“5 Ways to Defend the Faith (without Causing Contention)” Liahona, 2017
5 Ways to Defend the Faith (without Causing Contention)
From an article by Elder Von G. Keetch of the Seventy
There doesn’t need to be tension between the two great gospel principles of standing up for truth while also respecting and loving others. Our strong conviction of the truth should never cause us to act in a way that is disrespectful or resentful toward others. But at the same time, our desire to show kindness and love to everyone should never undermine our duty to stand for truth.
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We will have the most success when we engage others one on one. If we allow ourselves to be limited to 140 characters online, we will often be misunderstood. Usually, much more can be accomplished one on one, face to face, as individuals come to understand each other.
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Remember that our initial goal is to understand where others are coming from. Only when we respect them as people and understand their views can we effectively communicate with others.
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Look for ways we can respect differing views and still live together in society. We must stand up for the basic civil rights of others, recognizing their right to express their opinions and speak up for what they believe in, if we are to expect others to stand up for our basic civil rights.
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Coming to understand one another is a process—one that often can take a good deal of time. Others may never accept our views, but we can strive to eliminate words like bigot and hate.
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See each other as intrinsically good and reasonable, even if we hold basic views that others may never accept.