Julianna Hayes Hewlett - Home at Last

This week we said our final farewells to our adopted Mother and Grandmother, Julianna Hayes Hewlett. She departed this life at age 82, after a forty-year separation from her eternal companion, Patsy's father Lester F. Hewlett, Jr. We came to love her as our own. I am publishing her first-person life sketch here so that many of her beloved students and their families will have the funeral information. Feel free to share the link with everyone who may have interest.

Viewing: Larkin Mortuary (260 E. So. Temple St., Salt Lake), Sunday July 9th 6-8 p.m.

Funeral: Salt Lake 11th Ward (951 E. 100 So., Salt Lake), Monday, July 10th, viewing 10-11:30 a.m., followed by the funeral services at noon.

Interment: Woodland Cemetery, Woodland, Utah 84036

Life Sketch of Julianna Hayes Hewlett

I was born January 21, 1941, in Montpelier, Idaho, the only daughter of William Earl and Verona Schmid Hayes. I had three brothers, Deon (who died at eighteen months), William Dorain Hayes, and Elwyn “Chip” Hayes. Only Chip remains behind in our little family with my passing, and how I have adored him and his wife Sandy! If Chip ever missed a day calling me in the last forty years, I do not remember it.

We moved many places in Idaho and Wyoming following my father’s Union Pacific Railroad occupation. At age four, my mother found me “practicing the piano,” using the arm of the sofa as my keyboard, as we had no such instrument. At that point my parents felt I should be taking lessons as soon as there was money to rent a piano. Fortunately, the Bancroft chapel was being remodeled, and Father requested that our home be used as a place to store the ward piano. Thus began my lessons, and a continuing lifetime interest in music.

I graduated with honors from BYU and began teaching music at Hillside Junior High School in Salt Lake City. My first class in public school teaching was a Boys’ Choir of 103 voices from the 7^th, 8^th and 9^th grades. It proved to be a year of MY education learning how to deal with teenaged mentality.

In 1968, while recuperating in Idaho from a spinal fusion I received a call from President Florence Jacobsen to serve on the General Board of the MIA. Traveling and speaking in many regional conferences, writing lessons and manuals for the MIA, and beginning work of the new LDS hymn book, were highlights in that phase of my Church activity. I also conducted a regional young special interest choir in the Tabernacle for a regional conference.

In 1969, I took a Sabbatical Leave and traveled to Germany with the University of Oregon, where I lived with a German family, toured the famous music schools of Europe, and later received a master’s degree in international music and art education.

I transferred to Highland High School in 1975, teaching choirs and beginning a Humanities class, studying the arts, philosophy and history. I began taking summer tours to Europe to study the wealth of art, music and literature in the world’s greatest museums.

I was reluctantly and unexpectedly lined up on a blind date in 1977, with Lester F. Hewlett, Jr. It was an amazing spiritual recognition, and I cancelled my summer tour to Europe to be sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on July 6, 1977. My father said in April of that year I would be married before summer’s end. His prediction came true. It was truly a match made in heaven.

Les had been the mission president in the Australia South Mission and had previously served on the Young Men’s General Board and on the Church Athletic Committee. Having been one of the first missionaries to open Alaska to missionary work, Les thus began a lifelong love of missionary work. After returning from Australia, he continued volunteering on Temple Square as a tour guide, where his love of the gospel and commitment to missionary work focused his continuing service.

We moved to the Graystone Condominiums in 1978, where Les was the teacher of the high priest group, and I taught the Relief Society cultural refinement lessons. How I loved bringing the joy of music, art and literature to the sisters in the Grant 4^th Ward (later became the Forestview Ward). Traveling with Elder LeGrand Richards for the dedication of the Orson Hyde Memorial was truly one of the highlights of our six years together. At the insistence of Elder Richards, I led the group in “Master the Tempest is Raging” as we crossed the Sea of Galilee and afterward sat in a testimony meeting on the shore. I realized once again the truthfulness of the gospel, and better understood the love Les and I shared in Church service.

Les and I belonged to the Dinnerset Group, and on December 9, 1983, Les and I were the chairpersons of the annual Christmas party at the Lion House. Associating, as the Hewlett family had done for many years with many of the members of the Quorum of the Twelve, we sat with Elder and Sister Neal A. Maxwell singing Christmas carols. I conducted the music in my new red shoes that Les had just bought me.

The next morning, I awakened to find that Les had slipped to the other side of the veil while he slept. The shock was multiplied by the fact he had not been ill. As Elder Maxwell stated at his funeral, “He was blessed not to have tasted death. He was a guileless man.” He loved and gave many blessings to the widows in our ward whom he served as their home teacher.

The years since his passing have found me continuing to teach at Highland, conducting tours occasionally to Europe with students, serving as gospel doctrine teacher, ward music chairman, ward chorister, and teaching Relief Society cultural refinement lessons.

One of the highlights of my music and Church service was in October 1990, when I was invited to conduct a Young Women’s Choir for the afternoon session of General Conference in the Tabernacle. I led 400 young women from the Bountiful and Val Verde Regions, united in beautiful voice and spirit to praise the Lord. It was more memorable by having chosen the hymn, “We Ever Pray for Thee,” and then finding President Benson had been taken to the hospital that weekend. The choice of that hymn had been made by me in July, well before President Benson became acutely ill.

In 1991, a grandson, Ben Pahnke, died of leukemia. Our family was comforted in knowing Les was there to welcome eight-year-old Ben to his heavenly home. Again, in 1993, our seven-week-old grand-daughter Adrienne Goates, was taken home, and Les was seen at her funeral by members of his extended family. It is an incredible comfort knowing the veil is thin and eternal love is strong.

As the years have brought Les’ four children and their families much closer together, I have enjoyed the plethora of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I have loved and been loved as I never could have imagined in my younger single years. All the children, Nancy Pahnke, Patsy Goates, John Hewlett and Ernie Hewlett, have homes at the Ranch above Woodland, where Les and I spent our summers and where the spirit of FAMILY is so intense and loving.

My calling to the Salt Lake Temple as an ordinance worker has been the highlight of my retirement years.

These last years have been filled with physical challenges, but I have used faith, prayers and priesthood blessings to endure to the end. “When upon life’s billows we are tempest tossed, when we are discouraged thinking, all is lost, count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”

That ends Julie’s obituary in her first-person narrative, but as her adopted Hewlett family we would update the record to state she won a place in all our hearts. She might easily be the most fiercely independent, tenacious and strong-willed woman any of us will ever encounter. However, as she lived her life to its conclusion in the early morning hours of June 29, 2023, we are constrained to conclude in her 82 years of living she filled the full measure of her creation, and she finally and gleefully entered the eternal embrace of her beloved Les after a forty-year absence.

Is That Fair?

I have been wondering of late what is fair. Many complain that what is happening to them is not fair. I hear people say it just isn't fair that so many seem to be doing better than they are. Others complain that life isn't fair. I heard someone this morning complaining at the check out counter that an item they were purchasing at the hardware store was not fairly priced. It seems everyone has a legitimate complaint about something, and much of the strife in the world can be traced to the inherent inequities we all confront.

The Christus

Imagine what a different world it would be if we accepted the premise that life just isn't fair. Trying to adjudicate fairness never seems to work out. What may seem fair to you will often not meet with another's definition. It's how arguments break out, even among family members and the best of friends. Isn't it curious how often we are put in a situation when what is perfectly reasonable to us may be unfair to the other party? Some are simply gifted musically, whereas others are not and couldn't carry a tune in a bucket if you handed them the bucket to make it easier. Some are stunningly beautiful, whereas the vast majority of us are just plain looking. Some have inherited vast sums of money, and appear to live with ease and prosperity through little or no effort on their part, whereas the world attests that the bulk of humankind is compelled to work hard for their living without the privilege of inherited wealth. How is any of this "fair?"

I confess I do not understand how anything associated with mortality is fair. Isn't that why it is a perfect laboratory? We are here to be tested, to be proven faithful, and to grow spiritually in the face sometimes of seemingly insurmountable odds. God's infinite and eternal plan of happiness depends upon us accepting the premise of fundamental unfairness. Parents sometimes favor one child over another, especially those who are inherently obedient and cheerful to be around. I often wonder if God has His favorite children. I'll bet He isn't unlike us - He has to love obedience in the face of obstacles and insurmountable odds. Is He always fair in the treatment of His children? Does He not promise "all that I have" to each repentant child? 

Christ in Gethsemane

Was anything fair about how the Savior was treated in morality? Was His crucifixion fair? Did He forgive those who murdered Him? As they drove nails into His hands, His wrists and His feet did anyone at the scene apply a fairness test of any kind?

He loves us "unconditionally," we often say to each other, but is that really true? There are conditions to inheriting all that the Father hath. He offers five laws to us, and invites us to covenant with Him to obey those laws: The law of obedience, the law of sacrifice, the law of the gospel, the law of chastity, and the law of consecration. We are promised that exactness and honor in keeping our covenants will keep us on the path leading to eternal life after our sojourn in mortality is complete. The crowning covenant is the sealing covenant between a man and a woman in one of the holy temples, and those children born into such a covenant home are said to be "born under the covenant." If there is fairness in this plan, it is that those who died before obtaining those blessings in mortality may have the opportunity for a full inheritance in the spirit world. We who remain here may obtain those blessings for our kindred dead through proxy representation for them, and they are free to accept that work and inherit exactly what we are promised.

Sometimes our journey in mortality is cut short by our calculations. I am not one of those whose life was shortened, indeed my recovery from debilitating brain surgery was declared a 100% cure and my life has been extended. It was nothing short of miraculous. Is it "fair" that my life continues where others' lives are ended prematurely? Is it fair that I had access to an extremely talented and experienced brain surgeon, where others may not have been so favorably situated? Are miracles handed out by God based on some unknown arbitration system? Can anyone apply? Who is blessed with a miracle, when others are not?

I for one can accept the fundamental inequities and seemingly unfair outcomes of mortality. I love to observe the way in which people grapple with their tests in life. I am inspired by the stories of those who overcome and produce positive examples for all the rest of us to emulate. 

As I watched the snow continue to pile up this winter, and continued to burn what seemed to be an inexorable pile of cash to plow the road leading to our home, there were times when I have to admit I became discouraged. Others chipped in to allay the burden it represented, but in my down moments I often reminded myself, "The sun always wins." I could extend that to, "The Son always wins." Indeed, the snow is yielding finally under the bright spring sun. 

Christ Conquered Death

And the Son's love and supreme example continues to shine down upon us poor mortals to warm us up, give us renewed hope of better days to come, and assure us of eternal life if we do our best to obey and to claim His redemptive sacrifice that wipes out our imperfections and all the unfairness we encounter.

I love the Savior Jesus Christ, come what may. He always wins.

"Have You Ever?" "No, I've Never."

That question and its response are resounding again and again this year in Utah. We have been in a sustained drought here in the West, and this winter we have been literally buried in snow, the likes of which tests the memory for recalling another winter that's been this intense. The winter of 1983-84 comes to mind when the temperatures in May soared into the 90's for several weeks and all the snowmelt came down in a hurry. There were pictures of water running down a sandbagged State Street in Salt Lake City, because the infrastructure back in the day was not sufficient to handle the runoff. I was an elders' quorum president back then, and we were being called out routinely to sandbag several homes in our ward threatened with flooding.

Fast forward to today. Overnight we had over fourteen inches of snow, and our ward worship services were cancelled. It's all our plow guy can do to stay ahead of all the snow that continues to fall. We worshipped at home today, and were grateful for the authorization to administer the sacrament in our home. The two of us sang hymns, partook of the sacrament, studied in Come Follow Me, and watched the Tabernacle Choir broadcast. Then we bore our testimonies to one another in an intimate setting of our home. It was a rare spiritual feast, and we were so grateful to have each other as we looked outside and watched the snow continue to fall all around.

I am acutely aware and thankful beyond expression for the wisdom of our leaders who called out this audible early this morning via e-mail. How blessed we are on several fronts. We have study materials designed for home-centered, Church- supported curriculum to bless our lives. The intrusion of COVID-19 was the first indication that the direction toward more focus on our home worship would be needed, and the Church made provision to satisfy that need.

In addition, President Russell M. Nelson has been persistent in his repeated invitations to increase our spirituality to enable us to receive enhanced and more frequent revelation in our daily lives. 

Couple that with the ongoing revelation about our temple worship that has made it more spiritual and more instructional than ever before. And no, I have never felt more inspiration and more pure revelation from my Savior Jesus Christ than what I am receiving each time we attend the temple. Nothing has been left unattended, and nothing has been overlooked in enhancing the temple experience. I am so grateful to President Nelson for his leadership.

Our home is safe, warm and is indeed a sanctuary, not unlike a temple. Today, my dear companion and I prayed, partook of the sacrament and bore our testimonies to one another. What a blessing it is to have a faithful helpmeet and spiritual soulmate on a day like today. We are blessed beyond measure, and I am so grateful. I ache for those who are not so blessed that lie beyond our reach today because of the heavy snowfall. I pray that those who are closer can be raised up to bless them.

I am thankful for the technology that ties us together with family on days like today. After I brushed the snow out of the satellite dishes, I was able to send out e-mails to everyone to assure them we were safer than they might otherwise imagine. When you are of a certain age (which I now am), our children are rightfully concerned for our welfare and wellbeing. 

I testify of the divinity of our Eternal Father in Heaven, our Savior Jesus Christs and the Holy Ghost who bears witness to my soul of their true identity and my relationship with them. I am grateful for that knowledge that anchors my soul and provides much-needed perspective on the overall plan of salvation for all God's children.

I am grateful for the Prophet Joseph Smith, who laid the foundation for the Restoration of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On days like today I am in awe of all the "overcoming" that had to be done to assure our pleasant circumstances here in 2023. I testify the Church is the true manifestation of the ancient Church that came out of the garden of Eden and was established later in Christ's day.

My soul reverberates with the truth that President Russell M. Nelson is God's prophet on the earth today. All the living Apostles today hold the relevant priesthood keys to facilitate the work of the kingdom of God on earth today. You may rely upon them and you may trust them to do God's will in all things.

My testimony runs as deep as the twelve foot drifts out my back door this morning. 

Today, I Will Write

Once you reach a certain age and you are "retired" from the work-every-day world, you have more latitude than you ever imagined. You awake each morning to greet a new day with a clean slate just waiting for your input. You can sleep in if you choose. You can call a friend you haven't seen for awhile and go to lunch. If it's summer you can play a round of golf. You can go to the temple if you can get an appointment, and if you live by several temples as we do you can choose which one to attend. You can read your new favorite book. You can research a topic that interests you. Life seems to bristle with new opportunities. You can call and visit with a child or grandchild on their birthdays, or visit their world of sports when they play the games they love. Or you can wake up with the thought, "Today, I will write."

And that's what I feel impressed to do today. Several thoughts have been tumbling around in my head, itching for expression.

Salt Lake Temple

First, we are living in a day of ongoing revelation. This is troubling to some, but not to me. Many of the temple ordinance workers with whom we served in the Salt Lake Temple were so proficient in the endowment ceremony and had of necessity memorized every word of the dialogue. Many do not like comfortable things around them to change. The closing of the temple for extensive renovations was for many a difficult end of an era, as they realized many of them would not live long enough to ever see it reopen. They get used to doing things a certain way, and they love the thought that what they know is steady state and predictable. Policies change, procedures are altered, technology is introduced to supplant older manual ways of doing things. Missionaries now call home on each preparation day to their families, something we never did in my era. I remember being called many years ago as a ward clerk at the time the Church introduced digital records and computer programs into the wards. Membership records, home and visiting teaching assignments and financial records were now computerized. Being a ward clerk was not a calling to which I had ever aspired. Then, it dawned on me that few if any others in the ward were familiar with computers at that time and that was likely the only reason I was called to assist in that transition.  

President Russell M. Nelson

Second, I have rejoiced exceedingly with the last five years of acceleration in the pace of the Church under the inspired leadership of President Russell M. Nelson. I don't think he's left a single stone unturned in seeking for ways to improve, streamline, clarify and amplify the teachings of the gospel which have been entrusted to him. Try this simple exercise to see what I'm talking about. Go back into the Ensign and then the Liahona (or the Church website) since President Nelson has become the President of the Church. Isolate his sermons, print them out, compile them sequentially, then study them intently. It may take you weeks to do, but the effort will be worth it. You will discover, as I have, the pure revelatory channel that has opened up. I remember saying to my sons and daughters after that first General Conference over which he presided and conducted, "Well, he is not going to be just a caretaker President of the Church." Little did I know how accurate that insight would prove to be.

Joseph Smith (1805-1844)

Third, if there is one area of emphasis that dropped out of that exercise for me it has been the emphasis on temple work by President Nelson. Joseph Smith's prophetic declaration that the Church would one day fill the entire earth when the entire priesthood was gathered in one small room over the Newell K. Whitney store is being realized in our day. The gentle, loving and kindly invitations to prepare ourselves more spiritually for participation in temple work leap out of his sermons. The number of temples now announced or currently under construction or renovation has now reached 300 worldwide. There are now 416 full-time missions that dot the globe as the Church gathers Israel on this side of the veil. The acceleration is nearly impossible to comprehend. He told us early in his administration to take our vitamins and put on our running shoes, and he has led by example. He is God's prophet on the earth today.

The Christus

Fourth, if you haven't been to the temple in some time, prepare yourself by getting your recommend updated and go. You will discover not just a "new and improved" version of temple worship, but more importantly, you will be immersed and endowed spiritually as never before. You will be shown the history of the world and your place in the ongoing work of salvation, epitomized by the life of the Savior. You will be instructed with an endowment of knowledge. You will be assured of the reality of repentance and forgiveness. During that first General Conference, April 2018, President Nelson observed, "One of the things the Spirit has repeatedly impressed upon my mind since my new calling as President of the Church is how willing the Lord is to reveal His mind and will. The privilege of receiving revelation is one of the greatest gifts of God to His children." 

President Monson, L. Brent Goates

Fifth, the newest edition of the endowment ceremony as found only in the dedicated temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is a modern-day testament for all those with eyes to see and hearts to understand just how revelation operates in the Church and in our own lives. As I sat reverently in the last endowment session we attended, I felt awash in the power of the Spirit. I could envision clearly the Prophet Russell awake in the middle of the night, pen in hand at his bedside, taking down the words of the endowment, then taking those words to his Brethren of the First Presidency and the Twelve for their sustaining vote. You will feel as I did the confirming witness that what is being done in the work of the temples worldwide is coming straight from heaven. Not that it has not always been that way historically, but now it carries more power spiritually than ever before. 

In this Church we testify of the ministering of angels among us. Those angels are more often than not our deceased family members. Now residing in the spirit world while their physical bodies rest in the earth, they are teaching others the precious truths of the gospel. Sometimes they will draw near to us and impart messages of inspiration, comfort, counsel and guidance if our hearts are attuned to theirs.

Such was my experience this past week coming on the heels of our endowment session. Still basking in that revelatory light, I had a dream in which my father who died several years ago appeared unexpectedly at my side. He looked much younger than his 93 years on earth would have indicated by his slumped over posture and gnarly back. Now in my dream he stood erect, energetic and youthful before me. We had a wonderful visit together, as he reassured me of his feelings of satisfaction over our shared posterity. The words he conveyed were "obedient" and "courageous," and he told me how pleased he was with each of them. He was aware that the following day we would be baptizing our eight-year-old granddaughter Vivienne Goates. He also reveled with me in the births of a new granddaughter, Fern Josephine Goates, great-granddaughter Rosemary Johns, and great-grandson Brooks Lee Jach, all of whom were blessed by their fathers and given their names recently. There was a thorough review of each child, grandchild and all the great-grandchildren. I was having an intimate "personal priesthood interview" with him, and he was beaming throughout our visit together. I came away from that experience with the firm conviction that even though we do not rise to the level of perfection on this side of the veil, it is sufficient for him and our Heavenly Father and Jesus that we are trying to do our best. That's what pleased him so much - that our reliance on the Savior's perfection is sufficient to save everyone. 

In dreams, as you may have also noticed, words are not spoken as much as a free-flowing communication takes place. Knowledge is exchanged, comfort is offered, the rich realization that life goes on beyond the veil of death is confirmed. My father is not one "who is dead," but rather lives on in the spirit world. He had the sealing keys conferred upon him late in life by President Thomas S. Monson, and then he served as a sealer in the Salt Lake Temple. I know by his visit to me that he is still very interested in the ongoing sealing up of his posterity on this side of the veil. In fact, he shared how their work in the spirit world is limited to teaching the gospel. The ordinance work is done here in mortality, and they in the spirit world are dependent upon us to provide that effort to establish those family links. Increasingly, there is little or no distinction separating the spirit world from the physical world. He wanted me to share his message of hope for all our family to hear. 

There may be some who leave the covenant path for a season, or maybe they are indifferent for awhile, but he reassured me they will return because the offering of eternal life is so compelling that few will reject it. The sealing ordinance has power to claim even the wayward through the merciful forgiveness available to those who repent. In the end of our interview he confirmed there is nothing more important than loving one another and sustaining one another as we travel through life together. Everything that swirls around us is nothing more than background noise. The gospel of Jesus Christ provides the common denominator for each family member. As we live our lives here in mortality we are given the opportunity to become literal "saviors on Mount Zion," as we do our part in the delivery of the saving ordinances to all our kindred family members who are now living in the spirit world. The work has never been easier to identify who they are. We often speak of "taking their names through the temple," but it is so much more than that. We are blessed to have the constant reminder of our own covenants as we officiate in the saving ordinances for our ancestors, and they are blessed with the affirmation of our love for them by providing the labor of love to seal them to us and us to them.

Never in my life has the reality of linked arms together to gather Israel on both sides of the veil been more comprehensive and more spiritual. The living prophet, President Russell M. Nelson is gently, lovingly, and consistently setting the agenda for us to embrace. As you review his sermons over the past five years, notice how many times he "invites," not "commands" that we follow.

Fulfillment: "For the Strength of Youth" Pamphlet is Revised

This recently concluded General Conference had many wonderful developments and exciting announcements. Among them was the complete revision of "For the Strength of Youth" pamphlet that was put into use a long time ago. In 1965, (the year I graduated from high school), with its introduction it seemed to me to be little more than a reincarnation of the law of Moses. Now, happily, the Church (and its youth) have progressed to a point of observing a higher and holier path that sheds the "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts" and replaces them with adult choices and promised blessings instead.

Many years ago I met with a member of the Seventy, who is a close personal friend. He had been given an assignment to search out ways the Church could help the youth, and asked for my suggestions in a letter from me that he requested. I quote in part from that letter. At lunch we spoke about what I called “the disconnect” between the moral standards outlined in the “For the Strength of Youth” pamphlet and the actual behavior we are witnessing in the trenches among the youth in the Church. I realize this might come off as sounding near heretical now, but bear with me.

In my letter back to him, I wrote: 

Elder M. Russell Ballard is at the forefront of a new initiative – “raising the bar” for missionary service. Rather than something “new,” it has the feel to me of yet another “retrenchment” into what the Lord has required all along. The exercise of our free will and the accountability for our individual choices is at least as old as the pre-existence.

Some examples of the “disconnect:” 1) When my son who now serves as a missionary in Brazil recounted with his friends on graduation night how many in their high school senior class population of nearly 120 had not had sexual intercourse during high school, they counted less than ten girls and less than twenty boys – and that statistic in a predominantly homogenous LDS community! 2) We routinely have young men return early from missions to clear up pre-mission moral transgressions. 3) Just yesterday I talked to the mother of a young man not in our stake. He is preparing to leave again after a year’s wait, when “some things he didn’t clear up before he left” were disclosed after three weeks in the MTC. 4) Returned missionaries who were once faithful and faith-filled leaders in their missions come home and completely leave the Church (four in our stake in the last year that I know about).

How does the Church close this “disconnect” gap? Do the leaders at the local level understand WHY this disconnect exists? I believe too much reliance on “For the Strength of Youth” is merely a modern reincarnation of the ancient law of Moses with little power to inspire the youth of the Church today. If my informal non-scientific “polls” among my acquaintances are any indicator, the current approach is failing to achieve the desired outcomes.

I’m guessing here (I can only make assumptions until someone confirms to me how it actually happened), but maybe local leaders in the Church indirectly produced “For the Strength of Youth.” In observing the youth in their wards and stakes falling off the strait and narrow path, local leaders must have been crying out for help. I would guess the phone banks and in boxes at Church headquarters were lit up with calls and letters from local leaders demanding that the General Authorities “give us some guidance so we can tell the youth what to do.” In other words, it was a complete capitulation that as modern Israel we couldn’t handle the consequences of more freedom, so we reverted to having someone else (the General Authorities) tell us what to do in every circumstance the local leaders could imagine.

I wonder if the creative genius behind “For the Strength of Youth” wasn’t something like a modern replay of what happened anciently when Israel demanded that the prophet Samuel appoint a king to rule them:

Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah,

And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.

But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD.

And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee.

Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them.

And Samuel told all the words of the LORD unto the people that asked of him a king. . .

[Samuel then spells out in detail what a king would actually do to them, all of which sounds like descriptions of slavery, and still they were not dissuaded]

And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD.

And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. . . (1 Samuel 8:4-22).

So maybe (I can only surmise) the modern Church took steps to “hedge up the way” by outlining acceptable behavioral standards, because the people demanded it. Perhaps the General Authorities simply responded out of love to the demands of local leaders who assumed an “encyclical” from 47 East South Temple would solve everything. There is so much more comfort, it would seem, in being told what to do than having to accept individual accountability that leaves no one to blame but ourselves. In 1990 (when the pamphlet underwent a revision), it would appear we took a big step backward.

In 1980, twenty-three years ago [now forty-two!] when the consolidated meeting schedule was first introduced, the possibility of failure was raised. I believed at the time this was a monumental address portending the very conditions we observe in the Church today. It was delivered at General Conference by Elder Dean L. Larsen, then serving in the Presidency of the Seventy. In part he said:

". . . The existence of laws, regulations, and procedures has never been sufficient to compel men to obedience. Productive obedience comes through the exercise of free will. Elder Albert E. Bowen of the Quorum of the Twelve once said:

“'It is a truism that no law is any better than the people who administer it. Howsoever well framed a law may be or however worthy its purpose, it can degenerate into utter futility unless wisely administered by those sympathetic with its purposes' (The Church Welfare Plan, Sunday School manual, 1946, p. 115).

". . . Today we are being encouraged to accept greater responsibility for the allocation of our time, for our spiritual development through personal and family study of the gospel, and for giving loving Christian service. We must be willing to respond to this new challenge. Our willingness to accept this added accountability will exert an influence that will reach far beyond our Sunday worship service and religious life.

"Unless we retain a vibrant desire to be free, and unless we understand and practice the principles that give life to essential freedoms, we have little reason to hope they will endure. If we allow ourselves to accept dependency and regulation and to cease valuing independence and self-accountability, then we are vulnerable to the forces that destroy freedom. If righteousness is judged primarily by the degree to which one responds to programmed activity, then a condition develops within which opportunities for progress decline. The resulting tragedy affects the mortal potential of man and has a profound effect on his eternal possibilities as well. [HOW PROPHETIC!!]

"Programmed behavior cannot produce the level of spiritual development required to qualify one for eternal life. A necessary range of freedom and self-determination is essential to one’s spiritual development. With an understanding of correct principles and an intrinsic desire to apply them, one must be motivated within himself to do many good things of his own free will; for, as the revelation says, the power is in him wherein he is an agent unto himself (see D&C 58:27-28).

". . . In his concluding remarks at the April 1979 general conference, President Kimball said:

“'The basic decisions needed for us to move forward, as a people, must be made by the individual members of the Church. The major strides which must be made by the Church will follow upon the major strides to be made by us as individuals. …

“'… Our individual spiritual growth is the key to major numerical growth in the kingdom' (Ensign, May 1979, p. 82).

"I rejoice in the spirit and intent of this instruction from a living prophet. I see in it the purposeful effort to preserve our individual accountability in the context of our Church membership and religious life.

"When members of the Church exercise self-determination in their application of gospel principles they need not relax in their compliance with these principles. In fact, optimum progress can only occur when conditions are ideal for it, and these conditions must include the necessary degree of freedom and self-accountability. Anything less will guarantee stunted spiritual growth.

"We must understand that as freedom for unrestricted development is enhanced, the possibilities for failure are also increased. The risk factor is great. The ideal cannot be achieved otherwise. Celestial attainment can be reached in no other environment.

"We have inspired leaders today who are reconfirming the fact that there is no ultimate safety in programmed security where others assume accountability for our direction and performance. [I believe this sentence strikes at the heart of the entire matter.]

"Those who insist that a Church program exist for every contingency and need are as much in error as their counterparts who demand that government intervene in every aspect of our lives. In both instances the ideal balance is destroyed with a resultant detriment to human progress.

"These are essential truths which our leaders are reinforcing for us today. These are challenging truths. They demand much of us. They press us to make our lives better by our own initiative and by our own efforts. They make no unconditional promises. . ." (Dean L. Larsen, “Self-Accountability and Human Progress,” Ensign, May 1980, 76, emphasis mine).

Elder Larsen warned us about relying on “the law,” but as a Church we ignored the message. Rather than risk failure in behavior among our youth we reverted to “tell us what to do, give us behavioral standards, we welcome the bondage of the law because we worry the youth are not ready to live in the Spirit.” Once I even had an earnest young woman blurt out in a question/answer session in a fifth-Sunday combined presentation, “So tell us, can we drink Coke or not?” What a sad self-imposed indictment on ourselves, and how tragic in light of Elder Larsen’s prophetic warning.

Even as late as this month’s Ensign, there is a profound First Presidency Message from President Faust, who reminded us again:

"The challenge Jesus issued was for people to replace the rigid, technical 'thou shalt not' of the law of Moses — needed by the spiritually immature ancient children of Israel — with the spirit of the 'better testament. . .' The New Testament is 'a better testament' because so much is left to the intent of the heart and of the mind and the promptings of the Holy Spirit. This refinement of the soul is part of the reinforcing steel of a personal testimony of Jesus Christ. If there is no witness in the heart and in the mind by the power of the Holy Ghost, there can be no testimony." (James E. Faust, “The Surety of a Better Testament,” Ensign, Sept. 2003, 3, emphasis mine).

Despite these specific invitations to live the higher law, sacrament meeting after sacrament meeting in recent years since 1990, has lauded the merits of the pamphlet, as though measurable and observable improved behavior were the end goal we were seeking. The youth in the Church are symbolically whipped week after week with “shoulds” from the pamphlet. We shifted responsibility from ourselves as teachers and leaders at the local level, and defaulted to “this inspired pamphlet.” Except from a select few local women leaders, rarely do I hear true doctrine, however. The underlying “WHY” doctrine is always conspicuously absent in these uninspired sermons. President Packer has observed that teaching true '. . .doctrine can change behavior quicker than talking about behavior will.' (See Boyd K. Packer, “Washed Clean,” Ensign, May 1997, 9). I believe the proper indictment rests not with the General Authorities, but with the members – so few of whom understand and can teach true doctrine.

When the respective presidents of the Young Men and Young Women’s organizations were interviewed by an Ensign staff writer following the introduction of the new pamphlet, I invite you to look for even one underlying true doctrinal principle that buttresses their endorsement. (See “The Lord’s Standards Haven’t Changed,” Ensign, Sept. 1991, 7). Both mention how welcomed boundaries are by the youth, but the minute you go down the path of defining acceptable behavioral standards the unintended consequence is that some imaginative young people will begin to parse meanings and immediately move to the outer markers.

I always thought what I’m now going to share with you was nothing more than an urban legend, until I received a phone call from a young married woman in my ward one Sunday afternoon. Enough time and distance has passed that no one would guess her true identity, and I have long ago forgotten her name and face (the blessing of diminished memory).  She asked if she could come to my office for an interview. I had spoken in sacrament meeting the week before about the principle of repentance, and when she arrived she poured out a story through sobbing and exquisite pain that stunned me. While a student at BYU, she along with two of her single friends and three other single young men had gone to Las Vegas for a long weekend. When they arrived they paired off and went to a marriage chapel on the Strip and each couple was “legally and lawfully wedded.” They engaged in unrequited and unrestrained sexual activity for four days and nights, then as they were leaving Las Vegas went back to the same marriage chapel and had all three marriages annulled. They took an oath of silence – they agreed never to discuss the matter again. They convinced each other it was all perfectly legal in every way.

Five years later and after the birth of her second child, the agony of her secret was too heavy to carry any longer. She had gone right to the edge of the “legal definitions” of her covenants, had peered into the abyss, then had slipped over the edge. Something I had said in my talk the week before had finally helped her muster the courage to come forward and begin again. So that’s the danger, I believe, of even making the attempt to establish comprehensive behavioral standards – why not teach that the Holy Ghost may truly govern people’s spiritual lives instead?

Why do I know how much power this approach of living by the Spirit can have in people’s lives? Because I have witnessed its power to change and influence for better the lives of those who are closest to me. What follows is merely the latest in a long list of examples that could be cited. I told you about a dear family member’s current incarceration in a federal prison. He is excommunicated presently, but cannot wait for the day of his rebaptism. For my birthday he sent along a letter that included these hopeful lines:

". . . I feel like I'm truly seeing the gospel again with new eyes, and in answer to the blessing I was given the Spirit has not been withheld. In fact, I believe that the Spirit flows more deeply now that my vessel has been cleansed. I can't wait for a renewed life and membership in the Church. I'm not done yet, Dave. I know that the Lord still has more for me to accomplish, and perhaps that work will require the lessons I've learned in order to fulfill it properly. . ."

It is my belief his lessons in the Spirit came relatively late in life, in part (he is ultimately accountable) because of his perception he was subjected to a heavy-handed behavioral emphasis in his home growing up.  That might explain my obvious prejudice and passion for this topic.

When outward appearance matters more than inward purity, you can bet the cleansing of the vessel when it finally comes will be attended with unimaginable firepower!

May I paraphrase what Paul taught? (See the JST):

O foolish [members of the Church], who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?

This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the [“For the Strength of Youth” pamphlet], or by the hearing of faith?

Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by [teaching from some modern-day reincarnation of the law of Moses]?

[Paul then teaches that Abraham’s hopes and dreams of having posterity were fulfilled because of his faith, not the observance of the law of Moses that came 430 years later.]

. . . Is the [pamphlet] then against the promises of God? God forbid [it was conceived with the best intentions in the world to help guide the youth]; for if there had been a [pamphlet] given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by [the pamphlet without the need for anyone’s faith being exercised].

But the scripture hath concluded all under sin [because the pamphlet cannot possibly begin to list every single bad human behavior into which fallen mortal people will display, and none can live the demands of the pamphlet perfectly which is why we have a Savior], that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

But before faith came, we were kept under the [standards as set forth in the pamphlet], shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed [we relied on the pamphlet to guide our youth, and we forgot it’s really the Holy Ghost that must guide them].

Wherefore the [pamphlet] was our schoolmaster until Christ, that we might be justified by faith [so isn’t it about time to move on and truly “raise the bar” by teaching Christ’s perfection, not our own failed attempts at the perfect observance of behavioral standards?].

But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster [let’s burn the silly pamphlet and teach Christ and the need for our faith in his perfection instead].

For ye are all the children of God by faith in Jesus Christ [and as such are heirs to the promises made to Abraham through faith].

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

And if ye are Christ's then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. (JST Galatians 3:1-29, emphasis mine).

What is the true doctrine? Nephi said it best: “. . . if ye will enter in by the way [baptism], and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do. Behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and there will be no more doctrine given. . .” (2 Nephi 32:5-6, emphasis mine). I believe ALL THINGS really means ALL THINGS. A “should” from the quiet whisperings of the Holy Ghost is very different than getting “should on” by an uninspired youth leader on Sunday armed with a pamphlet.

We can only close the gap in the disconnect, I believe, by teaching and emphasizing the true doctrine of Christ. At the highest priesthood echelons in the Church there is marvelous encouragement and instruction along these lines, and I wouldn’t change a thing. But the danger now is that spiritually lazy and unconverted local leaders and members of the Church (if my premise is correct) have insisted upon the creation of a pamphlet that closely resembles “more than” the doctrine of Christ. It seems “a sandy foundation.” In this next passage, the Savior has just finished speaking to the Nephites during his first appearance among them. He has spoken about doing away with contentions over the points of his doctrine, carefully enunciating what he calls “my doctrine” in these words:

And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record of the Father, and the Father beareth record of me, and the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me.

And whoso believeth in me and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.

And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and I bear record of it from the Father; and whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

. . . And whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock; but he buildeth upon a sandy foundation, and the gates of hell stand open to receive such when the floods come and the winds beat upon them.

Therefore, go forth unto this people, and declare the words which I have spoken, unto the ends of the earth. (3 Nephi 11:32-41, emphasis mine).

Then in our dispensation the Lord again reiterated this simple idea to the Prophet Joseph:

And this I do that I may establish my gospel, that there may not be so much contention; yea, Satan doth stir up the hearts of the people to contention concerning the points of my doctrine; and in these things they do err, for they do wrest the scriptures and do not understand them.

Therefore, I will unfold unto them this great mystery;

For, behold, I will gather them as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if they will not harden their hearts;

Yea, if they will come, they may, and partake of the waters of life freely.

Behold, this is my doctrine — whosoever repenteth and cometh unto me, the same is my church.

Whosoever declareth more or less than this, the same is not of me, but is against me; therefore he is not of my church.

And now, behold, whosoever is of my church, and endureth of my church to the end, him will I establish upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them.

And now, remember the words of him who is the life and light of the world, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Amen. (D&C 10:63-70, emphasis mine).

Sometimes it seems the very gates of hell are opened wide and are prevailing against our youth. Perhaps like Alma we need to try the merits of the word of God (see Alma 31:5). President Benson, as we observed over lunch, certainly challenged the members of the Church to embrace The Book of Mormon. It isn’t like we haven’t already heard how to help the youth at least a gazillion times.

And now in October, 2022, the deliverance has finally come institutionally. Listen to these blessed words:

“The best guide you can possibly have for making choices is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the strength of youth,” taught Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in Saturday morning’s general conference session. “So the purpose of For the Strength of Youth is to point you to Him. It teaches you eternal truths of His restored gospel — truths about who you are, who He is and what you can accomplish with His strength. It teaches you how to make righteous choices based on those eternal truths.”

As Elder Uchtdorf said, “It’s also important for you to know what For the Strength of Youth does not do. It doesn’t make decisions for you. It doesn’t give you a “yes” or “no” about every choice you might ever face. For the Strength of Youth focuses on the foundation for your choices. It focuses on values, principles, and doctrine instead of every specific behavior. …

“I suppose the guide could give you long lists of clothes you shouldn’t wear, words you shouldn’t say, and movies you shouldn’t watch. But would that really be helpful in a global church? Would such an approach truly prepare you for a lifetime of Christlike living?”

The First Presidency summarized the whole matter in these words as a preface to the new revision:

Our dear young brothers and sisters,

We love you and we have confidence in you. You are truly among Heavenly Father’s choice spirits, sent to earth at this time to do important things.

There may be times when you don’t feel strong or capable. That’s normal. Especially in those moments, turn to the Savior. He is the “strength of youth.”

This guide will help you build a solid foundation for making choices to stay on the covenant path. It will help you prepare to make sacred covenants in the temple, prepare to serve a mission, and find joy in following Jesus Christ throughout your life. We hope you feel that you belong in the Savior’s Church and have power from Him to fulfill His purposes for you. (Emphasis mine).

We know God lives. It is our prayer that you will stay firmly on the covenant path that leads back to your Father in Heaven. As you do, you will be an influence for good, sharing the gospel joyfully and preparing the world for the Second Coming of the Savior.

The First Presidency

Click on the link for the full text of the pamphlet.