Elder Dallin H. Oaks, in a BYU fireside address, delivers a twenty-point address entitled, "Our Strengths Can Become Our Downfall." Among the strengths which, if excessive or unbalanced, become weaknesses are "unusual commitment to one particular doctrine or commandment, . . . a strong desire to understand . . . the gospel . . . past the fringes of orthodoxy, seeking answers to mysteries rather than a firmer understanding and a better practice of the basic principles"; the "strong desire to be led by the Spirit of the Lord . . . in all things"; a "willingness to sacrifice" that can result in susceptibility to "cultist groups and other bizarre outlets"; an excessive zeal for "social justice" that seemingly justifies "manipulat[ing]" others or alienation "from our church or its leaders when they refrain from using the rhetoric of . . . or from allocating Church resources" to such causes; the "charismatic teacher" whose popularity leads him or her into "priestcraft" or "gather[ing] a following of disciples"; workaholism, male "dictatorship" in his family, female "attempts to preempt priesthood leadership," excessive "patriotism, . . . following the words of a dead prophet, . . . love[,] and tolerance." He concludes by encouraging listeners to cultivate "humility" to "prevent our strengths from becoming our downfall."
[Source: Anderson, Lavina Fielding, "The LDS Intellectual Community and Church Leadership: A Contemporary Chronology," Dialogue, Vol.26, No.1]
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please Enter your Comment: