Family

Mormon Family Fun

The basic unit of society is the family. Whenever civilization struggles, it is often a result of broken homes where values are neither lived nor taught. In today’s world, the family is at risk. Too many people do not protect the rights and values of the family. Families can be blessed one at a time with committed parents and children. Remember, Mormon doctrine teaches that families are forever.

In 1995, President Gordon B. Hinckley of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints read a proclamation to a gathering of women. This proclamation states candidly and simply the Church’s doctrine about families, the roles of fathers and mothers, and the responsibilities each of us has to protect the family. The proclamation is the standard for our families in all things. Let us ponder it, live it, and teach it to all mankind.

The Family: A Proclamation to the World

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.

All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.

In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.

The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.

Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.

The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.

We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.

(This proclamation was read by President Gordon B. Hinckley as part of his message at the General Relief Society Meeting held September 23, 1995, in Salt Lake City, Utah. Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102.)

“We are a church which bears testimony of the importance of the family—the father, the mother, the children—and of the fact that we are all children of God our Eternal Father. Parents who bring children into the world have a responsibility to love those children, to nurture them and care for them, to teach them those values which would bless their lives so that they will grow to become good citizens. If there is less trouble in the homes, there will be less trouble in the nations. I want to emphasize that which is already familiar to you, and that is the importance of binding our families together with love and kindness, with appreciation and respect, and with teaching the ways of the Lord so that your children will grow in righteousness and avoid the tragedies which are overcoming so many families across the world” (Veracruz Mexico Regional Conference, January 28, 1996) (Gordon B. Hinckley, Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997], 208).

“Remember, the family is one of God’s greatest fortresses against the evils of our day. Help keep your family strong and close and worthy of our Father in Heaven’s blessings. As you do, you will receive faith and strength, which will bless your lives forever” (Ezra Taft Benson, Come, Listen to a Prophet’s Voice [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1990], 2).

You can make a difference in your family by doing these kinds of things:

  • Priorities—Make your family your number one priority in time and effort.
  • Decisions—Equate everything you do with this standard: “Will what I do bless my family?” If it won’t, don’t do it.
  • Service—Look daily for ways to help each member of the family. In doing so, cultivate perhaps the most important interpersonal skill of all: listening.
  • Praise—Seek to praise and compliment every day.
  • Guidance—Never criticize or condemn the person; separate the behavior from the person. Help them understand and appreciate what they should do; then their attitude and behavior will change.
  • Cooperation—Competition often breeds problems; therefore, emphasize cooperation.
  • Family council—Meet together in family council regularly to discuss concerns, standards, needs, and solutions and to plan a calendar of things to do together.
  • Safety—Make your home a safe place, a place of security, a refuge from the world, where love abounds and peace is a hallmark.
  • Learning—Make your home a place of learning. Learning values and standards, developing life skills, and pursuing a quality education begin at home. Establish the family on a bedrock of enduring principles such as trust, love, honesty, accountability, and spiritual truth.
  •  Family prayer—Spend time kneeling together in prayer. And remember the haunting words never uttered by the dying wealthy businessman: “I wish I had spent more time at the office.”
  • Family scripture time—Set a regular time each day to search the scriptures together as a family.
  • Family home evening—Hold regular family home evening on Monday nights. Involve the entire family in all of the activities.
  • Family interviews—On a monthly basis visit with each child personally to listen to his or her concerns. Take time to teach, train, nurture, give blessings, and help each child in every way possible.
  • Family traditions—Create special times and places to establish righteous and enjoyable activities that have lasting value in the lives of family members.
  • Be a wise media gatekeeper —Parents have a sacred obligation to ensure that their children receive only those influences in the home that are uplifting and conducive to righteous patterns of living. Media influences are a mixed bag. Careful and wise judgment is called for.

“An Antarctic Insight”

Admiral Byrd was alone at Ross Barrier in the midst of a terrible Antarctic storm. The temperature was 72 below. The stove in his make shift shelter was faulty and carbon monoxide threatened his life. He did survive and lived to write his book Alone.

While keeping that lonely vigil in that far part of our universe, he meditated much and penned these words deep with meanings, for to him his role of father and husband was the supreme value and joy in his life. He wrote:

“At the end only two things really matter to a man, regardless of who he is, and they are the affection and understanding of his family.

“Anything and everything else he creates are insubstantial; they are ships given over to the mercy of the winds and tides of prejudice. But the family is an everlasting anchorage, a quiet harbor where a man’s ship can be left to swing in the moorings of pride and loyalty.” (—Anonymous)

SOME MORE THOUGHTS ON THE FAMILY

  • “The family is the most effective place to instill lasting values in its members.” —James E. Faust
  • “The home . . . may be the last and only sanctuary some mortals know in the midst of storm and strife.” —Spencer W. Kimball
  • “A man cannot leave a better legacy to the world than a well-educated family.” —Thomas Scott
  • “The chief purpose of the family is to rear happy, intelligent, healthy and spiritually directed personalities.” —Roy A. West

The number of things one can do to strengthen the family is limitless. The only things required to really strengthen families are the proper desire, attitude, work ethic, and values—all of which are based on love. We all have observed this in families that are well adjusted and happy. It is for us to do—to make our families the best they can be. Never give up. There is no more important mission than to leave behind for your family a legacy of love, harmony, peace, and righteous principles for living.

This article has been adapted from What We Need to Know and Do, by Ed J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen.

Copyright © 2024 Mormon Family. All Rights Reserved.
This website is not owned by or affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church. The views expressed by individual users are the responsibility of those users and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church. For the official Church websites, please visit churchofjesuschrist.org or comeuntochrist.org.