13 Times Church Leaders Spoke About Religious Liberty During the Past Year

From Italy to Brazil to Iowa, with global leaders and to college students, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have spoken about different facets of religious freedom during the past year.

President Dallin H. Oaks, First Counselor in the First Presidency, spoke at the Joseph Smith Lecture at the University of Virginia on November 12, 2021, on “Going Forward With Religious Freedom and Nondiscrimination,” and in December, he spoke at La Sapienza University, in Rome, Italy.

“Freedom of choice is, therefore, fundamental to God’s plan,” he told the group in Rome.

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Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Gerrit W. Gong, both of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, were the speakers of the final session of the free two-day conference “The Islamic World Today: Issues and Perspectives,” which included themes of religious liberty. Elder Gong was also one of the keynote speakers at the 2022 Church History Symposium in March, which was about “Latter-day Saints and Religious Liberty: Historical and Global Perspectives,” and Sister Sharon Eubank, First Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency and Latter-day Saint Charities director, was part of a panel discussion.

While ministering in the United Kingdom in October 2021, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited Oxford and talked about the “precious precursors” to documents that ensure religious liberty. In June, Elder Cook and interfaith leaders from New York City’s Commission of Religious Leaders participated in the 2022 Religious Freedom Annual Review at BYU.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Sister Reyna I. Aburto, Second Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, in separate sessions virtually addressed the Forum on Religious Freedom in the Southern Cone in October 2021. “Southern Cone” refers to the area that comprises the countries of Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

For the fourth year in a row, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at the G20 Interfaith Forum. Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at the forum, this year in Bologna, Italy, in September 2021.

In Brazil, Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles joined representatives of other faiths as well as government, civic, education, media and other speakers during a panel discussion during the March 23-25 symposium in Rio de Janeiro on “Religious Liberty: Foundational to Coexistence, Justice and Peace.”

“My message is founded on this principle, that as we respect each other and live in peace with each other, at the same time we have the right to live what we believe and have other people respecting us. That is the foundation of a good society, a good ‘family,’ so we all can enjoy the beauty that Heavenly Father created for us, the world living in peace and to be able to worship our Heavenly Father the way we believe is right,” Elder Soares said.

Primary General President Camille N. Johnson presented on “Freedom To Serve Our Neighbor: The Role of Religious Charities and Volunteers” during the Freedom To Serve Symposium at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, on April 19, in conjunction with Iowa Religious Freedom Day.

Here are quotes from each leader:

President Dallin H. Oaks

“We have always had to work through serious political conflicts, but today too many approach that task as if their preferred outcome must entirely prevail over all others, even in our pluralistic society. We need to work for a better way — a way to resolve differences without compromising core values. We need to live together in peace and mutual respect, within our defined constitutional rights” (“Going Forward With Religious Freedom and Nondiscrimination,” Joseph Smith Lecture at the University of Virginia, Nov. 12, 2021).

“Religious freedom is a fundamental feature of our religious doctrine. The restoration of the fullness of Christian doctrine teaches us that God created and put His children on earth to grow spiritually by making right choices between good and evil consistent with His commandments.

“Freedom of choice is, therefore, fundamental to God’s plan” (address at La Sapienza University, in Rome, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2021).

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Elder David A. Bednar

“[We feel] very strongly about religious freedom not just for ourselves, but for all. … Like some Muslims in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world, members of our Church have felt the effects of persecution and profiling and we join with good people everywhere in condemning such actions” (during final session of the free two-day conference “The Islamic World Today: Issues and Perspectives,” Oct. 19, 2021, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah).

President Camille N. Johnson

“Religious groups and individuals play an indispensable role in our communities and are uniquely positioned to alleviate suffering and help those on the margins of society. … It will take all of us serving, contributing whatever we have available in time, talents and money to address the suffering we see around us” (“Freedom To Serve Our Neighbor: The Role of Religious Charities and Volunteers,” (Freedom To Serve Symposium, April 19, Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa, in conjunction with Iowa Religious Freedom Day).

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Elder Quentin L. Cook

“My plea is that all religions work together to defend faith and religious freedom in a manner that protects people of diverse faith as well as those of no faith.

“Catholics, Evangelicals, Jews, Muslims, Latter-day Saints and other faiths must be part of a coalition of faiths that succor, act as a sanctuary and promulgate religious freedom across the world. We must not only protect our ability to profess our own religion, but also protect the right of each religion to administer its own doctrines and laws” (from a gathering with interfaith leaders from New York in advance of BYU’s religious freedom review, June 17, Salt Lake City).

“One of the reasons I wanted to talk about Runnymede [where the Magna Carta was sealed in 1215] and to talk about these constitutional provisions is because they are crucial to us being able to go all over the world and be missionaries and they have been established so that people of faith can share the precious gospel truths that they feel” (said as he examined a range of old books and commentaries on the Laws of England during a visit in October 2021 to the McGowin Library that houses Pembroke College’s Special Collections at the University of Oxford).

Elder D. Todd Christofferson

“Religious liberty protects not just believers but everyone. It is the taproot that sustains and nourishes many other fundamental freedoms, values and social goods” (during the Forum on Religious Freedom in the Southern Cone, the area that comprises the countries of Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, Oct. 29, 2021).

Sister Reyna I. Aburto

On the social role of religion and faith communities and sharing about the Church’s humanitarian outreach:

“All of this is possible thanks to our close collaboration with governments and with religious and charitable organizations. … We constantly set aside our differences about religious doctrines and practices and unite our forces to serve the needy” (panel discussion about the social role of religion and faith communities, Oct. 29, 2021, during the first Forum on Religious Freedom in the Southern Cone).

Elder Ronald A. Rasband

“We believe that to the degree that we can now be more than a single voice and the Catholics can be more than a single voice and the Greek Orthodox can be more than a single voice, that we can be a choir now,” he said. “Instead of being soloists in different parts of the world, we can be a choir, and we can put aside the differences in our tenets. We have differences, of course, but there are some things that we’re completely in agreement on, and that’s what we’re going to focus on together with others” (G20 Interfaith Forum, Sept. 13, 2021, Bologna, Italy).

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Elder Gerrit W. Gong

“Religious liberty is a natural global desire as Latter-day Saint members seek to honor, obey and sustain the law and contribute to our societies and communities in nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples across the world” (concluding keynote address of the 2022 Church History Symposium on “Latter-day Saints and Religious Liberty: Historical and Global Perspectives,” March 11, Salt Lake City).

“As we meet with Muslim leaders across the world,” Elder Gong said, “we talk about defending religious freedom. People of faith need to stand together for tolerance and dignity of people of all religious beliefs”  (during the final session of the two-day conference “The Islamic World Today: Issues and Perspectives,” Oct. 19, 2021, BYU, Provo, Utah).

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Sister Sharon Eubank

“People have inherent rights and privileges just by being children of God and we’ll protect those” (Church History Symposium panel discussion, March 11, Salt Lake City; symposium’s theme was “Latter-day Saints and Religious Liberty: Historical and Global Perspectives”).

Elder Ulisses Soares

“When we all have a place to live, a space to think and the right to speak, the communities will be better. As long as individuals don’t harm or coerce anyone, our differences can enrich our coexistence” (“Religious Liberty: Foundational to Coexistence, Justice and Peace” symposium, March 23-25, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).