| Ezra Taft Benson: The price of peace is righteousness. Men and nations may loudly proclaim, Peace, peace, but there shall be no peace until individuals nurture in their souls those principles of personal purity, integrity, and character which foster the development of peace. Peace cannot be imposed. It must come from the lives and hearts of men. There is no other way. (Purposeful Living, Listen, A Journal of Better Living, Jan.-Mar. 1955, p. 19.) Thomas S. Monson: World peace, though a lofty goal, is but an outgrowth of the personal peace each individual seeks to attain. I speak not of the peace promoted by man, but peace as promised of God. I speak of peace in our homes, peace in our hearts, even peace in our lives. Peace after the way of man is perishable. Peace after the manner of God will prevail. (“The Path to Peace,” Ensign, May 1994, 60) Dallin H. Oaks: Opposition to war cannot ensure peace, because peace is more than the absence of war. . . . The peace the gospel brings is not just the absence of war. It is the opposite of war. Gospel peace is the opposite of any conflict, armed or unarmed. It is the opposite of national or ethnic hostilities, of civil or family strife. . . . The Savior and his Apostles had no program for world peace other than individual righteousness. . . . What can one person do to promote world peace? The answer is simple: keep God’s commandments and serve his children. (“World Peace,” Ensign, May 1990, 71) Russell M. Nelson: Peace can prevail only when that natural inclination to fight is superseded by self-determination to live on a loftier level. Coming unto Christ as the ‘Prince of Peace’ (Isa. 9:6) is the pathway to peace on earth and goodwill among men. . . . Now, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, what does the Lord expect of us? As a Church, we must “renounce war and proclaim peace.” (DC 98:16) As individuals, we should “follow after the things which make for peace.” (Romans 14:19) We should be personal peacemakers. We should live peacefully—as couples, families, and neighbors. We should live by the Golden Rule. (Matt 7:12; Luke 6:31; 3 Ne. 14:12)” (“Blessed Are the Peacemakers,” Ensign, Nov. 2002, 39) M. Russell Ballard: Peace—real peace, whole-souled to the very core of your being—comes only in and through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. When that precious truth is discovered and gospel principles are understood and applied, great peace can distill in the hearts and souls of our Heavenly Father’s children. Said the Savior through Joseph Smith, “He who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (D&C 59:23). (“The Peaceable Things of the Kingdom,” Ensign, May 2002, 87) Marvin J. Ashton: No peace, even though temporarily achieved, will be lasting unless it is built upon the solid foundation of such eternal principles as love of God, love of neighbor, love of self. Most men yearn for peace, cry for peace, pray for peace, and work for peace, but there will not be lasting peace until all mankind follow the path pointed out and walked by the living Christ. There can be no peace in sin and disobedience. If I do not have peace within me, others around me will suffer. (“Peace—A Triumph of Principles,” Ensign, Nov. 1985, 69) Joseph B. Wirthlin: The times when peace has reigned, it began in the hearts of righteous, obedient individuals and grew until it engulfed a society. We have at least two scriptural accounts of periods of absolute peace and a third that is yet to come. . . . The first of these periods of peace was among the people of Enoch, who lived before the great flood. . . . The second period of peace followed the ministry of the resurrected Jesus among the Nephites. . . . A third period of perfect peace will come during the Millennium. . . . These three instances show that peace, whether in a city, a nation, or other society, develops from peace that begins within the hearts of individuals as they live by the precepts of the gospel. (“Peace Within,” Ensign, May 1991, 36) Franklin D. Richards: Jesus Christ is called the Prince of Peace (see Isa. 9:6), and his message is a message of peace to the individual and to the world. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the plan of life that will restore peace to the world, remove inner tensions and troubles, and bring happiness to the human soul. Is the greatest philosophy of life ever given to man. (“Be a Peacemaker,” Ensign, No. 1983, 57) John H. Vandenberg: Peace cannot be achieved by making a sign or by writing words on fences. It must come first and most completely to the individual through his own efforts in keeping the commandments of our Lord and Savior, for God made all men to enjoy such peace. (“Whence Cometh Our Peace?” Ensign, July 1972, 127) David O. McKay: Peace will come and be maintained only through the triumph of the principles of peace, and by the consequent subjection of the enemies of peace, which are hatred, envy, ill-gotten gain, the exercise of unrighteous dominion of men. Yielding to these evils brings misery to the individual, unhappiness to the home, war among nations. (Gospel Ideals, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1953, p. 280.) Marion G. Romney: Why is it that our generation, with all its vaunted learning, has failed so miserably in its pursuit of peace? The only answer I can give you is that we are not willing to pay the price for it. . . . As it was with the Nephites and the people of Enoch, so it has always been and always will be; for banishing Satan by living the gospel of Jesus Christ is the price of—and the only way to—peace. God, in His infinite solicitude for the welfare of His children, charted for them this way to peace in the beginning of the world, and He has re-charted it in every dispensation since. He has just as consistently sounded warnings of disasters which follow abandonment of that course. If a single person, yielding to Satan, is filled with the works of the flesh, he wars within himself. If two yield, they each war within themselves and fight with each other. If many people yield, a society flourishes with the harvest of great stress and contention. If the rulers of a country yield, there is world-wide contention, for as the prophet Isaiah says, “the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” (Isa. 57:20-21.) (“The Price of Peace,” Ensign, Oct. 1983, 3) John A. Widtsoe: The only way to build a peaceful community is to build men and women who are lovers and makers of peace. Each individual, by that doctrine of Christ and His Church, holds in his own hands the peace of the world. That makes me responsible for the peace of the world, and makes you individually responsible for the peace of the world. The responsibility cannot be shifted to someone else. It cannot be placed upon the shoulders of Congress or Parliament, or any other organization of men with governing authority. (In Conference Report, Oct. 1943, p. 113.) |
