Marriage - Guiding Principles

Last February, during the Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, Elder David A. Bednar gave an excellent address entitled "Marriage Is Essential to His Eternal Plan." As the debate over a federal same-sex marriage amendment heats up in Washington, it's bound to get ugly. I thought it would be nice to remember the guiding principles based on an eternal perspective. Here is a bit of Elder Bednar's talk that is relevant:

"More recently the devil has attempted to combine and legally validate confusion about gender and marriage. As we look beyond mortality and into eternity, it is easy to discern that the counterfeit alternatives the adversary advocates can never lead to the completeness that is made possible through the sealing together of a man and a woman, to the happiness of righteous marriage, to the joy of posterity, or to the blessing of eternal progression.

"Given what we know about our enemy’s intent, each of us should be especially vigilant in seeking personal inspiration as to how we can protect and safeguard our own marriages —and how we can learn and teach correct principles in the home and in our Church assignments about the eternal significance of gender and of the role of marriage in the Father’s plan."

Elder Bednar's address, as well as the entirety of the Training Meeting, is available on LDS.org. You can read the talks, listen to them, or watch through Windows Media Player.