President Dallin H. Oaks of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints delivered a landmark address on religious freedom Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral, pointing to the United States Constitution as a key tool for peacemaking and finding common ground.

“The Constitution compels a divided people to build coalitions to allow them to act together,” said President Oaks, who has spent seven decades studying the Constitution as a scholar, jurist and religious leader. “‘Compels’ is a strong word, but it is exactly what the Constitution does. It puts what we now call ‘peacemaking’ at the heart of the Constitution’s process for achieving freedom and unity, and fairness for all.”

Full Speech Faith, Freedom and the Common Good

His remarks are the first by a Church President at Washington National Cathedral, a “house of prayer for all people,” and came on the eve of the country’s Constitution Day. The event, titled “Faith, Freedom and the Common Good,” explored the relationship between religious faith and American democracy. The gathering was part of the cathedral’s “A Better Way” series, which encourages Americans to find common ground and move forward together in polarized times.

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President Oaks said he was participating in the effort to help “embody the love of God in public life,” offering “hope for unity and a moral framework to move forward in a divided world.”

During his speech, President Oaks reflected on the Church’s history as a religious minority, from the expulsion of early Saints from Missouri to later efforts to live peacefully with those of different beliefs. “You might say we have become peacemakers and advocates of freedom and unity by necessity,” he said, explaining that Latter-day Saints learned to forge compromises that promote peace while preserving their most important beliefs and practices.

Citing an “outstanding example” of constitutional peacemaking in action, President Oaks pointed to the Utah Compromise of 2015. “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and nondiscrimination advocates — adversaries in that contest — reached out to each other and participated in negotiations. This was previously thought impossible,” President Oaks said.

The result was legislation that provided additional protections for both religious freedom and nondiscrimination in Utah.

“While the law gave neither side all that it sought, its reconciliations did grant both sides significant benefits,” the prophet said. “This win-win outcome could not have been obtained without the balancing of interests made possible by the dynamics of a legislative process.”

President Oaks, who served as a law clerk to former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren and later as a justice on the Utah Supreme Court, said a significant lesson from the Utah Compromise is to see contentious issues as opportunities to listen to and learn from others.

“All of us should accept the reality that we are fellow citizens who need each other,” he said. “This requires all of us to obey some laws we dislike and to live peacefully with some persons whose values differ from our own. We should make every effort to understand the experiences and concerns of others, especially when they differ from our own.”

This work of negotiating and forming coalitions can be done, he added, “without compromising core values.”

“This process calls upon common moral instincts,” President Oaks said. “It produces peacemakers, even in those instances when competing core values may preclude ultimate conciliation.”

The prophet said another good example of peacemaking can be found in the tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints around the world who mobilize and reach out to those in need in the wake of natural disasters.

“When our volunteers bring help, people in distress do not ask for their beliefs. Likewise, the volunteers help everyone, not just fellow believers,” President Oaks said. “Why? Simply because deeper moral needs about safety and family and hope take center stage. What is important is giving help and getting help, people-to-people.”

In addition to service, President Oaks said peacemakers heal troubled relationships, reduce human suffering and promote understanding among different peoples.

In conclusion, he said understanding our divine identity can help us better carry out the important work of peacemaking.

“Knowing that we are all children of God gives us a divine vision of the worth of all others and the will and ability to rise above prejudice and racism,” the prophet said. “As I have lived for many years in different places in this nation, the Lord has taught me that it is possible to obey and seek to improve our nation’s laws and also to love our adversaries. While not easy, what makes it possible is the help of our Lord, Jesus Christ. He gave this command to love, and He promised His help as we seek to obey it.”

In the nation’s house of prayer, President Oaks closed with a prayer of his own.

“I pray to our Heavenly Father for His blessings upon us that we will all seek to be peacemakers,” he said.

The program was presented by Washington National Cathedral in partnership with the Wheatley Institute at Brigham Young University.

Full Speech Faith, Freedom and the Common Good