Part IV | Select Quotes from Church Leaders
Category E | Perspectives
Topic 27 | Standing for and with others
One of the most important ways we can advocate for religious freedom is to stand up for the religious freedom of those not of our faith. Religious freedom must be for all people in all places. In addition to standing for others, we can promote religious freedom when we stand with others in efforts to protect this right.
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Elder Quentin L. Cook: “Just as ready to die in defending the rights of . . . a good man of any other denomination”
“Two basic principles which demonstrate the Church’s commitment to freedom of religion for all are: First, our eleventh article of faith, which declares, ‘We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.’
The second is a wonderful statement by the Prophet Joseph Smith, who passionately asserted his commitment to civil and religious liberty when he said,
'I am bold to declare before heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination; for the same principle which would trample upon the rights of the Latter-day Saints would trample upon the rights of the Roman Catholics, or of any other denomination who may be unpopular and too weak to defend themselves. It is love of liberty which inspires my soul, civil and religious liberty to the whole of the human race.'”
- Elder Quentin L. Cook, The Impact of Religious Freedom om Public Morality, University of Oxford Pembroke College Quill Project (Oct. 23, 2019), https://www.religiousfreedomlibrary.org/documents/the-impact-of-religious-freedom-on-public-morality.
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Elder Gerrit W. Gong: The best way to preserve one’s own freedom is to firmly advocate that others enjoy that same freedom.
“Both Freedom of Religion or Belief and Freedom of Expression must, of necessity, be granted to others in order to exist within and across societies. In a pluralistic society, religious as well as other viewpoints will by definition not always conform. Some individuals, groups or governments may have a tendency to restrain the freedom of belief or expression of others in order to further ones’ own viewpoints or policy objectives.
Yet perhaps the best way to preserve ones´ own freedom is to firmly advocate that others enjoy that same freedom. This is true even when religious or other viewpoints may be different than our own. Somewhat paradoxically, then, to maintain these freedoms ourselves we must defend, not the viewpoints of others, but their right to hold and express those viewpoints, even when different from our own.”
- Gerrit W. Gong, Freedom of Expression: An Inseparable Right from Religious Freedom, Second Inter-American Forum for Interreligious Dialogue and Collaboration on Religious Freedom (Apr. 28, 2022), https://www.religiousfreedomlibrary.org/documents/freedom-of-expression-an-inseparable-right-from-religious-freedom.
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Elder Ulisses Soares: Religious freedom is as much a duty toward others as it is a right for oneself.
“Religious freedom is as much a duty toward others as it is a right for oneself. If you want your religious beliefs to be protected, you must protect religious beliefs that differ from your own. This paradox lies at the heart of how a diverse society works. We gain freedom by supporting the freedom of those we deem to be our adversaries. When we see that our interests are tied to the interests of everyone else, then the real work of religious freedom begins.
Various versions of this wisdom can be found in traditions around the world. Often called the Golden Rule, the idea establishes a connection between the self and the other, between my experience and your experience. We are not all so different. Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, and Islam expressed different formulations of this same reciprocity. Perhaps most famously spoken by Jesus as ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,’ the Golden Rule has the ring of truth and applies to both personal and civic life.”
- Ulisses Soares, The Architecture of a Pluralistic Society, Religious Freedom Symposium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Mar. 23, 2022), https://www.religiousfreedomlibrary.org/documents/the-architecture-of-a-pluralistic-society.