'This needs to happen': All can improve lives
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President Gordon B. Hinckley keyed his priesthood session address on the words of the hymn "Rise Up, O Men of God" (Hymns, No. 324).
Citing the words of Lehi, "Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust" (2 Nephi 1:23), President Hinckley said: "There is not a man or boy in this vast congregation tonight who cannot improve his life. And that needs to happen. After all, we hold the priesthood of God. If we are boys who have received the Aaronic Priesthood we are entitled to the ministering of angels to guide and direct, to bless and protect us. What a remarkable and wonderful thing that is. If we have had conferred upon us the Melchizedek Priesthood, we have been given the keys of the kingdom that carry with them eternal powers. These were spoken of by the Lord when He laid His hands upon the heads of His disciples."
The Church president admonished that with the priesthood comes an obligation to be worthy of it and to not indulge in unclean thoughts or pornography or be guilty of any kind of abuse.
"Some of you young men seem to delight in dressing in a slouchy manner," he observed. "It is unbecoming young men who have been ordained to the holy priesthood of God. Our language at times matches our dress. We indulge in profanity, taking the name of the Lord in vain. God has spoken plainly against this."
Turning to another matter, President Hinckley cited statistics showing increasingly fewer men than women finishing high school or achieving college degrees.
"It is plainly evident from these statistics that young women are exceeding young men in pursuing educational programs," he said. "And so I say to you young men, Rise up and discipline yourself to take advantage of educational opportunities. Do you wish to marry a girl whose education has been far superior to your own? We speak of being 'equally yoked.' That applies, I feel, to the matter of education.
"In addition, your education will strengthen your service in the Church. A study was made some years ago that indicated that the higher the education the greater the faith and participation in religious activity."
On the matter of pornography, President Hinckley read a letter he had received from a 35-year-old man who reported being addicted to pornography for most of his adult life.
"'The main reason for my writing is to tell you that the Church can't do enough to counsel the members to avoid pornography,"' the letter writer was quoted. "'I was first introduced to this material as a child. I was molested by an older male cousin, and pornography was used to attract my interest. I am convinced that this exposure at an early age to sex and pornography is at the root of my addiction today."'
The writer went on to contradict the notion that pornography is a matter of "freedom of expression," saying, "'I have no freedom. I have lost my free agency because I have been unable to overcome this. It is a trap for me, and I can't seem to get out of it. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, plead with the brethren of the Church to not only avoid, but eliminate the sources of pornographic material in their lives."'
President Hinckley said the computer is a wonderful instrument when properly used, "but when it is used to deal with pornography, or so-called chat rooms, or for any other purpose that leads to evil practice or evil thoughts, then there must be self-discipline enough to turn it off."
Citing Doctrine and Covenants 43:11 and 93:35, relative to purging out iniquity and sanctifying oneself and to man being the "tabernacle of God," President Hinckley commented, "There is no equivocation there. The Lord has spoken plainly that we must care for our mortal body and avoid that which would do it harm.
"He has made to each of us a great promise. Said He: 'Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand and give thee answer to thy prayers' (Doctrine and Covenants 112:10) and further: 'God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost, that has not been revealed since the world was until now"' (Doctrine and Covenants 121:26).
President Hinckley added: "All of us would do well to study the life of the Master and try to emulate His word and doings. We would likewise do well to study the life of the Prophet Joseph. From his example, each of us could learn much concerning our own behavior."
