the culture wars can estrange us from the Holy Spirit. Being estranged we will not become more saintly and more consecrated in conduct, and we will not be armed with righteousness.
As I conclude, let me be clear. We are counseled to participate in the political processes of our communities; we are encouraged to be informed and to vote our consciences. But we can do that in ways that will not estrange us from the Holy Ghost. We can contribute positively to discourse; we can do research and create content that influences rather than antagonizes; and we can transcend the bitterness of the culture wars. We can participate in politics in ways that will allow us to get closer to the Holy Spirit and become more saintly, that we may be armed in righteousness as we spread the gospel.
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