With public religion turning increasingly toward secular values, a greater responsibility is placed on homes and churches to teach enduring values, said Elder James E. Faust at a Pioneer Day Fireside here Sunday, July 19.

Elder Faust, a member of the Council of the Twelve who spoke in the Dee Events Center at Weber State University, said: "We memorialize this weekend those valiant pioneers who settled this state and the surrounding areas. They were a people persecuted and driven out of what was then the United States because of their religious beliefs. They came here seeking to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their own conscience."Almost three centuries before, in a like manner, God-fearing believers, most notable of which were the pilgrims, left Europe with its state religions and came to this land to seek freedom of worship. As a consequence of this, the deepest taproots of this nation and state in the past have lain in the very essence of our humanity; our faith in God."

But, he said, the recent controversy in Utah and in the nation regarding the constitutionality of certain public prayers "casts a serious cloud over the reality and meaning of the sacred in society.

"There seems to be developing a new civil religion. The civil religion I refer to is a secular religion. It has no moral absolutes. It is non-denominational. It is non-theistic. It is politically focused. It is antagonistic to religion. It rejects the historic religious traditions of this nation. It feels strange. If this trend continues, non-belief will be more honored than belief."

Elder Faust said that while all beliefs must be protected, he questioned whether such beliefs as atheism, agnosticism and cynicism are more valued than Christianity or Judaism. "If so, this would, in my opinion, place this nation in great moral jeopardy."

"For those who believe in God, this new civil religion fosters some of the same concerns as the state religions that prompted our forefathers to escape to the New World.

"The long history and tradition of this nation, which had its roots in petitions for divine guidance, is being challenged," he continued. "Appeals for divine guidance, forgiveness and approbation have been part of the fabric of this nation from the beginning."

Elder Faust continued: "The new civil religion isn't really a religion as you and I would use that term to describe a faith or a church or synagogue that worships Almighty God and espouses a code of moral conduct for its adherents. This new civil religion teaches a sectarian philosophy that is hostile to traditional religion. It has its own orthodoxy."

He said that every American has been taught that freedom of religion is the first freedom guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. But, he affirmed, most Americans are unaware that two years ago this most fundamental right was substantially eroded.

"For decades, whenever government tried to pass laws that interferred with any right guaranteed under the Constitution, the law was given careful scrutiny by the courts. Government was required to show that first, it had a `compelling governmental interest' that justified the inference wtih a constitutional right, and second, that this `compelling governmental interest' could not be achieved through some other, less-intrusive means."

In a 1990 Supreme Court ruling, Elder Faust explained: "This strict scrunity and the burden on government to demonstrate a compelling interest was abandonded in cases involving the free exercise of religion. According to the court, religious exclusions to public policy is `a luxury we can no longer afford.'

"As a result, any government (federal, state or local) can now pass any law that infringes upon individual religious liberty as long as the law applies generally to everyone."

He said that civil secular religion also teaches that religious organizations should be prevented from working cooperatively with the government to bring about worthwhile public policy.

"The new civil religion is, in my opinion, coming dangerously close to becoming a de facto state religion of secularism," Elder Faust said. "Litigation - and the fear of litigation - has made school boards and local governments reluctant to publicly defend moral principles. As a consequence, fewer public institutions are willing to take the stand in defense of moral values.

"Historically in this nation," he continued, "the public religion was sacral rather than sectarian or secular. Public statements from the judicial as well as the legislative and executive branches affirmed a higher destiny for this nation under the providence of the Almighty.

"With the public religion now turning increasingly toward the secular, I wonder how this nation will preserve its enduring values, said Elder Faust. "In my view, there is a substantial governmental interest within the limits of the religious clauses of the Constitution in public prayer and expressions of all faiths which acknowledge the existence of Deity. I say this because in so doing, the transcendent principles of morality can be reached.

"Such prayer and expressions accommodate the abiding values shared by a great majority of our citizenry. It gives meaning to a transcendent spiritual reality and idealism which, in the past at least, was quite firmly held by the people of our society. The very essence of our concern for human welfare and alleviation of human suffering lies in our spiritual feelings and expressions," he declared.

"So we find ourselves in a situation where, unlike the pilgrims, the Mormon pioneers and others, there is nowhere to go to escape a new civil de facto secular state religion that continually limits public religious expression and fosters the secular values and expressions."

How do we preserve the essence of our humanity? Elder Faust asked.

"Surely we must begin in our homes. We must teach our children and grandchildren. The moral teachings of all our churches must have an honored place in our society. The general decline in the moral fabric of the citizenry places a greater responsibility on homes and churches to teach values - morality, decency, respect for others, patriotism and honoring and sustaining the law."

He said there are natural safeguards in a God-fearing people that promote respect for law and order, decency and public civility. "That restraining influence is the belief that the citizenry will be accountable to their Creator for their conduct under a higher moral law. This respect for and adherence to moral law transcends the constraints of the civil and criminal codes. In a people who are not God-fearing, however, these characteristics are notably absent."

Elder Faust said that people can also exercise their right to vote for men and women who reflect their own values, express their views in the legislative process of both the state and the nation, and to claim their rights of free expression and petition for the redress of grievances.

"We can help educate the coming generation about their rights and duties. We can educate ourselves about the important moral issues of our time. We must hold to our beliefs and do what we can, for there is no desert to flee to in order to have full freedom. There is no place across the waters for pilgrims."